Subject: RE: [Ducati] latest oil tech info

[Rich Roberts]

No I do not. I think additives are pretty much the same, concentrations vary from manufacturer to manufacturer...and some of the motorcycle specific have more of one additive than others. I think the additive mix is debatable from all sides of the aisle and the differences are often over the issue of wet clutches in particular, meaing bikes with wet clutches need special oil because of the shearing effects or clutch debris that might get in oil or becasue you do not want clutch slipping etc etc. used to be argument was the higher rpm etc etc. With our dry clutches for the most part and cars often having higher and higher rpms I think some of the argument for differences is just a marketing ploy to get you to buy the 10 dollar a quart oil, none of the additives amount to a nickels woth of material added so one wonders if the price is becasue of the advertising or....some years back MCN did an exhaustive series of articles on MC oil compared to reg auto oil...it was an
 interesting read. We spend about 1500 year on oil analysis at work and I spend some amount of time reading the reports. Regualrly changed oil the biggest issue is often water. And such things are good indicators of viscosity changes like when someone uses wrong oil or you start to see higher trace metals. Afer initial lube requirements are met I think most of the additive package is there to keep crap in suspension so you can drain it out next change. Sure there are anti wear additives, antioxidant, anti rust....but those I consider of secondary importance. Rich

"Wright, Dirk" <Dirk.Wright at USPTO.GOV> wrote:  Do you know of any oil additives that are specific to motorcycle engines? 


-----Original Message-----
From: ducati-bounces at ducati.net on behalf of Rich Roberts
Sent: Sun 4/30/2006 3:12 PM
To: Ducati Owners Group
Cc: 
Subject: RE: Subject: RE: [Ducati] latest oil tech info
Most who sell motorcycle specific oil have to justify the expense somehow, why they cost 2-3 times as much as standard. I think many many studies have shown that the justification is tenuous at best. If marketing hype can convince you that your engine will last longer and perform better using 10 dollar a quart oil versus 4 dollar a quart oil and adding 5 cents worth of additives will make it seem plausible..caveat emptor...

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