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IMHO that is probably contributing to the clean oil more than anything else. Any EGR is going to be brutal with soot loading, honestly this 6.7 isn't even as bad as my 04.5 5.9 CR Cummins. It relied on valve timing for EGR so it would run pretty hot and, I swear, loaded up the oil with even more soot......
Have no doubt an EGR puts in more soot, however most of my diesels have not had EGR's (7.3 and 12V 5.9) and still the oil is jet black after just a few miles, certainly before a 1,000. Now some of that is account of used oil remaining after a drain. With this lower oil pan change, every drop possible was drained, truck sat for weeks so all was in lower part of engine and I let the pan drain for a day, then swapped the pan out. So the entire contents of oil was exchanged with clear amsoil, leaving only residue inside the block. I am expecting the oil to be blackened at some point as soot particles are as small as <1 micron, the filter setup "only" goes down to 2 micron. Plan on keeping an eye on it just for my own personal amusement, but at this time the truck stays still for months at a time, may not move again till end of September when I pull the RV home after my current project is over.
I have no plans on doing oil analysis, I just change out the oil so doesn't matter the theoretical lifespan. With 4 gallons of amsoil and cat filter my cost is ~$205, and with the by-pass filter it would be ~$250, which is less than what the internet says an average diesel oil change costs most people who have others do it for them with lesser products.
Update: This is after 4,000 miles, running unloaded plus 14-15 hours of idling, Hwy 90 from the Coast to Billings MT so many mountain passes to build some boost. I've learned to not drive tired, not worth it, so on long trips I'll stop and sleep hours in the truck.
Makes me want to apologize to my engine for running black oil for a 100K miles. I had no idea this was even possible. Can't wait to see when I hit 10K on this oil/filter setup.
5,000 mile update. The last ~1,000 miles were loaded with a +20K lb trailer over many mountain passes. My guess is the soot particles <2micron finally built up, the bypass filter "only" goes down to 2 micron and soot comes smaller than that. With the added work load on the engine means more got past the rings.
~5,230 update, 106K on the engine. After 230 miles running unloaded back and forth to town, it appears the bypass filter is cleaning the oil. Running unloaded it would appear less soot is getting by the piston rings and the filter is doing its thing, it's able to keep up with the current condition of the engine.
Been about a year since I did the last batch of longevity mods. Happy with the results. For some reason I have bought aftermarket degas tanks and a lot of silicon hoses. This got me wanting to replace all the hoses with silicon ones; the main ones are easy but a few of the ones do not seem to be available, least not pre-formed. Anyone found all of them? Messing with the water jacket is one of my least favorite acitivies; this spring I'm going to drain the coolant and do all the mods at one time. I've got the rest of winter to source and stockpile parts.
So far I have sourced the top and bottom radiator hoses, oil cooler hoses, main degas bottle hoses, heater core inlet hose. If anyone has sources for the hard to find ones please post!
I ordered/purchased a 2018, have 101K miles on it so far, and after six years of fine service I can tell it is a keeper. I'll be keeping the truck long term and being in my 50's it may be the last new one ton SRW I have. This combo brings forth even better feelings than my 7.3 w/ZF6 and my 12 valve before it. To that effect, I decided to do what I could to make the existing drivetrain last longer. Truth be known I like this 6.7 and 6R140 so much that I'll be replacing what ever component does give out with the same thing, well maybe upgraded a bit. Maintenance has always been done excessively but wanted to kick it up a notch.
Swapped to all CAT spin on filters
Increased oil capacity to +16 quarts
Installed a bypass filter
Upgraded the oil pan heater
Installed Banks rear diff cover
Seriously thinking about replacing the CP4 with a DCR.....
The reason to swap to CAT filters is the availability of high quality filters. Caterpillar is the largest manufacuter of diesel engines and are worldwide. This allows them the market to produce the highest quality filters without concern for pricepoint. If you have a high-value piece of equipment you're not worried about a $10-30 cost delta on a filter, this can't be said for the personal transportation market.
The new oil pan offered multiple advantages. Inceased capacity, more oil equals less work it has to do, therefore longer life. The pan came with two threaded ports, one for the heater, and I used the other as the return port for the bypass filter. And last but not least, the drain design allows for total evacuation of the used oil. When I removed the factory pan more oil was left that I would have ever thought, ~10-12 ounces.
Marketed bypass filter setups are way over-priced, IMO. Liked the thought of maximum filtration but the entry price....way to high. I ended up spending ~$100 on parts and $45 on the filter, this I can live with. Used the amsoil bypass filter, as other sellers do not offer anything close to their receipe. Your basic choice is a toilet paper filter can or the amsoil. As I run amsoil oil anyway, the 2 micron spin on filter fit the bill. Couple of hydraulic hoses, fittings, and a filter base and we're in business. At ~$150 the ROI argument really goes away.
Since working in Alaska many moons ago and living in snow country, I install all kinds of heaters on my vechicles, something about cranking up a car in subzero temps like it was 70 degrees outside makes me feel good. On top of this the weakness of the 6.7 is oil flow, using to thick of an oil in cold temps has taken out many of them. Until now I used a 150watt heating pad stuck to the bottom of the oil pan. With the new pan there is a 400w immersed element.
Pics of install....
The new engine block oil filter adaptor has extra ports, used the 1/4" NPT one for the supply to bypass filter. The oil pan has a 1/2" threaded port that I used for the return. Mounted the filter base on outside passenger frame rail.
Pic of new main tank water seperator and fuel filter setup. The filter on top of engine is replaced with a manifold.
The oil heater fitment is tight, the connector has to be pointed toward front of truck, but it does fit. About 1/8" clearance.
When the truck was new I added a in-bed aux fuel tank and placed a water seperator filter between it and the factory tank. Swapped out to the same part number filter as the new main tank filter set-up. I was using the shorter version but wanted to simplify, the bottom still sits three inches above the body panel edge.
Also picked up the cat version filter for the S&S DPK I installed a few months ago. This will go away if I choose to do the DCR pump conversion. Haven't swapped the filter out as its only has a couple thousand miles on it.
I have a simular setup for the oil filter and bypass filter. using the long cat filter...moved the oil pressure switch to the 1/4 NPT port provided by SPE and my bypass taps of the 1/8 npt. using the dual by pass.
Got my 12.1" display installed this weekend. It is bascially a tablet with an interface with the ford sync. It has wifi, bluetooth, and 4G cell tech, so you can connect to the internet in a few different ways, through your phone or you can have its own sim card if you want to pay for a different phone line/service. Then run normal PC apps i.e. youtube, netflix, web browser, etc. You can also add features if you have a lower trim, like cameras, also comes with its own GPS.
A few negatives. Portrait fits in the existing so no landscape that everyone likes. When interfacing with the ford sync you have half the screen as the original console and the lower half is AC controls, so you wind up slightly smaller console panel. Cameras do show up larger than the 8" screen because it interfaces with the tablet software, but not full screen. Lastly, basically you are dealing with two different systems and have to remember where you are at and what you want to do, I'm sure with time it will become second nature.
They also make a 14.3" but is sticks up above the dash 2". To me the 12" looks more factory, but each to his own. Noticed several offerings and not all are equal, also you can do a complete swap to the factory wide screen, just cost double of this option.
AutoTech There are multiple offerings at vairous price points but this one had good reviews when I was researching it. It is chinese but shipped out of Canada.
Adding to the list, I'd have a good application of Fluid Film or Wool Wax (or similar) sprayed inside & outside all the tubular structural steel (frame, radius arms), then every year or two touch up the high splash areas with the same. It is an oxygen barrier that greatly inhibits corrosion.
Adding to the list, I'd have a good application of Fluid Film or Wool Wax (or similar) sprayed inside & outside all the tubular structural steel (frame, radius arms), then every year or two touch up the high splash areas with the same. It is an oxygen barrier that greatly inhibits corrosion.
100% agree with you! It has been on my mind last few weeks. I do not live in salt country but worked in Omaha for 18 months a while ago and just being there started rust on my frame welds. I did not even drive it in the winter or when salt brine was on the road. Settled on surface shield after watching "Repair Geek" videos. I plan on removing the exterior frame surface rust, painting the exterior frame, and then coating the interior frame with the surface shield. If the paint holds, great, if not I'll try something else. I do live in snow country but we use sand/gravel instead of the cancer causing agent.
Subject: front Sumosprings, long story short, get the black -47 ones.
Not really a longevity mod but I don't have a specific build thread so I'll post here and another more generic knowledge thread when I have pic to add. No need for others to go through the same journey, as sumo is useless with their information and customer service.
Front sumo springs. I tried the yellow -54 (2,800lb) and they were to stiff for me (which is saying a lot), went down to the black -47 (1,500lb). I cannot see a reason for the yellow 2,800lb capacity on a super duty truck of any configuration or load. Per the DOT scale in my hometown my front axle comes in at 5,600lbs actual weight without me in the seat, so close to max on the heaviest front axle SD's have. Also might add even with ~4,000lb of tongue wieght and fuel in my aux tank, in bed next to cab, not a single pound is added to the front when loaded.
I actually needed a bump stop replacement and thought the load carrying ability of the sumo wouldn't hurt. My setup, CC LB 6.7, I have a 2" spacer between the OEM coil spring mount and axle, so 2" added of non compressable height. Also, have a heavy front bumper and large warn winch so a few pounds weighing down the front. Lastly, have max OEM springs 5990lb rating on front end, this (6K) is max for any superduty from any year. The max front springs usually sit 1" higher than other springs and the bumper weight brings it back down.
They have 5" of height plus the mounting thickness, making them set about 1/2" from the axle pad with my set-up. When I hit bumps in the road you could feel the softened hit and then the rebound pushing the truck back up, smooth and stiff are the best description. Not bad just stiff, I would have lived with them if not for the 30-day money back thing. I would definitely not want these on a non-lifted truck as these springs would be compressed 1.5" when just sitting, giving you just 1.25" of up travel before you damage the springs. On the other hand, if you have 4" or more lift then maybe the yellow would suit your needs.
On to the boring stuff and why it matters for which spring you pick. The SSF-111-54has a 2,800 lb capacity when compressed at 50%. The YellowSumoSprings shouldn’t be compressed past 55%of their original height in order to keep full memory rebound.
The SSF-111-47 has a 1,500 lb capacity when compressed at 50%. The BlackSumoSprings shouldn’t be compressed past 65% of their original height in order to keep full memory rebound.
Near as I can tell, since Sumo would not or could not answer my question, this means it takes the capacity weight to compress the spring (or maybe both springs) to 50%, or 2.5". Also, I assume it is somewhat progressive in this. We all know that force equals mass times acceleration, F=MA, the amount of force varies with the speed of the hit at a given weight/mass, so the "capacity rating" is probably not a weight carrying rating but just the amount of force it takes to compress the spring to 50% This is the easiest thing to measure and I'm pretty sure this is as far as the R&D went with this company. Anywho, any way you slice it the sumo add to the truck's steel spring's rating as to the amount of force it takes to compress the two springs that are mounted in parrallel between the frame and axle housing.
The moral of the story here is stay away from the yellow on a superduty application.
This weekend I swapped out the sumo springs, definitely made the right choice. Along with a set of Fox 2.0 resi shocks the two drastically improved the ride. For the record I went with non-adjustable items on the front as the weight does not change loaded or unloaded. In the rear I have 5K airbags and compression dampening adjustable shocks. I can vary the air pressue and shock clicks for the load.
With the -47 black springs and the fox shocks I drove over rough rail road tracks, manhole covers, and harsh bridge/overpass joints. I'm very impressed by the set-up, nearing 1/2 ton ride, ok maybe an overstatement but this is the best riding 1 ton I've been in. All subjective on my end, but this guy put a recent video with the same custom tune shocks as I went with, he did some testing with a phone app that shows the smoothness of the ride before and after the fact.
Got my new rims a while ago, 4,500lb rating. If you wonder how Method increased the weight rating it is all in the thickness of the spokes. 1.41" The website says the same alumium and heat treating is used on the HD and non-HD.
Got my new rims a while ago, 4,500lb rating. If you wonder how Method increased the weight rating it is all in the thickness of the spokes. 1.41" The website says the same alumium and heat treating is used on the HD and non-HD.
How did those AT4's balance out? I am running methods with AT3's, love the tires and have had them on a few vehicles but I have 2 AT3's in 37x12.5r18 on methods that I could not get to balance out. Took them to get road forced and they told me the tires were basically bad, so I have two tires I can only run on the rear or I get a steering wheel jiggle at 70 that drives me nuts. Planning to get a set of AT4's at some point.
