Just just a 2001 XR 200 in great shape for only $900! Anyways, since it didn't come with a manual, my questions are: What weight oil does it take, and how much, and can I use 90weight gear oil to lube the chain?

15w50, seesh that seems like a real heavy weight

Does anyone have the manual listed oil weight?

You DO want a good fairly heavy oil in an air-cooled engine..02 XR200 owners manual says 20W-50 unless below freezing;10W-40 if 32 degrees or lower. API classification: SF or SG. 'nutcase

castrol 10w40.

Ah, you almost got my hopes up there! Had a quart of 10w40 GTX sitting on the shelf, oh well:banghead:

Also, how much oil does the engine take, and is the transmission oil shared with the engine?

Dwight_Rudder said:

my manual for 03 xr100 says "api class sg or higher except oils labeled as energy conserving on the circular api service label"

I don't have any 10-40 to look at, but the castrol gtx 20-50 I just looked at in my garage doesn't say energy conserving in the circle, but the 5-30 for my car does.......I've always used regular castrol gtx in my 4 strokes with no probs.

sm is rated higher than sg, right?

So your manual says 20w50

Dwight_Rudder said:

Shell Rotella is NOT an automotive oil, it is a diesel oil.

There is a huge difference on makeup between the two.

Rotella T 15w-40 contains no friction modifiers.

API 'SM' oils have little or no extreme pressure additives, zinc and phos. The reason is these additives damage cat converters on high mileage cars that burn oil. Along with jaso MA, look for API "SG" wich has the highest level of zinc and phos.http://www.maximausa.../oilbasics.html Bad news for guys that use diesel oils is new diesels are coming with cat converters now, so zinc and phos. are being reduced in all diesel oils.

dumbdotdog said:

Diesels had have catalytic converts since the late 90s. They now have a particulate filter, which requires low-ash oil, and reduced sulfur levels.

you are correct, but the new diesel oils that are rated CJ4 have reduced zinc and phos. and are not ideal for motorcycle transmisions and valve trains, The older "good diesel oils" are slowly disapearing from the shelves and are being replaced by these newer eco-friendly CJ4 diesel oils.

dumbdotdog said:

Yes, they are reducing the levels of zinc and phosphorous, but it's still within the "safe" range.

Wrong, diesels do not have catalytic convertors-they are getting DPF's, an entirely different animal. Similar in idea, but not function. DPF's are a filtration system that captures soot to be burned at a later time. Cat's OTOH, heat up and "burn" the junk constantly.

Lead Head said:

No, they have not. The few diesel automobiles that have been made do have emissions systems, but once you reach the level of 3/4T trucks, it wasn't required until recently. Medium duty, buses and semi's were not required to have any emissions systems until 10-02 mfgr date.

dumbdotdog said:

Shell Rotella T Multigrade Oil SAE 15W-40 with Triple Protection Technology, our API CJ-4/SM specification product, typically contains about 1200 ppm zinc and 1100 ppm phosphorous as manufactured.

Now, the question is, what is the threshold of zinc and phosphorous needed for proper transmission protection?

There has been some talk and emails passed around that are said to have come from Shell's "Ask the Engineer" that claim that Rotella T with Triple Protection 15W-40 and Rotella T Synthetic 5W-40 CJ-4 do meet JASO MA.

I can't say this is fact, since I didn't inquire myself, nor did I get it from Rotella's site.

Air cooled engines have very different lube requirements compared to water cooled engines because of their high operating temperatures. Also automobile oils are designed to protect emmission equipment to the detriment of lubrication. Gear trains are hard on oil because they break down the viscosity by shearing the oil. Wet clutches are also sensitive to the additive package in the oil. Diesel engines operate at higher loads and temperatures compared to cars and use gears to drive cams, injector pumps and accessories. Diesel fleet service oils were developed by the engine manufacurers and the oil companies to prolong the life of diesel engines, and they were very successful because OTR engines routinely go more that a million miles compared to 1/4 - 1/3 million in the late eighties and early nineties. Chevron and Detroit Diesel developed the Delo 400 oils about 1990and shocked the industry by doubling engine life. Currently there are three major brands of fleet service oils; Shell Rotello T, Chevron Delo, and Mobil Delvac.

This link explains a lot about lube oils for motorcycles and makes a good read:

http://motorcycleinf...****/Oils1.html

this is the URL (remove the extra spaces): http://motorcycleinfo. calsci. com/Oils1.html

Dwight_Rudder said:

Exactly, plus its nice to know that small oil companies like Maxima, Bel-Ray etc.., don’t produce auto oils, therefore don’t have to conform to government regulations that apply to automotive oils and have a "free hand" in producing the best oil for your motorcycle.