I'm about to hit 65,000 miles on my 2010 4.6L STX. I plan on doing my usual oil change with Valvoline premium conventional engine oil. once I hit 70,000 miles I would like to switch to fully synthetic so that I can move to changing it every 10,000. Is there anything I should be worried about and can I extend my oil changes ratio from 5,000 miles to 10,000 miles? If not, what is the recommended change interval for synthetic. My owners manual said 7,500 miles for normal driving and 5,000 for severe. With this being my first new truck I went with the severe driving recommendation so that there would be no warranty issues.


Any help or info would be greatly appreciated.

 

It is very unlikely that switching to a synthetic will make much difference.

If you want to run longer intervals, start by having a UOA done by Blackstone.

Let them do a TBN. Tell them you are interested in longer change intervals and they will guide you on what will work with your vehicle and driving style.

 

not all synthetics are the same, other than they are all very good. brand probably doesn't matter as much as you think, but some formulas are better suited to extended drain intervals than others.

SuperTech (walmart) synthetic comes to mind in this regard. All reports are that it is a very good oil, but not particularly well suited to extended drain intervals due to it's lower initial TBN (as compared to other synthetics that are advertised as "extended Performance")

I've been using Trop Artic (Motorcraft in a black bottle) for decades and have been extremely happy with it at 5,000 mile intervals. And, up until recently, i have never considered changing (brands), but with putting 20k/year on one vehicle and 30k/year on another ... well ... quite frankly i'm getting tired of changing oil.

so, in the same vein as you, i'm looking for an oil which well comfortably let me go longer between oil changes.

The best advice i can offer is almost a mirror of what KJ Smith said above. Pick one brand type or formula, by whatever socioeconomic, religious, political, or physical criteria that floats your boat at the time, and use it for an interval that makes you comfortable. then do a Used Oil Analysis (UOA) to help you decide on your interval for that particular oil -- assuming you were happy with it.

if you weren't happy with your oil choice, for whatever reason, forego the UOA and switch to another then do the UOA on the oil you think you will be happy with.

Blackstone is a fine choice for UOA. they give a nice write up customised to you and your vehicle, which is kinda neat. If you want the TBN (and you do) it will cost you more. As an alternative, i offer up the UOA program at NAPA. for about $15 you get the full range UOA, including TBN, but without a write up.

If you want commentary, as mentioned above, you can get as much free commentary and discussion as you want on bob-is-the-oil-guy. (- Bob is the Oil Guy - Bob is the Oil Guy). FWIW, this is what i did.

as for brands to try for extended use (which 10,000 miles hardly qualifies any more, believe it or not) i'd try Pennzoil Ultra Platinum, Castrol Edge - Gold Bottle, or Mobil 1 EP, simply because they are mainstream oils that can be found for a reasonable price nation wide and are specifically formulated for extended use. there are many others, but are often more expensive, or are not advertised as extended performance.

if you are going to use a extended use oil, you should also be using an extended use oil filter. Fram Ultra-Guard, Purolator Premium, and Bosch Distance Plus are all filters intended for extended drain intervals and are made with synthetic filter media capable of holding a lot of contaminates. the only one i would NOT recommend is the Napa Platinum filter. it has all the right stuff, but with poor filtration ratings, as compared to the other three. Here again, pick one by some criteria, and use it. They are all good, so you can't go wrong.

I'll give you a head start on the economics.... it's not always cheaper to extend your drain interval, so if that's your goal, choose wisely. In my case, i'm willing to spend a bit more to not be under the car, so my motives are different. as far as money goes, getting whatever oil and filter is on sale, and changing it every 5,000 miles is usually the cheapest, at least in my experience.

I'm with you on intervals. I've got a sump full of Castrol Edge (black bottle) and 5,000 miles since i changed it -- and i'm having a very had time resisting the urge to change it. but i'm pushing out to 7,500 and will do a UOA to benchmark the oil's performance. Next time i might go with the Gold bottle (I'm happy with the Castrol) and feel better about going 10k ... we'll see.

Good luck. post back with what you decide!

(sorry for the diatribe)

 

Thanks for all of the insight meborder. I just ordered my Blackstone Labs kit today. I think i'll take a sample when I do my 65,000 oil change and see if I can extend my conventional Valvoline premium out to 7,500 miles. I suppose that would be a happy medium between 5,000 and 10,000 mile changes. I suppose i'll submit another sample at 7,500 and see where it's at. If I dont' like the results I might just switch to synthetic and submit samples at both 5,000 and 7,500 and see if there is any improvement.

 

I cant go past 5k.....just makes my skin crawl...

 

FWIW, I use the Semi-Syn required by Ford and change oil by the monitor.
10k oil changes since new.....double checked by Blackstone and all is well at 80K miles on truck.

 

that's a pretty good service plan for anyone with ford's Intelligent Oil Life Monitor (2011&up except 6.2L)

for those with ford's regular Oil Life Monitor, it is just a clock and mile counter. it is just timed for 7500 miles and 6 months, regardless of use, which can lead one to wonder if 7500 miles is actually appropriate for the vehicle's use.

the IOLM is a great tool (for those that have it), and can be trusted. that is to say, i've never seen an UOA show that the IOLM was wrong and shouldn't be trusted.

 

Synthetic oil simply outperforms conventional in every category. Make the switch and move on. 7500 is a good compromise to start for OCI....prove longer durations with UOA's.
A really good oil website is http://www.bobistheoilguy.com

 

No, not really... hardly worth arguing about.
The main advantage is cold weather starts... and that is only because it will flow at much lower temps... how much that thin oil lubricates and protects is questionable.


Either oil is fine... what it comes down to is cost.
If you have money to spend....and it makes you feel good...then do it.

 

it's funny what can get into folks heads. My father-in-law still swears that you have to change the oil at 3000km, or 5000km at most.
Me, I'm conformable going with the manufacturer recommendation, which is 10,000km to 16,000 km depending on which vehicle we're talking about.

 

In Canada, cold weather starts are pretty important

 

Especially in Calgary! Brrrrrrrr LOL

FIW I use dino juice (Castrol GTX) and I've been changing oil at 10,000 Kms for many years now. My Goldwing (2005) recommends every 12,000 but I still change it every 10,000 as it's such a habit and so easy to keep track of. For our american friends I don't think I would go 10,000 miles. Maybe it would be OK but I still wouldn't do it. Unless, of course, one used a bypass oil filter system and had the oil analyzed. Just my two cents worth.

 

I'm using Royal Purple with their filter and my Blackstone testing shows it can go farther than 10K miles. I've had it tested twice at 10K without any trouble but just like this time I have a long trip planned and I'll be changing it before leaving. So I can't find out how much farther it can go. Changing it at each 10K makes it end up costing the same as cheaper oils that need to be changed at 5K.

You shouldn't have any trouble changing from regular to synthetic oil.

Just for oil talk...I thought Castrol was bean oil. Oil is a slippery subject.

 

Let me throw in IMHO as well,

With regards to syn vs non-syn oils, today, all oils are considered synthetic. While I am not promoting this company nor their products, they have an excellent, detailed description as to how & why all oils today are considered “Synthetic” Synthetic Motor Oil and was confirmed through legal proceedings http://www.scribd.com/doc/217558103/...s-Day-in-Court. Mfgs such as castrol, are actually using a oil base that is not by previous industry standards to be even considered a "synthetic", was sued (By Exxon/Mobile IIRR) and they won in court because they were able to demonstrate with additives they were essentially delivering a syn product. When looking at all the refineries in the US (2014), the only one really capable of supporting 100% synthetic oil manufacturing is Chevron/Phillips refinery in Texas…and it is not promoted as a synthetic oil.

IMHO, again, run what the oem specs call for...and MC semi-syn is one of the best $ for $ for most operating conditions most people see.

I too do extended coolant & oil changes on my vehicles. I use cathodic protection installed in each of the vehicle coolant reserve containers, the ph and ehtylene glycol levels of the water is checked annually and the fluid is removed, filtered (3 ppm), the system is flushed and then refilled with the same fluid every 5 years. The oil on my 65 300 hp mustang (which has been inthe family since new), has only seen 3 oil changes since its ground up rebuild (and of course after the engine break-in period) since the mid 1980's......but I do change the oem filter annually and i run a bypass filter (filters down to 5 ppm) and on the last oil change (which was recent) I did add one bottle of ZDDP per after discussing this in detail with Ron Eskenderian (yes, Isky Racing Cams), and I add 1/3 of a bottle to my mod motors as well (1997 Cougar Sport 4.6 & 2006 Lincoln Mark LT 5.4)- IIRR it is a 3 oz bottle.

In our mod-motors the timing chain tensioners are hydraulically operated, cleanliness of the oil is imperative to keep the actuators functioning. With the extended oil changes 5,000 up to 10,000 miles, with the reduced ZDDP and the longer exposure to periodic oil filter bypass activation, this is another parallel to the hydraulic timing chain actuators failing at around 100k miles as compared to their design specs which say they should be good for 150K+ miles. Those who have experienced these specific failures, the majority report they are on extended oil drain frequencies- most of the Ford Master Techs i have spoken directly too regarding this, agree their gut instinct says there is a relationship between the two.

With regards to oil analysis......save your $ IMHO,

Well to start with, the majority of the "labs" are not certified by any state agency (required by most) nor subject to any ISO 3rd party verification- only self certification if at all. there are numerous postings going back 10+ years regarding the quality of these analysis......in general, it isn't good or to be believed in most cases. There are two things required for a test to be scientific- 1) does the test, test what it is suppose to &
2) if the test is repeated, does it come to the same conclusion
.......if the answer is yes, then the test & processes are "scientifically valid"...meaning, it could even be brought into a court of law and submitted as "Evidence" (subject to scrutiny of course).
Here's the real world, in one of the more popular threads posted, a gent sent multiple samples from the same oil, drawn at the same time, under different names. While there is always a possibility of minor variation (even caused by lab equipment re-calibration).....the results amongst the 4 samples were not even comparative.....as if each were from a different engine.
The concept is good & sound, the actual processes by most of the more "popular-labs" is a joke......nothing more than "snake oil on a paper" due to equipment maintenance, personnel training and general process controls.

save your $.

ok, I'll shut up now

 

On the Texas coast, cold weather is anything below 60f.
We don't see freezing temps very often...


I don't even think I have a jacket anymore..