The CB1100 Community Forum

For Texas heat, 15W40 might make more sense than 10W30. Certainly many lower revving big bore V-twins use it.

Keep in mind with multigrades, a 5W40 and 15W40 are supposed to behave like a "40" when the engine is hot. The "5W" provides improved cold weather start-up protection when needed, especially compared to a "15W". Example: Useful during northern region cold season riding.

(07-27-2022, 07:01 PM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2022, 10:38 PM)redbirds_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2022, 02:34 AM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]I contemplated starting a new thread, but since this thread already has some good information, I figured I'd just add to it.

I was consistently getting between 40 and 42 mpg on my 2014 Std 6 speed.

I weigh about 230 lbs and do mostly suburban driving, ie., average speeds between 35-45 mph but a fair amount of stop signs and lights.

This Spring I changed the oil out from Honda "dino" 10w40 and went with Rotella T6 15w40 full synthetic. My gas mileage immediately improved to 46-48 mpg... And it's been consistent.

Until last week... Yesterday I measured 52 mpg!

That's both by pen and paper and the built-in mileage calculator.

I have another bike that was acting like it had dirty fuel injectors, so I got some Techron injector cleaner for the other bike and it cleared things up.

I had half a bottle of Techron left over, so I dumped it in the CB1100 with a fresh tank of gas.

I had absolutely no apparent issues with the fuel injectors on the CB1100, but it seems like the Techron did some good. 52 mpg is an all-time high for me, and we'll see if it remains consistent.

FWIW, The 15w40 makes the valves a bit louder compared to the 10w40, but I did experience about a 10% mileage improvement immediately following the change to Rotella 15w40.

I know, correlation does not equal causation, and the slightly noisier valves are making me consider a Rotella T5 10w30 for next year, but I'm fine with the T6 15w40 for now.

I have used Shell Rotella T6 synthetic 5W-40 in all my bikes for years now, including an ST1300, Bonneville, Tiger 1050, 2 V-stroms, 2 CB1100s and now 2 NC 750's. The greatest difference noted was in a CB1100 that constantly balked on 3rg gear engagement; I had been using the Honda synthetic 10W-30 during the warranty period and thought that getting it broken in would clear it up. After switching to the Rotella the 3rd gear problem cleared up immediately.

I see a lot of people here have used the T6 5w40, but after a visit to the "Bob is the Oil Guy" forum, I decided to go with the 15w40 due to its resistance to shearing.

From my understanding, the downside to using oil that's too thin is premature cam wear, which won't show itself until it's too late.

I'm absolutely convinced that the 15w40 is the correct weight and viscosity for my VT750 Shadows, but it does add some valve noise to my CB1100.

I'm considering the Rotella T5 10w30 for my next oil change interval, but since the T6 15w40 seems to be giving me good results otherwise, I plan to leave it in for 4k miles.

Rotella was designed to prevent "shear" in diesel motors and is not dependent on oil weight. Motorcycle oils are similarly formulated since most share oil to the gears. I like Rotella 5W-40 because it allows maximum lubrication at startup but has all the properties of a 40W when warm thus it delivers the best of both worlds.

(07-27-2022, 09:54 PM)redbirds_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-27-2022, 07:01 PM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2022, 10:38 PM)redbirds_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2022, 02:34 AM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]I contemplated starting a new thread, but since this thread already has some good information, I figured I'd just add to it.

I was consistently getting between 40 and 42 mpg on my 2014 Std 6 speed.

I weigh about 230 lbs and do mostly suburban driving, ie., average speeds between 35-45 mph but a fair amount of stop signs and lights.

This Spring I changed the oil out from Honda "dino" 10w40 and went with Rotella T6 15w40 full synthetic. My gas mileage immediately improved to 46-48 mpg... And it's been consistent.

Until last week... Yesterday I measured 52 mpg!

That's both by pen and paper and the built-in mileage calculator.

I have another bike that was acting like it had dirty fuel injectors, so I got some Techron injector cleaner for the other bike and it cleared things up.

I had half a bottle of Techron left over, so I dumped it in the CB1100 with a fresh tank of gas.

I had absolutely no apparent issues with the fuel injectors on the CB1100, but it seems like the Techron did some good. 52 mpg is an all-time high for me, and we'll see if it remains consistent.

FWIW, The 15w40 makes the valves a bit louder compared to the 10w40, but I did experience about a 10% mileage improvement immediately following the change to Rotella 15w40.

I know, correlation does not equal causation, and the slightly noisier valves are making me consider a Rotella T5 10w30 for next year, but I'm fine with the T6 15w40 for now.

I have used Shell Rotella T6 synthetic 5W-40 in all my bikes for years now, including an ST1300, Bonneville, Tiger 1050, 2 V-stroms, 2 CB1100s and now 2 NC 750's. The greatest difference noted was in a CB1100 that constantly balked on 3rg gear engagement; I had been using the Honda synthetic 10W-30 during the warranty period and thought that getting it broken in would clear it up. After switching to the Rotella the 3rd gear problem cleared up immediately.

I see a lot of people here have used the T6 5w40, but after a visit to the "Bob is the Oil Guy" forum, I decided to go with the 15w40 due to its resistance to shearing.

From my understanding, the downside to using oil that's too thin is premature cam wear, which won't show itself until it's too late.

I'm absolutely convinced that the 15w40 is the correct weight and viscosity for my VT750 Shadows, but it does add some valve noise to my CB1100.

I'm considering the Rotella T5 10w30 for my next oil change interval, but since the T6 15w40 seems to be giving me good results otherwise, I plan to leave it in for 4k miles.

Rotella was designed to prevent "shear" in diesel motors and is not dependent on oil weight. Motorcycle oils are similarly formulated since most share oil to the gears. I like Rotella 5W-40 because it allows maximum lubrication at startup but has all the properties of a 40W when warm thus it delivers the best of both worlds.

How many miles are you getting from the 5w40 for each oil change? Have you noticed any degradation in shifting as the 5w40 ages?

There are some interesting discussions about T6 5w40 in wet clutch applications at the BITOG (Bob Is The Oil Guy) motorcycle subforum. Several members there reported excessive shearing and shift issues when using the 5w40 in wet clutch motorcycles, although not necessarily CB1100s.

It makes sense to me since the larger spread between the numbers means they're using a lighter base oil and have to rely more on Viscosity Index Improvers to achieve the higher viscosity numbers. Viscosity Index Improvers are apparently more susceptible to heat degradation as well. And our CB1100s do get hot.

In other words, the 15w40 should be more shear resistant and stay in grade better than a 5w40 under similar conditions.

Also, the T6 15w40 supposedly flows down to -22F, which is far colder than anything I'd be riding in... Riding in Dallas I am more concerned with the heat than the cold, but I do ride nearly year round, and occasionally below freezing.

However, as stated previously, I have also noticed a slight increase in valve noise when the bike is first started compared to the old 10w40. After the bike is warm, 5 to 10 minutes, and the noise goes away.

I spoke to the master tech at my Honda dealer, and he assured me that running a 15w40 won't hurt anything, so I plan to run this season on the 15w40, and next year I think I'll try Rotella's T5 semi synthetic 10w30, the exact grade of oil Honda recommends in the manual.

The bottom line is that I am consistently getting 10% better gas mileage now that I switched to the T6 15w40 compared to before with the Honda dino 10w40.

If I try the 10w30 and my mileage suffers or the shifting feels off, I can always go back to the 15w40... Which has been working well for me here in Dallas!

(07-29-2022, 04:52 PM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-27-2022, 09:54 PM)redbirds_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-27-2022, 07:01 PM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2022, 10:38 PM)redbirds_imp Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2022, 02:34 AM)Yata-Garasu_imp Wrote: [ -> ]I contemplated starting a new thread, but since this thread already has some good information, I figured I'd just add to it.

I was consistently getting between 40 and 42 mpg on my 2014 Std 6 speed.

I weigh about 230 lbs and do mostly suburban driving, ie., average speeds between 35-45 mph but a fair amount of stop signs and lights.

This Spring I changed the oil out from Honda "dino" 10w40 and went with Rotella T6 15w40 full synthetic. My gas mileage immediately improved to 46-48 mpg... And it's been consistent.

Until last week... Yesterday I measured 52 mpg!

That's both by pen and paper and the built-in mileage calculator.

I have another bike that was acting like it had dirty fuel injectors, so I got some Techron injector cleaner for the other bike and it cleared things up.

I had half a bottle of Techron left over, so I dumped it in the CB1100 with a fresh tank of gas.

I had absolutely no apparent issues with the fuel injectors on the CB1100, but it seems like the Techron did some good. 52 mpg is an all-time high for me, and we'll see if it remains consistent.

FWIW, The 15w40 makes the valves a bit louder compared to the 10w40, but I did experience about a 10% mileage improvement immediately following the change to Rotella 15w40.

I know, correlation does not equal causation, and the slightly noisier valves are making me consider a Rotella T5 10w30 for next year, but I'm fine with the T6 15w40 for now.

I have used Shell Rotella T6 synthetic 5W-40 in all my bikes for years now, including an ST1300, Bonneville, Tiger 1050, 2 V-stroms, 2 CB1100s and now 2 NC 750's. The greatest difference noted was in a CB1100 that constantly balked on 3rg gear engagement; I had been using the Honda synthetic 10W-30 during the warranty period and thought that getting it broken in would clear it up. After switching to the Rotella the 3rd gear problem cleared up immediately.

I see a lot of people here have used the T6 5w40, but after a visit to the "Bob is the Oil Guy" forum, I decided to go with the 15w40 due to its resistance to shearing.

From my understanding, the downside to using oil that's too thin is premature cam wear, which won't show itself until it's too late.

I'm absolutely convinced that the 15w40 is the correct weight and viscosity for my VT750 Shadows, but it does add some valve noise to my CB1100.

I'm considering the Rotella T5 10w30 for my next oil change interval, but since the T6 15w40 seems to be giving me good results otherwise, I plan to leave it in for 4k miles.

Rotella was designed to prevent "shear" in diesel motors and is not dependent on oil weight. Motorcycle oils are similarly formulated since most share oil to the gears. I like Rotella 5W-40 because it allows maximum lubrication at startup but has all the properties of a 40W when warm thus it delivers the best of both worlds.

How many miles are you getting from the 5w40 for each oil change? Have you noticed any degradation in shifting as the 5w40 ages?

There are some interesting discussions about T6 5w40 in wet clutch applications at the BITOG (Bob Is The Oil Guy) motorcycle subforum. Several members there reported excessive shearing and shift issues when using the 5w40 in wet clutch motorcycles, although not necessarily CB1100s.

It makes sense to me since the larger spread between the numbers means they're using a lighter base oil and have to rely more on Viscosity Index Improvers to achieve the higher viscosity numbers. Viscosity Index Improvers are apparently more susceptible to heat degradation as well. And our CB1100s do get hot.

In other words, the 15w40 should be more shear resistant and stay in grade better than a 5w40 under similar conditions.

Also, the T6 15w40 supposedly flows down to -22F, which is far colder than anything I'd be riding in... Riding in Dallas I am more concerned with the heat than the cold, but I do ride nearly year round, and occasionally below freezing.

However, as stated previously, I have also noticed a slight increase in valve noise when the bike is first started compared to the old 10w40. After the bike is warm, 5 to 10 minutes, and the noise goes away.

I spoke to the master tech at my Honda dealer, and he assured me that running a 15w40 won't hurt anything, so I plan to run this season on the 15w40, and next year I think I'll try Rotella's T5 semi synthetic 10w30, the exact grade of oil Honda recommends in the manual.

The bottom line is that I am consistently getting 10% better gas mileage now that I switched to the T6 15w40 compared to before with the Honda dino 10w40.

If I try the 10w30 and my mileage suffers or the shifting feels off, I can always go back to the 15w40... Which has been working well for me here in Dallas!

How many miles are you getting from the 5w40 for each oil change? Have you noticed any degradation in shifting as the 5w40 ages?

There are some interesting discussions about T6 5w40 in wet clutch applications at the BITOG (Bob Is The Oil Guy) motorcycle subforum. Several members there reported excessive shearing and shift issues when using the 5w40 in wet clutch mo
Like I stated, used it for years in many different bikes with zero problems. The bikes I've owned with shim under bucket valves have never had valves out of spec, never had a wet clutch problem and have never had any unusual noises. In the past I changed oil every six months regardless mileage but now once a year or 6000 miles on mine and my wife's NC 700-750X's. I am in SE Georgia and never have to deal with extreme cold but do have long hot summers. My experience spans near 20 years using this oil, I'm sure your choice is equally a good one.

Just an update. I went with the 10w30 and now I'm consistently getting 50 mpg!

The Honda 10w40 averaged around 40 mpg, the Rotella T6 15w40 was getting me 44 to 46.

Whaddaya' know? This bike actually likes 10w30, just like the manual says.

(07-26-2022, 11:24 AM)GoldOxide_imp Wrote: [ -> ]That is believable Yata.

I used T6 5W40 and got 4.5 L/100 kms for level warm season riding on the CB1100 in southern Ontario. Very spirited riding I still got 5.0 L/100 kms which is still very good and directly comparable to your figures.

Not my normal riding, but ultra conservative on 80 km/h back roads I could manage 3.9 L/100 kms.

3.9l is my normal consumption here, because we have 80km/h as a speed limit

comfortably driven on small mountain roads / side roads I already had 3.6 or even 3.4


on the highway constant at 100km/h, the 6-gear/speed CB also needs ca 3.9


btw
oil its a 20W-50

Don't know what my MPG is and don't really care. I shift it when it feels like it needs to be shifted.

Me too

Have always used Honda 10w-30.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Got 52 mpg on my last fill up! Compared to 40 mph when using the Honda 10w40.

I love my Eleven! I wish I could by a new one.