Town Car 4.6 oil choice

[cincykz]

I switched in the VRP yesterday with an fl820s. Oil that came out looked pretty good, I'd say only a couple thousand miles on it. The car was last serviced at a dealership, and the next oil change wasn't due for about 3k miles per the sticker, filter on there was a Microgard and was solid and nicely put together. Looking in through the fill cap, motor looks really clean already with no varnish to be seen. Belly of the car was also really nice. I feel like I did well with this one! (Knocks on wood.)

 

[tired]

Nice work. That looks really clean.

Microgard Select filters are really good and well liked around here.

 

[melk]

Warm it up and take some wot pulls

 

[cincykz]

Warm it up and take some wot pulls

Pending the trans filter and first drain and fill, as well as fresh 75-140 in the pumpkin. These cars aren't fast, but they're not terribly slow either. They have good midrange for most normal driving needs.

Also no DI, intercooler, cylinder deactivation, etc...

 

[cincykz]

30mpg not representative of normal operation, but never under 20 and 24 pretty achievable. That 30.0 was about 40 miles at about 55mph, flat.

 

[cincykz]

Did a drain and fill on the trans, 4.5 qts mercon LV and a new motorcraft filter. Old fluid pretty dark but not burnt smelling. Not much dust on the magnet, but some.

Was the first fluid change I imagine, still had the dipstick plug in the pan.

Does anyone have a recommended cheap pump to do another exchange through the dipstick hole? I'd like to do another fluid change to get the fluid fresher, but don't really want to drop the pan again.

 

[MVAR]

Did a drain and fill on the trans, 4.5 qts mercon LV and a new motorcraft filter. Old fluid pretty dark but not burnt smelling. Not much dust on the magnet, but some.

Was the first fluid change I imagine, still had the dipstick plug in the pan.

View attachment 293333

Does anyone have a recommended cheap pump to do another exchange through the dipstick hole? I'd like to do another fluid change to get the fluid fresher, but don't really want to drop the pan again.

Don’t know how cheap you’re looking for. I bought this one back in ‘23 and it’s worked out great

https://www.amazon.com/OEMTOOLS-24389-Extractor-Overflow-Dipstick/dp/B00LCEWR4A

 

[Carlostrece]

Hello all,

Recently picked up my second Lincoln Town Car, a 2009 Signature L. This will be my 3 season car in central/northern NY. The car will be put up from the first snow/salt until the roads clear in spring. Expected temps 30°F to 100°F.

This car has 74,500ish miles on it and is in quite good shape - I hope to keep it for ever. (I am a big fan of the platform.) Carfax shows pretty good oil change history, looks like averaging about every 5k.

My typical routine for vehicles is an OEM filter and the correct (fill cap/owner's manual) grade of M1 extended protection. I'm not a hardcore oil guy, just determined through minimal research that the extra $2/ 5qts gets you a better oil.

My stuff is run pretty easy, and this car will see about 5k OCI. One to two years likely. Most trips should see full temp.

My conundrum is grade - I see Ford spec'd 5w-30 from 91-2000ish, then switched to 5w-20 for 2001-2011. My owner's manual says only run 20.

If this is purely cafe/mpg - I'd rather run the 5w30. But I'm a nanny and rarely if ever stray from the manufacturer recommendations.

I've run quite a few cvpis very hard in my youth, and only managed to kill one - still ran wide open (about 80mph) for about half an hour after a catastrophic bottom end failure. Don't know what oil our fleet ran. My last long Town Car(2005) sold at 180k, surely running 5w-20, purred like a kitten when I sold it.

What would you run?

I suggest 1-2 OCI of 5w30 Valvoline Restore and Protect. Then 5w30 Quaker State Ultimate Protection Full Syn 5w30.

For oil filter NAPA Gold, Microgard Select, or any other autostore housebrand oil filter that's made by Premium Guard and is in reality a Premium Guard EX filter.

 

[spj]

Bullet proof motor. I was issued 5 cvpi’s with that motor. We used and still use Delvac 5w40 for long ocis. The weak spot is the transmission. I’ve wrecked double digits but wasn’t nice to them.

 

[Carlostrece]

I think it's a good plan to run a new to you car with VRP. It's the same price as the other good synthetics at Walmart (cheaper now with the rebate for a few more days), and it'll get the engine back to factory cleanliness (after 4 changes or so), especially because you want to keep it forever.

VRP would be a great forever oil too. However many here just run it to clean engines up and then switch to something else, for various reasons. Not because it isn't a good forever oil (that's the "Protect" part of the name). Since it's no more expensive than other good options that don't clean, I don't see a reason not to run it forever. The UOAs posted here have been excellent from a wear standpoint. Something else will take your car (and not rust either in your case!). However, if you wanted to save money after running 4 OCIs of VRP through it, you could switch to whatever 5W-30 is on sale on Walmart and save a few bucks (and not much, because inexplicably this oil is still $29.99 at Walmart for a 5 quart jug).

There are other good options that cost less (for after it's clean enough).

 

[BC1]

Does anyone have a recommended cheap pump to do another exchange through the dipstick hole? I'd like to do another fluid change to get the fluid fresher, but don't really want to drop the pan again.

Not a pump but I have had this pan for a few years on my old Mark VIII. 3 drain and fills with no leaks yet.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinf...k1jJa6lUdfVidHOM3+WMNAHNwQ/kSXEGdSwuqLJ31uQk=

 

[Carlostrece]

I switched in the VRP yesterday with an fl820s. Oil that came out looked pretty good, I'd say only a couple thousand miles on it. The car was last serviced at a dealership, and the next oil change wasn't due for about 3k miles per the sticker, filter on there was a Microgard and was solid and nicely put together. Looking in through the fill cap, motor looks really clean already with no varnish to be seen. Belly of the car was also really nice. I feel like I did well with this one! (Knocks on wood.)

View attachment 292625

View attachment 292626

View attachment 292627

You did excellent in your car purchase. However, I would have waited to change oil when the window sticker said to. It's a shame to waste good oil and money.

 

[cincykz]

Not a pump but I have had this pan for a few years on my old Mark VIII. 3 drain and fills with no leaks yet.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinf...k1jJa6lUdfVidHOM3+WMNAHNwQ/kSXEGdSwuqLJ31uQk=

I was thinking as I dropped the pan that I should have gotten the drain plug pan to replace it with. If I do another pan drop, I will probably go that route.

 

[cincykz]

You did excellent in your car purchase. However, I would have waited to change oil when the window sticker said to. It's a shame to waste good oil and money.

I agree, however it's unknown what the interval chosen by the dealer (Toyota) was. I was concerned that it might be an extended drain, and also you never really know what's in there. It looked pretty good coming out, and I'm sure would have been fine regardless.

I can't say I've ever bought a new used car without immediately refreshing the fluids. I'm a worrier.

 

[Carlostrece]

I agree, however it's unknown what the interval chosen by the dealer (Toyota) was. I was concerned that it might be an extended drain, and also you never really know what's in there. It looked pretty good coming out, and I'm sure would have been fine regardless.

I can't say I've ever bought a new used car without immediately refreshing the fluids. I'm a worrier.

Me too. I did the same when I bought my car. I was saying what we should do. Not what we actually do.

 

[barkingspider]

5W30 whatever brand you like

 

[tired]

There are other good options that cost less (for after it's clean enough).

I mean if you want to save ~$6-7/oil change, then yes, there are. Personally I think it's worth it. I can save that elsewhere more easily. A tank of gas at Costco vs Chevron saves me even more. (Yes, I'm aware you don't have a Costco near you. This is just an example.) I choose not to be penny wise and pound foolish. But everyone is free to make their own choices about oil selection.

 

[cincykz]

I ended up with 30 quarts of 5-30 restore and protect @ $5 a quart. I feel a fairly good deal, and should be set for a few years. Either 5 changes in the Lincoln, or 3/2 between that and my 2004 Xterra.

 

[tired]

I ended up with 30 quarts of 5-30 restore and protect @ $5 a quart. I feel a fairly good deal, and should be set for a few years. Either 5 changes in the Lincoln, or 3/2 between that and my 2004 Xterra.

Great choice, and good timing. You can max out that Valvoline rebate with that purchase. I did the same. Got enough for 4 OCIs for our two vehicles before the end of the rebate. (Although they likely will have another one.) Will re-evaluate things after the 4 OCIs, but after I use up the rest of the on sale stash, probably will go back to VRP.

 

[Carlostrece]

I mean if you want to save ~$6-7/oil change, then yes, there are. Personally I think it's worth it. I can save that elsewhere more easily. A tank of gas at Costco vs Chevron saves me even more. (Yes, I'm aware you don't have a Costco near you. This is just an example.) I choose not to be penny wise and pound foolish. But everyone is free to make their own choices about oil selection.

$7 x 3 cars is $21 plus sales tax to me. So $23.10 to me. It adds up fast. Also, saving money while still doing a good job is fun. It's like playing a video game to me.

Regarding Costco gas... I hear it's excellent and 2nd to none for quality. I'd buy Costco gas if there was a Costco near me. I think Shell is also excellent and I get a signifigant discount on it because I shop at Fred Meyer.