Oil Goes Bad?

[Kat-A-Tonic]

Hi All,

I bought some decent oil for a very good price but I am wonder does oil go "bad" in the functional sense. It's my understanding that it doesn't go bad anytime soon. However, nobody I spoke to can confirm this so I though I would throw it out to you folks. I don't want to put oil into the bike if there is some unwritten "expiry" on the stuff.

Thanks in advance.

[WildKat]

What kind of oil did you buy ?

[Kat-A-Tonic]

I bought 4 litres of ELF Moto 4HP ECO 10W40 semi-synthetic motorcycle oil.

[tzortn]

Here is the srpsonse that I received from Castrol when I asked about thier oils shelf life.

"There is no shelf life for Castrol Motorcycle Oil, however we would suggest that for maximum protection and performance, the product be used within 5 years of the date of manufacture. Regardless of the storage conditions, moisture can get into the product via osmosis through the plastic."

I would assume that the response from any manufacturer would be similar.

[Kat-A-Tonic]

Good enough for me. Thanks!

[rwcreigh]

tzortn good info.i heard the same thing

[AkBigN]

So this leads me to ask the question. Going off the ever so common 3 month 3,000 mile benchmark (if you don't use this no comment is needed) Would the oil still need to be changed every three months if you only drive it, say 1,000 miles?

[md86]

Riding the bike causes acids to build up in the oil . Even when you DON"T ride the thing , those acids will still be there . Even if you change it and start it ONCE for a few minutes .

[The CyberPoet]

Would the oil still need to be changed every three months if you only drive it, say 1,000 miles?

The 6 month/3500 mile rule for the Katanas (at least according to the 98+ owner's manuals) is there to help make sure you don't push the oil past it's capabilities.

There are a lot of factors that figure into that calculation of 6 months:
(A) How good is the oil in terms of stabilizers & additives: how good is it against oxidation of the oil, how low is the sulfated ash content, how high is the boron & calcium contents, how clean is the oil at this point (is the bike in perfect running order or is it blowing stuff past the rings), etc. All these things factor into how fast the oil breaks down when not in use...
(B) What's the weather, humidity and condensation levels like? In a desert, there is far less water in any form to mix with the oil and create sulfuric acids (although some still does form from the by-products of combustion)... Some place where you see run-off quantities of condensation nightly, it's a major issue. Ditto if the bike is seeing 120 degrees (F) days while being ridden (or running hot in general).
(C) What's the duty cycle like? Is it that those 1000 miles are 12 miles a day, every day, or is it a few hundred miles once every few weeks? The more often the oil gets up to full operating temp (hot enough to boil off water content), the less likely there is to be an issue. Personally, I'd rather have a bike that sees 100 mile days four days a week than one that sees 100 miles once a month, if I'm shopping for a Kat...


Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet