Can-Am Commander Forum banner

A very specific oil question - yes I have searched

3K views 10 replies 11 participants last post by  Thunder 
#1 ·
Hi all. I have a very specific question regarding oil weight and type. I have searched this site as well as Google. I am looking for a match with my specific vehicle and driving conditions noted below. I would REALLY appreciate your technical or experienced feedback.

:nerd

Vehicle:
I have a 2016 Commander XT1000 Limited with about 2500 hours. I have recently lifted it (2") and widened with 2" wheel spacers all around.

Driving conditions:
Summer I ride in the AZ high country (around 5000 - 6500ft) with temps around 45-90 degrees. Winter I ride the AZ desert with temps around 50-100 degrees. I am always the second vehicle so I eat a crap-ton of dust....all the time!

I do change my oil and filter after every ride due to the constant dust and I have seen my oil VERY dirty when drained. I have been using 5w-30. Is this truly the recommended weight for my driving conditions and vehicle type? Should I be using full synth, partial or regular.


Thank you!
 
See less See more
#2 ·
Schaeffer oil supreme 9000 5w-40 and a can am oil filter is all I use. I change my oil once a year regardless of miles. It does get dusty up here and my pill looks the same wether I have 300 miles on it or over 1000. I use it to plow when it’s -20 and ride the heck out of it in the 90


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#3 ·
I know you had a specific question about oil but since you mentioned dust and seeing your oil dirty, a better question might be, “how do I limit the dust getting past my filter?” Had you asked I would have responded by recommending adding the maverick post filter.
 

Attachments

#4 ·
2500 hours is the highest I have seen on a canam engine so far . How many miles goes with that amount of hours .
I use amsoil on my 3 canam engines


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#5 ·
I second the post filter. Seem to me changing the oil after every ride is a bit excessive. How do you filter the air you are breathing?

Neil.
 
#6 ·
When the manufacturer list the weight of the oil they are taking into the consideration off all weather conditions and bearing clearance’s. Back in the old days bearings in new autos were .004 to .006. Now they are running thinner oil and clearance is down to .001. The reason for thin oil. Lower the clearance longer they last in theory. I’m a die hard v-twin guy . I always never start my machine colder than freezing . I have been running full synthetic Castrol v-twin 20/50 . If you have 2500 hrs and high mileage it definitely wouldn’t hurt it run heavier weight oil being you definitely have a lot of wear . You definitely need the mav aux filter to help stop the dust . But we ride in baby power dust bad enough you can’t breathe. So if your oil is getting that dirty do to dust you got major issues . 1000 miles on oil changes and blow filter out after every ride .
 
#7 ·
My brother who recently passed had a 2016 Outlander 850 and I have a 2015 Commander. We run Rotella T6 5W-40 with KN filters. Specs are the same as Can Am Oil. His machine has 36,000 miles on it! He did not drive, so he used it as his means of transportation. That should say something as far as oil...
 
#8 ·
A little Google-Fu, and some bookmarks I keep on this subject, and here's what you need to know.


For starters, your minimum temps are still well above freezing and in your case 40 being the lowest. You can set your lowest temp to 32. You'll see why in my links.

Next, your highest temps are going to be around 100 or so. You can set your highest temp to be 104, and again see the links as to why.

Using these temps makes it easy to figure out you have some choices in oil weights, and by referencing the charts in the links below, you could use:

5w30
5w40
10w30
10w40
15w40
20w50

Links for more info:

https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/viscosity-charts/

https://blog.amsoil.com/a-beginners-guide-to-motor-oil/#what-does-sae-stand-for-in-oil




Really what you need to look for at this point is what standards and specs the oil Can Am recommends you to use ... other than their stuff, of course.

So the specs you need to look for are clearly on their labels:

API SM (API rating "S" is for spark plug engines; "C" is for compression or diesel engines)
JASO MA2 (MA2 rating is for engines with catalytic converters)



This means you need to find an oil in that weight range that uses either the API SM and/or JASO MA2 specs, and a full synthetic would be best due to it's ability to protect the engine, and the additives and detergents to keep the gunk out.

I've been using Mobil 1 full synthetic 5w40 diesel oil, and no issues with it.

The other thing you mentioned was dirty oil. Oil doesn't really get "dirty", per se, but if you're concerned about it then I would recommend using Blackstone Labs for oil analysis:

https://www.blackstone-labs.com/

The kit is free, but it's $25 to get their report after sending in a sample. I've used it for my diesel truck and on the next oil change for my Commander I plan on doing it since Mobil 1 is a known oil to Blackstone (unlike the Can Am brand) so they already have industry data to use to compare to my sample. They can tell you oil life (change it sooner/go longer), if there is engine wear or not, and all kinds of other data you can compare against previous samples so you truly know what's going on.

Since you're having "dirty" oil, I would recommend switching to Mr RPM's zero port oil filter adapter and use a Baldwin filter. Baldwin filters are what I use due to their better filtration for my diesel, and they include one with the oil adapter kit.





-Kris
 
  • Like
Reactions: acefire
#9 ·
In the environments I run in my commander gets a complete oil change every spring. But for the motor I run Amsoil 0-40. Because my weather conditions go from 0 to 100+. Changing your oil after every ride seems like it might be excessive but then again its your money and piece of mind. As far a the color of the oil that is an indication that it is doing its job. A gas engine will color the oil after about 2 or 300 miles, A propane powered engine will run for several thousand miles before discoloration starts, and a diesel engines oil will change color as soon as you start the engine. Discoloration basically comes from the burning of fuels and carbon deposits along with a small amount of impurities such as dust if you have an intake leak. At least that is how it has been explained to me by engine engineers over the last 40 years of working on internal combustion engine. So to answer your question if you like the oil you have been using and with that many hours on your commander I would keep using it and as mentioned above if you are that concerned get a oil analyses done and see what the wear is on your engine.
 
#11 ·
Another happy Rotella T6 user. Over 7K miles. Its good for my diesels. Its good for my Commander. I ride in temps from below 0 to 100F. Dusty dirty desert riding.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top