Ok guys, heres what I have. Its a 2000 F-150 4X2 with the 4.2 L V-6 with about 125k miles. I drive it about 32 miles round trip to school 5 days a week. I have been running the Motorcraft 5w20 and changing it at 5k, but have noticed that between oil changes I use about 3/4-1 qt. Is this amount of oil use normal? I am considering switching to the Motorcraft 10w30 to curb some of the consumption. Would this be a good oil for this engine? I live in North Texas and it does get cold, but only in short spurts. What do you think? Switch from the 5w20 to the 10w30?
2000 F-150 4.2 V-6 Oil Recommendation
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Try a 5w/30? I had a 2000 F150 (v8) and if I remember right thats what the manual called for. Maxlife?
5w-30 with no question. We have a fleet of F150s that have the 4.2l v6 and 4.6l V8 and they have 200k+ on most of them (getting rid of them finally) with bulk 5w-30 every 6-8k.
They run fine and use I'd say about a 1/2 to 1 qt during the OCI.
Take care and
Bill
They run fine and use I'd say about a 1/2 to 1 qt during the OCI.
Take care and
Bill
3/4 to 1 quart seems high for the 4.2 at 125k miles. Is it burning oil or do you also have a rear main seal leak?
I'm about to switch to high mileage 5W-30 and I only have 80K on mine.
It bugs me that Ford spec'd 5W-20 to meet CAFE standards, since I think these engines are better off with 5W-30 for the long haul.
I'm about to switch to high mileage 5W-30 and I only have 80K on mine.
It bugs me that Ford spec'd 5W-20 to meet CAFE standards, since I think these engines are better off with 5W-30 for the long haul.
I definitely do not have a rear main seal leak. The usage strikes me as funny though because when I was changing my own oil I never noticed any usage. Now I take it to the dealership as my apartment won't allow us to work on vehicles in the parking lot. Each time I get the receipt from the dealership it says pre oil change level 1/2 to 1 qt low. I was thinking that they could either be misreading the dipstick or not putting the correct amount of oil in. When 6 quarts of oil are added, the amount the manual requires, I noticed that the oil level is only half way up the crosshatched area on the dipstick. I guess they could be calling that 1/2 quart low.
I would make the dealership show you how they are checking/getting that low figure. Can you drive/mind driving to a parts store parking lot and changing the oil there? With a truck you may not need ramps, so short and sweet, and then just walk it over to recycle. Admittedly this may not be legal or wise for many reasons, but may be doable and can save a few bucks.
You know jldcol, I had not thought of that, but I don't know why. When I was working on my undergraduate degree, I worked at an auto supply, and we had people do that all the time. That is definitely a viable option for me. I really much prefer changing my own oil simply for my peace of mind. Knowing how the dealership checks the oil is my unknown. Having dealt with the incompetence of some dealership employees, it would not surprise me if they did not know the correct way to check oil or read a dipstick. Thanks for the suggestion, and I would definitely not need ramps. I have never used them for any oil changes on any of my trucks. I love trucks.
Glad to help. I thought of this since I have seen people drop trannys, whole exhasts systems, and even more with a practical crew/tool set to match in the parking lot. In this diy universe may be on the low end of the scale, and if it's far enough away gets the oil warmed up also.
I qt in 5,000 miles is fine.
You know Steve S, that's exactly what my father (ASE certified mechanic with over 30 years experience) told me, but my OCD nature was still concerned as none of my vehicles have ever used any oil. Having one that does (or may) just concerned me a little, but the more I read, its either normal or simply nothing to worry about. I would still like to go back to doing my own oil changed though.
Sorry to but in on the convo, but all engines consume oil. Now whether thats detectable on the dipstick is the problem. Valve guides are not 100% sealed, and actually need some oil down the stem to fully lube it, and ring packs cannot scrape off all oil or piston siezes up/loses seals and no power. I think that some study used radio-tagged oil and could monitor its use/burning via the tail pipe with a gieger counter type setup. I hope this post is consistant with your brand of OCD, it is with mine.
jldcol, that is perfectly consistent with my type of OCD. Not only do I want to know how something behaves, but why it behaves that way as well. That is an excellent explanation that I have not heard. Additionally, it makes perfect sense. The owners manual says it is normal to have to add up to 1 quart between oil changes, and I wondered why. You have given me the information I needed. Thank you. I guess my previous vehicles did use some oil, but it was either an undetectable amount or I didn't check the oil level before changing (or a combination of both). As a note, I used to buy into the 3K OCI and now I do 5K, so that could explain the increased/noticed consumption.
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