I have a 2004 F150 that I use to pull a small trailer loaded with a small lawnmower once a week. For the most part I use the truck to drive back and forth to work via the highway. Does this constitute a 3,000 oil change schedule?

 

I hate this, another oil thread. Still, it's a real question.

Is it hot where you live? Is it super cold/humid? Are there hills? Do you do a lot of stop lights? is it dusty, dirty? Do you use low quality gas?

If the answer is yes to any of those, or several of those, I think you meet their requirement.
I get five of them, so I change my oil more than they require.

If it's just the trailer, I don't think that is a major consideration.
Good luck
Chris

 

I know.... dumb question. But thanks for humoring me with your answer....

I just don't want to neglect my truck with 5k oil changes since all service centers recomend 3k mile change.

 

Hi, sorry to make you think I thought it was a dumb question. That's really not the case.

1. It's a good, fair question. And not one that I have seen exactly in these forum. Lots of oil change threads, none on towing local.

2. My rather nasty answer comes from the heat that oil threads like to provoke in here. Oil and changing is kinda like politics or religion. Every one has a firm belief that he will defend to the death.

I was really just venting a little frustration about the oil threads.
I do apologize, and again, it was a fair question.

To address your other thing about the service centers, well, the sooner you change it, the more bucks they make so...
Still, if you do meet any of the rough duty scenarios I described, I think I would do it a bit earlier. The cost of changing it at say 3500-4000 miles vs. 5000, well it's really not much.

Best of luck with it
Chris

 

I just settle for in between Old Shool 3k and Factory rec. of 5k and change mine at 4k.

 

I have always been told the first oil change should be done around 2500 miles due to potential loose metal fragments. I try to change every 3000 miles thereafter. Good Luck!

 

I'm a middle fo the road person as well, 4000 for me between changes. My dads new Chevy has a monitor that tells him when to change his oil. He frequently gets 5000 - 6000 between changes. Sure would be nice to have on our trucks.

 

Oils today do not breakdown as in previous years. Nor do engines have as much dirty blow by. So go by the book. Changing every 3K is overkill and just costing $$ out of your pocket. If you are in the severe duty cycle then conform to it.

 

I think the second sentence invalidates your first sentence, or your first sentence invalidates your second sentence...
Something like that


OK, once more from the top.
Oil doesn't wear out. Ever.
Oil has additives that do get 'used' over time.
Oil will last a lot longer than the oil change interval, if used lightly.
Oil will last longer if you don't cold start the motor, where most of the wear comes from.
Oil will suspend contaminants that get in it, things too tiny for the filter to nab, and things big enough for the oil to carry to the filter.
Oil will become contaminated by fuel, and heat byproducts like acid.
Oil will not be filtered of contaminates like fuel and heat by-products by the oil filter.

Oil Filters will become more efficient after about 3000 miles, and will stay very good till over 5-6 k miles.

All driving is rough service. Unless you live in Lompoc, and just use the car to commute to Santa Maria, (inside joke, there is a nice freeway between these two places, the climate is the nicest in the US, little traffic, no dust, great roads, etc).
The rest of us drive in places that are too hot, too cold, too dusty, too much city, too fast on freeway, etc. etc. etc.

Ford and everyone else cop out by giving their recommendation, then tossing it away by saying, well, if you drive in real world conditions, ignore our recommendations...

There are a lot of studies that mean nothing. They test in taxi cabs, engines that may never shut off between oil changes, and say oil lasts a long time...

Most of us punch the truck too much, thus dropping excess gasoline into the oil, etc.

Others think their positive engine ventilation and tight clearances will stop this.

Ford doesn’t think so. If that was the case, you would easily get 15000 miles to an oil change.

If your oil changes color, it is contaminated or breaking down. That means dirt/fuel is getting into the oil. If your oil never changes color, you drive on a different planet.
Another oil thread. Let the flames begin
Chris

 

Man, I see the oil religions duking it out in the motorcycle forum I participate, for another famous American brand.

Consider these factors:

1) You are using semi-synthetic.
2) The manufacturer is very conservative with oil change intervals. They don't want to be on the line for engine repairs because they didn't tell you to change often enough.
3) If you change your oil change intervals, it will screw you up for other services that happen at different intervals. For example, if you change every 4K miles, you'll do the oil at 4, 8, 12, then the 15K service, then the oil at 16, 20, 24, 28, then the 30K service, etc. (However, if you go 3K, most other service intervals should line up, but you'll be changing 5x every 15K instead of 3x).

 

I used to change my oil and filter myself. Now I take it in to the dealership service department every 3000 miles. I pay about $25 and even get the tires rotated. Anyway, my cousin is the service advisor and told me to bring it in every 3000 miles. Some dealerships may tell you 5000 miles but he feels the engine will last longer with the 3000 mile service. So, I think I will try to protect my investment the best I can, even if it cost a extra hundred bucks a year. Good Luck!

 

Ruckus, I am not trying to steal a thread but have to ask......... What benefit do you see from rotating tires? I have seen this being recommended less and less and believe the only "benefit" to be you can buy tires four at a time if you do this rotation. Without rotating, typically front tires on frontdrives wear much faster and two tires on reardrives may wear faster so w/o rotating, you may find yourself buying tires two at a time and I have no problem with that. Maybe this should be another thread and there probably is one or more already but I am an oldtimer and see front tires that turn wear round as the corners get worn off from the turning. Rear tires do not turn (except around, of course) and they stay squared off. When a squared off rear tires goes up front, there is now extra effort required because of the corners of the tires not yet being rounded off. The rounded off fronts go on the back and there is less of a contact patch now on the drive wheels/tires. Bottom line is this is another religion thing and I will not try to convert but thought I would at least ask why you rotate your tires. thnx!

 

No I don't think any sentances negates each other. The book states CHANGE EVERY 5,000 MILES. If you as an owner fall into the severe duty cycle, then change according to the book for that duty cycle. In this case I don't even think the severe duty cycle is 3,000K. So to randomly say change every 3,00 miles yes it is overkill. Engines burn cleaner than in the past based on the changes in gasoline formula
(MTBEs), fuel economy increase mandates every year and so the reasoning of dumping gas in the oil is not what it used to be. Especially since rings have been redesigned in the last 10years to prevent it as in past years. Just because oil is changing color does not indicate it is contaminated to the point it needs to be changed. It indicates it is doing it's job!
As one previous poster has stated oil change recommendations is always on the conservative side. The 3,000 make if it is not in the owners manual, is just working off of old myth that is keeping the cash registers ringing!

BTW oil does wear out, multi vis oils use VI's to get to a multi vis oil. The draw back, constant heat over time breaks down the ability to be a multigrade. VI's are not restored to a dispursed molcular configuration, they stay aligned, which allows it to only provide protection to the base number which is the lowest number. So once in this state you loose the protection of the higher number!
It's the chemistry of oil!

 

I do not know for sure but ever since I was a young fellow and did not rotate tires as frequent as I should have, I try to rotate now. I used to move front tires to the rear, also. Then I found myself with tires on the rear that were over half worn out and tires on the front that were okay for a while. Maybe the biggest reason is because I like them wearing out evenly. Besides, my dealership does not charge for rotations with a oil and filter change.Probably the biggest reason is I do not like driving on those half worn front tires that went to the rear and I like them wearing out at the same time. Another reason is that I do not feel like I am neglecting part of a maintenance procedure that I feel necessary to keep us safe on the road.Good Luck!

 

Tire rotation is recommended on any truck. The 'do no rotations' comes from front wheel drive cars. Small ones. The thinking is that since the rears are 'trailing' and get almost no wear, by not rotating the tires, you can replace just the front ones each time, and get good traction and good handling at the same time for half as much.

Talks real good, and many experts like the idea.

Notice they are NOT talking about 5000+ lb rear wheel drive trucks.

Another downside is that the sun/air wipe out the sidewalls of the tires in between 4-6 years.
On things like Motorhomes, you never use up your tread. You still have to swap the tires about once every 4-6 years. Sidewall goes. See the owners manual.

Trucks are harder on tires than cars, and Ford-Chevy-Dodge, and the tire makers all hound you to rotate the tires.
Many shops will do that for free, and ten bucks is on the high side for places like Pep boys, etc.
I usally rotate truck tires about every 8000, unless I go offroad, then I do it more often. On these trucks, I think I would listen to Ford, and rotate them.
Chris