OK... Jiffy Lube has made a killing on the 3,000 mile interval between oil changes lie. Nearly every owners manual I have read states that oil changes should be made every 5,000 miles with normal oil.

I read a report released last year by a consumer reports company confirming that engine oil doens't even break in until around 2,800 miles or so.

That being said, my '93 Ranger 4.0L V6 has had synthetic oil in it for the life of the truck, except for the oil the factory filled it with. My dad bought the truck brand new in December, '92, and flushed out the old oil I believe at 5,000 miles, or close to it. Then he ran synthetic in it (anything but quaker state or pennzoil), and changed the oil filter and added a quart of synthetic every 7,500 miles. At 15,000 miles, he would drain all the old oil out, and refill it with new synthetic oil, again changing the filter.

I've done the same thing (full change at 15,000, filter change at 7,500) since I got the truck 50,000 miles ago. It now has nearly 175,000 miles and STILL runs strong, even with me racing it CONSTANTLY. Granted, some engines are freak engines and can be rare cases, but this is the way I will ALWAYS change my oil. I do it myself with full synthetic and it can't be any easier.

 

Yeah, most owners manuals says 5-6K intervals.

I had read the same article, that it was really just a way to ensure regular business

 

At Wall Mart yesterday and noticed they sell Motorcraft 5w20 synthetic "blend" motor oil. I always like to change the oil on a new vehicle at ~ 500 miles, then around 3-4K and every 5K after that. I switch to full synthetic @ ~10K miles. I was looking to see if WM sold any other weights of Mobil 1 besides the previosly mentioned, also looking for a suitable oil for my first oil change.

Despite being called Premium Synthetic Blend, at $1.50/qt it sure isn't a full synthetic - I think it's mostly straight dino oil and good for the break-in period. I was looking for something to put in the car for my first change, along with the standard Ford filter and this looks perfect. The dealer provides the "first" oil change free, which I'll definitely take them up on at the 2nd change interval. B)

Recommended weight, OEM Ford oil plus it's cheap! Perfect for those first few oil changes. Maybe when I'm ready Mobil 1 will have introduced a 5w20 - otherwise I'll be in the same boat and have to decide between 0w20 or 5w30.

 

This post is perfect, I have 3000 on my Vert, and am due for a change, I have been reading all the posts..is there any down side to putting in syn oil now, I got the impression some of you felt the car needed to break in more...What do you think

OH yeah, What oil filters are you using??

 

The MotorCraft Synthentic blend is supposedly 50/50 and is what came in your car.

Also, I've heard some people say wait 10K and some say do one oil change first (3k). That was technically my second Oil change, and at 6K miles I went full synthetic. I'm now to my 4th at 9000 miles ...

 

I've been using a PUREOne oil filter on the past few oil changes.

 

I've used Mobile1 0w20 since the 1st oil change on my 02, but I think I'm gonna give royal purple a try from here on out. A buddy of mine checked with an engine builder on oils and the guys said he noticed the engine was running hotter and produced less HP with Mobile 1 compared to Royal Purple and Valvoline's race oil??

I can vouch for mobile one in every instance that I've used it. However I know that engine oils are blended based on engine requirements as well as EPA reqs and in the above instace, the engine may not have been designed to use that oil in that application. They've had to remove alot of things like zinc and potassium from the oils and those things were in there for scuff resistance and the like.

Read an article one time when they interviewed an oil chemist and related how on older cars, it was probably better to use an oil designed for desiel engines rather than an oil spec'ed out for newer engine designs.

Anywhosit, my next change will be with Royal Purple, and I'll se how it does.

 

I don't think race oil results should be compared to the oil that you would use for your passenger car.

 

I change my oil every 5000 miles. I also rotate my tires every 5000 miles. Since they are directional they switch positions from rear to front and visa versa. B)

My car came with synthetic MC 05/20 in it new. I use the same for all of the oil changes. At 21000 miles I have changed it 4 times.

 

On a related note, what's the drill on changing the oil filter on the V8?

A quick glance underneath and it looks like Ford didn't go too far out of their way to make the thing easy to get to, or a very clean operation to change out. I noted the filter is located in a sideways orientation, axing my usual filling the filter with oil before installation. I can at least oil-soak the element material so it doesn't have to fill from completely dry at start-up.
But what about the hardware under the filter - can't recall exactly what was under it - the steering rack? Looks like there will be some PITA Exxon Valdez clean up operation required after every oil change with this arrangement. How does everyone else handle this? Where does the oil tend to run when you crack the seal on the filter? What's going to require cleaning afterwards? Standard drain pan catch the runoff? :scratch:

 

I have the same problem with my V-8 T-Bird. :bang: Except my filter tilts downward. So as soon as I crack it open the oil starts to drain out. Seams Ford knew this would happen and built a small channel with a lip on the bottom middle. However, this usually floods over and spills in other areas. It is so tight, I have to push the filter up and over something in the way, flip it rightside up, then slide it down along the side wall.

So I usually have a peice of thick cardboard under everything and catch as much as I can with an oil drain pan. The rest goes on the cardboard. Usually I can catch most of it. The rest that is on the cardboard stays there until my next change. Usually by that time it is soaked in and does not spill on the ground.

As far as putting new oil in the new filter, I don't. I just put new oil around the gasket on the new filter.

Hopefully the new 05 GT will be easier to change. However, I am a glutten and ordered the V-8 so ther ewill be less room to work.

 

i think people say wait until 10k to use full synth to allow all the seals and whatever to get into place first due to break-in wear.

for me, i say to heck with synthetics because of what they cost. cars have been going strong for years and years and hundreds of thousands of miles just fine on dino, so its good enough for me. and i even race my car periodically, not as much as i used to, but still occassionally.

as for oil filters, the motorcraft filter is supposed to be one of the best you can get.

 

I've lived with oil getting on the steering rack and other components below the filter after pulling it. I've used a plastic trash bag at times wrapped around all that to keep oil off, but it's more of a pain to do than what benefits it gives. I do Simple Green under there often though. Seems to keep it relatively clean.

I've decided to switch to synthetic after reading this thread and researching the internet. I feel I can offset the additional cost of synthetic by extending the drain interval to 9000 miles. I also gain (may be small) MPG, power, and life of the engine. I also plan to replace the tranny and rear end fluids with synthetic for the added power and life.