My truck has over 261k on it now and it had to work for a living with the previous owner so it's a little tired. I live in NJ and I have a feeling we're in for a harsh winter. I was thinking about changing to straight 30 weight for the winter. I'm not doing any towing or heavy hauling. Do you guys think she'll be alright on the thinner oil?

 

You'd be better off going to a 5W-40 synthetic from Schaeffer's or Rotella. I'm sure many others will chime in on this one who know more than me.

 

It depends on how cold it gets where your at. Even if it just gets down to the teens, the 30w oil will make the truck crank hard. The multi grade oils (15-40, 10-30, 5-40 ect.) flow like the low number, but protect like the higher number. The 15-40 flows like a 15w oil but has the heat protection of the 40w. As stated go with the multi grade oil.

 

What brand and weight of oil have yoou been using ?

 

Truck started yesterday at -26 outside, no block heater, sitting overnight. With regular rotella 15w-40. Don't over think it, make sure your batteries, cables, and glow plugs are in good shape

 

i have used valvoline all fleet 15-40 in my 88 since it was new. and it now has over 496,000 miles on it.
30 weight will make it harder to start.
stick with the regular 15-40 oil.

 

Red truck has 5-40 Modile one full synthetic, run if year round and notice significant easier starts in winter. Put 15-40 Rotella in White truck.... So far it's always been plugged in...

As noted above get a multi viscosity oil. Semi synthetic 5-40 would work and not be too expensive.

 

Synthetic is the best!

 

I run Rotella 15w40 in it right now. If I forget or don't have access to plug in the block heater, sometimes it starts dumping oil when it's cold, and quite a bit of it. It leaves a patch of oil under each leak about a foot in diameter. Once the engine starts to warm up, the leaks stop. That has happened to me twice now. It looks like the oil is coming from the main seal and the oil cooler. So my to-do list just got two things added to it. In the meantime, I'd like to prevent that oil dumping as much as possible. It sounds like 5W40 is my best bet.

I'm a bit reluctant to run partial or fully synthetic oil since it has always run on natural grade. Please feel free to correct me if I'm off base about that. Fully synthetic puts me off just due to the price tag.

Haven't had any hard cranking problems. She's stubborn starting without the block heater from about 30º and lower. I probably have 1 or more glow plugs out, but I think the fuel injector seals are the main driver behind the cold start problem. I wanted to do them this year, but... well, that didn't happen. Going to check the glow plugs tomorrow and replace any bad ones. Another item that didn't happen this summer.... (sigh)

Thanks for clarifying how oil weights work. I never was too familiar with it and had never researched it. It's good to understand that now.

 

I would not worry too much about switching to synthetic. Your engine will thank you. Plus, synthetic oils do not thicken as much when cold. Go to Motor Oil 101 - Bob is the Oil Guy and read up for your own peace of mind.

I would be more concerned about fixing that oil leak before it gets worse.

I'm a big fan of Schaeffer's but not as convenient to get as Rotella.

Good luck.

 

i can't use synthetic in any of my vehicles. it leaks rite out.

the dealer tried putting synthetic in my crown vic back in 05 when i had my heart surgery.

the writer came out telling me i needed close to $1,000 of work because the car had all kinds of leaks. i asked them:
how can a car come in with no leaks and leave with a grand worth of gaskets leaking, did you put synthetic oil in it?

when they admitted to putting synthetic in it, i told them to drain it and put regular 15-40 diesel oil back in it like i asked for, and steam clean the engine to get rid of all the oil that leaked out.
surprise!! no more leaks!!

 

Fix that leak ASAP or you will end up losing all of it on the ground one day. Ask me how i know.

mine got bad enough if i fired it cold it was dumping half a liter or more on the ground.

I was worried about doing the oil cooler but after doing one its super easy! especially if you have a F350 or D60 up front and a variety of extensions/sockets. I could do another one in about an hour or so, even outside in the cold

Its 1 hose clamp, 5 bolts or 6 if you count drain plug. Drain all the coolant and oil pull the cooler out, slap new o rings on and new gaskets for the mating surfaces. Also not a bad time to tap the rear half of the cooler for an aftermarket Oil Pressure gauge. and slap it all back on. refill oil and coolant.

Also watch if you are pre 96 your Oil Pressure Regulator is held in via a "Stake Mark" in the rear housing not a C- Clip and it can fall out when you take the cooler off if your rough with it.

Goodluck!

 

I have heard that a lot but never had the problem. Guess I'm lucky!