[CBR Downunder]

So I finally got my bike up to the 1000km mark, booked it in for its first service ( which was free, part of the deal we got here in Oz)..
I asked the service manager to replace the oil with synthetic when they do the oil change, he told me synthetic is no good for the CBR as it will glaze the bores?
I have no reason not to believe what I'm being told as I know the guys in the workshop personally just wondering if anybody heard this before?

 

[somebody5788]

So I finally got my bike up to the 1000km mark, booked it in for its first service ( which was free, part of the deal we got here in Oz)..
I asked the service manager to replace the oil with synthetic when they do the oil change, he told me synthetic is no good for the CBR as it will glaze the bores?
I have no reason not to believe what I'm being told as I know the guys in the workshop personally just wondering if anybody heard this before?

My dealer told me otherwise, they said that you just need to make sure it doesn't have any additives like most do. The cylinder bore thing is more likely that he's trying to say "If you use synthetic in the break in period it will not break in properly" That I'll buy and that's why my first oil change is the normal Honda GN4 stuff. But after my first 3500 miles I'm going to be changing it again and probably using synthetic. The other problem is that motorcycles use the oil for the transmission and clutch as well as the engine. This means there are lots of different functions the oil is performing so it needs to meet the right standards. Just read the bottles carefully and see that it meets the standards your user manual says the oil needs to meet.

 

[sendler]

I'm using Mobil 1

I changed to Mobil 1 4T 10W40 motorcycle oil at 588 miles. Not using synth during the break in is the oldschool way from when synthetic oils first hit the market that is still in vogue. Does anyone still think there is any important ongoing break in going on in a modern engine after 600 miles of normal 30 mile trips?

 

[CBR Downunder]

cool, thanks for the info guys..

 

[Aargee]

Strongly agreed with Somebody5788.

During the break-in, there're small metal shavings appear out of crankcase, shaft, conrods & all metals withing the new tranny. Unless the engine oil is heavy, has bigger molecular structures, these particles will never come out. The natural mineral oil has bigger molecular structure that does the job.

However, after break-in, the molecules should be as light as possible to avoid any further damage + to withstand high degree of heat without loosing viscosity. For this type of requirement, a fully synthetic man made oil is the best as the molecular structures are small & light.

However, if a FS is being switched over after prolonged usage of mineral or SS, its quite possible that the engine oil could seep through the rings & reach the top of the piston causing white smoke.

 

[somebody5788]

Strongly agreed with Somebody5788.

During the break-in, there're small metal shavings appear out of crankcase, shaft, conrods & all metals withing the new tranny. Unless the engine oil is heavy, has bigger molecular structures, these particles will never come out. The natural mineral oil has bigger molecular structure that does the job.

However, after break-in, the molecules should be as light as possible to avoid any further damage + to withstand high degree of heat without loosing viscosity. For this type of requirement, a fully synthetic man made oil is the best as the molecular structures are small & light.

However, if a FS is being switched over after prolonged usage of mineral or SS, its quite possible that the engine oil could seep through the rings & reach the top of the piston causing white smoke.

The oil viscosity should remain the same between oils. Synthetic doesn't offer better protection necessarily, it just stays with in oil standards for a longer period of time. This is where the protection comes from. Synthetic does typically lubricate better though and in the break in the idea is to file the edge of the piston rings down. If you use synthetic it could very well wear the hash marks off of the cylinder before the piston ring. This is also what happens if one doesn't follow instructions on the break in.

 

[riverguide]

From everything i have heard/read, you don't want to switch to synthetic too soon (ie i am inclined to leave it until at least 5000 kms/3000 miles. As it was described recently to me by my dealer, synthetic is too slippery for a new engine to actually break-in effectively. The other issue is that as long as you change the oil at reasonable intervals (every 5 or 6000 kms) and do not leave old in over the winter (in northern climates where we don't get to ride year round), regular oil should be fine. I have heard that it is only at the highest levels of racing (GP) that Honda uses synthetic oil in their engines.

 

[CAM]

I went in to the dealer in Australia where i have purchase the bike. I ask for a oil filter and a good synthetic oil to do an oil change. My bike has already done the first 1000kmssservice.

I wanted to change to full synthetic oil but was told not to because it would glaze the cylinder and not good for the clutch as well, i was told. By the way my clutch has been glazed and the noise is still there when i change the gears .It does this when the engine it cold. It goes away when the oil is warm up after 15mins of riding. (Bike has done over 2000kms).

Anyway i was told to change it to full syn when the bike has done over 12,000kms.However i did purchase a oil change kit which Honda has brought out for this bike which consist of (2 ltrs oil which honda recommended, oil filter, oil filter gasket and sum plug ) which cost $55 aust dollars. So i will change the oil between the actual service at 6000kms, and i will stick to the mineral oil for now to see if the glaze on my clutch will go away.......fingers cross...????

 

[Aufitt]

Just find the Happy medium.. use synthetic after 6000kms,
Or change more regularly than the 12,000 recomended.
12,000 is too long for non synthetic.... to long for any single but thats Hondas call.

I raced TTR's at top level enduro racing for many years and never ran synthetic in engines that were modified (flat slide carb, port work, higher compression and putting out 24hp at the wheel) to run strong all day. Just on on Castrol 4T with never a problem... not even a rebuild in 2 yrs racing. clutches and gearboxes loved it too.

 

[Redline]

Personally I'd wait until the 6000km service.

 

[Ironman2909]

Everybody's right.....you need to wait to switch to synthetic after the brake-in period. The minerals in conventional oil help the brake-in process. After that, as long as you switch to synthetic oil that fits your bike you should be alright.

I'm at 2000km. Went to the dealer for the first 1000km check. I'm waiting to get to 3000km and then I will change my oil for this one:

AMSOIL 10W-30 Motorcycle Oil (MCT)

 

[somebody5788]

Everybody's right.....you need to wait to switch to synthetic after the brake-in period. The minerals in conventional oil help the brake-in process. After that, as long as you switch to synthetic oil that fits your bike you should be alright.

I'm at 2000km. Went to the dealer for the first 1000km check. I'm waiting to get to 3000km and then I will change my oil

X2 to what he says. Synthetic is great for engine components but just don't do it till the engines broken in.

 

[pgkool]

So I finally got my bike up to the 1000km mark, booked it in for its first service ( which was free, part of the deal we got here in Oz)..
I asked the service manager to replace the oil with synthetic when they do the oil change, he told me synthetic is no good for the CBR as it will glaze the bores?
I have no reason not to believe what I'm being told as I know the guys in the workshop personally just wondering if anybody heard this before?

If you have no reason to not believe what you're told, why are you switching in the first place?

Don't switch just becuase you heard someone say somewhere on some forum its good. IMHO, if you're not sure, leave it alone. I don't seem to get the vibe that you want synthetic for a particular reason other then hype.

 

[CBR Downunder]

If you have no reason to not believe what you're told, why are you switching in the first place?

Don't switch just becuase you heard someone say somewhere on some forum its good. IMHO, if you're not sure, leave it alone. I don't seem to get the vibe that you want synthetic for a particular reason other then hype.

Not hype, synthetic is better protection for the moving parts than mineral IMO, just not in this case..

I have been around High performance bikes, cars, boats all my life and since synthetic has been on the market (and been affordable) that's all I have ever used.
So before I shelled out the hard earned cash on something that might not fit the bill I thought I'd ask the question of the guys that are trained by Honda to work on the new CBR engine, and I was told that it's no good for it, therefore the oil was replaced with the recommended mineral oil and always will be

end of story

 

[sendler]

Synthetic good

I changed to synthetic oil at the first change at 600 miles. Mobil 1 4T has all the correct formulation for wet clutches. I work for Mercedes which ship with Mobil 1 in the engines and prohibits the use mineral oil. Ever! Synthetic oil is better. There can be no denying that. Better fuel economy and better engine longevity. It is also widely reported on other forums that motorcyle shift quality is improved with synthetic. The shifting of the Honda didn't change as much but my Ninja250 shifts much better after changing to Mobil 1 4T. Fuel economy went up 2%. The only disadvantage of synthetic is the price but with only 1.5 quarts needed per oil change in a motorcycle, the price difference is insignificant. I recommend switching to Mobil 1 4T at 600 miles/ 1000Km.

 

[Mongoose]

According to the manual the "run in" period is 300 miles. My dealer put AMSoil full sythn 10w-30 motorcycle oil in at the 600 mile service. Mine now has 3000+ miles on it. Purrs like a cheetah!

 

[w0rM]

I changed to synthetic oil at the first change at 600 miles. Mobil 1 4T has all the correct formulation for wet clutches. I work for Mercedes which ship with Mobil 1 in the engines and prohibits the use mineral oil. Ever! Synthetic oil is better. There can be no denying that. Better fuel economy and better engine longevity. It is also widely reported on other forums that motorcyle shift quality is improved with synthetic. The shifting of the Honda didn't change as much but my Ninja250 shifts much better after changing to Mobil 1 4T. Fuel economy went up 2%. The only disadvantage of synthetic is the price but with only 1.5 quarts needed per oil change in a motorcycle, the price difference is insignificant. I recommend switching to Mobil 1 4T at 600 miles/ 1000Km.

You always have good advice.

 

[lenbrinke]

I changed to synthetic oil at the first change at 600 miles. Mobil 1 4T has all the correct formulation for wet clutches. I work for Mercedes which ship with Mobil 1 in the engines and prohibits the use mineral oil. Ever! Synthetic oil is better. There can be no denying that. Better fuel economy and better engine longevity. It is also widely reported on other forums that motorcyle shift quality is improved with synthetic. The shifting of the Honda didn't change as much but my Ninja250 shifts much better after changing to Mobil 1 4T. Fuel economy went up 2%. The only disadvantage of synthetic is the price but with only 1.5 quarts needed per oil change in a motorcycle, the price difference is insignificant. I recommend switching to Mobil 1 4T at 600 miles/ 1000Km.

thats what i use

 

[tollarja]

I threw in some Mobile 1 4T 10W-40 at 4425 miles and the bike runs much smoother. The engine just feels solid. It has been 1800 miles and it is still running strong. It hasn't started to feel like it needs a change. I guess all those scientific tests on motor oils I read were right about Mobile 1 maintaining viscosity longer. It is amazing.

I don't really understand why engineers do everything they can to reduce friction in an engine and then recommend an inferior lubricant. In the end it probably doesn't matter, but there is a perceptible difference between "semi" and full synthetic. Or maybe there isn't.

 

[Badger]

I changed to synthetic oil at the first change at 600 miles. Mobil 1 4T has all the correct formulation for wet clutches. I work for Mercedes which ship with Mobil 1 in the engines and prohibits the use mineral oil. Ever! Synthetic oil is better. There can be no denying that. Better fuel economy and better engine longevity. It is also widely reported on other forums that motorcyle shift quality is improved with synthetic. The shifting of the Honda didn't change as much but my Ninja250 shifts much better after changing to Mobil 1 4T. Fuel economy went up 2%. The only disadvantage of synthetic is the price but with only 1.5 quarts needed per oil change in a motorcycle, the price difference is insignificant. I recommend switching to Mobil 1 4T at 600 miles/ 1000Km.

This is getting weird Sendler! Both of us have owned CBR250Rs, both have owned first gen Insights, and now I find that both of us have worked for Mercedes Benz.

Regardless of the unusual circumstance, I must agree, your advice is always well thought out and appreciated.

regards
Badger