www.boxertrix.com

Just a quick thumbs-up for the above. In the last week or so I've done close to 2000 miles on my R11S and the oil has barely dropped. From almost at the top of the sight glass to just below the middle in that time. Highly recommended.

Nik

Believe that's the recommended muck. I've still got about 15ltrs of it

Mike

I take it that you can use standard car oil in the R1100? , just that i've got about 10 litres of motul 5100 in the cupboard, but i'll save that for one of the other bikes.
also what's the best gearbox and diff oil?

roadburner wrote:I take it that you can use standard car oil in the R1100? , just that i've got about 10 litres of motul 5100 in the cupboard, but i'll save that for one of the other bikes.
also what's the best gearbox and diff oil?

No, this is a bike-specific oil purchased (in my case) from James Sherlock.

G/box and diff can probably use something more generic I guess.

roadburner wrote:I take it that you can use standard car oil in the R1100? , just that i've got about 10 litres of motul 5100 in the cupboard, but i'll save that for one of the other bikes.
also what's the best gearbox and diff oil?

I certainly wouldent dream of doing so. Our boxers are oil/air cooled and can run extremely hot which is why they specify 20/50, dunno any cars that use 20/50.

eyore wrote:

roadburner wrote:I take it that you can use standard car oil in the R1100? , just that i've got about 10 litres of motul 5100 in the cupboard, but i'll save that for one of the other bikes.
also what's the best gearbox and diff oil?

I certainly wouldent dream of doing so. Our boxers are oil/air cooled and can run extremely hot which is why they specify 20/50, dunno any cars that use 20/50.

Quite a few older cars (60s, 70s) used to use 20w50.

BMW recommend a range of oil weights, depending on ambient temperature. Just as long as you make sure the classification meets BMW spec all should be ok.

Personally I have always used the BMW recommended Castrol 20w/50 oil, though I notice Castrol have changed from mineral to semi synth recently.

I am a low mileage rider these days, so I service annually rather than by mileage. It does not seem worth the risk trying to save a few quid on oil for what might amount to £20 per year.

i take it then, that it certainly won't do any harm to use bike specific oil in it?

Does any one run 15W50 to aide cold starting?

I've spotted this on fleebay. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251998881111? ... EBIDX%3AIT

Same price as the 20w50 but was wondering if anyone uses different weights?

Multigrade oils has got more meaning to it regarding temperature and viscosity than cold starting. The oil recommendation has changed from 10W40 to 20W50 over the years. If the temperature range is what you operate the bike in then it is suitable provided in case of a warranty claim the manufacturer specifications/service intervals as a minimum was adhered to. In the manual it states the acceptable oil grades for use in different environments.

For the gearbox and final drive the exact specifications needs to be followed. The oil might be expensive but any lesser grade would see you rebuilding the final drive sooner rather than later.

I had always used 20w50 mineral but in an effort to rationalise oil stocks (more than one bike) I've recently started using 10w40 fully synthetic. Time will tell I guess but currently , engine is quieter hot and cold .

The key thing with picking oil is the grade (of protection) it provides.

Our boxer engines are mainly oil-cooled and being simple don't really benefit in normal use from fully synthetic, nor does the viscosity matter that much. Decent oil with the right code letters (I think its SF or SG?) will do.
My S engine has done 110,000 hard miles and by experiment I have found it runs smoothly and quietly on Comma 10-40 semi-synth oil that isn't expensive.

The BCR race series teams used costly full synthetic in less than half the usual volume to keep the engines going with least pumping and splashing resistance...but resale value of the bike was not a key feature, was it?

Gearboxes and bevel final drives need GL5 grade, don't make do with GL4; again viscosity is not terribly important.

Remember viscosity changes quickly with temperature...get off after a brisk ride and feel the gearbox with a bare hand!

So 10W40 works well in them? I thought the old bilge pump would like a heavy old grade to fill the gaps
My RSV mille ran noticeably quieter on 15w50 and it was recomended over 10w40.