A few weeks ago I posted the picture of my Ranger turning over 150K miles. Today, I changed the oil in it, and thought it was
interesting to see the color of the oil (at 3877 miles), and how much it has consumed. In the pictures, the screwdriver shows
where the oil level was the last time it was changed, using 4.5 QUARTS. There has been no oil added since it was
changed. I bought the truck with 36K miles on it, and since owning it, I've always maintained it myself, using the following:


1) Motorcraft or Purolator PAPER air filters (changed once a year)
2) ONLY Motorcraft oil filters, changed every oil change
2) Castrol GTX 5W30 (dino), changed between 3K and 4K miles

 

doesnt ford recommend only motorcraft oil in their engines... maybe thats why......

 

I use Castrol GTX 5W30 or motorcraft oil and have 150k on 4.0L ,01 with no oil loss or problems, oil change every 3,000-3,500 miles without fail.
I'd keep an eye on the oil level, it could be you may have not put enough in at you're last oil service.

 

No, in my 3.0L, they recommend 5W30, and API certified.

 

still should use motorcraft because its the best oil ever and everything motorcraft is of the highest quality possible

 

No, the MAX oil capacity is listed as 4.5 quarts, which puts it in the middle of the MIN and MAX marks on the dipstick. Notice the marks on the dipstick aren't ADD and FULL, like they were years ago......

 

blah...don't worry about it. lol.

On a side note.....Full does not always mean full. Take for example my rear end. It took about a quart more than the manual said it does....so did my trans.....so did my tcase.

 

maybe u over filled the stuff?

 

uh.....no. Fill til fluid come out of the fill hole......not that hard to do.

 

Looks like it's hardly using any oil at all, Bob. And the color looks good, to, for almost 4K.

At 150K overall, your vulcan appears to be quite healthy! :)

 

*Edit* Duh... i just noticed yours is a 3.0, not a 4.0... mybad)
Looks good to me.... hmm my '99 with 4.0 takes 5 quarts to fill it, and that is what the owners manual states with mine. BTW I use Castrol 5w30 also, have for the past 5-6 yrs in all my fords (with motorcraft filters) with good results. Always used to use motorcraft oil, and then it got hard to find for some reason a few yrs back without having to drive 50 miles to get it. Now everybody seems to have it in stock after i switched.
Yeah the color looks about normal i would say also for the mileage/age of motor. Sometimes they use just a little more in the winter weather also i have noticed, if they use much at all. Almost all Fords i have owned use about a half quart between 3000 mile oil changes, even when they were new.

 

Where did you get that? Motorcraft is indeed a quality motor oil, but there are better products. After owning my Ranger for 7 years, I'm also not sure that EVERYTHING Motorcraft is the "highest quality possible"

Takeda, I'd say that oil looks pretty good for the mileage both on the truck and on the oil.

 

Please tell me you're joking. Don't fool yourself.....Motorcrap is just that.

 

Bob, ever thought of sending the oil to a lab to see how the internals of the engine are doing at 150,000+?
How the oil looks really means nothing.

This is mine at 5600+.
http://www.freewebs.com/arizonariders/oilanalysis.htm

Here is what the numbers mean.
http://www.blackstone-labs.com/gasol...port_expl.html






.

 

He is joking.....Bob is a "Motorcraft and FoMoCo parts all the way and only way" type guy....

 

the oil still looks really clean in those pictures.

i run mine for 4-5k miles and its alot darker then that.

btw, in the owners manual it says to change the oil every 5k.
the 3k oil change is a myth, unless you have a really old car, or you beat on it.

 

Thanks for the suggestion Tom! The oil consumption (or lack of) and the way it runs is a good indication of the engine health. I think Joe (Rockledge) mentioned this in his post.

 

I change mine every 3000 miles. Why? Because at 175k My rear main seal is leaking and something about the ball bearings are getting eatup. That's what dad said. Changed mine this Sat and noticed the oil filter had caught small pieces of brass about the size of glitter. I change mine often to keep that crap outa the engine. But when it fails I'll just have that replaced and keep going. Ain't no sense in trashing a truck with only a worn out part, fix it, replace it, and go on.

 

I go 5000 because I give them enough $$$ at the gas pump. I don't love the oil companys that much
to give them my $$$ every 3000.

 

i also use the castrol 5w30 dino oil. it looks exactly like the OP's oil does at around the same miles. looks like you're not using very much oil at all.... = engine in good shape.