2006 Crown Vic Police, Valvoline 5W20, 5K Mi.

[ADFD1]

Originally Posted By: theedge67
No, not a fleet manager, but I am helping the guy who is in charge of our fleet. He would never go for a 5W30 because Ford recommends 5W20. That is also why we will never go longer than 5K miles because Ford recommends it. Same for tires, brakes, etc. We use OEM replacement parts so in the unlikely event something does happen, our butt is not on the line for using non-recommended parts.

Say a brake pad fails during a high speed pursuit that causes the police car to drive into a house and kills someone. If we used brakes that were not recommended by Ford, that opens the door to a potential lawsuit. And you know how people love to sue each other...let alone a police agency.


I think your fleet manager is doing the right thing, and it appears the 5W20 oil is working extremely well in that engine. He found the right oil and grade for that engine.

AD

 

[chevrofreak]

If I were running maintenance on a fleet of police or taxi Crown Victoria's I would run a maintenance dose of Auto RX to prevent ring gunking from all of the idling that police cars do.

Though, most police cars are replaced before they get enough miles on them for stuck rings to become much of an issue.

 

[Jaymus]

Originally Posted By: ADFD1

I think your fleet manager is doing the right thing, and it appears the 5W20 oil is working extremely well in that engine. He found the right oil and grade for that engine.

AD


What makes this the right oil and grade for this engine? I haven't seen any other UOA's of different brands/grades for this car.

I also know a 5W-30 wouldn't cause a lawsuit, lol. Yeah, I'd have a 5W-30 in there and watch the numbers go down, but to each their own. At least it's a bullet proof engine, and it doesn't care if it runs a 5W-20 or 20W-50.

 

[panthermike]

Originally Posted By: Jaymus
Originally Posted By: ADFD1



At least it's a bullet proof engine, and it doesn't care if it runs a 5W-20 or 20W-50.


I agree. My mechanic services a bunch of Towncar's with this motor. For the warranty period, he uses 5w20. After, for whatever reason, he likes 20w50. Most of these cars have 200-500K miles, still running great.

 

[ADFD1]

Originally Posted By: Jaymus
Originally Posted By: ADFD1

I think your fleet manager is doing the right thing, and it appears the 5W20 oil is working extremely well in that engine. He found the right oil and grade for that engine.

AD


What makes this the right oil and grade for this engine? I haven't seen any other UOA's of different brands/grades for this car.

I also know a 5W-30 wouldn't cause a lawsuit, lol. Yeah, I'd have a 5W-30 in there and watch the numbers go down, but to each their own. At least it's a bullet proof engine, and it doesn't care if it runs a 5W-20 or 20W-50.



The mfg recommends 5W20, fleet mangers I've spoken to, along with local Police have been running the same engines on 5W20 under extreme conditions with great results.

It has nothing to do with a lawsuit lol. All I did was say the fleet manager was doing a good job, and found an oil that worked well. As an added benefit it's what the mfg suggested. Truth is I don't think he'd see much of a change if any, using a 5W30 oil.

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[theedge67]

I don't think any different oil brand or grade could have produced significantly lower numbers considering the hard life this car has. We are mostly doing this testing to ensure that the oil can stand up to 5K mile intervals under this harsh service. Evidently it can.

 

[Jaymus]

The lawsuit thing was to the guy bringing up the comparison about a brake pad failing would land them in court if it wasn't the manufacturer recommended brake pad. That I can believe.

I realize they 'recommend' 5W-20, but these engines came from running on 5W-30. I'm just raising the point that 5W-30 has brought back exceptional UOA's, too. And in a vehicle being abused, you'd lean towards the higher viscosity for longevity.

Again, though, the 4.6 is a very reliable engine, and will run on any oil. I was just commenting on the comment about this oil being perfect when we really don't know because there are no other UOA's for this engine with a different weight. I didn't say 5W-20 didn't work. I was questioning if a 5W-30 would have done better. Nothing wrong with fine tuning on the perfect oil, rather than ignoring any other option and saying this oil is the best. Which, btw, I like Valvoline, but I like a lot of oils.

 

[Jonny Z]

What's with all the Na?

 

[chevrofreak]

Originally Posted By: Jonny Z
What's with all the Na?


Valvoline uses sodium as an additive. A lot of companies are starting to use sodium in their oils, apparently it works very well at preventing deposits.

 

[jorton]

Originally Posted By: panthermike
I wouldn't call 2.39 TBN "abnormal."


Yes it is abnormal when time to change is 4.0. Also noticed zddp(antioxidant) level is a little low. If you want to keep the engine cleaner switch to Mobil 1 0w-20.

 

[PandaBear]

Originally Posted By: jorton
Yes it is abnormal when time to change is 4.0. Also noticed zddp(antioxidant) level is a little low. If you want to keep the engine cleaner switch to Mobil 1 0w-20.


Who said that? I was told by BlackStone that the time to change is 1.0 TBN on their reports (every lab has different calibration), and zddp level is limited in SM spec.

 

[G-MAN]

Given the driving conditions this car experiences, I think that TBN looks fine. It was time for the oil to be changed, but the TBN is nowhere near the "danger zone." All things considered, this is a stellar UOA, IMO.

 

[panthermike]

Originally Posted By: jorton
Originally Posted By: panthermike
I wouldn't call 2.39 TBN "abnormal."


Yes it is abnormal when time to change is 4.0. Also noticed zddp(antioxidant) level is a little low. If you want to keep the engine cleaner switch to Mobil 1 0w-20.


4.0?? 2.39 isn't that bad man.

 

[lazaro]

Originally Posted By: theedge67
Standard 4.6L V8 in the CVPI, no modifications. Engine has 35K miles on it at time of sample. Very hard use, many hard WOT runs and included some cool ambient temps as well (20's F).

Analysis by OAI. They flagged the TBN as abnormal and recommended the oil be changed because of it if not already done. (it was done at time of sample)

Iron 14
Chromium 2
Lead 9
Copper 2
Tin 0
Aluminum 3
Nickel 0
Silver 0
Silicon 9
Boron 1
Sodium 293
Magnesium 14
Calcium 1505
Barium 0
Phosphorus 483
Zinc 578
Moly 2
Titanium 0
Vanadium 0
Potassium 0

Fuel/Water/Coolant 0
Visc.@100C 8.01
TBN 2.39

OAI recommends changing the oil when the TBN reaches 35 percent of the original TBN reading VOA