Question for the well informed

[GreatWhitehunter]

I'm due for another oil change in my 6.0 PSD. I used full synthetic two changes ago. It was a pennzoil I believe. I noticed the truck seemed to run quieter. Last oil change I went with Rotella(non syn) and I ended up with a bad turbo. Now I'm not impying the turbo failed due to the rotella just a side note. Well the cooler temps are upon us here in NE again and I've notice it takes longer for the truck to warm up. So I went out an picked up some Delvac 1300 super last night. I'm not sure I want to use it. I'm thinking I should go for a full Syn of maybe Rotella. I just looked on the royal purple site and the amsoil and they seem pretty close in price to the Rotella syn. My question is should I run the full syn as my suspisions tells me? And if so which on would you folks recommend? I could go get the syn rotella today but I'd need to order the other two. There is no other selection for syn in my area.

Thanks
Matt T.

 

[Gator6x4]

I'm due for another oil change in my 6.0 PSD. I used full synthetic two changes ago. It was a pennzoil I believe. I noticed the truck seemed to run quieter. Last oil change I went with Rotella(non syn) and I ended up with a bad turbo. Now I'm not impying the turbo failed due to the rotella just a side note. Well the cooler temps are upon us here in NE again and I've notice it takes longer for the truck to warm up. So I went out an picked up some Delvac 1300 super last night. I'm not sure I want to use it. I'm thinking I should go for a full Syn of maybe Rotella. I just looked on the royal purple site and the amsoil and they seem pretty close in price to the Rotella syn. My question is should I run the full syn as my suspisions tells me? And if so which on would you folks recommend? I could go get the syn rotella today but I'd need to order the other two. There is no other selection for syn in my area.

Thanks
Matt T.

Not wanting to start a OIL WAR: - The Rotella synthetic is a good engine oil I use it in diesel engines and get great results. Rotella synthetic is used in a lot of farm and over the road units. The synthetics are not as prone to "Coking" as dino oils on units with turbos. Wal Marts also sells the Rotella Synthetic at a good price.

 

[Kendall69]

Go full synthetic, with the cold coming up go with a 0/40 or Delvac 1 5/40

 

[Z-Michigan]

I use Rotella-T synthetic 5W40 in all my diesel engines - Ram, Jeep CRD(which is a diesel), tractor. The price is about double the petroleum 15W40 and puny compared to the value of the engines/equipment or even my time to do oil changes. I get it at Wal-Mart.

 

[hudr]

I am running Shell syn in everything. Gas or diesel. In fact, I just brought home a 55 gallon drum of Shell synth 5w40. I wound up saving about $50 over buying it by the gallon even at Wally World prices. But I have my diesel p/u, Bronco II, 50hp Mahindra, 116 4320 JD, 720 JD, 5 yd dump truck,welder, and various lawnmowers, generators, etc. to change oil in.

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

Well, I went to wally world to get the syn rotella. And wouldn't you know the only had three gallons left. So I ended up getting the Mobil1 syn. It was about $6 buck more per gallon. But it does spec out alittle better than the rotella. I'll mostlikely go with the rotella syn next time. Is anyone using the royal purple or the amsoil in their truck? It seems about the same price wise but you need to order it so it's not real convinient. I'm thinking of going syn in my tractor as well.

Thanks
Matt T.

 

[tomd999]

Matt,

I've used Amsoil syn Diesel in my '92 Dodge Cummins since new. I started out with 15-40 and changed to the newer 5-30 series 3000 when it came out. I also switched all the fluids out for synthetic. I'm coming up on 300K and I'm still on the original everything, engine, turbo, trans, etc.

As my financial adviser says. "Past performance is no guarantee of future results" but I run it in everything I own, have since '78 and I've never had an oil related failure. (we won't talk about that time I missed 2ed with my big block ford and spun it to about 9K, not pretty trust me)

My 2 cents,

Tom

 

[Z-Michigan]

Which Mobil-1 did you end up getting?

My Jeep CRD is quite finicky about oil, with the manufacturer specifying only Mobil-1 0W-40, which is very hard to find and only CF rated (an early 90's standard). The owner's manual says Mobil 1 5W-40 is OK if you can find the 0W-40 (the 5W-40 is, I think, CI-4+ rated, but it's also hard to find). Most owners who pay attention are finding that the Rotella-T 5W-40, which is CI-4+ rated (most current through last year, now replaced by CJ which is intended for 2007+ on-road diesels with their new emissions equipment) works better and is cheaper and easier to find than the 0W-40. The general assumption is that 0W-40 was specified not because it was best but rather because Mercedes was already using it in cars so DCX didn't have to add another oil to their supply chain.

 

[GreatWhitehunter]

I ended up with mobil 1 5-40 turbo diesel truck. I would have gotten the rotella for sure but like I said the didn't have enough. I was pretty cheap for syn anyways.

Matt T.

 

[WTA]

I don't know a thing about the 6.0 except that I'll stick with my 7.3 for a while yet. They were all I worked on at my last dealer job. The 6 liters were all under warranty then and that was another mechanic.
Anyway, Powerstrokes are very picky about their oil requirements. I know for a fact that mobil 1 does not meet ford specs. I tried it too and got the exact problem that if it had met ford specs I wouldn't have had. It does not contain an anti foam additive. I haven't found a synthetic oil yet that does.

What I would be willing to bet happened to your turbo was when you had the synthetic your oil was foaming and that's what damaged the bearings. You can't lubricate a hot turbo with air after all. It just decided to give up the ghost after you changed to Rotella, which does meet ford spec.

If I were you I'd do a little searching online for a list of approved oils for the powerstroke before you waste a lot of money on oil that isn't good for it. It can severely damage the turbo and the HPOP if it foams. The Powerstroke is a very different diesel from all the rest with the electro hydraulic powered injectors. It requires a slightly different oil as a result.

I'm still trying to find a good synthetic oil I can run in the trucks and tractors. For now, since my first oil change is due on my new tractor, I'm going to use the mobil 1 15W50 in it. That's good oil, just not for a power stroke. I've been using delo in the Ford. There are two different delo's that I'm aware of. 1 meets fords spec while the other does not. I'd have to go look at the bottles in the garage to tell you which one does.

Here's a great article about Powerstroke oil requirements: As far as I can tell it is well researched and accurate but I didn't write it.

PowerStroke