New 03 K1200RS owner with oil question

I'm a little overwhelmed by all the oil opinions I have read. I am wanting to change the oil for first time since I have brought the bike hoe last week. I figured I would just use the BMW oil, but now am left wondering which weight oil I should be using. The bike has 71k miles and has always been maintained at a localBMW dealer.

Cheers

If you are ok with the price of the BMW oil, in 20-50w it will do just fine for your bike. For the brick K bikes almost any quality motorcycle oil in 20-50wt will do just fine. And some of us even still run Mobil 1 (silver cap) in 20-50wt, tho it is getting a bit harder to find. For filters, check online with Beemer Boneyard--they sell Bosch and Mann filters suitable for the brick-K bikes and as an MOA member you get a 10% discount from their already-low prices.

Best,
DG

GTRider,

Thanks for the response. So I'm ok with using non motorcycle oil? I have read the Castrol 4T 20-50 or 10-40 was good too. I would prefer not to buy BMW oil, since it is overpriced I'm sure. Your opinion?

Thanks

Did you get an owner's manual with the bike? It has the answers to your oil questions and more. There are places the manual can be downloaded:

http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/us/en....com/us/en/services/manuals/manuals_main.html

You can buy one here ($22.63):

https://www.ascycles.com/Products/ProductID/10994

The brick-K is essentially a car engine flopped on its side. Running MC oil gives many people that extra peace of mind, however. I mis-spoke earlier on the Mobil 1 (silver cap)--it is 15-50 wt, not 20-50. I and many others have been running it for years (90k+ on my '04 K12GT) so it is a proven commodity. Just be sure to get silver cap, not green cap, if you hit Walmart or a FLAPS to purchase M1. Castro 4T is an excellent oil as well and is available online at Amazon as well as being stocked at many MC shops. There are others as well-Lucas makes some good motorcycle oils, for example.

The suggestion to pick up an owner's manual is a good one and you should follow through on that. A bit of googling will also reveal some websites where you can get a PDF file of the factory service manual for your machine, or you can check on ordering that through the dealer channel as well--but I am not sure of availability.

Enjoy your KRS,

DG

Been using Lucas oil with a K&N filter in my '02 K1200RS. 84K+ miles and still running well.

k12 oil

get a manual - u must follow instructions to get proper oil level - its NOT 4qts - its 3.4 or 3.5 (depends on eng yr) - & u must follow the correct way to do it.
if u burn oil at start up when on side kickstand ya got too much in - best to use new crush seals & o rings - do NOT over tighten oil bolt.
its a car eng - thin'r oil when cold outside & 20 /50 when hot / warm. winter in WA a 10 / 40 should do -
i use syn oil castrol 4T - its $10 more than reg 20/ 50. 4T is a syn blend - best to use syn blend or pure syn - spend the extra few $'s & ride ur k12 till it hits 400K.

akbeemer said:

There are places the manual can be downloaded:

http://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/us/en....com/us/en/services/manuals/manuals_main.html

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I don't think BMW provides the free PDF rider's manual for a K1200RS like they do on the newer bikes.

Oil opinions are Internet crap. Just follow the specs in your owner's manual. All the rest is just crap.

Oil for K1200RS/GT

GTRider said:

The brick-K is essentially a car engine flopped on its side. Running MC oil gives many people that extra peace of mind, however. I mis-spoke earlier on the Mobil 1 (silver cap)--it is 15-50 wt, not 20-50. I and many others have been running it for years (90k+ on my '04 K12GT) so it is a proven commodity. Just be sure to get silver cap, not green cap...

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Good advice. I also run 15W-50 Mobil 1 (silver cap) in my '04 K12GT and haven't had any issues whasoever. 90K and counting here too... No worries! Being a reliable car-like engine with dry clutch, the "bricks" really aren't picky about oil. I use Mobil 1 mainly because it's proven and widely available.

Oil and filter service on the K1200RS/GT is about as quick and easy as it gets. The only time-consuming step is removing and replacing the "Tupperware" (belly pan). Other than that, it actually takes me more time to put away my tools and clean up--especially after kicking the drain pan or otherwise spilling oil on the garage floor, which happens all too often for a klutz like me.

When changing the engine oil, replace the drain bolt crush washer and the filter cover's O-ring. I also like to do the tranny fluid and final drive oil at every oil change--not because it's needed that often, but because it's inexpensive and easy to do while I've got my tools out and the plastic parts removed. Be sure to get the BMW oil filter tool (or a suitable sub) for all "brick" engines and a 14mm hex bit to remove the tranny drain plug on K12RS/GT models.

Another tip: Drain the transmission fluid and final drive oil into a clear container (I use large zip-lock freezer bags) and examine closely for any metal chips or flakes that could indicate drive gear or bearing failure. A small amount of very fine metallic crud on the drain bolts and small metal "whiskers" on a magnetic drain plug are normal. Larger chips or flakes are a sign that something is amiss and warrants further investigation.

-MTS

For all you car oil guys: what late model car engine has flat faced cam followers instead of roller followers? And are you sure there is sufficient anti-scuff wear additive to protect the cam lobes in the car oil you like so much? Just curious why you are better informed than BMW engineers?

The anti-wear additives (zinc and phosphorous or ZDDP) have been lowered in ALMOST all car oils because it shortens the catalytic converter life.


However Mobil 1 15w-50 still has the higher levels of these additives. It is available at Wallyworld in 5 quart jugs for around $25.

The Mobil 1 V Twin 20w-50 offers the highest level of anti-wear additives (after all, they are trying to get a Harley to last 30k ). This will also work with wet clutches where the standard Mobil 1 15w-50 will not.

Auto racing oils are not recommended as they usually do not contain sufficient detergent packages, as they are designed to be changed almost every race.


https://mobiloil.com/~/media/amer/us/pvl/files/pdfs/mobil-1-oil-product-specs-guide.pdf

PGlaves said:

For all you car oil guys: what late model car engine has flat faced cam followers instead of roller followers?

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Quite a few, actually, ranging from Hyundai to Honda and more. Lots of OHC engines out there using bucket or bucket&shim valve adjustment running the buckets directly on the cam lobes.

PGlaves said:

And are you sure there is sufficient anti-scuff wear additive to protect the cam lobes in the car oil you like so much?

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Reasonably so, based upon a reading of the oil mfg's specs for the particular oil being used in the particular engine referred to in this thread.

PGlaves said:

Just curious why you are better informed than BMW engineers?

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I don't think any of the respondents here have ever claimed that, or for that matter claimed or proclaimed anything along those lines. Certainly no one has advocated something like oils designed for diesel engines or boat motors. The OP asked about engine oil for the particular model specified in his post. Pulling up the service manual for that model, BMW's advice on oil is as follows: "Brand-name HD oil, API classification SF, SG or SH;suffix letters CD or CE are permitted; alternatively, brand-name HD oil of CCMC classification G4 or G5; suffix PD2 is permitted. BMW recommends Castrol oil." Take that printout to the local FLAPS store when you're on the road and ask them to cough up a quart and you'll likely get a blank stare or just get handed a quart of whatever falls within the correct viscosity range. To the best of my knowledge, BMW does not go back and retroactively update their spec callouts for fluids so the specs quoted above date back to 1997-2003, which is old history in the oil industry-- I don't recall seeing a can or bottle of plain SF/SG/SH on the shelf for a long time. One of the JASO-MA spec oils is often recommended as they are supposedly designed specifically for MC use, but the major consideration there is the impact of friction modifiers on wet-clutch action--and the K12RS/GT is not a wet clutch motorcycle. http://www.oilspecifications.org/articles/JASO_MA_JASO_MB.php

So yes, I suppose the safe alternative is to just buy whatever the BMW dealer is currently selling as appropriate, but finding 20-50wt on the dealer's shelf is getting to be an issue sometimes as well. And, I haven't seen any specs published by BMW on the "specially formulated for BMW" oil they are selling-- ZDDP contents and such--which raises the question of whether or not there is any formulation taking place beyond changing the label and bumping the price to $12-14/qt. Second best is scouring the shelves at the non-BMW dealers as they quite often have an appropriate oil on hand-- if I need a quart on the road I usually hit one of the non-BMW MC shops--they are much more common than BMW shops--and generally have good luck finding a suitable product. And thirdly, there is are the FLAPS stores--some of them are getting better at stocking 20-50wt MC-suitable oils, usually marketed to the H-D crowd. Personally, for the machine the OP asked about--which is essentially the same as the 2004GT I have sitting in my garage--I'm more than happy to continue sticking with the silver cap Mobil1 15-50wt that I buy at Walmart (about $25 for a 5-liter jug) and will continue to change at 6k intervals or whenever I'm embarking upon a major road trip. As pointed out in an earlier post, Mobil has maintained a higher level of ZDDP in the silver cap flavor of Mobil 1; the last Blackstone analysis I had done for this bike came back with no red flags.

BUT, if there is a better oil available in the correct weight and which better meets the old specs BMW has called out for these particular bikes, and it sells for less than $12/liter and is readily available, I'm all ears!
As for the rest of the stable-- the airheads, the F800, the wedge-K--they do NOT get automotive oils, they get the appropriate MC oils. And oil for the airhead is getting to be the harder commodity to find...

Best,

DG

GTRider said:

BUT, if there is a better oil available in the correct weight and which better meets the old specs BMW has called out for these particular bikes, and it sells for less than $12/liter and is readily available, I'm all ears!

DG

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Certainly: Castrol 20W50 or 10W40 SG rated Castrol 4T dino oil at O'Reilly's or Auto Zone - approximately $5 per liter. Valvoline motorcycle oil also SG rated at the same stores, usually on the same shelf.

oils

look in ur owners manual or ur clymers book - it will have a oil viscosity chart & specs - ITS A CAR ENG.
i use (99 rs/ 03 gt) castrol 20 / 50 or castrol 20 / 50 4T - & change when 1st shows dirty 3 to 5 K miles - i'm in fla - hot.
change filter - follow correct - drain / re fill instructions -
it will live long & prosper - mobil 1 is good too - so is BMW car oil (silver jug)
change when 1st dirty - use sight glass to see it dirty - do not over fill
& if u have a 10 yrs old bike or a fly'n brick - change ur rubber brake lines - use dot 4 - flush every yr