BF40A Engine oil

[Northerner28]

I have a Honda 4 stroke 40 horse 4 stroke. I have never owned a 4 stroke outboard before. What kind of engine oil should I use on this and is there a synthetic available? Thanks

 

[ahicks]

10-30 is what's recommended, and I generally suggest synthetic with changes when you put the motor away for the season. That way it's stored with fresh oil that contains no acids, and it's ready to go for the following season.

 

[Alumarine]

Also, FC-W rated oil is recomended for 4-stroke outboards..

 

[pvanv]

Heavier oil and synthetic oil will contribute to making oil. Regular dinosaur fluid works best in these.

 

[ahicks]

Paul,
Interesting comment. Would you care to expand a little? You are saying you would not run synthetic that's changed annually? -Al

 

[pvanv]

I wouldn't bother with synthetic, especially during break-in. A number of manufacturers hedge on that, and the Lube Tech oil that gets rebadged for many manufacturers is indeed semi synthetic.

 

[ahicks]

LOTS of opinions when it comes to break in oil - whether or not to use synthetic. I've been a big believer in the virtues of synthetic for a long time in everything I run - which was reinforced in the last few years when I learned many automotive manf's were shipping new cars with synthetic.

Anyway, no intention here of knocking anyone for their 'druthers when it comes to what oil you use, as long as it meets the specs and gets changed regularly. Those 2 things likely more important than anything....

The reason I ask more than anything else, I was just wondering if you had heard something I had not.

Thanks for the reply, -Al

 

[pvanv]

No offense taken, Al. Here in the colder northeast, we get best results with dinosaur fluid. All oil today is so much better than even the best oils of 40 years ago.