Honda GN4 Oil And Shift Quality?

core-aggie said:
OUCH !! 50w oil? Not a good idea :)
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Take a gander at your owners manual... page 100 (my 2005 anyway). Tell me what those oil viscosities are vs temps?

May have been 15w50? :nuts:

All been talked about years ago...

Viscosity Question - ST1300 | ST1300 Related

I see that some here are using 15W-50 or 20W-50 oil in their ST's. My manual says that 10W40 should be as high as it gets. I noticed that my XR650L also requires 10W-40, but previous in years the manual stated that 20W-50 was fine. Honda at some point decided the heavier oil hurt their...
www.st-owners.com www.st-owners.com
 
A multi-viscosity oil actually just varies less with temperature changes. For example, a 10W-40 oil has the viscosity of a straight 10-weight oil at 0 deg. C, and that of a straight 40-weight oil at 100 deg. C.

Thus it flows easily like a thin oil when cold for better lubrication at start-up, yet doesn't thin out as much as a straight-weight oil would for better protection as the engine reaches operating temperatures.
 
sherob said:
Take a gander at your owners manual... page 100 (my 2005 anyway). Tell me what those oil viscosities are vs temps?

May have been 15w50? :nuts:

All been talked about years ago...

Viscosity Question - ST1300 | ST1300 Related

I see that some here are using 15W-50 or 20W-50 oil in their ST's. My manual says that 10W40 should be as high as it gets. I noticed that my XR650L also requires 10W-40, but previous in years the manual stated that 20W-50 was fine. Honda at some point decided the heavier oil hurt their...
www.st-owners.com www.st-owners.com
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Use whatever lubricants that work best for you but yes the owners manuals of that time had 15w40, 15w50, even 20w50 but the same bikes a few years later had just 10w30 and 10w40 in the graphs. The engines didn’t change but Honda had shifted away from recommendations steeped in an earlier air cooled era.
 
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dduelin said:
Yes the owners manuals of that time had 15w40, 15w50, even 20w50 but the same bikes a few years later had just 10w30 and 10w40 in the graphs. The engines didn’t change but Honda had shifted away from recommendations steeped in an earlier air cooled era.
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ST1300 owners manuals?
 
ASPC said:
So Honda says I now need HPS4 10W30 for my 2007.
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They don't state that it is needed, it is a recommendation. Their most recent recommendation is a fully synthetic 10W30 for post 2006 model year ST1300's. HP4S is their fully synthetic, so naturally that is what they recommend.
dduelin said:
The assumption that the only 10w30 Honda oil available is synthetic HP4S is incorrect. GN4 is available in 10w30 and 10w40.
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I made no such assumption or statement Dave. I stated that Honda recommends HP4S 10W30 oil for post 2006 model years. Because they no longer recommend oil that is not fully synthetic for these model years, I didn't mention the GN4 with regard to them.
RobbieAG said:
Does anyone see any reason not to run GN4 10w-30 in 2003 - 2006 bikes if it will help it run cooler?
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I can not, but I do not know what Honda knows that led to these recommendations.
All I can do is pass on that Honda recommends that 10W40 be used when using GN4 on pre 2007 model years.
 

M1 15w-50 EP; '05 HONDA ST1300; 6254 MILES

“Here are the results from my west coast trip. I shipped the bike one way from NYC to SFO and rode back east. Temps ranged from 30deg in Yosemite to 105deg near Red Bluff CA. I beat the p*iss out of the bike on this trip, mostly secondary twisty roads, fairly high RPM's, lower speed stuff. Includes hours of 85deg, 100 mph blasting across the praries of Montana/N. Dakota and high speed 85-95 mph Interstate in MI, Ontario and NY. Bike currently has about 25000 miles total, this trip on the M1 15w-50EP was 6240 miles. Considering the use, I think the oil stood up very well, considering the tranny shear and fairly high temperatures. Previously was running Rotella 15W-40@3000mi intervals. No make-up oil was added. Drew ..........SAMPLE...UNIT ..........6254MI...AVERAGES ALUMINUM.....7.....6 CHROMIUM.....0......0 IRON.........18.....17 COPPER.......4......3 LEAD.........1......1 TIN..........1......0 MOLYBDENUM...72.....46 NICKEL.......0......0 MANGANESE....0......0 SILVER.......0......0 TITANIUM.....0......0 POTASSIUM....2......1 BORON........60.....68 SILICON......10.....9 SODIUM.......7......7 CALCIUM......2355...2643 MAGNESIUM....12.....12 PHOSPHORUS...942....1026 ZINC.........1126...1213 BARIUM.......0......0 SUS VISCOSITY SHOULD BE: 79-92 AS TESTED: 64.9 FLASHPOINT: 385 FUEL: TRACE”
 
ASPC said:

M1 15w-50 EP; '05 HONDA ST1300; 6254 MILES

“Here are the results from my west coast trip. I shipped the bike one way from NYC to SFO and rode back east. Temps ranged from 30deg in Yosemite to 105deg near Red Bluff CA. I beat the p*iss out of the bike on this trip, mostly secondary twisty roads, fairly high RPM's, lower speed stuff. Includes hours of 85deg, 100 mph blasting across the praries of Montana/N. Dakota and high speed 85-95 mph Interstate in MI, Ontario and NY. Bike currently has about 25000 miles total, this trip on the M1 15w-50EP was 6240 miles. Considering the use, I think the oil stood up very well, considering the tranny shear and fairly high temperatures. Previously was running Rotella 15W-40@3000mi intervals. No make-up oil was added. Drew ..........SAMPLE...UNIT ..........6254MI...AVERAGES ALUMINUM.....7.....6 CHROMIUM.....0......0 IRON.........18.....17 COPPER.......4......3 LEAD.........1......1 TIN..........1......0 MOLYBDENUM...72.....46 NICKEL.......0......0 MANGANESE....0......0 SILVER.......0......0 TITANIUM.....0......0 POTASSIUM....2......1 BORON........60.....68 SILICON......10.....9 SODIUM.......7......7 CALCIUM......2355...2643 MAGNESIUM....12.....12 PHOSPHORUS...942....1026 ZINC.........1126...1213 BARIUM.......0......0 SUS VISCOSITY SHOULD BE: 79-92 AS TESTED: 64.9 FLASHPOINT: 385 FUEL: TRACE”
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Igofar said:
My guess would be EPA and squeezing the most MPG out of the bike.
But it is a known fact that thinner oil (at operating temperatures) moves heat faster than thicker grade oil.
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With regard to the ST1300, I don't think that the EPA has any bearing on this recommendation. When the ST1300 was certified for sale in the US, I don't think that the EPA had jurisdiction over motorcycles. Even if they did, this recommendation came out many years later. I don't think that EPA requirements are backwards enforceable.
 
This not about GN4 but it is interesting and applies to Mobil 1. It shows energy conserving is a fuel saving requirement.

“O.K., I got a reply from Mobil/Exxon and the 15W-50 silver cap is not energy conserving. Here is the email: Louis, This is a typo, the 40 and 50 weight motor oils cannot meet the energy conserving requirement as their viscosity alone will not allow them to meet the stringent fuel economy requirements. -- Thank you for choosing ExxonMobil products. If you need further assistance, please contact ExxonMobil at 1-800-ASK-MOBIL -Matt Jacob”
 
Should have asked him what his thoughts were on using it in your motorcycle:rofl1:
Quick email him back and ask him.
 
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Igofar said:
Should have asked her what her thoughts were on using it in your motorcycle:rofl1:
Quick email her back and ask her…..
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Matt is a guy. It also answers your question about Mobil 1 5W40 being energy conserving or not. According to this information it can not be. And it is interesting to note that the Mobil 1 10W30 says it is on the container and the 5W40 and 15W50 do not.
 
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Andrew Shadow said:
With regard to the ST1300, I don't think that the EPA has any bearing on this recommendation. When the ST1300 was certified for sale in the US, I don't think that the EPA had jurisdiction over motorcycles. Even if they did, this recommendation came out many years later. I don't think that EPA requirements are backwards enforceable.
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Yes I agree. In vehicles the EPA maintains jurisdiction over federal emissions standards and has nothing to do with fuel economy codified by Federal Corporate Fuel Average Fuel Economy standards. CAFE is in the jurisdiction of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. USA CAFE standards have never applied to motorcycles.

The shift to GN4 10w30 as the across the board recommendation for liquid cooled motorcycle and ATV engines came out of an early 2000's study commissioned by the Honda Motor Co and undertaken by Idemitsu Kosan who is Honda's oldest trading partner of some 70 plus years. Idemitsu is Japan's second largest oil producer. For a year or two street bike owners manuals may have recommended 10w30 HP4S synthetic but it's been GN4 10w30 for at least 10 years.
 
dduelin said:
Yes I agree. In vehicles the EPA maintains jurisdiction over federal emissions standards and has nothing to do with fuel economy codified by Federal Corporate Fuel Average Fuel Economy standards. CAFE is in the jurisdiction of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. USA CAFE standards have never applied to motorcycles.

The shift to GN4 10w30 as the across the board recommendation for liquid cooled motorcycle and ATV engines came out of an early 2000's study commissioned by the Honda Motor Co and undertaken by Idemitsu Kosan who is Honda's oldest trading partner of some 70 plus years. Idemitsu is Japan's second largest oil producer. For a year or two street bike owners manuals may have recommended 10w30 HP4S synthetic but it's been GN4 10w30 for at least 10 years.
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Of course Idemitsu Kosan is an oil company.
 
ASPC said:
Of course Idemitsu Kosan is an oil company.
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They make many grades and types of oil and the summary was not to use more or exclusively Idemitsu oil but in Honda's thermostat regulated liquid cooled engines 10w30 ran the coolest temperatures in bearings, camshaft bushings, and on piston skirts due to reduced internal friction. Secondarily the white paper determined that it was safe to extend oil change intervals to 8000 miles in certain engines which now includes most Honda street bikes.
 
dduelin said:
They make many grades and types of oil and the summary was not to use more or exclusively Idemitsu oil but in Honda's thermostat regulated liquid cooled engines 10w30 ran the coolest temperatures in bearings, camshaft bushings, and on piston skirts due to reduced internal friction. Secondarily the white paper determined that it was safe to extend oil change intervals to 8000 miles in certain engines which now includes most Honda street bikes.
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That is interesting isn’t it.
 
ASPC said:
Matt is a guy. It also answers your question about Mobil 1 5W40 being energy conserving or not. According to this information it can not be. And it is interesting to note that the Mobil 1 10W30 says it is on the container and the 5W40 and 15W50 do not.
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It may not be energy conserving, but still could be energy resourcing.
 
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