What is interesting to me, is I looked at some of the older (current trucks) in the shop, and they have a similar unit in the same location, but it is not serviceable. For 2017, they added a lid that bolts on, the previous generation trucks appear to have a sealed unit.

 

Makes me wonder if the previous versions were throw-aways. There must be some contamination found coming from the crankcase which was determined harmful to the combustion cycle, turbos and sensors, or maybe to the regen apparatus. We would need to study the path of the vapors and the separated contaminants further to understand this fully.

 

That is interesting. It was just part of a sealed system before and now requires service. Being that it has a 75,000 mile service interval, I can understand why Ford was in no hurry to get the word out. Just too many other priorities.

 

There is never a hurry to get the word out about more maintenance and expense.!!

 

Whatever Ford "Recommends", cut that interval in half to make sure the engine lasts. Remember, alls manufacturers are concerned about is to get you past the powertrain warranty. Want your truck to last? I've seen oil after 10,000 miles, so change every 5,000 and you have nothing to worry about. Same goes for other maintenance stuff. When people ask me how I keep my vehicles so long and in showroom condition inside and out, I tell them I don't follow the recommend minimum intervals that the manufacture states, I cut them in half. Maintenance is cheap, especially since these trucks are 3 times the price I paid for my 2005 F150 S/C 4x4.

 

Similar to DPF maintenance.

 

It will be interesting to see what the oil change indicator comes up with for the 6.7. My 7.3 has been changed at or around 10K miles practically forever and I justify the increased oil life by the use of full synthetic. (Rotella T-6). The two primary requirements in the PSD for clean oil are the turbo charager and the fuel injection system with the general engine lubrication third. The synthetic oils feature a higher temp before breakdown and increased lubricity for the bearings over standard oil. With the higher threshold of breakdown (mainly while lubricating the turbocharger) and the less wear on the bearings and rings the oil life is increased. Many of the synthetic manufacturers will boast extended oil life up to 25,000 miles. We ran tests on both 8v-92 Detroits and NTC 400 Cummins engines stretching oil life to 50K miles. Oil samples were sent in at 3000 mile intervals and the synthetics performed well up to 25,000 miles in these engines compared to the control trucks running standard oil and 15K changes. After 25,000 miles however the test indicated increased acid build up and excessive copper and other metal components which would indicated bearing breakdown. Those issues corrected with new oil. Due to the cost of the synthetic vs regular oil and the poor availability on the road at that time we elected to stay with standard oil and 15K changes. Some of our owner operators did change over and ran 25K miles based on the test results. Out of pocket money was about the same but the decreased down time more than paid for itself.

So how does this relate to the current PSD? I fully respect the results of synthetic oils and their ability to reduce friction and their lack of gums and varnishes which can foul the insides of an engine. Yes, to be extra careful one could cut the maintenance cycle in half. One could follow the exact maintenance cycle and engine life would be great. (Especially when you see people who hardly ever change oil and manage to get through life. I would not want there used vehicle however.) Or you can gamble a little and increase maintenance cycles by utilizing consistently good filters and premium oil (synthetic.) I ran synthetic in my V-6 Ranger over 225K miles and never had to add a drop between changes at 12Kmiles. Next owner drove it another 50K miles. Current truck is at 235K miles (7.3 PSD) and has never had add oil until recently due to oil pan leaks. 10K oil changes. So we each make a choice. I do not mind paying to service a vehicle correctly but I do not want to waste money by over-servicing. Now that I am not adding on 30K miles a year I may revisit the maintenance but I would not be afraid to keep the same philosophy on oil/life mileage.

 

I agree with everyone on this topic. Change on the recommended schedule or twice as frequently. With my truck, I'll do the first oil change at about 4,000 miles and then as the truck tells me to. I've always done oil and fluid servicing myself on an at least as recommended scheduled and have never had a problem either. But I don't keep my vehicles past 150,000 miles so I can't speak to the real long term experience.

On my Harley, I change oils way too frequently. I can go out in the garage on a Saturday morning with nothing to do and will decide to put the bike on the lift simply because I enjoy it.

Even in the case of the coalescer, there's a large part of me that will enjoy changing it out. I get a lot of value out of poking around and understanding things and by knowing a particular component is in good service. But that's just me.

 

Agreed. Dealer offers a couple of free oil changes. After that I will switch to the full synthetic unless I fall in love with someone else changing the oil. Been changing my own oil for almost 50 years now and it is only partially that the floor is farther away. The playing with the used oil and filter is getting old too. But then again I know things are all done to my standards. Then again my wife's cars have always been dealer serviced (her choice) and I have no complaints there either. A lift in the shop might have written a different story.

 

I know the last two sentences about you after pouring over your YouTube videos a few times each. Lol

 

Here is the oil seperator/coalescer/catch can

http://tinyurl.com/jz2tnxg

 

There it is! Now it' serviceable. Someone is going to get to 75,000 miles long before me.

 

Going to need to take out a home improvement load to service the truck!