Has anyone Heard that Harley doesn't recommend Amsoil for the New 2020 CVO Trikes? My Harley Dealer was telling me that and I used it on my 2015 Trike but they say DON'T on the New 2020.
Thanks for your Help.
Thanks for your Help.
Amsoil
- Thread starter CVOTrikeBoy
- Start date
Dave welcome to Trike-Talk...............:wave4:....
Fearless
Gone But Not Forgotten
Welcome to the group from Western Pennsylvania I have used Amsoil products for years with no ill effects on anything I own. Primary oil and tranny oil. However I use Mobile 1 in the motor. 
Travel safe Fred
Contact Amsoil they are great with inquiries about the uses. If there is an issue they will say so,they wouldn't want the liability of false information.
Travel safe FredContact Amsoil they are great with inquiries about the uses. If there is an issue they will say so,they wouldn't want the liability of false information.
Would like to know more about this,, Used in my 03Ultra for over 100,000 miles on 10k oil changes with Amsoil filter per Amsoil guidelines. Used in a Chevy diesel hauling new RV's to dealers over 400,000 miles with a dual filter bypass system on 60k changes. I remember when HD said do not use any synthetic oil. Then they finally got one & it was OK to use. So whats up ??
Lee H. Mann
Gone But Not Forgotten
Until Harley-Davidson developed their half/synthetic blend themselves, they didn't recommend synthetic in any of their products.
Then, like out of the blue, it became acceptable to use Harley-Davidson Semi/Synthetic 20-50 in all three holes.
I believe that AMSOIL could be contacted for this to see if this is just a Dealer spouting off or a Motorco Policy.
http://www.harley-performance.com/amsoil-vs-harley.html
Agree 100% ^^^^
Fearless
Gone But Not Forgotten
My thoughts exactly. Fred
Wmitz
200+ Posts
Most likely a dealer just trying to drum up business. Any of the certified mainstream oil will work. Look in your manual, it will list the acceptable oil certifications.
peteg59
Meme Master
The underlying question if this is from the MoCo is what, if anything, has changed in the engines that they are now harmed by the use of Amsoil and I'm assuming other synthetics as well?
Typically the dealerships would recommend their line of lubricants over any competitor, so that might be what your experiencing?
Sounds like marketing propaganda, but who knows???:Shrug:
Typically the dealerships would recommend their line of lubricants over any competitor, so that might be what your experiencing?
Sounds like marketing propaganda, but who knows???:Shrug:
Jack Klarich
Gold Member
Welcome to Trike Talk. I find it hard to believe. Many dealers carry it in stock. What does the 2020 owners manual say?
Jack Klarich
Gold Member
Amsoil Guarantee
Here's a link to Amsoil's Guarantee that their products will keep Factory Warranty intact.
Haven't seen any exclusions for 2020 Model M8's.:Shrug:
Here's a link to Amsoil's Guarantee that their products will keep Factory Warranty intact.
Haven't seen any exclusions for 2020 Model M8's.:Shrug:
Jack Klarich
Gold Member
- Thread starter
- #16
Thanks Bob. Have a Great and Safe Weekend.
- Moderator
- #17
What is really curious is the statement of CVO M8 2020 motor only. I would not think that other then displacement there is nothing special about the motor. Different cams but they should be of the same composition. Seems like an individual stating their own opinion, not the Motor Company. I don't think they would take on the liability of trashing an approved oil companies product. If the oil meets the required standards they can not say not to use it and not honor the warrantee on the motor.
Maybe that dealer employee was just making a Trump-esque musing....:xszpv:
...:xszpv:
Dave i don't know if you ever dealt with Harley dealers in the past.....But just by you asking if something will void the warrantee will void the warrantee....:laugh:...
I agree 1000%. If Amsoil is bad so is EVERY SINGLE OTHER SYN OIL BRAND. This is the biggest anti Amsoil statement I've ever seen.
I've been using Ansoil in every single vehicle I've ever owned for the last 30 years = without one single problem.
I sure would like to know what the big difference is on the 2020 CVO Trikes
Typical dealer BS imo. On my 2007 CVO I had a lifter fail and grenade the 110" motor. Tech and service manager blamed it on Mobil 1 V-Twin 20w 50 oil I was using. Said they'd seen several motor problems and common denominator was the Mobil 1. BS because while I didn't know it at the time (and perhaps they did not also) early lifter and cam bearing failure was rampant on the 110" motor and to a lesser extent on the 103" motor which I know because it happened twice on my 2012 CVO with the 110" motor and I had quit using the Mobile 1 'just in case' but that didn't stop the problem.
Fortunately I had no problem with H-D ESP honoring the warranty as this just came up as an aside while we were inspecting the damage to the motor.
So imo forget what a dealer may say and use any oil you want as long as it meets current specs.
Jack Klarich
Gold Member
HD knew they had a vendor problem with their lifters, still they blame non HD oil.
Funny how HD has NEVER had any rating for their oil, while blaming others including Mobil for an inferior product. That is just non sense.
Yeah I noticed that also. Auto manufacturers will say use an oil that meets a certain spec but no, no H-D does not give you that info and their oil bottles do not list what industry spec it meets . . . or does not meet, lol.
Personally I call BS on most anything dealers tell me. And I say about my Harleys what I said years ago about computers . . . I know way more than I ever wanted to know and that is because of self defense. Seriously I just want to start it up and ride or turn my computer on and use it but unfortunately it just ain't that simple.
gfaltersack
50+ Posts
I did a thorough Amsoil study
https://www.oildepot.ca/does-synthetic-oil-cause-harley-roller-bearing-problems/
I too have a Harley dealer whose personnel are "old school" about Amsoil meaning they do not like it at all and still refer to the "cam bearing skate" rumor. I attached the link to that article. My Amsoil study followed and I checked every Harley Dealer in Wisconsin and found out over 50% were offering Amsoil as an alternative lubricant. If it is so bad why are Harley district reps allowing their dealers to sell it? Harley dealers are independent and when dealing with several over the past 20 years I get a wide range of opinions or answers to my problems and questions. In 2010 Harley started using a new style Dunlop front tire which started chopping out prematurely. 2 dealers said it was my problem while the 3rd said it was a factory defect and covered under warranty. I wore out several compensators on a 2011 Trike and once again on a 2013 Ultra Limited. Again 2 dealers said I was shifting into 6th gear too early and also said to overfill the primary by 8-12oz. The shifting of gears is plainly spelled out in the owners manual which I followed. Overfilling the primary was the dumb answer as it now turns out and the manual specifically says "do not overfill" Harley redesigned the compensator and lubrication for 2014. The third dealer once again said the compensator is defective and replaced under warranty! CONDEMNING AMSOIL IS JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF IGNORANCE ON THE PART OF A SPECIFIC DEALER.
https://www.oildepot.ca/does-synthetic-oil-cause-harley-roller-bearing-problems/
I too have a Harley dealer whose personnel are "old school" about Amsoil meaning they do not like it at all and still refer to the "cam bearing skate" rumor. I attached the link to that article. My Amsoil study followed and I checked every Harley Dealer in Wisconsin and found out over 50% were offering Amsoil as an alternative lubricant. If it is so bad why are Harley district reps allowing their dealers to sell it? Harley dealers are independent and when dealing with several over the past 20 years I get a wide range of opinions or answers to my problems and questions. In 2010 Harley started using a new style Dunlop front tire which started chopping out prematurely. 2 dealers said it was my problem while the 3rd said it was a factory defect and covered under warranty. I wore out several compensators on a 2011 Trike and once again on a 2013 Ultra Limited. Again 2 dealers said I was shifting into 6th gear too early and also said to overfill the primary by 8-12oz. The shifting of gears is plainly spelled out in the owners manual which I followed. Overfilling the primary was the dumb answer as it now turns out and the manual specifically says "do not overfill" Harley redesigned the compensator and lubrication for 2014. The third dealer once again said the compensator is defective and replaced under warranty! CONDEMNING AMSOIL IS JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF IGNORANCE ON THE PART OF A SPECIFIC DEALER.
The dealers down here sell Amsoil also. Should I narc on them to the mothership???
I'm old enough to remember back in the day H-D said to never use syn oil in any Harley or you would destroy the engine.
I'm old enough to remember back in the day H-D said to never use syn oil in any Harley or you would destroy the engine.
The dealers down here sell Amsoil also. Should I narc on them to the mothership???
I'm old enough to remember back in the day H-D said to never use syn oil in any Harley or you would destroy the engine.
Hate to admit it,but, I also am old enough to remember that BS HD tried to get us to believe. I ran over 100,000 on my 03 with Amsoil & their filter. They were saying you could double the miles on changes. I did that 100k on 10k changes. Never any problems & guy I sold the bike to 8 yrs ago is still running it today. HD lies all the time ,UNTIL, they come up with a similar item.
As far as running syn oil in the early HD Evos i used it in my 93 FXLR and it did seem to allow the gaskets to seem like they seeped around the gaskets,so switching back to dino oil they did dry up.As far as Harley dealers pushing their oil could be based on how much per quart they make.The dealer i go to sells Schaffers oil and the parts guy swears by it and their master tech runs Schaffers in his bikes.My first twin cam,2001 i ran Royal purple until they got too pricey and switched to Lucas around 2008-9 and have used it in all my Harleys without any issues.As long as it meets the specs for air cooled engine it will work fine.
Running Amsoil in my 2020 CVO without issue. Have run it for years in my scooters...it gets really hot down here in Texas and I feel better with a full synthetic. Harley has really pushed their Syn3 BLEND for a while arguing that Harley's don't run hot enough to warrant the use of a full synthetic oil. Nope....Harley's run really cool....that's why everyone on this site is looking for ways to cool them down.
njtrike
50+ Posts
I had a 2010 triglide that I ran Amsoil in and had no issues with it. I did not purchase the extended warranty on this bike. I traded it in on a 2018 triglide and did purchase the extended warranty. When I asked my trusted service writer if using Amsoil would be a problem he said no but if I used Harley oil it would eliminate any doubts on the the warranty gods approving things if I had motor issues. Well my oil pump started to sump at 10k and the motor shot craps. The warranty gods could not blame Amsoil on for this. Just the dumb asses that built the motor. My motor should of had version 3 of the pump when it was built but somehow it had version 1. Based on the process used to evaluate what happened my service writer was right in that it eliminated any doubts about HD being responsible.
Trampas
1000+ Posts
My 2016 had amsoil in it when I bought it used plus their filter, when it came time to change I went with harley oil and filter. When changing it I found out the amsoil filter is bigger than the harley filter, I had to go buy a 3 prong filter wrench to take off the amsoil filter. Now I don't have it and have a 2018 now and using harley oil for now, might change down the road, harley oil has served me right since 1997.
All for now Trampas
All for now Trampas
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