Disclaimer. I am just an average guy who has no degree or experience in chemical engineering. Several months back one of my trucks...a 2018 Lincoln Navigator which has a similar drivetrain to the Ford F150 and the Ford Raptor...developed a cold start rattle and started sounding like a diesel. I took it into the dealership as it was under warranty and didnt get the truck back for over a month. When I did get it back I had to take it in for a 2nd time and then it was another 3 or so weeks. It was nightmarish and thus I started out on an online quest of sorts. During that quest I was banned from the F150 Forum because I had suggested their F150 was faulty. I never said that. I simply wanted to figure out what went wrong and how it could be prevented. I really like the truck, but all this going wrong made me wonder and thus investigate further.
The most useful post so far on the Ecoboost issues is this one by "RONAKA"
https://www.f150forum.com/f70/ecoboost-oil-report-259723/index4/#post3740494
In that post he stated the following:
Quote
"The EcoBoost provides some unique challenges for the oil. First it is direct injection and that tends to promote blow-by the rings especially during startup. Second the PCV system becomes quite ineffective during boost conditions as there is no positive flow through the crankcase. The combination of these two factors is not good. The oil suffers from dilution and viscosity loss due to the gasoline, and the corrosion inhibitor (TBN) levels are consumed more rapidly due to poorly vented moisture.
What does that mean when choosing oil? I would suggest the following in order of priority:
1. Get the highest possible 100 deg. C viscosity SAE 30 weight oil. SAE 30 viscosity is within spec from 9.3 to 12.5 cSt. You want an oil as close as possible to the 12.5 cSt. The purpose is to keep the viscosity in the SAE 30 range, even after gasoline dilution. The higher the starting viscosity the better.
2. A secondary measure of high temperature viscosity is HTHS. Again you want as high a value as is available for a SAE 30 weight oil. Oils meeting ACEA E6, E7, & E9 will have a minimum HTHS of 3.5.
3. A high TBN value is useful to prevent corrosion due to moisture in the oil, and extend life of the oil. An oil meeting those ACEA specs will have a minimum TBN of 9.
Assuming your want to maintain your Ford warranty, you will have to choose a 5W-30 oil, that meets Ford specs or is API SN qualified. Note that Fords does not say it has to be GF-5 qualified, and it is actually best to avoid oil which is GF-5 qualified. It has a fuel economy component which discourages higher viscosity oil, which is your number 1 priority.
So what oil? I suggest one of the three following oils. The first two are potentially the same oil with different names, and both good.
1. Mobil Delvac 1 LE 5W-30 - It is API SN qualified, has a 100 deg. C viscosity of 11.8, HTHS >3.5, and TBN of 10.
2. Chevron Delo 400 LE Synthetic 5W-30 - Also API SN qualified, 100 deg. C viscosity of 11.7, HTHS > 3.5, and TBN of 9.8.
3. Kendall GT-1 Full Synthetic Euro 5W-30 - API SN qualified, 100 deg. C viscosity of 12.0, HTHS 3.5, and TBN of 7.3. This one is a bit of a mixed bag, and the reason I put it third. It has the highest 100 deg. C viscosity, but the lowest TBN... Probably good if you are not going to attempt long oil change intervals, which I would not recommend in any case."
"RONAKA"s post was the absolutely most helpful and that is the route I took. Today I use Mobil 1 Delvac 5W40 when the temperature is over 60 Spring/Summer and 5W30 when the temperature is below 60 Fall/Winter. Why the switch during the winter? I found out by looking at countless oil analysis that many 0W40 and 5W40 reports show a lot of iron wear during the winter. The reason is simply because its a bit harder for the engine to warm up the 5W40 thicker oil type and thus the engine runs rich until its at operating temperature. Running rich, of course, stresses the engine more and thus you have more iron wear.
Mobil 1 Delvac is Amsoil like in that its Group IV PAO based. Its a high quality oil. Delvac is designed for turbo diesel engines which have the same problems as Ecoboost engines such as fuel dilution. Delvac will resist that dilution thus its an ideal oil for the Ecoboost engine. Keep in mind its also rated API SN so its a dual use oil.
For operating in conditions over 60 degrees most especially Arizona style environments, doing a lot of towing or hauling, very spirited driving and high pressure turbos there is no question in my mind that 5W40 is the way you want to go. Ive done the oil analysis and both Delvac and Mobil 1 Turbo Diesel Truck 5W40 are overall better in every respect...plus they are not hard on the wallet. There is no question that boutique oils like Amsoil and Redline are superior to Walmart shelf oils, but they are expensive and not available on the Walmart shelf.
However, in colder environments you certainly want something thinner for faster warmup so the engine isnt constantly running rich. If its freezing outside you not concerned about the engine overheating thus I suggest Mobil Delvac 5W30.
So in conclusion my suggestion for Ecoboost owners is Mobil 1 Delvac for over 60 degrees outside and 5W30 for under 60 degrees. Of course special situations like lots of towing will call for 5W40 too.
About that warranty...yes using an oil not specified in the owners manual will void that warranty, but no one at the 3 dealerships Ive been to asked me about what oil I put in there and, of course, you can always lie...tell them you put in that Motorcraft 5W30, but no one asked me about my oil changing habits at all. I just have this to say in that regard. I followed the owners manual religiously and guess what? It resulted in my truck being a fixture and pet project at the dealerships service department for nearly 2 months. When I got the truck back seemed like they banged the door and had it fixed along with a few other scratches. Thus Im looking for my own answers to these problems.
Another issue I had with the truck was the 10R80 failing at 74000 miles. I found out when you start to feel the hard shifts around 25-30k miles is when you get the transmission flushed by the dealership. That will help with the transmission longevity.
I am open for debate. Keep in mind...I am just an average Joe who enjoys Ford products, but need answers and action on these critical issues.
Keywords for Google searches: Ford F150, Ford Raptor, Cold Start Rattle, Cam Phasers, CamPhasers, Lincoln Navigator, Ford Expedition, 10R80, Transmission, 10 speed, 2nd Generation Ecoboost, 2nd gen ecoboost, fuel dilution
The most useful post so far on the Ecoboost issues is this one by "RONAKA"
https://www.f150forum.com/f70/ecoboost-oil-report-259723/index4/#post3740494
In that post he stated the following:
Quote
"The EcoBoost provides some unique challenges for the oil. First it is direct injection and that tends to promote blow-by the rings especially during startup. Second the PCV system becomes quite ineffective during boost conditions as there is no positive flow through the crankcase. The combination of these two factors is not good. The oil suffers from dilution and viscosity loss due to the gasoline, and the corrosion inhibitor (TBN) levels are consumed more rapidly due to poorly vented moisture.
What does that mean when choosing oil? I would suggest the following in order of priority:
1. Get the highest possible 100 deg. C viscosity SAE 30 weight oil. SAE 30 viscosity is within spec from 9.3 to 12.5 cSt. You want an oil as close as possible to the 12.5 cSt. The purpose is to keep the viscosity in the SAE 30 range, even after gasoline dilution. The higher the starting viscosity the better.
2. A secondary measure of high temperature viscosity is HTHS. Again you want as high a value as is available for a SAE 30 weight oil. Oils meeting ACEA E6, E7, & E9 will have a minimum HTHS of 3.5.
3. A high TBN value is useful to prevent corrosion due to moisture in the oil, and extend life of the oil. An oil meeting those ACEA specs will have a minimum TBN of 9.
Assuming your want to maintain your Ford warranty, you will have to choose a 5W-30 oil, that meets Ford specs or is API SN qualified. Note that Fords does not say it has to be GF-5 qualified, and it is actually best to avoid oil which is GF-5 qualified. It has a fuel economy component which discourages higher viscosity oil, which is your number 1 priority.
So what oil? I suggest one of the three following oils. The first two are potentially the same oil with different names, and both good.
1. Mobil Delvac 1 LE 5W-30 - It is API SN qualified, has a 100 deg. C viscosity of 11.8, HTHS >3.5, and TBN of 10.
2. Chevron Delo 400 LE Synthetic 5W-30 - Also API SN qualified, 100 deg. C viscosity of 11.7, HTHS > 3.5, and TBN of 9.8.
3. Kendall GT-1 Full Synthetic Euro 5W-30 - API SN qualified, 100 deg. C viscosity of 12.0, HTHS 3.5, and TBN of 7.3. This one is a bit of a mixed bag, and the reason I put it third. It has the highest 100 deg. C viscosity, but the lowest TBN... Probably good if you are not going to attempt long oil change intervals, which I would not recommend in any case."
"RONAKA"s post was the absolutely most helpful and that is the route I took. Today I use Mobil 1 Delvac 5W40 when the temperature is over 60 Spring/Summer and 5W30 when the temperature is below 60 Fall/Winter. Why the switch during the winter? I found out by looking at countless oil analysis that many 0W40 and 5W40 reports show a lot of iron wear during the winter. The reason is simply because its a bit harder for the engine to warm up the 5W40 thicker oil type and thus the engine runs rich until its at operating temperature. Running rich, of course, stresses the engine more and thus you have more iron wear.
Mobil 1 Delvac is Amsoil like in that its Group IV PAO based. Its a high quality oil. Delvac is designed for turbo diesel engines which have the same problems as Ecoboost engines such as fuel dilution. Delvac will resist that dilution thus its an ideal oil for the Ecoboost engine. Keep in mind its also rated API SN so its a dual use oil.
For operating in conditions over 60 degrees most especially Arizona style environments, doing a lot of towing or hauling, very spirited driving and high pressure turbos there is no question in my mind that 5W40 is the way you want to go. Ive done the oil analysis and both Delvac and Mobil 1 Turbo Diesel Truck 5W40 are overall better in every respect...plus they are not hard on the wallet. There is no question that boutique oils like Amsoil and Redline are superior to Walmart shelf oils, but they are expensive and not available on the Walmart shelf.
However, in colder environments you certainly want something thinner for faster warmup so the engine isnt constantly running rich. If its freezing outside you not concerned about the engine overheating thus I suggest Mobil Delvac 5W30.
So in conclusion my suggestion for Ecoboost owners is Mobil 1 Delvac for over 60 degrees outside and 5W30 for under 60 degrees. Of course special situations like lots of towing will call for 5W40 too.
About that warranty...yes using an oil not specified in the owners manual will void that warranty, but no one at the 3 dealerships Ive been to asked me about what oil I put in there and, of course, you can always lie...tell them you put in that Motorcraft 5W30, but no one asked me about my oil changing habits at all. I just have this to say in that regard. I followed the owners manual religiously and guess what? It resulted in my truck being a fixture and pet project at the dealerships service department for nearly 2 months. When I got the truck back seemed like they banged the door and had it fixed along with a few other scratches. Thus Im looking for my own answers to these problems.
Another issue I had with the truck was the 10R80 failing at 74000 miles. I found out when you start to feel the hard shifts around 25-30k miles is when you get the transmission flushed by the dealership. That will help with the transmission longevity.
I am open for debate. Keep in mind...I am just an average Joe who enjoys Ford products, but need answers and action on these critical issues.
Keywords for Google searches: Ford F150, Ford Raptor, Cold Start Rattle, Cam Phasers, CamPhasers, Lincoln Navigator, Ford Expedition, 10R80, Transmission, 10 speed, 2nd Generation Ecoboost, 2nd gen ecoboost, fuel dilution
