F150 Supercharged/Desert - Oil Weight Recommendation?

[whooven]

I have an 2001 Ford F150 Supercrew 4x4 with a Kenne Bell Supercharged 5.4 liter engine that has around 48k miles on it. The Kenne Bell supercharger has it's own oil system.

Ford recommends 5w20 oil for this engine (the supercharger is aftermarket). The previous owner told me he only used Mobil 1 but I forgot to ask the weight. I was planning on putting in 5w20 Mobil 1 but I was wondering if ya'll thought the increased desert temperatures this time of year (soon to be 110-115) combined with the added load of the supercharger (it doesn't get used very hard) warrants the use of a heavier weight. I'm sold on Mobil 1 as an oil, just need a weight recommendation.

BTW, I live in Phoenix, Arizona and for some reason 5w20 Mobil 1 is as rare as a virgin in Vegas. I had to go to multiple Walmarts and Autozones to finally total 6 quarts. Autozone says it's a rare oil for them and they don't know when they'll get more in. I understand, since there are so few F150's made.

Thanks. I've lurked for several months and have learned alot from this forum. I will also be using Blackstone when I do this next oil change. I hope to contribute something of value.

 

[Drew99GT]

Your going to get all kind of responses and many people will tell you you still need the benefit of 5w-20 for fuel economy and start-up oil flow (yes, people will argue that it's even important when the ambient temp is 120 degrees F

) That said, I would absolutelly run AT LEAST 10w30 in your truck. I've made the analogy several times on this board about the drive north out of Pheonix towards Flagstaff. Would you feel comfortable driving that route in your truck with the A/C blasting, 80 mph, 120 degrees, blower huffin away under the hood, with 5w-20?

Seems like a no brainer to me!

 

[theguru]

I wouldn't run to 5w20 either. Whilst it seems to put in good results in the used oil analysis, I would go for a heavier grade such as the 10w30, maybe even the Mobil S&V (aka D1).

 

[robbobster]

I posted a similar question a while back, and 10W30 was the overwhelming recommendation. Since that's what I ran before the blower, I felt comfortable sticking to it.

I've also been running M1, though I have yet to do a used oil analysis.

Interestingly, before the blower my truck consumed about 1/2 quart per 3000 miles. And with the blower, this has not changed.

Do you have any sort of PCV oil catch on your truck? These blown mod motors seems to geta lot of oil blow-by.

 

[Schism]

As I stated on the F150 forums, I recommend 10w30 in the summer. I know there was talk of engine temp on those forums, but oil temp will probably be higher in most cases with thinner oil, usually not more than 20°F which isn't quite enough to effect the damped thermostat(if it is stock.) on the truck. However I think 20 degrees is enough to use a slightly thicker oil in such extreme conditions.

 

[Geoff]

The blower will increase your bearing loading beyond stock. Thick oil tends to protect higher bearing loading (like in a diesel). Given your usage environment, I would stick to the 10w30 minimum too. Mobil 1 Truck and SUV 5w-40 sounds like a good option. Do some used oil analysis to see what works better.

 

[Steve S]

05w/40 or 15w/50 syn oil.

 

[pscholte]

Delvac 1 5W-40

 

[Ryan00TJ]

I would run a Synthetic 5W-40 if it was my motor. Geoff is right on about the higher bearing load with FI applications.

 

[haley10]

I'd run Mobil 1 Extended Performance 10w30.

 

[WeyounDS9]

I dont know were some members thin oil recomendations come from.

I also have an aftermarket SC on my car and my oil pressure gauge lets me that the oil is hotter ( thinner=less pressure).

Right now, I can barely maintain the pressure with a 10w-40, that used to be maintaiend by a 5w30, and this is a fairly mild climate here (maryland delaware border) and summer has barely hit.

My next oil change will likely see Mobil 1 15w-50 or Redline 20w-50, my suggestion to you is the same.

FRed..

[ May 15, 2005, 12:43 AM: Message edited by: palmerwmd ]

 

[99]

quote:

---

Originally posted by whooven:
I have an 2001 Ford F150 Supercrew 4x4 with a Kenne Bell Supercharged 5.4 liter engine that has around 48k miles on it. The Kenne Bell supercharger has it's own oil system.

Ford recommends 5w20 oil for this engine (the supercharger is aftermarket). The previous owner told me he only used Mobil 1 but I forgot to ask the weight. I was planning on putting in 5w20 Mobil 1 but I was wondering if ya'll thought the increased desert temperatures this time of year (soon to be 110-115) combined with the added load of the supercharger (it doesn't get used very hard) warrants the use of a heavier weight. I'm sold on Mobil 1 as an oil, just need a weight recommendation.

BTW, I live in Phoenix, Arizona and for some reason 5w20 Mobil 1 is as rare as a virgin in Vegas. I had to go to multiple Walmarts and Autozones to finally total 6 quarts. Autozone says it's a rare oil for them and they don't know when they'll get more in. I understand, since there are so few F150's made.

Thanks. I've lurked for several months and have learned alot from this forum. I will also be using Blackstone when I do this next oil change. I hope to contribute something of value.

---

If the truck were mine and I lived in Arizona it would NOT be getting a 20WT oil. I'd run a synthetic 5/10W30 or even 5/10W40 if you plan on beating on it. You might want to ask Kenne Bell what they recommend and you might want to hit some of the Lightning forums to see what they use (engines are essentially the same give or take).

 

[Schism]

quote:

---

Originally posted by 99:

If the truck were mine and I lived in Arizona it would NOT be getting a 20WT oil. I'd run a synthetic 5/10W30 or even 5/10W40 if you plan on beating on it. You might want to ask Kenne Bell what they recommend and you might want to hit some of the Lightning forums to see what they use (engines are essentially the same give or take).

---

Lightning forums will mostly recommend what ford recommends, with a few people who may recommend something else, then get bashed like so. Like say 5/10w40 was recommended this is what would most likely be said.. "Your putting that thick of an oil in a modular engine?!"

 

[TomJones76]

In your climate, you could run 10W30, or you could actually get away with SAE 30 HD.
Or, if you don't like wide-spread multi-grades but do like the idea of 20 weight, you could be a weirdo and run Shell Rotella T 20 Weight. http://www.shell-lubricants.com/products/pdf/RotellaTSG.pdf
Then again, probably not.
But I would consider straight SAE 30 HD in your application. I'd THINK about a 15W40, but I don't know if that 5.4 Liter would like oil that thick.

 

[LarryL]

We built an exhaust system for a factory Ford S/C pushrod engined pickup. It calls for a 5w-20 oil and had M1 in it. This truck is driven hard an a used oil analysis showed a lot of wear metals and the oil gets a bit warm on the dyno. After the exhaust system the owner switched to Red Line 5w-40 and after 10k miles and the second 5k change, the used oil analysis looks much better. I don't remember the high temps, just that swithching oils got an almost 20F drop.

A bigger problem with this pickup is the lousy suspension. If you step on the gas it goes sideways a little too quickly for my comfort. Anyway, I think that any oil that you pick should be a bit thicker than 20 weight.