Engine/Gearbox/Differential Oils/Brake Fluids/Coolants
Posted: Wed Jul 01, 2009 12:11 pm
Hi all,
I'm reaching the end of my running in period (finally!) and its time to do my first engine oil change from mineral to synthetic.
Kah Motor uses the standard Shell Helix Ultra, but I'm thinking of using my own engine oil. Any recommendations as to which engine oil I should use? Apart from viscosity, are there any differences between the leading brands?
Also, I've cut and pasted one of J-AP2's posts on this topic which I think should be stickied:
"Hi J,
I have a question which sounds silly.
For the gear fluid, rear diff oil & the engine oil, is there only a certain type of oil you use and are they a different type of oil? Which oil do you use? Do you buy the oil prior to servicing? Where can I buy them?
Well there are different oils that everyone uses. The original engine oil is of viscosity 10w-30, which is fine fer newer cars and if u dun track. The first number, which is cold viscosity, isn't that important in our climate. Pay more attention to the latter figure, which is hot viscosity. If u bring the car to track, pls switch to a 40, e.g. 10w-40 or 5w-40 etc. Sepang can get very hot, and too low a viscosity will break down faster due to the hot temps, robbing the oil of its lubricative properties. Orginal gearbox oil is Honda MTF, not too sure about its viscosity, I think it's 75w-85 or something. 75w-90 is the most common aftermarket gearbox oil viscocity used. Not too sure wot rating the oem diff oil is, but I would change it out as some guys in the US have done UOA on the stock diff oil if I remember correctly and results weren't very positive. On top of that, our rear really runs hot so using a 140 will be better when it heats up. 75w-140 is the common aftermarket viscosity used for our rear diff.
There are too many engine oils to list out but below are a few examples.
Mobil 1 0w-40 (Available at many workshops/petrol kiosk)
Amsoil 5w-30 (Not too sure who carries it, may have to order?)
Elf Excellium 5w-40 (Available @ a few workshops,I only know Uber carries it)
Motul 300V 5w-40 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc etc)
Roar RS 5w-40 (U can get it directly thru me if u want)
Shell Helix Ultra 5w-40 (Available at many workshops/petrol kiosk)
Royal Purple 5w-40 (Think LTM has it? Not too sure, may have to order)
The oils above were all ok except fer Shell Helix Ultra, I didn't like it at all. Personally I've been on the 300V fer the last few years. Currently my s2k is running on Roar RS. There is a thread on page 2 or somewhere on it.
Gearbox Oils
HKS Super Synthetic 75w-90 (Garage-R)
Motul Gear 300 75w-90 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc)
There are many other gearbox oils around but the above 2 are wot I have used on the s2k. I prefer the Motul Gear 300 over the HKS, it generally gives better shift feel, both hot and cold. There are a couple of gear oils that I want to try but I've had problems getting them in the past and still haven't gotten them yet. Tried a GB before fer it and the GB failed.
Diff Oils
HKS Super Synthetic 75w-140 (Garage-R)
Motul Gear Competition 75w-140 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc)
Similarly, these are the 2 I've used before and I prefer the Motul once again.
With regards to the fat PCX honda filter, do you buy them first or would the workshop definately have these in stock?
Many workshops might not have stock all the time, u could order a batch of them and keep stock. I think if u did a GB fer these, people will place orders too.
Note: Get an oil filter stopper done on yer ride. It doesn't cost much and goes a long way in terms of preventive action. A couple or more s2ks have blown their engines because of the oil filter coming loose on track.
I had mine done at Uber Garage and quite a few others have done the same as well.
Also, for the brake fluids, coolent & brake pads, just to check with you, is there a certain type of brake fluid and coolent to use? Should I buy my own prior to servicing? For the brands of the coolent & brake pads (for the 6 spot ones) which do you recommend?
Honda uses their OEM DOT3 brake fluid fer both brakes and clutch fluid in our rides. Coolant I would presume it's Honda OEM as well. I used to have a rather detailed brake fluid thread somewhere but I think it's gone.
U can change out the OEM DOT3 brake fluid, which has a rather low dry/wet boiling point to any of the following below:
Castrol SRF (Note: this is quite exp, it has the highest wet boiling point.)
Brembo LCF600 (Driven Performance and other shops)
Motul RBF 600 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc etc)
Wedsport REV fluid (Garage-R)
AP Racing Super 600 (Not sure but there should be a few shops carrying it)
Project Mu G-Four (Stanford tires?)
HKS Super Brake Fluid (Garage-R)
All the brake fluids I listed above are above dot5.1 specs with high wet/dry boiling points. The RBF600 is a good choice to start with. I've used RBF600 many times and it does its job well. Currently I'm using the Wedsport REV, which is working great as well.
Dry Boiling Point Wet Boiling Point
DOT 3 401ºF 284º F
DOT 4 446º F 311º F
DOT 5 500º F 356º F
DOT 5.1 518º F 375º F
Above are minimum spec requirements to meet in terms of boiling point fer a brake fluid to be DOT classified.
WET BOILING POINT
The minimum temperatures that brake fluids will begin to boil when the brake system contains 3% water by volume of the system.
DRY BOILING POINT
The temperatures that brake fluid will boil with no water present in the system "
I'm reaching the end of my running in period (finally!) and its time to do my first engine oil change from mineral to synthetic.
Kah Motor uses the standard Shell Helix Ultra, but I'm thinking of using my own engine oil. Any recommendations as to which engine oil I should use? Apart from viscosity, are there any differences between the leading brands?
Also, I've cut and pasted one of J-AP2's posts on this topic which I think should be stickied:
"Hi J,
I have a question which sounds silly.
For the gear fluid, rear diff oil & the engine oil, is there only a certain type of oil you use and are they a different type of oil? Which oil do you use? Do you buy the oil prior to servicing? Where can I buy them?
Well there are different oils that everyone uses. The original engine oil is of viscosity 10w-30, which is fine fer newer cars and if u dun track. The first number, which is cold viscosity, isn't that important in our climate. Pay more attention to the latter figure, which is hot viscosity. If u bring the car to track, pls switch to a 40, e.g. 10w-40 or 5w-40 etc. Sepang can get very hot, and too low a viscosity will break down faster due to the hot temps, robbing the oil of its lubricative properties. Orginal gearbox oil is Honda MTF, not too sure about its viscosity, I think it's 75w-85 or something. 75w-90 is the most common aftermarket gearbox oil viscocity used. Not too sure wot rating the oem diff oil is, but I would change it out as some guys in the US have done UOA on the stock diff oil if I remember correctly and results weren't very positive. On top of that, our rear really runs hot so using a 140 will be better when it heats up. 75w-140 is the common aftermarket viscosity used for our rear diff.
There are too many engine oils to list out but below are a few examples.
Mobil 1 0w-40 (Available at many workshops/petrol kiosk)
Amsoil 5w-30 (Not too sure who carries it, may have to order?)
Elf Excellium 5w-40 (Available @ a few workshops,I only know Uber carries it)
Motul 300V 5w-40 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc etc)
Roar RS 5w-40 (U can get it directly thru me if u want)
Shell Helix Ultra 5w-40 (Available at many workshops/petrol kiosk)
Royal Purple 5w-40 (Think LTM has it? Not too sure, may have to order)
The oils above were all ok except fer Shell Helix Ultra, I didn't like it at all. Personally I've been on the 300V fer the last few years. Currently my s2k is running on Roar RS. There is a thread on page 2 or somewhere on it.
Gearbox Oils
HKS Super Synthetic 75w-90 (Garage-R)
Motul Gear 300 75w-90 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc)
There are many other gearbox oils around but the above 2 are wot I have used on the s2k. I prefer the Motul Gear 300 over the HKS, it generally gives better shift feel, both hot and cold. There are a couple of gear oils that I want to try but I've had problems getting them in the past and still haven't gotten them yet. Tried a GB before fer it and the GB failed.
Diff Oils
HKS Super Synthetic 75w-140 (Garage-R)
Motul Gear Competition 75w-140 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc)
Similarly, these are the 2 I've used before and I prefer the Motul once again.
With regards to the fat PCX honda filter, do you buy them first or would the workshop definately have these in stock?
Many workshops might not have stock all the time, u could order a batch of them and keep stock. I think if u did a GB fer these, people will place orders too.
Note: Get an oil filter stopper done on yer ride. It doesn't cost much and goes a long way in terms of preventive action. A couple or more s2ks have blown their engines because of the oil filter coming loose on track.
I had mine done at Uber Garage and quite a few others have done the same as well.
Also, for the brake fluids, coolent & brake pads, just to check with you, is there a certain type of brake fluid and coolent to use? Should I buy my own prior to servicing? For the brands of the coolent & brake pads (for the 6 spot ones) which do you recommend?
Honda uses their OEM DOT3 brake fluid fer both brakes and clutch fluid in our rides. Coolant I would presume it's Honda OEM as well. I used to have a rather detailed brake fluid thread somewhere but I think it's gone.
U can change out the OEM DOT3 brake fluid, which has a rather low dry/wet boiling point to any of the following below:
Castrol SRF (Note: this is quite exp, it has the highest wet boiling point.)
Brembo LCF600 (Driven Performance and other shops)
Motul RBF 600 (Maximus Racing, Uber Garage, BMS etc etc)
Wedsport REV fluid (Garage-R)
AP Racing Super 600 (Not sure but there should be a few shops carrying it)
Project Mu G-Four (Stanford tires?)
HKS Super Brake Fluid (Garage-R)
All the brake fluids I listed above are above dot5.1 specs with high wet/dry boiling points. The RBF600 is a good choice to start with. I've used RBF600 many times and it does its job well. Currently I'm using the Wedsport REV, which is working great as well.
Dry Boiling Point Wet Boiling Point
DOT 3 401ºF 284º F
DOT 4 446º F 311º F
DOT 5 500º F 356º F
DOT 5.1 518º F 375º F
Above are minimum spec requirements to meet in terms of boiling point fer a brake fluid to be DOT classified.
WET BOILING POINT
The minimum temperatures that brake fluids will begin to boil when the brake system contains 3% water by volume of the system.
DRY BOILING POINT
The temperatures that brake fluid will boil with no water present in the system "