There is a lot of confusion about oil in motorcycles. Specially marketed "motorcycle oil" is a lot more expensive than oil sold for cars, but is it really safe to run car oil? Yes, just make sure it meets SG, SH, SJ, or SL service requirements. Generally, you are better off with a heavy-duty oil for motorcycles, such as 15w40, below is a list of oils known to work well in motorcycles:

1. Chevron Delo 400 15w40
2. Mobil Delvac 1300 Super 15w40
3. Pennzoil Long-Life 15w40
4. Quaker State 4X4 Synthetic Blend 15w40
5. Shell Rotella-T 15w40 (my personal favorite)
6. SuperTech 2000 (WalMart) 15w40
7. Valvoline All Fleet 15w40
8. Castrol Syntec Blend Truck and 4X4 15w40

A really good choice HAS always been Mobil One 15w50, but recently they changed their formula from TriSynthetic to SuperSyn, which has additional friction modifiers, which may make it no longer a good choice for bikes. This is still up in the air, with people having mixed results, but I say, why risk it, try one of the other ones above!

Now, this may seem sketchy to you, and you're thinking, yea it may work, but will my bike die in a year? In the June 1996 Issue of Sport Rider Magazine, there was a report called, "100,000 mile Honda CBR900RR." The owner used regular Castrol GTX car oil, 20W50 in the summer, 10W40 in the winter, changed his oil every 4000 miles, only changed the oil filter EVERY OTHER time. When this bike had 100,000 miles on it, they dyno'd it up against an identical bike with only 6,722 miles on it, and the horsepower and torque curves were virtually identical! The magazine later did a follow up, with the same CBR at 200,000 miles and going strong, so as you can see, the oil had no affect on his bike.

So, you may wonder, "Why then, is motorcycle sooo much more money, if its the same stuff?"

Well, because they sell motorcycle oil in smaller quantities, more packaging, smaller orders, less sales, more cost per quart. Just recently, some of the major oil companies have caught on to this, and have started selling their own motorcycle oils in auto parts stores and even places like Wal Mart, and they are MUCH closer to the price of regular car oil, because once again, they are the massive companies, they move a lot more oil, and have less cost per quart. So, when you buy the really expensive motorcycle oil for your bike, what you are paying for, is not better oil, you're just paying for that companies costs. Get it? Good. Save your money for better things, like new parts!

Mesh motorcycle jackets have been gaining in popularity over the years. Leather jackets very often fail to provide relief during very hot summer rides. Mesh jackets make our rides pleasant and comfortable. Such jackets allow for greater circulation of air which makes them more suitable for wearing in hot weather.

Mesh jackets normally have thicker fibers with an ‘open weave’. This enables the free movement of air inside the jacket. Such jackets are a blessing in warm weather.

Different types of mesh jackets are available today. Hundreds of companies make excellent-quality jackets for men and women.

Brands like AGV, Vanson, Tecknic, Olympia, Joe Rocket, First Gear, Tour Master, Icon, Alpinestars and Fieldsheer are popular among motorcyclists. They provide high-quality mesh jackets.

Besides providing relief during summer, such jackets also offer maximum protection. Usually all brands offer a combination of armor as well as foam padding and patches in shoulders, elbows, and other high-impact places.

Some popular mesh motorcycle jackets include the AGV sport aeromesh jacket ($139), Vanson vent jacket ($199), Tecknic supervent jacket ($130) and many others. AGV jackets also have reflective badges, which are extremely useful at night.

The ‘First Gear mesh-tex jacket’ is highly popular and available in different sizes and colors. Fieldsheer mesh jackets also are high quality, ultra-breathable and abrasion-resistant, and available in different colors.

An unusual mesh motorcycle jacket is offered by Race ATV. Incorporating an electrical lead into a harness installed with a motorcycle’s rear lights, it provides a ‘graphical window’ on the back of the jacket, which emits light when using brakes or turn signals.

Companies like Motorcycle Style, Sport Tour, Race ATV, ABA’s Leather Jackets, Amazon, Brockton Cycle Center, Motorcycle Superstore and many others offer high-quality mesh jackets. Free shipping is offered by companies such as Sport Tour. With cooling effects, padding and armor, such jackets combine comfort and protection. An absolute necessity during warm weather, they should be surely be part of any motorcyclists’ riding gear collection.

If you have at one time or another bought a motorcycle, then you probably heard of the term motorcycle refinance. But what is motorcycle refinance, exactly?

Lets go down to the basics. The term motorcycle financing refers to the act of providing a certain amount of money to an individual in order to buy a motorcycle. Motorcycle Loans are actually types of financing. Now, when we say motorcycle refinance, therefore, it means that we are still providing a certain amount of money. The prefix re actually points to the idea that you will be basically taking a new motorcycle loan to replace an old one.

Financial analysts will claim that a motorcycle refinance is a great option for motorcycle buyers when interest rates are low. The reason for this is quite obvious. Refinance loans allow you to take a new motorcycle loan for a relatively lower interest rate. Low interest rates mean low monthly repayments. And low monthly repayments mean bigger savings for you. Of course, this only works if, and only if, the rates are low. If the rates are high, refinance is not advisable.

An advantage of refinancing your motorcycle loan is that the move will allow you to change motorcycle loan terms from a long one to something shorter. With a shorter loan term, you can pay off your loan amount much sooner, thus allowing you to save more on your overall interest payments.

Besides bigger savings on your monthly bills, a motorcycle refinance or loan provides you greater loan satisfaction. For instance, if you find that the terms of your current motorcycle loan are unsatisfactory, you can switch to another lender with a motorcycle refinance loan. You can use the money you get from your refinance loan to pay off your old loan. In addition to that, motorcycle refinancing gives you the option to change your lending company whose services or programs make you unhappy or unsatisfied motorcycle buyers.

Most owners manuals don't tell you what octane to run, they simply say: unleaded gas. If this is the best your owners manual tells you, or if you don't have one, read on. But if it tells you a certain octane of gas to go with, use that, your bike may need a higher octane due to high compression.

If your motorcycle has a turbo, a supercharger, or nitrous oxide injection, then this does not apply to you. You should know all about fuel mapping by now (if you don't learn!)

If your motor is heavily modified, with high-compression pistons etc, you will need to run a higher octane as well.

Ok, so, if your manual doesn't say what to run, you don't have a turbo, supercharger, nitrous, or really high compression, then:

There is a big misconception that you need to run the highest octane you can. This is false.

Octane: the amount of resistance to detonation

Higher Octane Gas: More resistance to detonation

Lower Octane Gas:Ignites easier and produces more horsepower, assuming no detonation is present.

Detonation: basically when the air/fuel mixture ignites at the wrong time and cause a tremendous increase in pressure in the cylinders. If it continues for a long period of time, it can ultimately destroy the engine.

However, most sport bikes are designed to run 87 octane gas, and will not experience any detonation, but will actually LOSE power by running a higher octane, plus it will make it run hotter as well.