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Mobil 1 is something that a lot of people swear by.  Is it better?  Is it better for what you're driving?  Does Costco have a better price than Wal*Mart?  I've been getting deliveries of Mag1 from an Amazon subscribe and save deal.  It is a full synthetic.  And the debate is out there over it's value & worth.  Much like the debate for other oil brands.  We have a little local boutique brand around here, RedLine, that a lot of people like.  And guys who can afford to spend a little more will go with Royal Purple.  Let's not forget the Amsoil cult.  I've used Pennzoil, Lucas Oil, and on a few occasions, even the Wal*Mart brand of full synthetic.  Switched back & forth between full synthetic, semi-synth, and even conventional.  At times, I've used "high mileage" oil.  Other times, not even the OEM spec weight.  Plenty of times, I've mixed different oils......2 qts of this, 1 qt of that, and so forth.  I'm not wasting oil I paid for.  No science what-so-ever.  I've always bought on sale and/or with a coupon.  And I've never given up a car due to motor oil related failure.  

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I'm not a fanboy of Mobil 1. The great oil debate could go on for decades, today's oils are so good, unless you're in a very high demand situation (like racing) it will be very difficult to prove a difference in oil performance from one brand to another. As long as you change it regularly and don't run out, it is very unlikely to see an oil related engine failure.

Since my vehicle is new, I wanted to get it started off on synthetic from early on. I chose Mobil 1 for it's reputation and availability. Amsoil, Redline and Royal Purple are excellent candidates, but they are a little more challenging to find, and I don't need the hassle.

I bought my oil filter at the local AutoZone, for 4 bucks. They also had Mobil 1, but the price seemed high and I was on my way to Costco right after and I knew they stocked it. 6 quarts at Costco was $10 cheaper than at AutoZone. I don't particularly care for Wal-Mart; I didn't check their prices. That's a whole different topic though.

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5 hours ago, zalienz said:

 

I bought my oil filter at the local AutoZone, for 4 bucks. They also had Mobil 1, but the price seemed high and I was on my way to Costco right after and I knew they stocked it. 6 quarts at Costco was $10 cheaper than at AutoZone. I don't particularly care for Wal-Mart; I didn't check their prices. That's a whole different topic though.

Ha!  The great Wal*Mart good vs. evil debate could go on forever too.  Wal*Mart now carries Royal Purple.  

 

Oil filters are another hot topic.  Guys will buy a special tool for cutting oil filters open so that they can inspect the insides.  Cut open a few new filters, and you will discover that they are not all the https://www.amazon.com/Longacre-Oil-Filter-Cutter-LA77750/dp/B005S39PWSsame.  Cut open a few used filters, and you might see what the filter did after XXXX miles of use.  

 

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Another thing the cutter shows you is the filter bypass valve. This valve bypasses the filter much more often then you think. This makes keeping the oil clean even more critical.

Another plus of the cutter is that it makes recycling the filter very easy.

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  • 1 month later...

I've been to two dealers for oil change, now both email me that it's time to do it again. The dealers want me to come in much more often than the manual says I need to. Has anyone ever seen a notice on the dashboard display about oil change?

I will always take my car to Ford for oil changes. The cost is about the same, and in some cases they will wash the car. Also, I like Ford's record keeping system.  Also, they might take care of secret recalls.

10,000 miles between oil changes is most likely OK.  Engines get less water in the oil, and the synthetic blend is better than pure synthetic. 

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1 hour ago, Bill Maghan said:

 

 

and in some cases they will wash the car.

 

 

Every dealer will give you a "courtesy car wash".  Even if it's just hosing it off.  Just ask for it.  I doubt if they'll tell you "no".  A local Honda/Acura dealer has an automated drive through car wash installed at  the dealership.  I bring my Fords there, and they will wash it and vacuum out the interior as a "courtesy".....because they want my business.  Just tell the service advisor to wash the car if they want your business.....because you can go to the next dealer down the road who will give you a car wash.  Just don't push it too far by demanding free little tree air fresheners.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I have a 2016 XLT Cargo van, 2.5 gas, 5200 Miles. Almost all highway ( 3800). Should I wait for the light to come on or head into the dealership? I get the 1st change free at the dealer but never had a "sensor" based mileage oil chance vehicle. I thought go in at 5000 miles but now thinking I should wait til the vehicle notifies me.

no loads, just 4.5 hour trips 2 times a week. Great vehicle, would like a nicer seat :) but a long term keeper for me 

any opinions?

 

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Conventional wisdom applied to the cars of yore & yesteryear.  New cars have better technology.  Seals and tolerances are better in modern engines.  Modern synthetic and semi-synthetic blends work better than the dinosaur juice we had back when motor oil came in cans and you needed to stab in the pour spout.  

 

You can either trust the engineering and owners manual.........or do whatever you want to give yourself peace of mind.  Ultimately, you can't "over-change" the oil.  Change it every 3000 miles if you want.  You're not hurting your car by keeping the oil fresh.  Others will argue that you're throwing away good money, and point out the environmental impact of pouring used motor oil down a storm drain.  But I'm on your side.  If it really bothers you to drive up to 10,000 miles on the same oil, then change it.

 

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No doubt if Fifty150 is involved, it's going to be a long thread!!  :clapping:  Many of his replies are more than a foot tall on my computer screen and only a few of them fit on a page which would otherwise hold 15 or 20 replies!

I've read several 'experts' who explain that when it comes to fully synthetic oils, the top 8 are all basically the same.  I used to use Mobil One, but then Exxon bought them out and I'm proud to say that since the Exxon Valdez oil spill (and their effort to hire more lawyers to get out of cleaning up the mess they created than workers to actually do the cleaning) Exxon has not got one dime of my money for the last 25+ years  -  I would push my van down the street if I ran out of gas in front of an Exxon station.  They put a lot of Alaskan fishermen completely out of business and then worked the courts so they didn't have to recompensate most of them anything.  You've gotta look really hard to find a less eco friendly company anywhere in the world than Exxon . . . .  and now their former CEO is about to become our Secretary of State.  BP on the other hand, went about it all very differently with their major spill

So, since there's no more Mobil One going in any of my vehicles, I'm using Castrol Edge Extended Performance for the TC which they say is good for 15,000 miles . . . . but Ford says 10,000 so that's what I'll be doing.  I have always changed my own oil, but it's not my favorite pastime now at my advancing age  ;)  so I had really, really been looking forward to just taking it to my Ford dealership and letting them do everything, but alas, both dealers within easy commuting distance of my home have already proved to me beyond any reasonable doubt that I cannot trust them to do the right thing, so my old ramps will be getting used for this vehicle too.  With 10K or 1 year changes, it won't be all that often, so I think I can manage for a few more years.  At least I'll know for sure what goes into my engine and that the work was done right

You lucky guys who have a reasonably competent dealer nearby don't realize just how lucky actually you are!

Don 

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1 hour ago, Beta Don said:

No doubt if Fifty150 is involved, it's going to be a long thread!!  :clapping:  Many of his replies are more than a foot tall on my computer screen and only a few of them fit on a page which would otherwise hold 15 or 20 replies!

 

You lucky guys who have a reasonably competent dealer nearby don't realize just how lucky actually you are!

Don 

Amen to both of these.

52" TV for a monitor and I still have to scroll down to see all of most of his posts.  But at least when he gets done with the post, very few questions remain on what he was trying to say.   :)

We had two local Ford dealers in my county. I purchased my van from the most competent of the two. After the first year of owning my van the dealer closed its doors due to the owner being very ill. (passed away a few months later :(  ) The second dealer is about as useful as a screen door on a submarine. The next closest dealer is an hour drive one way from my house. 

But who needs a dealer when we have each other to help figure things out as the happen.   :)

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  • 5 months later...

Very first oil change!

With ramps, it's a bit of a pain removing the lower engine cover, but now that I've done it once, the next time will be easier for sure.  Previous owner of my van was a Ford dealership, so all but one of the Torx screws are a bit stripped out which makes them easy to remove and replaced just using fingers  -  If tight is good, then too tight must be better???

The engine drain plug and the oil filter were installed by the Incredible Hulk which made them VERY difficult to remove.  A box end wrench wasn't long enough to loosen the drain plug and the oil filter took every cuss word I knew to get it off.  Both replaced with a more moderate amount of torque

The old oil was put in at 12,000 miles, so it had almost 8K on it and still looked very clean  -  Not black at all.  The oil sensor hadn't said it was time for a change, but we're headed out on a long trip and I wanted fresh oil

The oil fill cap on the 2.5 is in a bit of an odd place, to say the least.  It's back under the lip of the vent system which means you'll need to custom cut a funnel so you can get it in there.  I used Castrol Edge 5W20 full synthetic and a Purolator Synthetic oil filter.  The oil comes in 5 quart jugs, so I bought two.  It took exactly 5.7 quarts  -  The 5 quart jug left me almost a quart low after running it for a minute.  Somehow, I managed not to spill a drop!

It was 93 degrees today and if I had to do this outside, I think I would have died, but I bought a big window unit and installed it up high in the back wall of my garage a couple winters ago, so after it runs for a half hour or so, the cold air falls to the floor and right under the van  -  It was almost comfortable in there

19,677 miles on it now  -  New oil, filter and air filter so I'm good for a year or 10,000 miles, whichever comes first . . . but I'm gonna do the 13 quart transmission drain and refill at 25,000 miles, so my guess is I'll be back under there sometime this fall

Don

Edited by Beta Don
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