hey, my 1990 f150 4x4 with a 5.8L oil pressure is running really low like bellow the L on the guage, and i was going to take out the pump and clean it or just replace it, but when im done all of that i was wondering what is the best oil for a truck that has 283XXX KM's (174XXX M) i was think of royal purple synthetic, and for a filter i have no clue but i know not to use the crappy fram ones (which unfortunately i have in it lol) any help will be appreciated

Tyler

 

A weak pump could be the pressure problem, but more than likely with that many miles you need main bearings, or an overhaul. IMHO synthetic oil is a BAD idea that late in the game. small little leaks become big leaks with synthetic....Valvoline and Purolator, and change it often is my advice.

 

Everyone has different opinions on oil and filters.

I personally use mobil 1 EP oil and M1 EP filters. But If I run standard mobil 1 I use Motorcraft filters. Just did oil cooler delete and couldn't reuse my M1 EP filter so I got a Motorcraft FL1A.

I only use synthetic oil in everything now but in my old truck I ran Castrol oil with Motorcraft filter.

But for the low oil pressure problem... Get you an aftermarket gauge. Those stock gauges suck and dont tell you anything.

 

I posted asking about fram filters and got SLAMMED with engine failure stories.

They melt/decompose internally and plug oil pickup screens.

When in doubt, cut the filter open and see what the hype is all about.

Scared me into taking a brand new fram off and cutting it open.

What a nightmare.

 

(other than fram) i run whatevers on the shelf of my dads shop (parts depot, advance auto, havoline, etc)... my dd truck was bought new by the roomates , and now has 245000+ miles on it. imo as long as you keep up with maintenance at around 3000, it doesnt really matter what clean/new oil or filter you use.

try a manual oil pressure gage to get an accurate number

 

Don't trust your stock gauge, its really only an oil pressure switch and they fail often. Install an after market gauge or a test one to verify the oil pressure.Unfortunately pulling the pump/screen assembly isn't easy.

Motorcraft filters and name brand oil on sale. My 221k 300 gets an oil change every 5k with whatever name brand 10w-30 oil is on sale. If none is on sale I'll use Valvoline or QS. When hauling the 4100lb RV I use Rotella.

regards
rikard

 

What They Both Said^^

I just left a reply earlier concerning low oil pressure..
"AS 86F150302 put it, stock gauges on these trucks suck. They only register @7psi and that needle can vary anywhere in between L<--->H. There is a TSB for this from Ford.

If a sender doesn't fix it, then there is a good chance the part in the instrument cluster has gone bad and you can get a replacement from LMC. They are proud of them so you might keep your eyes open for a used one."

You are gonna get more than just a few opinions concerning synthetic/dino oil and oil filters.

I don't know what type oil you have been using/why you used it/how long you have used it. The truth behind synthetic oil, is that it's good. It's expensive. It can reduce friction and gain fuel economy. Question is do you want to spend the extra dollar or for royal purple, several dollars more per quart?

I'm gonna get flamed for this statement because so many myths/facts exist because so many different people have had different experiences with Synthetic oil.

One Myth Vs. Fact: Synthetic oil caused my truck to leak around all the gaskets and seals. I have read many articles about this and I cannot say to the least it has caused either one of my trucks to leak oil past gaskets and seals. One has 125K miles and the other 159K miles. One runs Mystic 15w-50 Synthetic Blend, the other runs Valvoline Racing 10w-30. I have run Synthetic, Synthetic Blend, High Mileage oil, and regular dino oil--> Castrol, Motocraft, Delo, Rotella, Trop Artic, Valvoline, Havoline, Mobil.

The only oil I ever had problems with, and it sounded like rolling (2) Large Ball Bearing in my hand, was (Shell) Rotella 5w-40, Fully Synthetic. I never used it again. I don't know why and so that's the truth about that.

I have read many articles that have said clearly, "If you have always done proper routine maintance, regulary oil changes, tune-up's, you should be fine when switching to synthetic oil. If you have done the complete OPPOSITE to proper maintance, then DON'T." Synthetic oil is great at keeping an Engine's internals clean and from reading different articles, it's really good at cleaning sludge from the areas around the gaskets that are gunked and charred up, therefore dislodging that sludge and then seeping pass the cracks in the gaskets and seals.
Like I said...I'm more than likely gonna get flamed from die hard believers in leaking past gsakets and seals. But truth is.....How many times have you seen a truck or car with leaky seals and gaskets after 10-15-20 years????...If I said tomorrow it started making my truck leak, if I tell everyone Synthietic did it...the cycle starts again.

Oil Filters...FRAM IS TERRIBLE!!! I cannot stress that enough and I'm Glad we live in the 21st century with Internet. Pictures of Collasped Fram filters and before and after oil changes have helped me convice more and more people not to use them, EVER. When Oreilly's runs there Oil and filter change with a Fram filter included, I tell them to keep the junk oil filter and give me a Wix or Purolator. It saddens me to see someone pick up a Fram filter when a Motorcraft filter i just a couple of feet from them. I also use SuperTech oil filters from Wal-Mart and they are Manufactured by Champion Labs. They have showned to have good internal contruction/material and a good pleat count for filtration.

Sorry For the Long Post but that is my 2 cents and if anyone has any questions I would be inclined to hear them, since that is why we are here, To learn and to Help others Learn as Well.

 

I use NAPA Gold filters. I heard they are actually Wix filters but I don't know for sure. I agree with the above thoughts though, stock gauge is suspect and main bearings are probably worn.

 

as I was reading the spiffy fram filter box, you have to go to the 10 $ filter to get the checkvalve flapper and it claims 3 or 5 micron filtration.

5 microns filters out bacteria from drinking water.
No Wonder they plug up and blow out, among other reasons.

If they simply didn't work at all would be better than melting and plugging everything.

Having said that, we used to put 't' fittings on oil sending units, so we could have a real gauge and the stock dash needle.

Gives me something else to look at when the hood's open.
super cheap and easy/ fast to do.

 

thanks everyone for the reply's, im thinking about buying a manual oil gauge now, are they hard to install? when i stop at a light with low oil pressure on the gauge it feels like my truck is sputtering and wanting to stall (only sometimes) and if i had to change the main barrings would i have to pull the motor out of my truck or could i do it when its in it?

Tyler

 

and where would i buy a gauge, any auto parts store?

 

Yup. In fact, I've seen them at walmart and kmart before. But the better ones are usually found in your local auto part store.

 

when i get payed friday ill be pickin one up and if the pressure is still s**t ill be buying a new pump and some thicker oil and a better filter

Tyler

 

Get a Motorcraft FL1A, do not use Fram! See this thread. There are some pictures and video links.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/8...cs-inside.html

 

Anyone who knows anything about motors and how they work know NOT to use a Fram... That being said after extensive research and calling several companies (Mobil one, Toyota, Royal Purple and yes even Motorcraft about FL1A's) I've found that yes some frams are over filtered making them clog prematurely... Others have tested but don't want to release the testing results to the micron filtration of their filter media...

That being said... YES IT DOES MATTER what filter and filter media is used. to fine and it clogs and too big and larger particles will run into your engine with the oil and prematurely wear your berings! It's like throwing sand in your oil... OK not quite but on a smaller scale it is the same concept... Larger Particles running around in your engines oil effectively wears (sands) the berings down quicker.

WIX was the only company to publicly release that their filters catch 99.73% of 10-12 micron (and larger) particles. They have an anti-drainback valve which means your car doesn't start without oil on all it's parts. They also have a bypass valve which allow oil to freely circulate if the filter were to ever clog or come apart inside. All for around $1 more than a Fram. I think that is a darn good deal.

If you want a testimonial... The red 83' below went almost 360K with 3000 mile oil changes and got nothing but a wix since it was new! The only reason it's not running now is because my FIL let a knock in the engine go to long without fixing it.... grrrr....

OIL:
Just run conventional. the reason synthetic makes engine leak is because it has high detergency properties. IE: cleans the sh*i# out of the inside of your engine. At 283K you probably have some old gaskets that have been sealed from the inside by carbon deposits. If you use synthetic those carbon deposits will be cleaned out and your gaskets that have 283K on them will show you their age and that they do leak. I run Castrol GTX in all my vehicles that don't use synthetic. I think consistency is the best practice. Use the same oil and same filter (as long as it's a good one!) after the same amount of mileage all the time.

PS: For all you people out there that hate/skeptical about synthetics... I have been running 15K synthetic oil changes and 7500mile filter changes on my rav4 for 65K now and my wifes 09 camry has 55K on it now and is doing the same with no problems what so ever!!!! Even had the oil tested at local college at 0, 7500, and 15000 miles. They reported to me (in technical science talk i can't remember) that the oil still had plenty of life left...