Engine Oil Education

[SuperRat01]

Hey Yall, I am trying to get a Road Toad running that I recently purchased. I need one of you "brainy" guys to educate me on the best oil to run in the engine as well as the best oil to mix with the gas if I decide to delete the oil pump? Any help is appreciated...Linc

[hodakamax]

You'll probably get a lot of opinions on this but I use Yamalube 2R for the mix (32:1) and Mobil 1 Racing 4T 10W-40 Synthetic in the transmissions of my Hodakas, KLR-650, Yamaha XS-650 and the farm Yamaha 4 wheeler. Don't use any automotive oils particularly those marked "Energy Conserving" as they are not rated for gears and wet clutches. A 30W non-detergent will work just fine but it's hard to find. Hopes this helps.
My opinion

Max

[Zyx]

I agree that there could be as many opinions as there are members on the forum as to which brand of oil is best. But the comment about automotive oil is correct and quite important. The Hodaka used to use non-detergent 30W in the gear case. These days it is hard to find non-detergent oil of any kind. On the flip side, it is now very easy to find high end motorcycle oil intended for wet clutch applications, and two stroke oil is higher quality than it used to be. I can even find acceptable oils at the auto parts store. Just use what is rated for the application.

Yamalube has always been quality oil, and still is. 2R is a mix oil and 2S is an injector oil, but both will work either way. I don't know that there is a real difference between the two other than marketing. Honda has its own brands, and there are a number of high quality oils available at the local motorcycle shop. I have even used chain saw oil in a pinch for premix.

So go to your local motorcycle shop and browse. You will find what you need, or you can ask questions about different brands. Wet clutch compatible oil is important in the gear case, but these days easy to find. Also, 75w gear lube is about equal to 30W or 40W motor oil in consistency. They have different numbers because they are rated differently. Which is better is a matter for a good debate but we would first have to agree on what constitutes "better."