Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) Hate to do it! Another Oil ?

[JCyrbok]

Hopefully this is not another powder keg like the last one I posted about dino vs synth.



I have chosen SYNTHETICS and am about 99. 99% sure that it will be Amsoil with duel by pass filter. In looking at owners and service manuel I am now confused ( not hard to do) about with grade to get.



I drive mostly (5-10miles)short trips and live in Mich. Cold in winter and hot in summer. I generally can not plug in much during the winter but often can get my truck in the garage at night ( or day depending on my work shift). Manuels say that 15w40 is good down to 10degree F without a block heater. IN the diagram the arrow stops at 10degrees. It says the 5w30 is good well below 10 w/out heater and well above.



I'm looking for WInter "answers" at this point as I project the switch to be in mid-December. I also would not be put off by having to switch back and forth in grade for winter and summer. Mich that falls into about a 6 month oil change scheme.



Amsoil tech support advised ( with all above info) that 15w40 would be fine. Like most things involving my truck I like second ( and third) opinions. What does the knowledgeable membership think?



Thanks again,

J-



ps sorry if this one blows up like the last.

 

[amsoilman]

As I recall, the Amsoil ( AME) HDD & Marine oil 15W-40 has a "Pour Point" of -47 F. Should be OK for you.



Wayne

amsoilman

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Shouldn't be any conflict - your subject is REALLY about weight grades in extreme temperatures with synthetics - and the answer SHOULD be the same REGARDLESS of brand used... And if it was ME, and I was NOT gonna be able to use the block heater, I'd go with the 5/30 stuff in the colder weather and switch as soon as the weather warmed - and if extended drains are your goal, careful attention to cleanliness COULD allow to to save the drained oil from season-to-season if you wanna live dangerously and save a few dollars with extended oil use... .



*I* wouldn't, but...

 

[Reddog1]

"Like most things involving my truck I like second ( and third) opinions. What does the knowledgeable membership think? "





"ps sorry if this one blows up like the last. "





JCyrbok - You can only be held responsible for your own insanity, not ours . Sometimes, "knowledgeable membership" can be a very relative term. LOL



I would think that if you believe Amsoil on the value of thier product, there would be no reason to not believe thier tech support.





Wayne

 

[JJW_ND]

5W if up North and 15W if South

J..... If you do cold starts, by cold I mean below -10, 15W oils (synthetic or not) will not cut it. I used Amoils 15W40 it it cant come close to the their 5W30 or Mobil Delvacs 5W40 in terms of quick oil pressure when starting cold or how much easier the motor spins with starting very cold.



The 5W30 oil will not hurt your motor even in the summer. It is just very expensive as compared to other 5W synthetic oils.



Mobils is a little cheaper (it is a W40 oil) but still pretty expensive. This is what I am trying now.



Several new 5W "Kinda" synthetic oils recently became available and might be a good compromise. Valvoline Extreme Blue 5W40 would be my first choice. Should be about $9-11 versus the $18-21 for the true 5W synthetics.



jjw

ND

 

[lschultz]

I think the 15w40 will work find for you cold or hot. But if you feel better using the 5w30 go for it. I've used it in the 95,98,00. Got an 03 now but it's not broke in yet. My son has used the 5w30 since he broke his in got around 110000 now. And it don't get that cold in this part of Texas. But it do get hot and I mean hot. No problems with the 5w30. 15w40 is cheaper than 5w30 but its your truck and $$. It's your decision. Good luck on your choice.

 

[LandShark]

JCyrbok: I sure that with your short trips and cold temps that synthetics are the right choice, but I would stay away from 30w oils unless you meet the requirements that Doge has specified. Once your engine is warm, the correct oil weight is 40.



I switched from Rotella to Mobile Delvac 1, 5w40, over a year ago for a winter trip to northern AZ and NM. I found that my cold starts(8 to 15 degrees F. ) were much easier on the engine. At all cooler temps (15 to 45 degrees) there was much less engine clatter at startup.



BTW: the Devlac 1 pour point is around -67 F. Far lower than Amzoil.

 

[TowPro]

I agree with Wayne, Its what I use all year. I Also chose this flavor because my truck sits a lot, and the HDD&Marine deals with problems associated with sitting better then others.



Now I don't run the 2nd filter. I figure for the price of the filter I can get a couple oil changes for free. As it is now, I only change it ever spring, weather it needs it or not. (most times around 5000 miles per year now that its semi retired)

Originally posted by amsoilman

As I recall, the Amsoil ( AME) HDD & Marine oil 15W-40 has a "Pour Point" of -47 F. Should be OK for you.



Wayne

amsoilman

 

[Riflesmith]

Originally posted by JCyrbok



I'm looking for WInter "answers" at this point as I project the switch to be in mid-December. I also would not be put off by having to switch back and forth in grade for winter and summer. Mich that falls into about a 6 month oil change scheme.

Amsoil makes an oil that may fit your year-round needs. It is a 10W-40 oil that meets or exceeds all the specs our engines require. It has a much lower viscosity at low tempratures than their 15W-40 oil, but still provides the high temperature protection of a 40W. Here is a link to the product information:

http://www.amsoil.com/products/amo.html

 

[redram]

Huh, funny but I went to the API website and looked up Amsoil



http://www.api.org/cgi-bin/eolcs_li.cgi?n=amsoil



and it does not show a licensed oil for the diesels in a 5W30 or 10W40 viscosity grade.



They list the XL7500 15W40 oil though. With your trcuk being a 2001 I'm sure that you have warranty left and I would be careful to use an oil that meets the description in the "Owner's Manual" so that the 'stealers' can not have any excuse to hassle you over any warranty issues.



A synthetic 15W40 will be fine done to 0 degrees. Below that, you will have more fuel related issues anyways than oil.

 

[Texas Diesel]

Originally posted by redram

Huh, funny but I went to the API website and looked up Amsoil



http://www.api.org/cgi-bin/eolcs_li.cgi?n=amsoil



and it does not show a licensed oil for the diesels in a 5W30 or 10W40 viscosity grade.

]





Dont speak the truth bro, it'll get all the amwayoil people mad

 

[Riflesmith]

Beating a dead horse

Users of Amsoil will not be angered by API certification being brought up. Disgusted would be a more correct term. The API thing has been beaten to death. If one is willing to restrict his/her choices to API certified oil, it pretty much leaves Amsoil out of the picture. However, it may be unwise to consider the API seal of approval as an indicator of product quality. API limits the amount of anti-wear agents in engine oils. This is done to please the EPA and the automakers. I will spend my money on a product designed to please the consumer, not the EPA and the auto companies. The auto companies have a definite profit motive in having engines wear out. Makers of engine oil do not.



I would like to see just one example of a warranty that was denied due to the use of Amsoil.

 

[kevincook]

Amsoil makes a 5W-30HD oil which should be good in Michigan cold weather. As I understand it is better oil than there 15W-40.



KC

 

[lschultz]

For what its worth

When I had my 98 and the gasket blew out on the lifter cover and it dumped all the oil out and they were going to replace engine I was using 5w30. After truck was towed back to dealer and I checked level and there was none showing on dipstick. I started putting some 5w30 back in and tech said oil is running out or it. Then we got to looking and saw where it was coming from. They saw me pouring oil in,knew what was in there. But they never gave me any s*** about it just replaced the engine with no questions asked. I was ready for them. I never heard of any work being denied,questioned,prove this,show me receipts,etc about using Amsoil. My experience.

 

[RKohn]

Any of the above oil choices would be ok...

I'd be far more concerned about what you're doing to that poor truck with those 5-10 mile trips. You're never even getting it warm enough to vaporize any condensed moisture. You'd better plan on changing the filters more often, like every 3k or you're gonna see the white goo growing under your filler cap.

 

[Pit Bull]

I agree about the short trips. You need to run it hard for at least 1 hour each week to keep the water vapor out of the oil. I would go with a 5w40 synthetic, Fleetguard Stratapore filter and run it year round. I would also change it every 7500 miles (to keep your warranty), and then you can forget the bypass filter. Use whatever brand you want. JMHO but like I tell the wife, mines better than anybody elses :-laf

 

[JJW_ND]

Just an observation I had a few winters back while still running the 5W30. The oil had 20K on it already. I only run a Stratapore filter in the stock location. We had the second coldest December on record. Monthly daily highs averaged something in the lower single digits. I did no trips over 100 miles. Mostly 7 miles to and 7 miles home each day. I never saw coolant reach 160 for two weeks. THis is with a winter front and NO fan. Oil temps never went over 175 the for most of the month. As long as I never hit the interstate (stayed in town) I would not reach 160.



Sampled the oil and changed as it reached drain point of 24K.



Oil tested fine with a few wear metals even dropping. TBN was still over 9, no fuel dilution, Soot below . 4%. This is one tough oil!



In this case, the more you pay for oil the more you can abuse it.



I have given up on worring about to short of trips, engine never getting into the normal operating temps, etc etc etc. This must apply to diesels our Cummins does not comform to.



I recently had the head of this truck to fix a leaky headgasket. Replaced the tappet cover (side cover) gasket. You could not find any sludge anywhere. No cold weather related side effects to be found anywhere.



Run a good oil that gets oil pressure soon. Lack of oil at startup is probably much harder on the engine then short trips to in the winter. JMO!



jjw

ND

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Go with Delvac 1

I consider JJW_ND my soulmate when it comes to oil and oil changes. We pretty much run the same stuff, same intervals, same filters, etc.



I've done Amsoil 15w40, 5w30, and now Delvac1 5W40. I run samples every 10,000.



For Michigan summers the 5w30 may be OK, I felt like it was too thin for the frequent 100+ temps in this part of Washington State. My oil sample numbers were not as good so I went back to the 15w40 for one change and then to the Delvac. This July I headed out on a road trip when it was 113F with high humidity = absolutely stifling, brain-melting 127F heat index . My engine temps ran high, around 205-210F running empty at 70, max A/C. The next sample after that was one of the best ever.



The last tank of fuel I burned it took me 2 weeks to use due to the short trips, also we had record shattering cold. I estimate 60-70% of that tank was burned with engine temps under 140F. It will be interesting to see how the numbers look at the 20K sample coming up in 2000 miles (which is still the same oil in my crankcase when it was 113F).



Vaughn