I really dont want to start the endless debate on oils that usually happens on these motorcycle sites but do appreciate the thoughts of the educated and knowledgable here.
Thanks again
What makes you think Honda isn't educated and knowledgeable? That the owner's manuals don't have reliable information?
Or, that anyone with an IP address automatically is knowledgeable or educated rather than just opinionated?
Lloyd, so all the very good information you have given out over the years is just your oppinion and you are not knowledgeable or educated are you saying because you have an IP address we should not listen to you.
Sam.
I'm saying that no one on this forum has tested a current oil formulation (not to be confused with brand) for wear characteristics, endurance, temperature tolerance, etc., in a Honda engine that is still within Honda tolerances.
And, regardless of other topic posts within the forum (credible or not) where actual facts can be obtained and employed, all any can offer is a biased opinion on oil, including mine.
This is precisely why each and every oil thread on any forum, resolves to a shouting match, or a popularity contest among attending participants, far removed from any science regarding actual physical properties.
Honda probably had oil formulations provided them under non-disclosure agreement, and set the internal tolerances of the motor to function durably with those formulations. This is why I defer to their recommendations.
I've not read or found ANY forum posts where one who had access to the oil formulation from any era or batch of oil made, performed any sort of objective test on that oil formulation.
The oil companies will NOT tell any consumer exactly what they are buying and using, as that does not promote brand loyalty. And further, it would tie their hands when a convenient or profitable change to the oil formulation made its way inside their labeled package. I.e., they can change the recipe at will/whim without ever notifying the buyer.
I almost doesn't matter what brand you select, the oil you buy today has a very very slim chance of containing the all same ingredients of what the same brand offered 5 or 10 years ago. And, it is highly possible the oil you bought last week is different from what you buy this week, unless you can verify that it came from the same batch number.
Most, if not all of the oil companies have colluded/conspired to engineer this situation, so that advertising determines sales rather than quality or actual performance of the product being sold. It only has to work "well enough" to keep the engine running to the next oil change, as it is terribly difficult to prove an oil choice, meeting seller recommendation, was a direct cause of an engine malfunction, as you would have to show a before and after machine condition and also prove another unknown oil formulation would have avoided failure.
All anyone can provide here about oil, is a belief (tantamount to a religion), opinion, and irrelevant anecdotal references, without any encumberence of scientific facts.
This post is not to insult anyone here. It is just an observation, that there is really no objective analysis that can be offered as to oil integrity, or suitability, because the game is rigged by the providers of the oil in question, and there is nothing you can do about it, but recognize the situation and hope for the best when making your oil selection.
I look forward to any supportable data within this thread, in the making of an "informed" oil selection.
Cheers,