Hey Folks,
...<SNIP>...
Second: What do folks think about running v-twin oil from a run of the mill auto parts store? These are ~$12 a quart and would save me a good chunk already. I've also heard Klotz is pretty good, but I'm not sure if I should use their v-twin (formulated for harley's) or their racing variety.
Appreciate any insights on this, I know this is a question that's been raised a million times before
All good advise here.
So, let me add a few.
Don't bother spending extra $ for "formulated for V-twin" oil.
You won't get any benefit from buying and using them.
(If you own long stroke, roller bearing bottom end, slow revving motor, and spending most of the time sitting still in the heavy traffic or moving slowly, doing meaningless throttle blip in the middle of hot summer day, then, you might.)
Also, is Klotz available locally?
I don't bother oil / oil filters I can't buy locally.
So, I run Motul 300V (15W 50) on my S4R, and Red Line (10w 30) on my NA6 (which has over 370,000 miles on the original motor, with the original head gasket.)
Which, brings anther aspect of oil choosing.
I'd say, try some different brand / viscosity of oils.
Unless you do something really stupid, you won't kill your motor.
Find the one that you like.
That's how I decided 300V for S4R, and Redline for old Miata.
(Very interestingly, I can feel only very subtle change with different oils with S4R (or sometimes I can't ),
HOWEVER, with ultra high mileage NA6, I can clearly feel / hear the difference.
For example, with Castrol GTX (10w 30, 10w 40, or 20W50, it doesn't matter) this car runs VERY ROUGH, AND NOISY.
What really bothers me is the tickling sound from the valve lifter.
That noise just goes away with Redline.
And I can always pick them up at my local NAPA store.
So, go ahead, try something that you are interested.
And trust your own gut feeling (my engine runs better with this oil), NOT some random stuff you read on the internet.