Can Your Motorcycle Survive Heat this Extreme?

Can Your Motorcycle Survive Heat this Extreme?

V-Twins Get Hot

Harley-Davidsons* and other bikes with big V-twin engines generate significant heat, especially in low-speed parades, in rally traffic or on long climbs on hot days. Motor oil plays a critical role in cooling these big air-cooled engines, and even more so in low-speed operation with limited wind generated to cool the bike. If the oil can’t withstand the heat, its ability to protect your bike is compromised.

Is your motorcycle protected against extreme heat?

Watch what happens when we push a 2012 Harley Davidson FXDB to 500ºF in our mechanical lab to see how AMSOIL synthetic lubricants protect against extreme heat.

AMSOIL Synthetic Motorcycle Oil Protects in Extreme Heat

To demonstrate its extreme-heat protection qualities, AMSOIL 20W-50 Synthetic V-Twin Motorcycle Oil was subjected to a dynamometer test designed to simulate conditions even more extreme than the demanding stop-and-go driving conditions of a motorcycle rally or parade route.

A 2012 Harley-Davidson FXDB Dyna Street Bob* motorcycle equipped with AMSOIL 20W-50 Synthetic V-Twin Motorcycle Oil was subjected to a strenuous low-speed test cycle, with significant idle time broken by short bursts of engine revving and little to no air moving across the cylinders. Like most Harley-Davidson motorcycles, the Dyna Street Bob features an air-cooled V-twin engine, which relies on cooling

fins arrayed along the cylinder walls to conduct heat away. To create the most-severe operating conditions possible, the electronic temperature controls, which safeguard the motorcycle when temperatures reach dangerous levels, were deactivated. The combination of low airflow and inoperative temperature controls allowed the test lab to subject the oil and engine components to intense heat not normally experienced in the real world. Cylinder temperatures reached more than 500°F, and oil temperatures exceeded 300°F – temperatures well into the range where oils begin to break down and often lead to catastrophic failure.

500°F is No Problem

The extreme temperatures were no match for AMSOIL Synthetic Motorcycle Oil. After nearly 70 minutes of torturous testing and heat exposure, oil analysis revealed no change in oil viscosity and only minor levels of oxidation, TBN depletion and wear.

Dyno Test Results

Not only did AMSOIL Synthetic V-Twin Motorcycle Oil prevent the engine from overheating and seizing

during the extreme dyno test, it did so without losing chemical integrity or ability to protect vulnerable engine components. See full results here. Synthetic V-Twin Motorcycle Oil provides outstanding protection in even the most compromising and severe high-temperature riding and idling conditions, providing peace of mind that your air-cooled V-twin is protected even in low speeds on hot days.

AMSOIL formulates a full line of products for V-twins, including AMSOIL Synthetic V-Twin Transmission Fluid and AMSOIL Synthetic V-Twin Primary Fluid.

Your bike should never get this hot. If it does, AMSOIL has you covered.