I've read all the posts on oil change's and I'm still confused. most say to change oil at 5K but some are waiting till the truck tells them to. I'm only going to be driving 6-7k a year, do I change it every 6 months or wait till I get 5k on it?

Thanks so much

 

Here is how I do my oil changes, I have a 2015 SD, waiting on a 17 SD it'll be here any day. OK back to your question. I don't put many miles on mine ether, currently 12000 on the 15, I use full synthetic oil and wait till the computer says it's time to change. Your question is a personal preference and also has a lot to do with how your truck is used.

 

Changing oil at computer time is in keeping with warranty requirements and IAW Fords recommendations.

Will Ford pat you on the back for changing earlier or warranty your truck if it goes past the warranty time/mileage? NO!

Will you gain anything by changing at say 5000 mi or 3000 mi or 1000 mi, like your truck will last longer, go faster, pickup more girls? YES, in your dreams...

Is there any good in changing more often than the computer tells you? YES, you will contribute more to the local economy and your back pocket on your jeans will not wear out as fast since the wallet is a lot thinner.

All that said: If it feels good, DO IT!

 

That's fine and dandy if you want to sell it before warranty runs out. These engines oil can get diesel fuel in it, and the oil has to work hard because of all the egr pumped back into the motor. I would get my oil tested if I was going to stretch it out as long as the computer suggest.

 

hmcfly, really the answer to this one is quite simple. If you wait for the computer to tell you, that absolutely meets Ford's requirements for any warranty concerns related to your engine and also, according to Ford, will allow your engine to last the expected lifespan. The computer makes it's calculation based upon both driving habits, regenerations, and days since the last oil change.

But, if you don't *quite* trust Ford's recommendations, then you can do it sooner if you please, based upon a time interval or a mileage interval. It's your investment and your oil change money, so do anything you want.

Changing your oil sooner certainly won't hurt anything. Whether it is beneficial to your engine remains to be seen.

I'm not naive to the fact that diesel oil changes are expensive and "operating costs" are very important to both personal and fleet owners. Ford has incentive to stretch the oil change interval out in order to have lower vehicle operating costs. Ford's computer may optimize what Ford assumes is a useful engine life contrasted against low cost and low environmental impact. If we choose to change the oil a little sooner, could we get more than 250k out of these engines? I think so. That's why I do every 5k miles.

 

I noticed that the new Ram Cummins engine has a 15,000 MILE oil change interval! Crazy!

 

Yeah but its for normal driving. Severe schedule includes stop and go, trailer pulling, offroad use, etc. And I think its 7,500 miles. That's the schedule I follow for my 2014 Ram.

 

Mercedes once had a computer-dictated oil change schedule for there then-new ML models in 1998. The ridiculously long intervals caused plenty of sludging and engine failure.

 

Honda Civic done by the computer-dictated oil change interval just over 150000miles/240000km on it, Approximately 7500miles/12000km between oil changes no problems. For some reason I change the oil in our 2 Fords every 5000miles/8000km. I trust the Honda calculator but not Ford (Hum) it would be a lot cheaper for me to trust the computer.

 

I was wondering, the computer model is just a light that turns on when it's time, is this correct? I found the reset button but no graph that shows when it's getting close to change.

 

If you only want your engine to last through the powertrain warranty, change when the dash tells you.


If you want your engine to last 1/2 a million miles, change every 5k with synthetic.


It's pretty simple and obvious, not sure why this thread was even started.