Clyde Posted September 10, 2005 Share Posted September 10, 2005 1) 05 12RT in Calif. @ 4000mi now. 2) Please tell me what the 30SAE, 30W40 number mean? Link to comment
Flash1034 Posted September 10, 2005 Share Posted September 10, 2005 If I understand your question correctly, the 30 in 30w-40 means the viscosity of the oil will act like a 30 weight oil when its cold and a 40 weight oil at operating temp. So a 10w-30 oil acts like 10 weight oil when cold and a 30 weight oil at operating temp and so on. Hope that helps. Flash Link to comment
Clyde Posted September 11, 2005 Author Share Posted September 11, 2005 So I should use 30W40 in California? Link to comment
Got2Greys Posted September 11, 2005 Share Posted September 11, 2005 I use 20-50 in my RT in North Carolina. We have very hot summers and mild winters here. It would all depend where you are in California. If you are in the Palm Springs area, I would go with the 20-50 oil. However, if you are in the Northern California area, I would use an oil weight designed for cooler weather. Link to comment
Buccaneer Posted September 11, 2005 Share Posted September 11, 2005 In Sunny South Africa, standard oil for bikes is 10W50. Hot and cold in the same day is easy. Link to comment
Flash1034 Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 I believe 20w-50 is the recommended fill weight. Flash Link to comment
Clyde Posted September 12, 2005 Author Share Posted September 12, 2005 >It would all depend where you are in California I live in So. Calif (Arcadia, 91007). Currently I'm camping out in Yosemite. I've ridden up and down the coast between LA and SF couple of times. Next I plan to ride to Banff, Canada, then turn around to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Any advice on oil and others things are appreciated. Oh one other question: is mixing different kinds of oil okay? Link to comment
JayW Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 I would just use the 20W-50 if I were you, which is what I use in my own R12RT. You can mix different brands of oils without too much concern, but some of the modern automotive oils are not recommended in BMW motorcycles. The R12RT placard specifies API SG oils, which can be hard to find outside of a BMW dealership. Also, I would not use synthetic oil in a newer engine - wait until the bike has about 20,000 miles on it. If you mix viscosities, they "average out" according to the relative amounts of each. For example, 2 quarts of 10W-40 and 2 quarts of 20W-50 would mix together to form 15W-45 in your bike. Jay Link to comment
Zakato Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 I asked my service guy this yesterday, and he said I should use 20W50. I live in Southern California and it does not get too cold, but it does get quite hot here. I just had my 600 mile service done and they put 20W50 in there. Link to comment
MoroCycler Posted September 12, 2005 Share Posted September 12, 2005 Read the manual, it has a table with the proper oils for each range of ambient temp. Mostly monograde (for hot weathers) mineral oil. Link to comment
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