Hello everyone noob here with a noob question.

me and my girlfriend have two bikes, 2001 fatboy(15000 miles) and a 2004 sportster 1200 custom (5500miles).
we are going from NJ to Cali and back in August. I would like to upgrade to synthetic so I can make the whole trip without having to stop at the dealer for service.(waste valuable time and money)

So, I read up on the Synthetic oil on the Harley site,
Harley davidson SYN3 FAQ

"Will the use of SYN3 lengthen my service intervals?
No, we recommend that you still follow your owner's manual for the proper service schedule for your vehicle."

then they figured you would ask so they also say

"If this product is a high performance lubricant, why would my service intervals not be extended?

While SYN3 will help reduce the amount of impurities to your engine, no lubricant product can reduce fuel dilution (this happens every time you start your vehicle). As a result, the regular service schedule is recommended for optimum performance of your vehicle.
Lubricants begin to break down the moment the engine is started. The long molecular strands of the lubricant begin to be sheared between the faces of gears, pistons or other moving parts. SYN3 was tested to confirm that the lubricant provides the protection required for the engine, primary chaincase and transmission for the drain intervals specified in the Owner's Manual."



Can someone give me real world answer to my question,
can I change my regular oil on both these bikes over the Synthetic and go 8,000 miles without changing it?

I appreciate any input and thank in advance.

 

IMHO 8K is too much, I'd typically change my oil when I got to the coast and again when I got home. When your on the road a phone call ahead, you'll be in and out in no time, your scoots would like a bath anyway.
Also out here we have a chain of Jiffy Lube tpe stores call Oil Stop that do MC oil changes.

 

Yeah, when I went to sturgis last year I used one of those, but I was on regular oil.
so should I just stick to regular oil and do the oil change when we get to CA?

 

You could run synthetic that far, but I wouldn't recommend it.

If you do, don't use Syn3 HD synthetic, use Mobil One or Amsoil V-Twin oil, change the filter at about 4000, then top off the tanks with new oil of the same brand and grade.

I change all fluids every 2500 miles. Oil is cheap, bikes are expensive.

 

I agree with oldgeezer, I change my oil every 2500 miles and use amsoil v-twin. I seem to find it cheaper in the store at the time I am buying it compared to mobile. Go figure

Anyway, gas and other things do eventually get into the oil. The oil be good still but it is full of other contaminates. So waht's a few bucks to keep your babies fealing good.[&:]

 

Since it seems that HD's concern is mainly oil dilution which happens when the oil doesn't get to operating temperature, I see no reason why one would worry about going 8,000 miles on any oil, especially a cross country trip where daily mileage will be in the hundreds. I came to the HD site from a previous BMW site where a couple guys routinely had their oil analyzed after various intervals. The results were truly eye opening - I can email you the stats if anyone would like to see. However, to summarize, even after 10K, although the viscosity of the oil would become degraded slightly (20W-50 became 15W50), the acid neutralizing properties were well within safe limits along with the wear components. I think all of us (me included) throw away a lot of perfectly good oil although it is better to be safe than sorry. Most of that started when the Jiffy Lubes started pushing the "3000 mile oil change" deal on TV. Most auto manuals still go with a 6000 to 7500 mile interval. If someone does mostly short trips where the oil never really warms-up, then a more frequent change is probably a good idea. I will also use HD's oil filter since most OEM filters are of pretty good quality. Again, feel free to email me and I'll send you 2 sheets of data in MS Word format that are pretty easy to interpret.

 

Ted has a good piece of advice in his post. If you want to see the condition of your oil, and thus your engine, have a sample of the oil analyzed at 3k miles. If it looks good, do it again at 4k, and then 5k, etc. You'll get a picture of how long the oil is going to last in your bike, and also what is wearing in your engine.

If your engine is in good shape, the fuel dilution will be the biggest worry you'll have, especially using a quality synthetic, and HD's ain't the best.

Look around your area for a lab. Check with a diesel shop, or a trucking outfit that has their own shop. The better ones will send oil samples for analyses. The type analysis you need should cost in the neighborhood of 20 - 25 bucks. The cost is why it's seldom worth it to a muttersicklist 'cause we tend to change oil more often. But for an every now and then deal, it's worth it just to see what levels of metal are showing up in the oil.

Here's the lab I used to have the Mobil 1 and HD oils analyzed: http://www.butler-machinery.com/serv...upport_oil.asp

Here's another good lab: http://www.butler-machinery.com/serv...upport_oil.asp (LOL, I must've hit the wrong link!)

 

I change oil every 2500 miles, and the other fluids every 5,000 miles. I am very **** about this, and change no matter where I am. I would not even think about going 8,000 miles without an oil change. I can change the oil in about 20 minutes in a service station parking lot, and all of the fluids in less than an hour.

If you can't do it yourself, most dealers can do it in an hour or so. I have found that most will cater to people that are traveling, and get them in and out as soon as possible.

Regards,

Bill

 

And this is just my opinion.
I would not run SYN3 for 8,000 miles.
I would run Amsoil for 8,000 miles and then some.
I just changed out my Amsoil at 6,000 miles.
Do what makes you feel good, what ever that may be[8D]

 

hey guys I appreciate all of your input.

being that it is a long trip I will change my oil at 5,000 miles I am going via south through Texas and Nevada where it can get real hot. so I think changing it around 5,000 miles would not hurt. and HD dealer have a standing rule that they will put a traveling mans bike first on the lift before anyone Else's.

thanks again