For those who feel heavy engine braking

4152 Views 11 Replies 8 Participants Last post by YamahaR3, Mar 16, 2016

Vince

Discussion Starter · Mar 13, 2016

I've noticed on my bike previously that engine brake is quite prominent in the case..... until I change the oil yesterday!
First I've used the yamalube which was really heavy on engine braking. I thought I was not used to parallel twin while I had a Civic(V4) and now Lexus ES(V6). My Lexus literally has little to none engine braking until 4000rpm(unless you swap to sports+locked gear it'll never hit that high, it's a Camry in mind for comfort)
I switched to Motul 3100 @ 4000miles which was smoother but still heavy on engine braking

Finally hit 7000 earlier this week and I just swapped to Motul 7100(no mix yet) for the first time. The engine braking just diminished and felt like a new bike! Although it's more expensive than the yamalube($46 vs $26 a gallon on amazon), people who feel it's heavy on engine braking should try this out!
It could be the fresh oil that vibration is a little less than before by 7500-8500rpm(which is the most notable vibration and I happen to be in the range alot). Not really selling the oil but those who came from a cruising car and mentioned about engine braking should try it out. If you don't like it you paid extra 20 for the gallon(buy one more quart would get you two oil change) and no damage was done >

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Endopotential

· #2 · Mar 14, 2016

Does the variety of engine oil really make that much of a difference in engine braking?

I would think it's more related to the mechanical aspects of the engine, like compression ration / size of intake and exhaust valves etc...?

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Paulie.online

· #3 · Mar 14, 2016

Did you do any other maintenance at the same time? I would have thought that a loose chain would be more likely to cause a feeling of jerkiness than the type of engine oil.

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

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xorbe

· #4 · Mar 14, 2016

I would be extremely surprised if any oil could significantly alter the perceived engine braking. It's a function of dfco, vacuum and compression. If what you said was true, then your mileage should have been awful before.

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CBRpilot

· #5 · Mar 14, 2016

The R3 seems to have pretty strong engine braking for such a small motor. I'm sure the short gearing is part of it. It's kind of fun though, it forces you to rev-match or wait until the rpm's are almost at the bottom to downshift.

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Maverick

· #6 · Mar 14, 2016

Vince said:
Finally hit 7000 earlier this week and I just swapped to Motul 7100(no mix yet) for the first time. The engine braking just diminished and felt like a new bike! Although it's more expensive than the yamalube($46 vs $26 a gallon on amazon), people who feel it's heavy on engine braking should try this out!
It could be the fresh oil that vibration is a little less than before by 7500-8500rpm(which is the most notable vibration and I happen to be in the range alot). Not really selling the oil but those who came from a cruising car and mentioned about engine braking should try it out. If you don't like it you paid extra 20 for the gallon(buy one more quart would get you two oil change) and no damage was done >

Nothing to do with Oil type... Chalk it up to riding time and adapting to the feel of the bike/throttle control.

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Vince

Discussion Starter · #7 · Mar 15, 2016

Paulie.online said:
Did you do any other maintenance at the same time? I would have thought that a loose chain would be more likely to cause a feeling of jerkiness than the type of engine oil.

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

Just oil this time
the chain looked ok so I didn't adjust it yet(stretching far end, another quarter inch I'll have to adjust it again)

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Vince

Discussion Starter · #8 · Mar 15, 2016

xorbe said:
I would be extremely surprised if any oil could significantly alter the perceived engine braking. It's a function of dfco, vacuum and compression. If what you said was true, then your mileage should have been awful before.

Haven't get gas since oil change yet, I will empty the tank tomorrow and see what mileage I'm at. Been getting somewhere 52mpg before the change. It's fresh oil so noticeably smoother though should be better mileage

Gonna do an experiment of 3100 7100 mix(basically just use up the oil) to see any difference on the next 3000miles(only 10weeks away from the commute I ride, not too far ahead)

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Vince

Discussion Starter · #9 · Mar 15, 2016

Maverick said:
Nothing to do with Oil type... Chalk it up to riding time and adapting to the feel of the bike/throttle control.

Would it be completely not related to oil type? I noticed difference on my car with stock(OEM) on my lexus and civic(before current car)/Mobil 1 and Liqui moly. Same consistency for 5w30 on lexus and still noticed similar performance change. Somewhat less apparent with engine braking(minimal on the large engine to begin with). My girl started driving 6months ago and noticed similar changes with switching from mobil 1 to liqui moly as well.

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Maverick

· #10 · Mar 15, 2016

Vince said:
Would it be completely not related to oil type? I noticed difference on my car with stock(OEM) on my lexus and civic(before current car)/Mobil 1 and Liqui moly. Same consistency for 5w30 on lexus and still noticed similar performance change. Somewhat less apparent with engine braking(minimal on the large engine to begin with). My girl started driving 6months ago and noticed similar changes with switching from mobil 1 to liqui moly as well.

Whats more likely? Your engine is seeing less load because of a minute difference in oil type... or... your brain altering your perception of how it is?

Your brain constantly plays tricks on you... its like guys who install cold air intakes on their vehicle, they swear up and down that it added horsepower, or used 91 octane fuel instead of 87, when in reality according to calibrated machinery it was a minute/negligible/no change.

Its not impossible that changing oil types changed the resistance resulting in less engine breaking, but its more likely just your brain and adaptation.

I read an article years ago about how changes in the things you interact with everyday triggers parts of the reward center of the brain when the people knew about the changes resulting in a different perception of that object. People who didnt know about the changes perceived absolutely no difference, unless the change actually altered the physics of how humans interact with it. They could also tell people about a change and not another particular change but their brain amplified their perception of the first change so much they didnt even notice the other change.

Just some food for thought

Like I said, its not impossible the oil type made a difference... how measurable a difference is a different story.

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Aufitt

· #11 · Mar 15, 2016

If its your first bike?

Its simply you getting smoother on the throttle as you get experience.
Oil wont make one difference provided its the correct weight and spec.

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YamahaR3

· #12 · Mar 16, 2016 (Edited)

Vince, you're not going to have a cylinder wall left if you can notice how much engine braking you have from changing oil. The friction would be astronomical.

I hate to tell you buddy, but its all in your head. The differences between oils is on a molecular level, not something you can notice at 40mph down Main street.

I will say this, its nice that you're paying that much attention to your bike. Most people just hop on and go. And from a mechanics perspective, thanks for taking care of it. I hate seeing anything neglected, cars, boats, motorcycles, airplanes. It just saddens me. Nice to know you're taking care of it. Good job.

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