i am going to agree with you on this, even though i do not do what you do... why..? it's simple... you can run the best oil, you can run by-pass filters, you can have the oil tested... these are all good things... but, here is the simple truth, if you run your engine, your oil gets dirty and slowly loses it's "oil-ish" properties, (lubricity, etc.), the simplest way to cure this is to put fresh oil in the engine... years ago, a freind of mine had a suzuki 1400 intruder, i bought one brand new a few years after he got his brand new... i ran syn oil in mine after break in, he always ran dino oil, but he changed his every 1000 miles... i changed mine once or twice a year depending on mileage... i did not know that running syn in that model would cause the clutch plates to wear out prematurely, so, 4 years later at 20k miles i needed new plates... his bike was 7 years old at that point with over 60k on it and it needed nothing... my point here is that i was stupid because i did not ask someone about running syn in that bike, and i could have done what he did and been fine... so, think about your psd for a minute, sure you need 15 qrts to do an oil change, but, how much oil is still in the motor after you have dumped the rest of it..? however much it is, it is OLD oil and even though it will mix with the new oil, it will still continue to get "older"... so, i think Tenn01 has it right... changing it more often is probably the best idea, unless you do 100k miles a year, then get a by-pass filter and some syn oil... i'm headed for wally world to get some Rotella before they run out..!

 

I love oil threads! People get more opinionated, crancky, upset, fustrated, happy, sad, excited more than in any other discussion. Talking about oil & PSD's is comparable to oil & Harley-Davidson's. Lots of pride!


As one of my daughter's favorite songs says "if it makes you happy then it can't be that bad"

I posted this in a thread a while back -


Synthetics vs Dino oilConventional (dino) oils are refined using crude oil for the base stock. These can contain some impurities such as nitrogen, resin, wax, carbon, asphalt, sulfur, and aromatic resdues. Refining removes most of them, but some remain to cause problems under high stress & temperatures.

Synthetic oils are developed in the lab from man made organic esters and other synthesized hydrocarbons to provide the exact characteristics desired. These designer oils include no impuities, so they resist oxidation up to 10 times longer.

The best dino (conventional) oils break down or oxidize at temps above 250-300 degrees. Above this the life of the oils drop drastically resulting in increased engine wear and formation of harmful deposits. Synthetic oils have a lot higher tolerance and can withstand temps up to 450 degrees, and some higher quality synths go as high as 700 degrees.

Synthetics also work better at low temps because they flow much more freely down to -40 t0 -50 degrees. They start lubricating much sooner and reach the uper valve train & turbo much faster.

Because sythetic oils are slipperier (spelling?) friction is reduced. Less friction = less wear and slightly better fuel economy. Longer intervals between oil changes are possible because synthetics resist oxidation. To get the most out of extended oil changes it is best to be on a oil analysis program (places like www.blackstone-labs.com , or Amsoils OAI testing, schaeffer's oil analysis). A single oil analysis migh not show a complete picture but over time and a few analysis' later you can see trends. As far as the accuracy on the oil analysis is concerned it has alot to do with the type/quality of the testing equipment.

Now there are different grades/qualities of synthetics just as there are with dino oils. So cheaper isn't necessarily better.

Bottom line?

If you run Rotella 15W-40 and change it every 3-5K you will be fine.

If you run Delo 400 (dino oil), Rotella synthetic 5W-40 or Schaeffer's (7000 or 9000) you can go 7-10K between oil changes and will notice less iron wear on a used oil analysis (@15-20% drop) and the viscosity on the synthetics will hold longer.

For those running Rotella 15W-40 in the summer then changing to Rotella synthetic 5W-40 in the winter try doing an UOA on each type of oil at the same milage interval (i.e. 5K). You will see the difference. I'm not nocking Rotella 15W-40, the wear numbers are not bad but the synthetic version will be lower. You can run 5W-40 all year long if you like - they are both 40 weight oils after reaching operating temp.

Enjoy the weekend - I'm gonna keep an eye outside for the damn blasted Tornados coming today. I hate the bowling pin feeling - just waiting to get blasted with a strike.

 

I just got my oil changed yesterday at jiffy lube. The guy there talked me into 15/50 Mobil I synthetic. I got about 81,000 on my 2002 7.3, am I hurting the engine at all? Sorry if this is a dumb question I am new to diesels...

 

I would - the manufacturer calls for a 40 weight oil (30 weight in extreme cold enviroments). Not a 50 weight oil.

 

welcome to the best site on the net for learning about your truck... no such thing as a dumb question on FTE... just one that new guys like you have not read about yet... use the search function to check old posts for the topic you need... that is the fastest way to get yourself up to speed, but be prepared to do some reading..!!!.. and do not feel bad because you don't know stuff about your truck... when i bought my mule i had no idea how much there was to learn about these trucks... lucky for both of us we found FTE..!!!

As for your oil in your truck, i would reccomend that you get it changed... i don't think you want to run 50 wieght in it... as for damaging your engine, i don't thinkg so, but other guys on here would know more about that than i do..

 

Enjoy the weekend - I'm gonna keep an eye outside for the damn blasted Tornados coming today. I hate the bowling pin feeling - just waiting to get blasted with a strike.[/QUOTE]

hey man..!!! keep your head down ok..!!!

 

I tried a change of oils this month from Delo to Shell Rotella 5-40 synthetic. Wow it did make a difference. No romp'n. It could be a combination though of the S.Ca weather also. I ran the Amsoil also and like'd it too. But that was before I got the 530 Hybrids. My next oil change will be to the Amsoil product to see what this does. I have acouple of cases that I just got, along with gear and transmision fluids. But so far I'm realy impressed with the Rotella 5-40.

 

Hey guys, I'm not sure if I did this correctly but you gotta check this out. I hope I cut and pasted this correctly.. http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/images/lucas/lucas.htm Yeah this worked pretty cool.

 

I see from the product specs that the 15w-50 M1 is 17.4 cSt at 100C, so not very far above a 40 weight, basically a thin 50 weight. The thing is your truck calls for an API min rating of CH, CI-4 CI4+ and latest CJ ratings are what you need to be looking for. From this link M1 15w-50 is rated as suitable up to API CF http://www.cdoc.com/detail.asp?id=71...10&name=FLUIDS
though the product data sheet does not list the C ratings. May be on the bottle though.
It does carry ACEA B3, B4 ratings which are diesel ratings in europe which are fairly robust, but strictly by the book it does not carry the ratings specified in your owners manual. My personal feeling is it may be perfectly fine and probably will not be a problem at all for one OCI but for long term use you are venturing into your own experiment with a non-rated oil.

 

Sorry, prior post was mainly directed to Luca.

 

Thanks Johnny8, fortunately nothing much here today - mostly further north from me.

 

Thanks for the info guys. I'm going to stick it out until my next oil change. Then I am switching back. Any recommendations for a sweet 15/40?

 

Schaeffer's Series 7000 (15w-40)

or

Chevron Delo 400 (15W-40)

 

Holy Crap- After seeing that demo by Bob the oil guy- my opinion of Lucas is somewhat changed.... From all the counter displays, you'd THINK it's great stuff. Now after that demo, Lucas will never see my diff.....

 

Those sort of concoctions have the same effect on the motor oil and the HUEI style injectors.