OIL THREAD!!!!

[Udders]

Now, does oil "go off"? I've got a gallon of SAE 80W 90 oil which has been sitting on a shelf in my garage for about 3 years. It's GL4 and not GL5 so what's the difference there to start with? I bought it to use in my land rover diffs and box. Will it be ok to use on my 1150's final drive and gearbox? Cheers.

 

[Pekkavee]

NO, it's not OK to use it in R1150.
It has to be GL 5

Pekka

 

[kostas_patra]

use it,

as a gift to someone else


if you can't find anywhere in the whole world a bottle of gear oil, with the specifications about your bike, keep it for yourself, but in your shoes, i would try the option above

it's all about additives and according to what i have read they are not compatible

 

[Steptoe]

Now, does oil "go off"? I've got a gallon of SAE 80W 90 oil which has been sitting on a shelf in my garage for about 3 years.

Are you serious ....The oil is millions of years old before it ever sat on your shelf .


Anyway, it's GL5 for the GS.

 

[Udders]

You could say the same about water but then they put different chemicals / additives etc and a plastic container around it and all of a sudden there's a use by date on it! That's why I asked and therefore not such a daft question is it! Anyway, I won't be using it in my beemer cos it's not the right stuff, but what does the GL4 /GL5 etc mean?

 

[ELIMINATOR]

http://www.lubrizol.com/DrivelineAdditives/AutomotiveGearOil/GL5.html

 

[Engineer]

Now, does oil "go off"? I've got a gallon of SAE 80W 90 oil which has been sitting on a shelf in my garage for about 3 years. It's GL4 and not GL5 so what's the difference there to start with? I bought it to use in my land rover diffs and box. Will it be ok to use on my 1150's final drive and gearbox? Cheers.

The manufacturers specify a shelf life - eventually the additives might settle out or degrade, but it will probably be ok for years, just that the manufacturers cant guarantee it. I asked them the same question ages ago and they comfirmed my assessment.

 

[Deleted account W]

Are you serious ....The oil is millions of years old before it ever sat on your shelf .
.

It's pointless putting so called new oil in your engine. In real terms, and we're talking millions of years here, it's not really any newer than the old stuff you drain out

 

[Grizzly]

Anti-Foaming

I understand the main difference between GL4 & GL5 is that GL5 hs an anyi-foaming additive in it.

Cheers...............Grizzly

 

[Pekkavee]

I understand the main difference between GL4 & GL5 is that GL5 hs an anyi-foaming additive in it.

Cheers...............Grizzly

And GL5 is for high speed gear boxes.
The input shaft in R1150 gearbox rotates with the same rpm as the crankshaft.
This is not the case with many other gearboxes.

Pekka

 

[Steptoe]

The manufacturers specify a shelf life - .

Well what a surprise. Would you expect anything else.

Just give the bottle a shake every year.

And congratulate yourself that the new oil you've just bought to replace your old out of date oil is the same age.

 

[Steptoe]

I understand the main difference between GL4 & GL5 is that GL5 hs an anyi-foaming additive in it.

Cheers...............Grizzly

GL 4 has an additive that can cause problems with certain metals ( phosphor bronze) used in BMW gearboxes.

 

[Udders]

Thank you all chaps. Sorted now.

 

[Steptoe]

You could say the same about water but then they put different chemicals / additives etc and a plastic container around it and all of a sudden there's a use by date on it! That's why I asked and therefore not such a daft question is it!

Unless you intend drinking it i don't think the same rules apply to oil.

 

[Littledumptruck]

And GL5 is for high speed gear boxes.
The input shaft in R1150 gearbox rotates with the same rpm as the crankshaft.
This is not the case with many other gearboxes.

Pekka

Err... apart from a harley I can't think of a gearbox that doesn't. We are talking bikes here aren't we ?

 

[ELIMINATOR]

My Divvy 900 handbook specifies GL4 but says that GL5 is ok.But, as others have said, not the other way round.

 

[sproggy]

Err... apart from a harley I can't think of a gearbox that doesn't. We are talking bikes here aren't we ?

I thought that at first but most 'conventional' bikes with a transverse crankshaft transfer drive from the crank to the gearbox by gear(s) and probably step down the speed in the process.

 

[Engineer]

Well what a surprise. Would you expect anything else.

Just give the bottle a shake every year.

And congratulate yourself that the new oil you've just bought to replace your old out of date oil is the same age.

If you have ever studied chemistry you will know that all materials react with one another, it is just a matter of how quickly - materials do change their characteristics over time.

I don't know the detailed chemistry of the oil - and I doubt that you do either unless you are an industrial chemist working in this field - are you? - so how can you 'know' that modern oils do not have a shelf life - I prefer real understanding to assumption

If the oil is only a couple of years over it's shelf life (not sell by date) then it may well be fine - but you cannot guarantee that it will be as good as it was when it was manufactured. It only costs a few quid so why risk it unless you know for certain - doesn't make sense.

 

[Trullion]

Most bike clutches (and hence gearbox input shafts) are geared down. Engine-speed clutches are mostly found on bikes having transverse engines such as BMW and Moto-Guzzi; these are in a minority.

 

[King Rat]

So, looking at the automotice oil link that was provided towards the start (Eliminator?) do I understand that MT-1 oil is better for the gearbox than GL5, because it is kinder on the oil seals as well as providing the necessary slipperiness and all the other things GL5 oil has to do?

Would it be worth the investment in MT1 oil?
To my mind, oil is very cheap......so I change it often.

Having to take things apart and replace worn items is VERY expensive. I do anything possible to avoid this scenario. It makes my hands dirty, it takes up perfectly good fishing or shooting time and interfers with my normal well being. I would rather pay twice as much for good oil and know all is well than save a couple of quid and have to replace bearings etc.....I know, its just me and the way I am. I like things to be reliable and last for, oooh at least 10 generations. Then I think I have had my monies worth.