Thks P.C. ,
Funny how some 3.0L take 5-30 and some the 5-20.
I had a 5.0 in an '88 STX and if I can 5-30 the lifters started tapping.
Same for the 3.0, not only does it say 5-20 on the fill cover if I use 5-30, as a shop did, the lifter start tapping so every truck needs to go with... not only what the book/label/Ford says they need to see what the engine is doing !

Not a lot of difference between the two, as long as the oil/filter get changed more than once a year and the engine isn't making noises then use what you think is the best foro the truck.

Now lets get back to the when you do it rather than the what you use.

ltr

 

Ok it's been confirmed that early 3.0l called for 5w30 BUT a tsb was released to update it to 5w20.

Your 99 must have been made before my old 99 because mine said 5w20 on it

 

Lol I thought the same thing. Now it's odd that when people were saying tha when they used 05-20 they were fine. But 05-30 made weird noises. My truck does have an odd chatter to it and I wonder if switching to 05-20 might wove my problem and make it run quieter.

 

I believe the 3k or 3 months thing came from many many many years ago when the oils arnt nearly as good as they are today.

I do 5k or 6 months in my truck, with motorcraft stuff.

 

wait, what?!?!

hopefully you arnt talking about the white 15 dollar oil filters. because they arnt cleanable and reusable. lol

 

Yeah the white K&N oil filters that you get at auto zone or what ever parts store you goto. I've had it on my truck since I did the first oil change when it was new. I drain the oil from the pan then drain the filter wipe the top of the filter the part that goes to the engine off coat the seal with clean oil and put it back on then fill the oil.

I run 10w 30 in every car I've owned with no problems of course depending on where you live depends in what oil your supposed to use. I'm not for sure I'd have to look but I think my oil cap says 5w 30 not the 5w 20 that y'all are talking about... I used to run 5/30 but I had lifter tap so I went back to 10/30 no tap. All engines are different when it comes to oil some will run fine on what the oil cap says and some will tap. Just like my truck and what gas I put in it. I recently switched from Exxon gas to valarro and now it runs like crap lol. I think after this tank I'm going back to Exxon gas.

 

you do realize that they arnt washable or reusable? lol

 

No I didn't realize that lol... It says on the package that they are that's why I got it

 

the air filters are, not the oil filters

 

We'll I guess I'll be changing my oil filter when I do my oil change lol

 

i change mine every 3100 miles (5000 kms)
which for me ends up being about 1-1.5 months.

using the ford recommended filter/oil.

 

Why do you reuse a dirty oil filter? Their filter media is not any different from other high end oil filters. K&N recommends that you change the filter with each oil change.

Please use a 150lb magnet on the outside of the filter housing and one on the bottom of the oil pan near the drain plug as you are recirculating a lot of "metal fur" within your engine as you currently describe how you use the oil filter.

Your filter media has to be broken down at this point so only the magnets are going to provide any kind of filtration.

 

Never heard of a washable oil filter.... The idea simply sounds odd as well. There are high end filters where the m.media is removable and a new media cartridge filter can go in, but to wash a filter and reuse it I have never heard of.

Learn somethinng new everyday I guess.

5w30 is no different than 10w30 at operating temperature, not sure how the same thickness of oil is quieting your litter noise either.

Am curious how that works along with a water washed filter....

 

This is very true indeed.

If someone told me they were washing the oil filter and reusing it trying to sell me a vehicle I would run the other direction no matter the price.

 

so did the tsb say that it was recommended for all 3.0's to switch over to 05w-20? i wonder if my motor is better off running it.

 

Yeah it did. Thats why from mid 99 (which im guessing my old 99 was since it said 5w20) to later model 3.0's came with the 5W20 indication on both the cap and core support.

pick up some motor craft synthetic blend and a motorcraft filter and give it a shot. their stuff isn't really expensive and thats what the motor was born with anyway

 

i've been using conventional oil the entire time i've had the truck, will switching over to 5w20 synthetic cause any leaks?

 

or is it still a conventional

 

Its really up to you whether you feel safe doing it. When i picked up the green 98 with 195k miles, i know it ran the cheapest possible oil before i owned it. It didnt leak when i put the motorcraft in but I can't say that yours will respond the same way as mine did.

Also, the motorcraft oil isn't a full synthetic, its a synthetic blend so its blend of synthetic and conventional base oils which in your case would be safer than a full synthetic due to the previous conventional use.

 

hmm i'll have to try that. i bet the weird noise i get at idle would go away

 

my uncle had a 94 ranger never changed the oil just the filter 3 times a year and if it needed oil he filled it up when he sold it with 234,000 on it. it still looked and ran fine