Why can’t I put cheap as chips car oil in my superbike?
The answer is of course – you can!
I think you will find that cheap car oil will pour into the little hole in the engine as easily as the dearest synthetic motorcycle oil!
But, should you?
Just because you can do a thing, does not mean that you should do it!!
The truth is don’t do it!
What people don’t realise is that nobody checks that the label on a bottle of oil is correct.
The oil industry is largely self certified and, surprise surprise, some blenders/fillers/retailers take advantage of this and stretch the truth (ALOT!) on the label.
They write semi synthetic API SM and such like on the label and then put recycled base oil with some cheapo, if any, additive pack into it.
These oils may meet some basic spec when poured in, but, once treated with motorcycle engine loads, wet clutches and sump temperatures it soon cooks down to a black sludge that does nothing but damage to your engine.
This practice is very common in the world of motor oil but, thankfully, much less common in bike world which has a smaller market and mostly more knowledgeable/caring customers.
The next installment will explain why a bike specific oil is a good idea………..
Source: If we told you he’d have to kill us!
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