Powerstroke 6.0 engine: What does CK-4 mean for me

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So Im wondering and I see the same concern here and there... What does the Ck-4 mean for my semi older motor? By that I mean what does the new Ck-4 mean in terms of longevity? Id assume they arent going to make a CJ-4 ONLY ( or at least up to CJ-4 ) oil. I seen a discussion about people saying the same thing when CJ-4 came out.

What also has me some what worried is that Ford supposedly ( I have to double check the thread here to see if it came to a head or not )said to NOT use the CK-4 oil in their 6.7l. Its a new oil cert in a NEW truck engine ( well relatively new )

Any words of wisdom?
 
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Use what the manual says to use - backspeccing doesn't always work as their bulletin seems to hint you shouldn't use the new fluid that 'supersedes' the old one.
Stock up on cj4 while you can and with the time it buys you, research which oils might be usable.
Look at Millers, Amsoil, Redline, Schaeffers etc for non-cert stuff that people trust and look at stuff in 55gal drums like Delvac/Rotella for certified options.
 
True. But Ive heard shelf life may only be 2-3 maybe 5 years. I don't plan on getting rid of the vehicle so eventually I'll need to use the new stuff...
 
If it were me, I wouldn't worry. Imperial Oil doesn't keep old stuff around anyhow. The only "legacy" stuff they market up here is the marine stuff or locomotive stuff, which may not be helpful. The panic happened when CJ-4 came out, too.
 
I'm interested in how this will play out, because I'm sure Ford will have to do something eventually when they run out of CJ-4. They can't keep selling 6.7 diesel trucks stating that changing the oil will void warranty when there is no CJ-4 left for them to put in at the dealer. I'm also wondering what is different formula-wise between the CJ-4 and CK-4 that causes more wear.

Everyone told me that using modern low ZDDP oils in my Jeep 4.0 would kill the cam, yet with modern SN rated oils I had single digit iron wear numbers in my UOAs.
 
And, as I mentioned in the other thread, they're going to have trouble saying that people can't use CK-4 unless it has the Ford number but can use CJ-4 that doesn't have the Ford number, since that's talking out of both sides of one's mouth. CK-4 does back spec, and those are the API rules. If they want to enforce their own specification, that's fine, just do so.
 
Originally Posted By: NattyBoh
True. But Ive heard shelf life may only be 2-3 maybe 5 years. I don't plan on getting rid of the vehicle so eventually I'll need to use the new stuff...
Shelf life is forever (at least in human terms). Crude has been in the ground for eons. Blackstone tested some 1960s oil and the tests came back fine for the specification at the time. I would not worry about it.
 
Interesting... We look at my thread with discolored oil. Both brand new... Should be one or two above below this
 
We went thru all of this when CJ-4 came about. There was a hue and cry that went throughout the land that CJ-4 would be inferior to CI-4 and CI-4+ and that folks had better hoard oil so that their engines would not grenade with the new CJ-4. Well, my 2000 Detroit Series 60 that was designed around CI-4 has been fed CJ-4 with nary an issue. At 623,000 miles, it uses about 2 qts of oil in 22,500 miles and wear numbers on UOA's barely register a blip on the radar in comparison to the allowable limits per the Detroit Lube Manuals. I have no doubt that CK-4 will work just fine in the motor as well.
 
Originally Posted By: Garak
And, as I mentioned in the other thread, they're going to have trouble saying that people can't use CK-4 unless it has the Ford number but can use CJ-4 that doesn't have the Ford number, since that's talking out of both sides of one's mouth. CK-4 does back spec, and those are the API rules. If they want to enforce their own specification, that's fine, just do so.


I think they will just focus on the WSS-M2C-171-F1 spec. I have it on pretty good authority that there will be some CK-4 oils approved by that spec soon... and then all this worrying is for nothing.
 
Odds are that most who own a 6.0 are their own warranty at this point in time...so take your pick. There's always going to be a manufacturer who will make an older spec that will be easy to acquire.
 
I just purchased 9 gallons of the Delo 400 LE 5w30 CJ-4 off Amazon ($71 for 3 gallons SALE), should last me 2 years. Gives time to see how this CK-4 Ford situation pans out. According to Amazon, Dec 1st, they will be stocking the new Delo 400 XSP 5w30 CK-4 and will keep the old CJ-4 through next year.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00M1Y2ZFG/ref=twister_B00XXLOT46?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

I'll wait until some UOA's start posting on the CK-4
 
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Here is the bulletin re: CJ-4 I just received from Ford this morning.

Ford Motor Company CK-4/FA-4 Ford Position Statement
Starting on December 1, 2016 the American Petroleum Institute (API) will begin licensing
two new diesel motor categories CK-4 and FA-4. API CK-4 is being released to replace
CJ-4. FA-4 is a low viscosity diesel oil released for diesel engines designed for a lower
viscosity oil.
API FA-4
Due to its low viscosity FA-4 should not be used in any Ford diesel vehicles at this time.
API CK-4
Ford will not be recommending the use of CK-4 motor oils in any Ford diesel engines,
new or old. Testing Ford has done on some CK-4 formulations have shown inadequate
wear protection compared to CJ-4 formulations developed and licensed before 2016.
Like many other diesel engine manufacturers, with their own internal OEM specification,
Ford will now be recommending oils that meet an OEM specification, Ford Material
Engineering Specification WSS-M2C171-F1. The customer should use an oil showing
that it meets this specification.
An oil showing CJ-4 in the API donut without showing CK-4 would be acceptable for
service even if not showing WSS-M2C171-F1. This oil would most likely be an older CJ-
4 formulation, developed and licensed prior to 2016. These oils could be around for
about a year after CK-4 licensing begins, December 1, 2016. Field experience and Ford
testing has shown that these older CJ-4 formulations provide acceptable 6.7L engine
protection.
To insure you protect your Ford diesel engine use an oil meeting Ford specification
WSS-M2C171-F1 like Motorcraft Super Duty Motor oil.
 
Originally Posted By: Solarent
I think they will just focus on the WSS-M2C-171-F1 spec. I have it on pretty good authority that there will be some CK-4 oils approved by that spec soon... and then all this worrying is for nothing.

That's certainly good to hear, then.
 
Someone would have to ask the Ford engineers what test have been done so far. Thats of course you have the odd chance in getting ahold of one. While I would agree that you should agree with using the OEM specs. whenever possible, I know it can get difficult doing that if maintaining a vary varied fleet. I would write Ford a letter demanding that they move on to the CK-4 and that it would become difficult for the consumer if they don't. Would its like what someone said, as the CK-4 comes out, the oil makers would likely soon have there oils pass Fords OEM specs. and it hopefully won't become to complicated.
 
Originally Posted By: akela
CI-4 is still on the shelves. I am pretty sure CJ-4 won't disappear overnight either.

You won't find any in the Imperial Oil warehouse here.
wink.gif
It did disappear just about overnight.
 
I just put this this in my 6.0L Powerstroke. CI-4+, kinda pricey, but should work fine, we'll see, I just came off a 15K run of CJ-4 Delvac 1. When the time comes I'll analyze the oil and compare. I will wait on the CK-4 stuff for a while to see how it performs.
 
Originally Posted By: Garak
Originally Posted By: akela
CI-4 is still on the shelves. I am pretty sure CJ-4 won't disappear overnight either.

You won't find any in the Imperial Oil warehouse here.
wink.gif
It did disappear just about overnight.

Never been in the Imperial Oil warehouse
smile.gif

I'm talking about Supertech 15w40 oil at Walmart. They have both CJ-4 and CI-4 jugs on shelves, CI-4 being slightly cheaper.

Also I've noticed that for some CJ-4 oils, it can have older certifications written right on the API donut (like "API CI-4, CI-4+, CJ/SM). And for others the donut has just CJ-4/SM, and CI-4 appears somewhere else on the label.
I assumed that if it's written on the donut, then the oil has actually passed this test, no?
 
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