Best Oil and filter for Truck ?

[Toms01PSD]

I use 10W-30 motorcraft oil and filters. Why do you guys use 5W-20? I have a 99 3.0 btw.

 

[pacodiablo]

Why do you guys use 5W-20?

Because it is the recommended weight for my truck, and because I had a part fail while using 10W30 that MAY have been lubrication related. I don't know for sure, but that's enough for me to stick with what is recommended on the oil cap and in the owner's manual for my truck. Also, there is no evidence that 5W-20 leads to greater wear when used in applications that call for it. Motorcraft 5W-20 consistently does very well in used oil analysis.

 

[fleck]

Nice, I noticed the Motorcraft 5W20 synthetic blend is all they really have at Wal-Mart, I was wondering if I could use it... now I know! I'll try it out and let you know if my engine bloez up.

 

[Toms01PSD]

Because it is the recommended weight for my truck, and because I had a part fail while using 10W30 that MAY have been lubrication related. I don't know for sure, but that's enough for me to stick with what is recommended on the oil cap and in the owner's manual for my truck. Also, there is no evidence that 5W-20 leads to greater wear when used in applications that call for it. Motorcraft 5W-20 consistently does very well in used oil analysis.

My Ranger doesn't recommend 5W-20 on the cap and when I bought the truck there was no owners manual in it. At the parts store they call for 10W-30. What part did you have fail?

 

[fleck]

My Ranger doesn't recommend 5W-20 on the cap and when I bought the truck there was no owners manual in it. At the parts store they call for 10W-30.

Yeah the parts stores also tell people they need motor oil in their Mazda 5-speed trans and they are dead wrong.

Here is the previously posted link to the TSB that calls for 5W20 on our engines:
http://www.ford-trucks.com/tsb/fulltext/show_article.php?tsb=02-1-9

 

[militarydave]

I use 5W-30 Mobil 1 Extended Performance with either a Motorcraft Fitler or a M1 Filter. 126k, all original motor/trans, 1989 XLT 5spd.

-dave

 

[militarydave]

Yeah the parts stores also tell people they need motor oil in their Mazda 5-speed trans and they are dead wrong.

Here is the previously posted link to the TSB that calls for 5W20 on our engines:
http://www.ford-trucks.com/tsb/fulltext/show_article.php?tsb=02-1-9

also, i feel sorry for you people who trust teenagers who work a autopart stores that tell you what the computer tells them. nothing better than pure advice from experience!

-dave

 

[dru]

My Ranger doesn't recommend 5W-20 on the cap and when I bought the truck there was no owners manual in it. At the parts store they call for 10W-30. What part did you have fail?

Ford now recommends 5w20 for any 3.0 Vulcan including your year whether it says 5w20 or 5w30 on the cap.

Cam syncro failed for him. theres no proof that its caused by heavier oil. but, why take the chance?

 

[Toms01PSD]

also, i feel sorry for you people who trust teenagers who work a autopart stores that tell you what the computer tells them. nothing better than pure advice from experience!

-dave

When I go to autozone, I walk in, go up to the computer, and find my own stuff. I go by what the computer goes by because it should be the right specs (atleast you would think so!)

 

[Toms01PSD]

Here is the previously posted link to the TSB that calls for 5W20 on our engines:
http://www.ford-trucks.com/tsb/fulltext/show_article.php?tsb=02-1-9

Thanks for posting that TSB. I saw it on shopkey the other day (after I had already changed the oil)

 

[Toms01PSD]

Ford now recommends 5w20 for any 3.0 Vulcan including your year whether it says 5w20 or 5w30 on the cap.

Cam syncro failed for him. theres no proof that its caused by heavier oil. but, why take the chance?

Definately, could it cause a slight knock? lol

 

[fleck]

Hey guys, I was searching for oil viscosity information Google, and came across this page. Here is one of the subjects listed on the page:

---
The Dark Oil Myth
Dark oil does not indicate the need for an oil change. The way modern detergent motor oil works is that minute particles of soot are suspended in the oil. These minute particles pose no danger to your engine, but they cause the oil to darken. A non-detergent oil would stay clearer than a detergent oil because all the soot would be left on the internal engine parts and would create sludge. If you never changed your oil, eventually the oil would no longer be able to suspend any more particles in the oil and sludge would form. Fortunately, by following the manufacturer's recommended oil change interval, you are changing your oil long before the oil has become saturated. Remember, a good oil should get dirty as it does it's work cleaning out the engine. The dispersant should stop all the gunk from depositing in the oil pan.

The only real way to determine whether oil is truly in need of changing is to have an oil analysis performed. Since most people don't want to bother with this, it's acceptable to err heavily on the safe side and simply follow the manufacturer's recommended change interval for severe service. There are still a few cars that specify 3K intervals for severe service, but not many. If you look at countries other than the U.S., the oil recommended change interval is much higher than even the normal interval specified by vehicle manufacturers in the U.S.
---

Now there is some food for thought. Some people here (including myself) have cited 'nice and clean looking oil' as a GOOD thing. Maybe it's not.

 

[pacodiablo]

What part did you have fail?

The cam synchronizer.

At the time, I had 10W30 in the truck, and the outside temperature had just started to go below freezing. I started the truck up one morning and it screeched horribly, then shut up. Over the next few days I got occasional chirping, which became more frequent and louder by the end of the week. I switched to 5W20 for good when the synchro was changed out.

I just changed the Motorcraft 5W20 today. It only had about 3200 miles on it, but it looked great still. A lot of people go 5-6K miles on that oil. The baffle below the fill hole is spotless, so I hope the rest of the engine looks that way. The new Motorcraft 5W20 was $13 and the FL400S was about $4.

 

[99RangerBoss]

is it okay to use 5w-30 since it is cheaper than 5w-20? i heard not to use 10w-30 because it can cause too high of an oil pressure and cause engine seals to blow out.

 

[fleck]

is it okay to use 5w-30 since it is cheaper than 5w-20? i heard not to use 10w-30 because it can cause too high of an oil pressure and cause engine seals to blow out.

All I saw at Wal-Mart was Motorcraft synthetic blend 5W20 and it was $12.50 for 5 qt.