Shell Rotella Oil

[randomwalk101]

I usually use Shell Rotella Synthetic Oil from Walmart. However, it seems like Shell has reformulated their oil or Walmart stopped carrying the particular Rotella Full Synthetic oil and now only have the Synthetic blend (energy conserving). Anyone knows where I can get those good old Rotella Full Synthetic oil? Thanks.

[2WheelGuy]

I noticed that it is gone from my Wally's as well. I've been getting the good stuff from my local Autozone. The sell it for under 20 bucks a gallon, about the same as Wally's. I think most of the bigger auto parts chains sell it.

[headshrink]

The T6 is supposed to replace it, I believe. It is not supposed to be energy conserving, and is supposed to be fully synth, IIR (according to another thread on this board). I was still able to get the old stuff at mine, but I think it was just the old stock.

[Ken08Ninja]

The new Rotella T6 is JASO MA certified, it's safe to use in wet clutch bikes.

[Banzai]

Originally Posted by Ken08Ninja

The new Rotella T6 is JASO MA certified, it's safe to use in wet clutch bikes.

And works as well as it always has.

[backinthesaddleagain]

My local walmart now only has the white bottle and they guy swears thats all they ever had. He is wrong. got mine at Pep Boys.

[Cedilla]

I think the T6 is the same stuff just in a spiffy new package. I'm running it in mine right now with no ill effects.

[Greg_E]

My walmart finally has the T6 in stock, give them time and they might get it back. Neither Autozone or Advance has the T6 locally and it is a little thin for my bike so I'm using Mobile 1 V-Twin. Both of my Autozone and Advance have it and the Mobile 1 4T in stock at about $8 a quart, not as cheap but it works if you can't get the other oil.

[Manimal]

fwiw, both my local auto store and Walmart carry Rotella T6. I bought a jug about a month ago and recently did an oil change.

[backinthesaddleagain]

While buying some grease I saw it in autozone for the high price of $24.

[M-Oorb]

I noticed this at my local walmart a couple months back...then it just popped back up in the same store?

[NinjaDaddio]

Okay,...fellow Ninja warriors,...I think some clarification is needed here for those riders that use Shell's Rotella Oil in their bikes. Like most oils on the market, the manufacturer usually distributes several formulations within that particular series. Rotella is no different. However, I have noticed a lot of confusion concerning the specs on Rotella T6 vs Rotella T. Of course, most of us know that most motorcycles have a wet clutch configuration, where the same oil lubricates both the mechanical components inside the engine as well as the clutch plates of the attached transmission. Oils that contain "friction modifiers" can cause shifting problems in motorcycles because they literally cause slippage of the inherent friction plates inside the clutch bundle. One classic clue that any oil has friction modifiers in its formulation are the words "Energy Conserving" or "Fuel Conserving" on the front seal of the bottle or jug. If you look at the two Rotella series, the white bottled Rotella T does NOT have that in the seal. However, the Rotella T6 does. Also, what's really important is to examine the oil's classifications on the back label of the bottle. Look for the JASO rating, which is usually one of the last ratings listed. An oil that has NO friction modifiers included will be labeled "JASO MA", such as the Rotella T bottle is. If you look closely at the Rotella T6 back label, you will clearly see that it is marked "JASO MB". This indicates that there are some friction modifiers present, although not the same bundle as in most conventional energy-conserving oils. Now, I'm not trying to indicate the Rotella T6 should not be used. It's excellent oil, and the fact that it's synthetic makes it a superior oil to conventional oils. I'm merely trying to shed some light on the two Rotella types, and reiterate the importance of looking for the "JASO MA" rating on the back label of the bottle or jug.

[FrugalNinja250]

Regarding friction modifiers, what if I *want* to run them? When my oil is hot (I run Rotella 5W40) the clutch becomes "sticky", in that even with the lever all the way in there's enough clutch drag that I can actually creep across a level parking lot at idle, and the engine will lug down a few hundred RPMs when I come to a complete stop. It also makes shifting a chore because the dogs are under enough torque to want to not engage/disengage. I've got the clutch adjusted such that there's maybe 1mm free play at the end of the lever and the friction zone begins with maybe 1/4" lever pull. I've tried adjusting the clutch into the friction zone but even when I've got it so tight that the engine revs with hard throttle and no lever action the problem persists.

I'd like the friction zone to be a little wider/linear with full release at about 3/4 lever pull. Would the MB package eliminate that oil "stickiness" when hot problem?

[Nemesis]

I've stopped using Shell Rotella Oil and have switched to Repsol on all my race bikes. Bike just loves it!

[Ken08Ninja]

Originally Posted by NinjaDaddio

Okay,...fellow Ninja warriors,...I think some clarification is needed here for those riders that use Shell's Rotella Oil in their bikes. Like most oils on the market, the manufacturer usually distributes several formulations within that particular series. Rotella is no different. However, I have noticed a lot of confusion concerning the specs on Rotella T6 vs Rotella T. Of course, most of us know that most motorcycles have a wet clutch configuration, where the same oil lubricates both the mechanical components inside the engine as well as the clutch plates of the attached transmission. Oils that contain "friction modifiers" can cause shifting problems in motorcycles because they literally cause slippage of the inherent friction plates inside the clutch bundle. One classic clue that any oil has friction modifiers in its formulation are the words "Energy Conserving" or "Fuel Conserving" on the front seal of the bottle or jug. If you look at the two Rotella series, the white bottled Rotella T does NOT have that in the seal. However, the Rotella T6 does. Also, what's really important is to examine the oil's classifications on the back label of the bottle. Look for the JASO rating, which is usually one of the last ratings listed. An oil that has NO friction modifiers included will be labeled "JASO MA", such as the Rotella T bottle is. If you look closely at the Rotella T6 back label, you will clearly see that it is marked "JASO MB". This indicates that there are some friction modifiers present, although not the same bundle as in most conventional energy-conserving oils. Now, I'm not trying to indicate the Rotella T6 should not be used. It's excellent oil, and the fact that it's synthetic makes it a superior oil to conventional oils. I'm merely trying to shed some light on the two Rotella types, and reiterate the importance of looking for the "JASO MA" rating on the back label of the bottle or jug.

Your info is not correct. The Rotella T6 is JASO MA not JASO MB. It also does not have "Energy Conserving" or "Fuel Conserving" on the bottom of the seal.

[kkim]

Originally Posted by FrugalNinja250

Regarding friction modifiers, what if I *want* to run them? When my oil is hot (I run Rotella 5W40) the clutch becomes "sticky", in that even with the lever all the way in there's enough clutch drag that I can actually creep across a level parking lot at idle, and the engine will lug down a few hundred RPMs when I come to a complete stop. It also makes shifting a chore because the dogs are under enough torque to want to not engage/disengage. I've got the clutch adjusted such that there's maybe 1mm free play at the end of the lever and the friction zone begins with maybe 1/4" lever pull. I've tried adjusting the clutch into the friction zone but even when I've got it so tight that the engine revs with hard throttle and no lever action the problem persists.

I'd like the friction zone to be a little wider/linear with full release at about 3/4 lever pull. Would the MB package eliminate that oil "stickiness" when hot problem?

sounds like a worn clutch, perhaps?

[FrugalNinja250]

Originally Posted by kkim

sounds like a worn clutch, perhaps?

I would have thought that wear would result in slippage, rather than grippage. It's been doing this since I got the bike with 2,042 miles on it; I've been running Rotella in it since that day.

[dubojr1]

Originally Posted by FrugalNinja250

I would have thought that wear would result in slippage, rather than grippage. It's been doing this since I got the bike with 2,042 miles on it; I've been running Rotella in it since that day.

I had a dirt bike with the same symptoms. It needed clutch plates and springs.

[mrlmd]

To frugalninja- how often do you ride your bike? If left sitting for a while, like a week or two or three, it's not unusual for these bikes to develop "sticky" clutches because of the very thin film of oil between the plates that "glues" them together by surface tension. And in some instances it might actually be related to a more slippery thinner oil. Rolling the bike back and forth in neutral or riding the bike a little loosens this up back to normal. If you don't ride a lot, or not for a few weeks, this can be normal behavior so don't go crazy looking for some way to fix it. Just ride more, it should go away.

[kkim]

Originally Posted by FrugalNinja250

I would have thought that wear would result in slippage, rather than grippage. It's been doing this since I got the bike with 2,042 miles on it; I've been running Rotella in it since that day.

as the plates wear (both friction and steel if yours has a lot of miles), the "static" position from where you adjust it because of the wear moves the "starting point" further in, requiring more travel to get to a fully separated condition when you pull in the clutch lever. It sounds like you might be worn past the point where the lever doesn't provide you enough travel to fully disengage the plates.

What Marc says can happen too and if that's your problem, to clean the plates w/o disassembly, some have run ATF fluid in the crankcase to help beak down the sludge off the friction plates. I've also cleaned contaminated plates off by holding the front brake and applying throttle while easing out the clutch to engagement, essentially "burning off" the contaminated layer off the friction plates. Just don't overdo it.

[FrugalNinja250]

Originally Posted by mrlmd

To frugalninja- how often do you ride your bike? If left sitting for a while, like a week or two or three, it's not unusual for these bikes to develop "sticky" clutches because of the very thin film of oil between the plates that "glues" them together by surface tension. And in some instances it might actually be related to a more slippery thinner oil. Rolling the bike back and forth in neutral or riding the bike a little loosens this up back to normal. If you don't ride a lot, or not for a few weeks, this can be normal behavior so don't go crazy looking for some way to fix it. Just ride more, it should go away.

I ride it daily, averaging about 1k miles a month. The phenomenon you describe I've experienced also. On the first ride after starting or having shut the bike off long enough to cool the clutch is sticky on the first use; a blip of the throttle while engaging 1st gear takes care of that. The other problem I've correlated directly with oil temperature. The trans will shift fine until the oil gets hot, generally but not always in stop and go traffic on hot days, Basically, any time the bike's running at the coolant fan activation temperature for any length of time.

[NinjaDaddio]

Ken08,....what viscosity range are you using with respect to the Rotella T6 that you use? I mentioned in one of the other threads that I've been looking everywhere locally for the Rotella T 5W40,....and can only find the 15W40. I've seen multiple references on this site that the 5W40 version is synthetic, but the 15W40 is conventional. I was at Wallys just lastnight,...with a jug of T6 in my left hand,...and T (15W40) in my right. I flipped them both around and looked for the JASO ratings. The T6 bottle was marked MB, and the regular T (15W40) was marked MA. So, I'm curious if there is any regional differences with respect to the same oil product line,....such as your T6 in your area is labeled MA on the back,...and the T6 in my area is marked MB on the back. We need a Shell Rotella Rep to chime in here and antie-up some technical answers.

[Ken08Ninja]

Ron, the Rotella T6 I use is 5W40. The photo I posted is the actual 1 gallon jug I am using. Click on the photo to see it full sized, and you can see the last rating in the requirements meet box is JASO MA.

If your Wally World does not have it try Advance Auto Parts.

[NinjaDaddio]

You are all exactly right. I went back to Wally World and checked out the jugs of Rotella T6 they had on the shelf,..and it is indeed marked "JASO MA". I think what threw me off was an area in the ratings section that was printed as "MB Approval 228.31". I was quickly scanning all of the synthetic oils for that infamous "MA" marking and simply came across the MB area first. So,...sorry I added all this confusion to the Rotella series. I do wish that I could find the deals on T6 that most of you seem to come across. I ended up picking up the 1 gallon jug of T6 for $24.99 at Autozone. Wally had it a little higher. I'm going to run the T6 in both my Ninja250 and Ninja500,...and then next change switch over to the comparable Amsoil product. That way I'll be able to determine which one allows for easier shifting on both bikes,...and perhaps cooler operating temps. Anyone use the Mobil 1 Racing T4 oil? What about the Repsol reference I saw in another posting? I've never even heard of that oil.