do i have to have 15/50 oil???

(RIP) saggy0000

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sorry if this is a bad subject but i need to know im new to the gs12,i know it rides great corners great,is a fantastic machine,but i know nothing about it,mine is an 05 bmwgs1200 red silver i love it but the oil is a tad low,could do with a top up,rgm has serviced this bike for the last 3 services,but at £9,95 for a pint of oil im bit worried?? as ive been told they use a pint every 1000 miles, (ive only had mine 2 weeks and done 1397miles)castrol 15/50?/ was recomended,i dont know if this is true?i have allways serviced my own bikes,i would like to try and do this one but there are so many doos n donots, any help would be great thanx S
 
Do you have a manual? If so, read it and follow advice for oil selection and checking the level. Many people end up over-filling as they follow the wrong procedure for checking.

Top up your oil if it is actually low.

Monitor the oil level using the same procedure every time. If it does use a pint every 1000 miles then live with it. You can get a litre, a pint and three quarters so 2 top ups, for about £12 in Halfords if you avoid Castrol and buy Valvoline. If £6 every 1000 miles for oil is expensive for you, why the fúck did you buy a BMW?
 
Sticky, top of section, all you need to know about oil!

Other than that I am getting the popcorn in for what is bound to be 10 pages.
 
My 2007, 73000 miler has never needed the slightest oil top up between it's 6000 mile services. It started life with Castrol 20w/50 then when that became unavailable, it's always been on Silkolene 10w/40.
 
I think whats missing is the addition of Castrol R

You would have thought in todays techno world, some bright spark (lol)

would have added a 100ml or so reservoir for this liquid porn -
 
Any 20/50 mineral oil rated API SF or better currently using Silkolene myself.
 
For the benefit of the OP who's new to these things, you don't need a motorcycle specific oil either..... anything between 10/40 and 20/50 will do fine.....

:thumb
 
Bryn said:
For the benefit of the OP who's new to these things, you don't need a motorcycle specific oil either..... anything between 10/40 and 20/50 will do fine.....

:thumb
Click to expand...

Castrol R :) now that would be interesting?

I wonder if anyone on here runs magnatec as there chsen oil?
 
Bryn said:
For the benefit of the OP who's new to these things, you don't need a motorcycle specific oil either..... anything between 10/40 and 20/50 will do fine.....

:thumb
Click to expand...

Spot on Bryn and to the OP, don't believe everything you "hear".

The boxer engine is known to use oil up to about 15k then they stop. Mine has done 145,000 miles and I've only ever topped it up between services once and that was because I was riding in 45 degrees heat for a few days.

My personal opinion is people get too wound up about the oil level because the official way of checking is utterly bonkers. The level will change a every time you look at it because the motor seems to hide some oil!!

My advice is to use the same routine to check your oil and then you will get to know your bike. I check mine first thing in the morning when cold and as long as there is oil in the sight glass I'm good to go and don't worry.

I also think a lot of oil usage is a bit of a myth because some people over react to a small drop in the window. I've seen people panic when it's dropped half way and are convinced their steed is going to explode. It won't and they end up over filling the engine.
 
I use 10w40 semi synth (from a local motor factors) and change every 6000 miles. It uses hardly any between changes, but anything thinner gets burnt.

I made the mistake of worrying about the oil level sight glass and overfilled. No harm done but it smoked a bit on start up. The level always settles to about mid window, then stays there until the next oil change. I detest that silly oil level window. Its a corrosion trap and overfilled with new oil is impossible to detect - an easy trap for the unwary. Later bikes are even more convenient by putting the oil filler on the right side.
 
There are loads of different 20/50 motor oils available on Amazon ... at very good prices as well.
 
I used turbo diesel grade semi synth 10w40 in my old Yammie Diversion 900. Never had any clutch slip or another issues. At 75K it needed new clutch friction plates (worn to the minimum and slipping). Job took one hour to complete. The cam bearings still had honing marks on the surfaces so the oil was doing it's job. Personally I think bike specific oil is a con trick.

Turbos hammer the oil and diesels put high pressures into the crank bearings. What works for that did the job fine on my UJM.
 
I use turbo diesel spec 10w40. It's built to take high pressures and particulates so perfect for the R1200. Not expensive unless you buy silly money brands.
 
Did the OP say
WELL thanx!
Or
Well! Thanx!
Or
No one answered my question
Or
That was very helpful, thanks
Or



And what is 'thanx' rather than 'thanks'



I'm off to get my coat
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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