Hey Folks,


this question is for my fellow Hot Weather Residents, AZ, NM, TX, FL.


what type, weight oil do you use in the 10 month long hot weather season?


I have been using Rotella 15W-40 but it seems to be a little "thin" in the summer time.


I have 92,234 miles on the clock.


your thoughts...


thanks, Dave

 

the hot flow difference between 40wt, 50wt and 60 wt is very little in spite of what most people believe.

most of the wear occurs during startup .

the 15W40 is for a new engine....very little ring blow by, etc.


after replacing my rocker arms, rocker saddles, and push rods and diving into the subject of push rod gredading, spining bearings, cracked pston rings, etc.....my conclusion is 5W40 is probally better than 15W40 , but, for high miles engines thicker oil is probally better. there have been reports of 6.4 owners using ford mustang 5W50 oil and being impressed with the less blowby (checkabl by pulling oil fill cap or even oil dip stick) and clearer looking oil (obviously less soot blows by the rings and into the oil). the trade off would be a hit for the CAFE ratings since thicker oil means less MPG.

me personally am running 10W60 (89k miles engine) which flows just as good as 5W50. my truck is out of warranty and I do all my repairs. if I can queeze a few thousand extra miles out of the engine...I am fine with loosing MPG.

I do add a zinc/phoperous additive to the 10W60 even though its deisel rated (not C-J, C-K, etc).

If you want to try thicker oil, try the ford mustang 5W50 and add a zinc / phosphorous additive.

just be careful with "murphy's law". its possible if you do nothing and continue to use the oil you use now you will have some kind of failer in XXX miles anyway so if you change to another oil scheme and have those problems , human nature would blame it on the change to oil scheme.

 

Thanks speakerfritz, I am not having any problems with the 2008 6.4 yet, and I don't want any either.
just wanted to know what others in the "Hot Zone" of America are using.


Thanks, Dave

 

My question is this: I have 112k on my 2010. I change the oil/filter every 5k miles with Mobil Delvac Super 1300 15W-40. I run the Archoil friction modifier with every oil change. Do I really need to worry about changing my oil grade? Houston TX.

 

15w40 is too thick during the winter on the 15w side

and if you have blow by , w40 may be too thin

5000 between oil changes might be ok if not severe duty schedule , high idle, and no fuel dilution

so it all depends.

I have some pretty thick blow by from the dip stick tube and fill cap....bad with 5w40 and 15w40 but seems better with 5w50 or 10w60

so it depends how worn your engine is.

 

How many miles on your engine? I can remove the oil fill cap at normal operating temps and it won't even blow up a paper towel...and no oil spatter. I do follow the severe duty schedule because I fall on the extreme "light duty" side of factory specified use(short trips...never haul...easy on the motor...etc). And just to be sure...we're talking winters in Houston Texas. 15W-40 isn't good enough 4-8 days out of the year? Lol

 

I don't get any pressure just blow by fumes . Lack of pressure means all rings are worn.. since they cancel on opposite strokes.

i bought the truck at 84k miles and apparently is was serviced normal but used extreme duty.

i did the rockers and push rods but if the wear on the valve train is any indication of the wear in the rest of the engine got concerns over rings, valve stems, crank bearings, cam bearings, cam loves, lifters, oil pump.

Once the engine is hot, it runs fine...mpg is high teens. But when cold lots of rattle tat tat and it ain't the manly deisel kind.