exactly the reason why one should try to stick to thinner grade oil if he is being given the choice like on an fz you have 20w40 and 20w50 recommendation.. Try to use 20w40 in the initial biking days.. And when you start consuming oil after lets say 50k on the odo go for thicker oils.

Hope the thread starter has got his answer.. After all these discussions.

Without the nod from Honda Engineers, Honda would never change the oil grade just like that. Are we better than Honda engineers to judge what grade oil is good for their bikes? The evolution of technology is very rapid and what holds good 5 years back may not be same now. This 10w30 oil may do as good as a 20w40 oil, if not better.

In my opinion, there is absolutely no harm in using 10w30 oil. I have recently used 10w30 oil in my Karizma for 1000 kms and I found it as good as old 20w40 Honda's oil.

one thing is very clear from all this.. That either the honda engineers were wrong initially or they are now.
10w30 grades are known for increasing mileage.. May be this is just a marketing strategy.
If i would have been in the place of the thread starter, i would just do what i was doing.. As there was no problem, no over heating etc which is one of the reason why pulsars are now using thicker grades..
If honda is revisiting its recommendation for activa, and using 10w30 grades.. There wont be any harm in using this grade.. But there should be a recommendation!!! And not just that the recommemded grade is not available use this 'imported' grade.

10w30 oil supplied by Honda is not imported. It is made by Savita Chemicals under license from Idemitsu, Japan, as was the case with 20w40 Honda oil previously.

Activa has smaller engine and average speeds anyone rides will be just around 40-50kmph, and using 10w30 oil will not cause any harm like overheating.

yes, like all oils even synthetic ones are made in india.. By either same manufacturer or on contract and statements like 'made by technology from France' is being made by reputed manufacturers like Total/Elf whose plant is based in Navi Mumbai.

Regarding engine size and overheating.. The smaller the engine the higher the rpms required, the higher the chances of overheating.
A 50cc engine will overheat when run at 60 km/ h, a 250cc wont even warm up if run at that speed.
I had to get the exhaust pipe welded three times on my old splendor, though i was on 20w40.. That is the intensity of a 97 cc engine's heat builup if run at higher speeds (though i was around 70 most of the times).. Just imagine what would have happened if i were to use 10w30.
Dont think that the average speed of an activa would be 40-50. Its how you ride it.. I lost a race with it even tho i was on a splendor.. Later i realised that activa is much faster, 110cc.

Lets meet at the engine oil thread to discuss this further.

Hoping that the requester does what he interprets as correct. As we cant put the oil in 'his' bike :-)

ya may be the bad running in or whatever, but the bike was not entertained at svc when my grandpa (the owner) went there for warrenty claim. And 'they' happily recommended & used to pour gulf pride 4t 20w40 & bike never consumed any oil, more over bike's still ok (but consumes around 100ml of oil in summers) at 80k+ kms.
And I totally agree with the psychological thingy, it is present in every field! :-(
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@ Moderators,
I (personally) feel that this thread should be merged to engine oil thread.

thanks everyone for the replies...

just checked my manual and yes the oil recomended is on outside temperature so 10W30 is good till 30 degrees while above that we need 20W40

i dont know much abt oils and i have no idea what oil was used in my activa since i ddint care much that time....i just used to go to the local mech and he did everything...once out of curiosity i asked he told me he used 20W40 oil...some servo brand i guess and within a month i got some serious problem with my kick and it was found clutch cover damaged and many other minor problem like clutch shoe,brake shoe and starter bendex and stuff( i dont have much clue what these are i just went to the parts shop with him and saw the names on the bill :P )

the evening i went to colect my scooter and he told there was just 200ml of oil left and it was all muddy brown colour...he said its all burnt and replaced it..he used BP i guess thats what he told(20W40)..was pinkish in colour

from that time i tried learning more about how stuff works in the scooter and started taking care about how to maintain

i read threads and many suggested stick to the red and white bottle and when i went to the ASC( my brother told me never go there those are shit head people trying to burn holes in ur pocket and do nothing in return) to get to know more abt honda oil and i found out its 10W30 and not the 20W40 red white bottle

reason i asked this question now because its over 4 months since i last serviced and since a last few weeks i noticed rhythmic metallic sound coming from the engine while trying to go over 45(it happens sometimes and sometimes it doesnt)

also went for a short ride with friends(one on aviator and one on activa both almost a year old) and i could never keep up with them though the aviator had much more load on it

also the scooter doesnt start in 2-3 kicks but with the ignition off and after 5 kicks i turn on the ignition and the scooter starts in 2-3 kicks( my choke has gone kaput too). someone suggested this helps while starting in morning as engine flows in the cylinder with those kicks and engine starts then and this method she followed in chandigarh during cold climate as suggested by their family mechanic

considering getting the engine opened or using some kind of flush to get rid of carbon deposits if there are any( read somewhere helps a lot on old vehicle to regain their performance when they were first rode from the showroom)


P.S the activa is 48K km old and i have been riding it since last February(my birthday gift was getting a licence and my elder brothers activa as he gt himself a car)

^^ yes, know-how of things would help well in long, stick around, xbhp & other places are great source of knowledge and not to mention the Google!
And that rhythmic metallic sound (can you elaborate it more?) you mentioned is the engine killer (if coming from engine), i think its knocking or some grinding kinda noise which emerges from engine bearings (this happens because of ultra low oil level)
its better to get your scoot looked into from a good mechanic.

well imagine if a tin metal rod is in contact with the spokes of a moving cycle tyre...i guess the sound is the same can be compared to grinding noise.....i to guess its knocking and feel it is from the engine...i checked the oil level and i am always surprised to see the oil level much above the full mark on the dipstick...i have been checking this and getting same results from the past 3 months...the oil is 4 months old now..i let the engine idle for a minute and then check the oil..

yea i'll get it checked after a while..busy with semester exams... and hardly have a 6-7 km run per day..

this kinda sound emerged on my kinetic honda when piston rings were loose. And i used to hear it only in a speed range of 30-35 kmph.
And that too much oil level can be result of overfill, as activa uses only 800ml of oil as earlier you have said your mechanic uses servo oil which only comes in 900ml & 1l.
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All the best for your exams & till then dont strain your scoot.

Re: Honda oil

Regarding this I have a question. I own Honda Shine 2008. I used to get the vehicle serviced regularly in the showroom since I bought. At first for few years they used 20W40 Honda oil and after few years they switched to 10W30 oil. Why ? I don't know.

My query is which is better - 20W40 or 10W30. Please advice. Thanks.