I change mine when the oil change reminder tells me, which has been at about 10k intervals. I'm planning on running my EB 150-200k (which will take about 4 years).

 

After reading all these post I decided I better at least check my oil. My truck has 5600 miles on it and low and behold it looks like it is a quart low.


Posted from F150online.com App for Android

 

So are you going to add a qt of some brand of oil, or change it?

 

With the 5.0 your oil should be fine (not fuel diluted), just top off with some more Motorcraft. Unless you're like me and will change it just because it makes me feel better.

 

Posted from F150online.com App for Android

 

Posted from F150online.com App for Android

 

I change mine when the truck starts getting that ford ping on cold morning start up... usually about 3-4 months 4-5k... but i'm old school 3 months 3k miles is the old rule. I am changing mine now and have the wife running all over trying to find a friggin filter that will fit... The 4 inch Fram and Napa filters hit the radiator hose... it had an AC Delco since it was last changed for free at a GMC dealer where I bought it... is the Motorcraft filter the only other one i'm gonna find that is 3 inches tall?

 

10k miles most people will be missing 2 or so qts by then.

 

After years of throwing away money on special oils, filters and frequent changes I did some research and changed my ways. I used to run Mobil 1 everything every 3K. Once I owned a 6 liter power stroke I learned how cranky that engine was about oil and weight sheering. So I sent each change to Blackstone labs for analysis. They let me know when the oil was actually used up. Without real data like a lab test you have no facts to stand on.

I have since gone to sticking with factory maintenance schedules. I go by the SFI ratings of oil but usually stick with Motorcraft everything just for quality and cost. Today's engines almost always last double my term of ownership (100k miles) so paying 100 bucks for M1 or Royal Purple every 5k is not a value to me. I like the $40 Motorcraft oil change and the dealer can't dispute it for warranty purposes either.

 

I must say I am a little disappointed that I am almost a quart low at 6000 miles. I bought my daughter a new 2013 Edge in August the same time I bought my truck. Both vehicles have almost the same mileage on them. I checked the oil in her Edge and it hasn't used a drop.


Posted from F150online.com App for Android

 

I will be changing mine every 5k miles, using the factory motor oil the book says....

 

I just can't believe a brand new truck would be burning a quart of oil in the first 5K miles... Doesn't seem like that should be acceptable... I had my first oil change at 3K and didn't even think about asking if it was low because I would have never thought. I'll definitely check going forward and will most certainly be pursuing Ford for a remedy if its the case with my 5.0.

 

Check www.bobistheoilguy.com if you want to educate yourself on quality oils/filters/intervals.

FWIW motorcraft 5-20 synthetic blend always achieves great results along with the motorcraft filter.

EB fuel dilution issues addressed there as well.

If you want to take the guess work out of your oil changes go here http://www.blackstone-labs.com/
and start sampling. For the time it takes the next person to write up another "oil" post you could have a sample in the mail and get REAL feedback from people who KNOW oil.

'nuff said

 

Since warranty precludes extended oil intervals, what good is the Blackstone oil analysis?? It seems to me that it make more sense to just change it instead of spending money on synthetic oils and labs tests when you can't keep your warranty if you extend the interval beyond 10K miles.

 

Agree 100% "warranty precludes extended oil intervals." So regardless of what blackstone says, you need to change your oil every 10k miles.

However, I suppose if you had 10k mile intervals on your mind it would be nice to know if it's actually "safe," at least I would. Especially in the first 20-30k when the motor is breaking in. I think if you read BITOG you'll see most motors actually require some time for the wear metals to calm down...of course you don't see this when you dump the oil in your driveway (assuming you do it yourself) so a lab test is necessary to gauge the break-in period. Of course nobody is forcing you to do anything, but since you are responding to the thread you must care just a little about your oil and motor.

Maybe the first oil change should be done at 4500 miles, maybe not. Maybe an oil analysis on the factory oil would indicate it's good for 6000 miles, maybe not. It takes the guess work out of it. I personally took the guess work out if it and changed my oil at 1000 miles, 3000 miles, 6000 miles, 9000 miles. I "guessed" that was the right thing to do. In hindsight it would have potentially been more efficient time wise and financially to send a sample in, but then again maybe not depending on what the lab reported.

As well, it would be interesting to see the "real" difference between dyno/synth/synth blends in your motor rather than saying M1 is the best or Castrol Edge is the best or Motorcraft or Pennzoil is the worst cuz grandpa said it was. An analysis would put these preconceived notions to rest.

Good luck Harley, let us know if you get a lab test done on your oil.

Cheers