Kirkland full synthetic diesel vs Rotella T6 full synthetic diesel

etalors

Joined
Aug 11, 2014
Messages
847
Location
Lake Zurich, Illinois
Bike
04 ST1300
Not starting an oil ........
Is the Kirkland 15w40 full synthetic diesel the same as Rotella T6 full synthetic diesel 15w40. Meaning is it ok to use kirkland instead of Rotella. Kirkland price is about $13/gallon vs Rotella at $23/gallon. Below are pictures of the Kirkland and Rotella specs. Rotella is on the left Kirkland on the right.

Rotella Meets API service CK-4, CJ-4, CI-4 Plus, CI-4, CH-4, SN

Kirkland Meets API service CK-4, SN

is the difference above significant for the ST 1300
 

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Not likely to get many thumbs up here. Even I wouldn't use it. it does not have friction enhancers since the bottom half of the circle spec is blank so should be OK for the clutch but it also doesn't at least brag that it meets JASO MA/MA2 specs. Rotella does at least say "meets" JASO MA/MA2 spec.

It would be better to compare if you had an oil analysis sample to review the oil contents.

Your call in the end.
 
The Rotella meets JASO MA/MA2, The Kirkland does not. The JASO is a Honda recommendation. But, I used Mobil 1 10W-40 car oil in my ST for over 70K miles and did not have any problems with the clutch. So, it is up to you. I just stick with the Rotella in my Wing and KLR.
 
Just looking for opinions here. Thumbs down will work as well, as it will tell me to stay away from it. I switched to the T6 15w40 for the first time ever this year using the PL 16410 filter. Next year the only change will be to use the shorty PL 16412 in order to complete the oil change in one gallon. The PL 16410 requires an extra 1/4 of a quart.
 
snowmoer said:
The Rotella meets JASO MA/MA2, The Kirkland does not. The JASO is a Honda recommendation. But, I used Mobil 1 10W-40 car oil in my ST for over 70K miles and did not have any problems with the clutch. So, it is up to you. I just stick with the Rotella in my Wing and KLR.
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Here we go again…..Rotella claims that it would meet the JASO test if it were actually tested and certified, but it never was or is.
The new version of rotella has even taken the Gas engine rating off the bottles, as well.
JASO is NOT a Honda recommendation, but just a Japanese test.
Using automobile oil is not the best choice in your bike, despite that you feel the bike is doing ok etc.
Have you ever opened it up and inspected it?
Many folks have been brand loyal for years, rotella used to be a good oil to use in motorcycles….UNTIL they changed the formula a couple years back.
I have opened up, inspected, and replaced several clutches on low mileage newer year ST’s that continued to use the Rotella because they were blindly loyal to the brand.
It changed, get over it, move on to something else.
The super tech 15w40 Dino oil at Walmart still has the gas rating, and has been holding up fine in many police motors, and so far no clutch issues as rotella has had.
 
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Respect your opinion and expertise. What do you think about W0QNX experience with Rotella T6 with over 400K on his ST and still counting. No clutch problems there.
 
JASO is the organization which sets many of the standards for the Japanese transportation industry including motorcycle engine oils. They are analogous to the SAE in the US. Honda recommends JASO certified oil for their motorcycle engines.
 
etalors said:
Not starting an oil ........
Is the Kirkland 15w40 full synthetic diesel the same as Rotella T6 full synthetic diesel 15w40. Meaning is it ok to use kirkland instead of Rotella. Kirkland price is about $13/gallon vs Rotella at $23/gallon. Below are pictures of the Kirkland and Rotella specs. Rotella is on the left Kirkland on the right.

Rotella Meets API service CK-4, CJ-4, CI-4 Plus, CI-4, CH-4, SN

Kirkland Meets API service CK-4, SN

is the difference above significant for the ST 1300
Click to expand...
I could be missing something, but I cannot find any reference to the Kirkland brand diesel oil being synthetic.
 
I've had more than a couple bikes that had 100k on them, using the OLD VERSION Rotella 15w40 dino oil in them.
It was great oil for motorcycles back then.
My PC800 (Pacific Coast) had over 300k on it when I sold it, and it was run on nothing but Chevron Delo 400 or Rotella 15w40 for its entire life.
I went through one clutch around 150k or so, but just replaced everything, because I was doing other stuff at the time.
IIRC the black pearl put most of those miles on over the past several years, and he's never opened it up to inspect anything recently ;)
I however, would not feel right telling folks to use the new version of Rotella since they changed the formula, and I've personally seen a few nasty engines using it.
So should I just keep implying that its great oil, boasting that my PC800 had 300k on it with the oil, or inform folks that the new stuff may not be as good as the old stuff?
:WCP1:
 
Kirkland oil is manufactured by Warner petroleum that also makes Super Tech for Walmart. I can find element analysis for Kirkland but If you look at the break down of all the diesel oils and Super tech, there is not much of a difference between most of them. The synthetic oils have a little more moly in them but still very low numbers. I would not have a problem using it. https://pqia.org/heavy-duty-diesel-engine-oil/
 
etalors said:
Great catch. I completely missed it. From that standpoint alone they are not the same. Somehow, It seemed to be synthetic.
Click to expand...
we're all running bikes that range from 15-30+ years old, on every kind of oil available, and nobody has had any engine failures related to oil that we're aware of. The clutch slippage from friction modifiers is a real concern, but other than that, any oil analysis seems to be over-thinking a non-issue. If you feel that your bike would be better served by synthetic oil, then use it, but empirical evidence from millions of miles ridden on these particular bikes would suggest its irrelevant.
 
Most of the folks who work at places like black stone labs are gearheads, and ride bikes, when asked, nobody uses synthetic oil in their bikes, because they don’t think it’s needed.
 
W0QNX has over 60K miles on what’s called the new T6 formula. And over 400K on T6 overall. Same clutch.

IMG_2800.jpeg
 
Igofar said:
IIRC the black pearl put most of those miles on over the past several years, and he's never opened it up to inspect anything recently ;)
Click to expand...
My Father taught me never to take apart the car for the "fun" of it. We didn't have the money to fix things that we might break. The basic idea was that if it works, don't fix it. At 400,000 miles...it seems like it works and doesn't need fixing. ;)

Igofar said:
Most of the folks who work at places like black stone labs are gearheads, and ride bikes, when asked, nobody uses synthetic oil in their bikes, because they don’t think it’s needed.
Click to expand...
I'm sure running an oil analysis is a freebie for the employees.

I like using a full synthetic oil, but I'm under no illusions that it is like Mobil 1 was before the lawsuit with Castrol. The assertion by Mobil was that an oil couldn't be considered a "full synthetic oil" if it wasn't made of a PAO base stock. Since then, almost all the "full synthetic" oils are simply highly refined dino oil.

A lot of this comes down to risk analysis. What's the potential cost vs the benefit? I save a couple $$ on buying my oil at Costco (and I help Chris' stock value! :thumb: ), but I'm taking a risk of ruining my clutch plates for $$$$.

Chris
 
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