What are you running in your 7.3 Powerstroke?

[psdtdi]

After finally using up my stockpile of Rotella-T 15/40 CJ-4 I have to decide what to use. I did try Travellers this time and have just a few hundred miles on it. When it gets near 5K I will send off a sample. There are many oils out there that meet the Ford spec WSS-M2C171-F1 including the Travellers. I am considering Motorcraft as well. I have always used dino in it and would prefer to stick with dino. It is my understanding that in making the new oils DPF safe there were additives that were removed or reduced, but at the same time the oils have to be backwards compatible, so, according to who you listen to, the new oils may not protect the engines as well as the old oils did, since now the big issue for the manufacturers is to make their emissions systems last through the warranty.

I did do a bit of searching so if I missed an older thread about this please point me to it.

 

[wpod]

There is no need to run syn oil in the 7.3 other than close to freezing starting.

 

[mobilnissan1991]

My old truck, early ‘99 7.3 F250, which I sold to my buddy a year ago, I still maintain it for him. Delvac 15W40 and a Napa Gold 1734. He owns a pushboat and has plenty of Delvac 15W40 in 5 gallon buckets, so he only pays for the filter. Oil and filter every 5k, 267k miles as of yesterday, runs absolutely great

 

[bullwinkle]

We ran an ‘03 E-350 PSD 7.3 to 675K on nothing but Valvoline PB 15W40 from VIOC, zero issues.Wish I could say that about the newer Econolines & Transit Connect/250s!

 

[psdtdi]

My point is we all ran our trucks many miles on CI and CJ oils with no issues, now those oils no longer exist as we knew them so I am looking for a solution to that. API CK oil has not been out long enough to set the same track records as we set with the older oils. I ran Rotella T 15/40 for 180,000 miles but when the new CK version came out Ford did not have good things to say about it in terms of wear. I looked at Power Driven's product but not sure if I need it for a stock truck, it certainly has high numbers of anti-wear additives and detergents although it is not API certified. It is also quite pricey. Planning on oil analysis for the time being to watch engine wear with some of the new oils. Wondering if anyone has done the same.

 

[BillyE]

The intent of the Ford -F1 spec was to ensure CK-4 oils did as good as the old CJ-4 oils they replaced in terms of wear on valvetrain. The F1 spec in my opinion would be a good place to look for CK-4 oils that perform similarly to the proven CI/CJ oils. There are tons out there that meet F1. The only CK-4 oils that are conspicuously absent are Mobil Delvac and Chevron DELO. My opinion is based only on inferences, but I'd avoid those two.

 

[psdtdi]

Yes indeed most all of the old oils are now on that list. But you have to admit that the powers behind making the decisions as to what is good for the engines have a huge stake in seeing that the new vehicles make it through the emissions warranty. They have absolutely nothing to lose when 10 and 20 year old engines wear faster due to less additives in the oil, additives that they don't want damaging the newer EPA mandated emissions equipment which the automakers are required to warranty, in most cases, longer than the rest of the power train.
With that being said I was hoping to find others who might have been running the relatively new CK-4 oils long enough to compare wear numbers between brands from oil analysis reports. Of course you would have to have some historical reports from when you were running CJ-4 for comparison.
I have used Blackstone for years and I will definitely be having the CK-4 analyzed as I start using it. I may also contact Blackstone to ask if they have any input seeing as they should have quite a bit of history on CK-4 wear rates by now.
I am just now starting to use CK-4 as I had several years worth of CJ-4 stashed before it went away.

 

[psdtdi]

Here is what I am talking about, quoted from Fullbay (not affiliated with any oil manufacturers) which I will also link here: https://www.fullbay.com/blog/ck4-vs-cj4/#

Just because the API sets a standard, that doesn’t mean that all oil brands are the same across the board. Some will choose to see the standard as a minimum to meet. Others will see it as a starting point for creating a better product. When it’s a question of what brand to use in the equipment that runs your business, it makes sense to go with ones that exceed the standards. If you have a trusted brand, there’s no reason not to consider continuing to use it. However, when you’re looking at CK4 vs CJ4 and making the switch, it might be a good time to consider other oils with good reputations that you haven’t used before.

If you decide to shop brands, become a label reader. Also, try to find out if the brand has done its own testing in addition to the API-required trials. Word of mouth is invaluable, too. Ask heavy duty techs what they use and why they recommend it.

 

[loneryder]

After finally using up my stockpile of Rotella-T 15/40 CJ-4 I have to decide what to use. I did try Travellers this time and have just a few hundred miles on it. When it gets near 5K I will send off a sample. There are many oils out there that meet the Ford spec WSS-M2C171-F1 including the Travellers. I am considering Motorcraft as well. I have always used dino in it and would prefer to stick with dino. It is my understanding that in making the new oils DPF safe there were additives that were removed or reduced, but at the same time the oils have to be backwards compatible, so, according to who you listen to, the new oils may not protect the engines as well as the old oils did, since now the big issue for the manufacturers is to make their emissions systems last through the warranty.

I did do a bit of searching so if I missed an older thread about this please point me to it.

Had a delivery of firewood yesterday. Guy had a Ford 350 with a dump body with the 6ltr engine. It had 385k on it. He used Amsoil every 10k miles and has never had any of the reported 6.0 problems. He has only replaced some of the injectors. I assume he meant their 15-40.

 

[Ruby]

I now have a 2011 Ram 3500 with the Cummins 6.7 and run Shell Rotella T6 5w40 synthetic , no issues. I used to own a 2002 F350 with the very reliable 7.3 (Made for Ford by International). Due to issues with body rust a few years back, I had to get rid of the F350. It was a great truck, no issues with the motor, trans or differentials. Had a small oil leak at the Turbo Pedestol (Common Issue).

I tried several 15w40 oils over the years with the F350, however the 7.3 seemed to like the Motorcraft oil in the 5 quart jugs at WM. The Mptorcraft oil was made for Ford by Conoco-Phillips. I always used the Motorcraft oil filter as well. Back then I could get the 3 (5) Quart Jugs of Motorcraft oil and the Motorcraft oil filter for about 60-65 Dollars and was good for 5000 miles. The oil filter was super easy to get to. I used to loosen the oil filter then use a sharp steel punch to punch a hole in the bottom of the filter to drain it before removing. This saved a big mess as the filter held a quart or so of oil.

 

[bbslider001]

I'd stick with Travellers if it were me. It is what I use now and it has gotten steller UOA results under fairly severe use. Save your money and your engine. You'll be good to go.

 

[revupVQ]

After finally using up my stockpile of Rotella-T 15/40 CJ-4 I have to decide what to use. I did try Travellers this time and have just a few hundred miles on it. When it gets near 5K I will send off a sample. There are many oils out there that meet the Ford spec WSS-M2C171-F1 including the Travellers. I am considering Motorcraft as well. I have always used dino in it and would prefer to stick with dino. It is my understanding that in making the new oils DPF safe there were additives that were removed or reduced, but at the same time the oils have to be backwards compatible, so, according to who you listen to, the new oils may not protect the engines as well as the old oils did, since now the big issue for the manufacturers is to make their emissions systems last through the warranty.

I did do a bit of searching so if I missed an older thread about this please point me to it.

I believe it's the sulfate ash content concerning dpf filters. Oils since 2007 had ash lowered just for dpf clogging prevention reasons iirc. Did they lower ash even more with CK4? This I don't know.

My understanding is if it meets Ford' F1 spec, it has/must be >1000ppm of zinc and phos. If you see API CK4/SN on bottle, that is limited to no more than 800ppm allowed and will not have the F1 spec. CK4 only on bottle with no F1 spec also means
Long as you use oil with that Ford spec, you're good to go imho.

I personally use Amsoil's heavy duty and marine 15w-40 in my 97' 7.3. Formulated for diesels prior to 2007 that have no dpf's, so it's full of SAPS like the good ole days. Zinc/phos is above fords minimum F1 specs required according to my UOA's and confirmed by Amsoil (via email) they did not change their formulation when CK4 was released.

 

[AJB0009]

I posted this in a different thread about a month ago or so:

So, I just talked to my cousin this weekend. He lives in south Florida, Fort Myers area. He is an electrician, residential and light commercial.
He bought a 1997 F-250 HD, 7.3L, brand new. It pulls a trailer 99.5% of the time. Currently has 463,000 miles on it , engine has never been touched. Has run Rotella T4 dino since day one.

 

[bbslider001]

I'd stick with Travellers if it were me. It is what I use now and it has gotten steller UOA results under fairly severe use. Save your money and your engine. You'll be good to go.

I retract this previous statement LOL.....I posted a new thread as to why. It's still decent, but for the money, Motorcraft is the same $$ with better numbers. It comes in 5 qt. jugs, so that offsets the cost. Apologies....just trying to keep integrity in the discussion.

 

[JT20]

Wrong thread. Please disregard

 

[T-Stick]

I run 10w-30 synblend or 5w40 syn Chevron Delo in my 7.3. Of the various oils I have tried--Rotella, John Deere, Mystik, Valvoline PB--I like Chevron the best for a smooth/quiet running and the oil staying clean looking longer. I can't say Chevron is better --just saying the engine sounds quieter to me.