Green '01

That stinks. I had a 300 cu. in. staight 6 w/ 5-speed manual in my '90 F-150. Great truck. I believe it had more tq. than the 302 V8 of the same year.

Raptor22

Yes it does, almost near 351 levels and it comes in much lower. Of course if you ask Ford they tell you something different because they wanted your extra money to put a 302 in it...

Yeah, same as my truck. 1989 F-150 Lariat 4x4 300 / M5OD

Green '01

I enjoyed better mileage while towing my light-weight trailer more easily the the 302 guys!
Had a 200 cu. straight 6 in a '80 Mercury Zephyr and put Valvoline 10W 30 and a Fram filter in it every 3,000 miles since new and got 200,700 miles out of it before I had to pop it open. Lost compression in #3 cylinder from walls being wallowed in just that one. Rebuilt and drove it 15,000 more miles before HUGO came through and dropped two trees on it.
Still like the synthetic, though.

Raptor22

Great story haha. Synthetic isnt worth the 2x cost... its not like the car is going to go 2x more miles, or you are gonna go 2x longer between oil changes...

MarkY

My 2010 5.4 manual says 7500 miles between oil changes. With fully synthetic, I would expect to be able to go 10k miles. Or would that be asking for trouble?

shotgun

Read your manual VERY carefully. 7500 miles with little or no idling, no towing, no dust, no fuss, etc., etc., etc.

Most owners are using Motorcraft 5W20 syn blend, Motorcraft filters, and changing the oil between 4000 and 6000k (it's also time dependent). BTW, all are available at Walmart.

I urge you to search this and the other 4000 posts on the Internet and decide on your own.

Here's what I wrote on another forum:

"Minimum: Use Motorcraft synthetic blend (5w20) and a Motorcraft filter. Change it per the owner's manual. Both can be purchased at Wal-Mart or changed at the dealer. Do not put any additives in the oil or the fuel (except possibly de-ice in the fuel in very cold climates).

Maximum: Buy the most expensive oil, filter, and additives you can find. Change it every 2 weeks (at least).

Compromise: Use any oil that meets the Ford specs and any filter you want. Have a used oil analysis done and change it per the report. Do not put any additives in the oil or the fuel (except possibly de-ice in the fuel in very cold climates).

Or you can search this and the 400-500 other automotive boards out there and spend 2000-3000 hours reading about which oil is better, which filter is better, how often to change it, etc.

Seems like an easy choice to me."

MarkY

The Platinum has an Info button that will tell me the "age" of the oil. I also get free oil changes from the dealer for the first 2 years (some promo they had).

However, I live in Phoenix where it gets pretty flipp'n hot. I typically go about 3500 miles between oil changes on my other vehicles. This is without synthetic. I thought the 7500 mile figure was a little high.

shotgun

All new 150s have the OLM. No indication on how 'aged' it is from use (towing, heat, idling, dust, etc.), just calendar days or mileage.

Do what ever makes you happy.

FX4Nick

I always run Mobile 1 full synth. If it wa good enough for GM to put in vetts it's good enough for my f-150. Once I have had synth oil in my motor for about 10,000 miles I usually run between 7500 and 10000 between changes after. I use only napa gold filters.

I think that synth is worth the extra $$$. it's cheaper than having to rebuild a motor if you buy the cheap stuff.

shotgun

If you want to spend the money for Mobil 1 and it makes you feel better, go for it. But comparing the vette engine to the 5.4L V8 makes no sense to me. The engine design and oiling system are completely different. Are the compression ratios even close?

Again, your choice, but it's not needed.

Please define 'cheap stuff'.

How many motors have you had to rebuild? What type were they? What oil did you use in them? How were they maintained? How where the vehicles/engines used?

My point of these questions is this: The manual specifies the minimum requirements. Anythng you do above these requirements (cost) is nothing more than a personal preference and done to make you feel good. Very few of us have any real world facts to back up any of these opinions or preference. Lots of us have a lot of proof that the manufacturer's recommendations are adequate to keep these trucks running for many, many years and many miles (my 97 had 278k and ran like a Swiss watch - all I ever used was Motorcraft oil (dino oil) and filters from Walmart).