Oil for my new 2011 F-250 6.7L

[TripperRB]

Hi Everyone! I must say I've been looking over this site for a while and I'm a bit overwhelmed. Overtime I hope to become educated on this vast topic, but right now I've got to make some decisions.

I have one of the new 6.7L Powerstrokes and I'm at 2,600 miles. I'm considering what oil to run and when. Plus I have to consider the new Intelligent Oil Monitor that's supposed to tell me when to change the oil...but I think I'd prefer a standard schedule.

Here's a little background....

I live in and around Atlanta, GA. I travel 120 miles round trip to work everyday...mostly interstate. So I can rack up some miles pretty quickly. I also have a 7,000 lb travel trailer that I'll probably pull a dozen times a year all in the south east. I also have a 3,000 lb trailer I'll pull about the same number of times but all local. The temperature around here rarely sees the teens in winter but the summers are routinely in the 90's. We'll peak in the low 100's sometimes but only briefly.

What oil and oil change schedule can you recommend given my circumstances? The manual recommends 10W-30 for normal usage and 5W-40 for severe duty. But even deciding amongst the wide array of choices between those two seem daunting. I've been considering the Rotella T5 Synthetic Blend 10W-30.

I have a couple of kids getting ready to hit college in a few years so this truck really needs to last me a while. Price is a concern, but I'd rather pay more for longevity. At the same time, I don't want to needlessly pay for what I don't need (of course, that's everyone's goal here I suppose.)

Thanks for your help!

 

[Steve S]

1)How can price be a concern when you bought a Ford F250 with a diesel engine???

2)Rotells T5 is pricier than the regular 10w30.

3) A new expensive truck based upon the results of going by the last few series of engines Ford put in their trucks, It would be wise to read the owners manual and follow the recommendations . No more no less.

4) I see lots of late model Ford Diesel p/u's in the used car lots so don't spend anymore than needed to satisfy the warranty..

 

[daman]

I think a 5w40 would cover the map well for what you described and going with a synthetic you could extend it out a bit more and will keep things clean inside.

my vote is 5w40.

 

[BobsArmory]

I would change it right now, reset the oil life monitor and then listen to it for your oil change interval from there on out. They seem to be very good. As far as oil brand and weight I will defer to others who have more knowledge with those Powerstrokes.

 

[TripperRB]

Originally Posted By: Steve S
1)How can price be a concern when you bought a Ford F250 with a diesel engine???
I'm saving up my money to move to Ka .li . for, nia.

 

[Steve S]

Originally Posted By: TripperRB
Originally Posted By: Steve S
1)How can price be a concern when you bought a Ford F250 with a diesel engine???
I'm saving up my money to move to Ka .li . for, nia.
I am not sure that would be a good Idea. The State is in bad shape due the the politicians the people in this state keep on reelecting. I am thinking of bailing the state. Find the dumbest people in Georgia I mean the worst then triple it .That is this state. there will be Meg "corporate scum "Whitman or Jerry "if it is Brown flush it down" Brown as the next governor. There is no hope in this here once proud state..

 

[TripperRB]

Originally Posted By: Steve S
Originally Posted By: TripperRB
Originally Posted By: Steve S
1)How can price be a concern when you bought a Ford F250 with a diesel engine???
I'm saving up my money to move to Ka .li . for, nia.
I am not sure that would be a good Idea. The State is in bad shape due the the politicians the people in this state keep on reelecting. I am thinking of bailing the state. Find the dumbest people in Georgia i mean the worst then triple it .That is this state.
Ha!

 

[Steve S]

P.S. the most common oil used in the big rigs are the common HDEO oils that you can find at Walmart and those engines cost as least much as your whole truck and those oils are good enough for them.

 

[440Magnum]

RT6 or Delvac. And be diligent- those 6.x Powerstrokes are delicate, and won't tolerate abuse like the good ol 7.3 or a Cummins will.

 

[rslifkin]

The 6.4 PSD was much better than the 6.0, which was a bit of a turd, even in its non-turned-up industrial International VT365 form (lots of injector and VGT issues).

The 6.7 should be similar to the 6.4. The 7.3 (T444E) was definitely a tank though. Too bad the DT466 (7.6l I6 cousin of the 7.3) was too big to put in a pickup, that would have been an awesome engine, making the 7.3 look wimpy (durability-wise).

 

[Michael_P]

The 6.7 is not a Navistar / International. It is a Ford engine designed from the ground up and shares no internal parts. International did pay for about $2B of the R&D for the new 6.7 in the form of a lawsuit.
My vote is RTS5W40.

 

[dnewton3]

Welcome Tripper.

I think you'll find that 10w-30 HDEO is becoming more easily attainable, and it would be perfectly suited for your new truck. Unless you're going to be in super cold (not likely) or constant HEAVY towing (not what you described), then 5w-40 isn't going to gain you much. You're environment is very moderate; average low is above freezing, and you average high is only 89 deg F. Sure it might get around 100 deg F once in a while, but it does the same thing in the upper plains, too, where I do my summer trailer trips. Trust me, the 10w-30 can handle it. I have run it (Rotella dino 10w-30) successfully, even when towing in high heat/ high speed conditions, and my UOAs came back fine.

If you're going to run "normal" intervals, and OCI even before the OLM, then dino is the way to go. If you're going to extend your OCIs, then synthetics are the way to go.

I suspect you have a WallyWorld nearby, perhaps consider the 10w-30 T5 semi-syn as a compromise? You really don't need the extra expense of the semi, but at some point conventience and that "little piece of mind" are worth it for some folks.

Run a few OCIs at your comfort level. Then check with some UOAs. Then perhaps try going by the OLM and again UOA. I think you'll find the OEM OLMs are getting fairly accurate nowdays.

 

[rslifkin]

Michael - When I said similar to the 6.4, I meant that as in "a great improvement over the 6.0".

 

[Oldwolf]

Your engine holds 13 quarts of oil. Since 15W40 is approved I would probably use that in moderate temperatures and bite the bullet in the winter and use 5W40.

The unknown factor is the OCI interval that the computer will calculate. If it is long, say 10k or more, I would prefer the 5W40 year round.

Some good info on the internet for your engine.

http://www.internationalpowerstroke.com/67psd.html

https://www.powerstrokediesel.com/index.aspx?PageId=401

 

[roadrunner1]

as long as its CJ-4, i don't think as long as you go outside of what your owners manual recommends it matters much.
i have been running 10w-30 in my 6.0, and also 2 7.3idi's with excellent uao's. the idea of syn costs more/better piece of mind doesn't hold water unless you're in an extreme climate.
the most simplistic approach is to just follow the owners manual,if syn is not required, then buy dino.
if the manual says that 10w-30 is ok for your expected conditions, then use 10w-30.
in all of my equipment i follow the manual and then follow-up with a uoa at every oci.

 

[Michael_P]

Gotcha rslifkin.

The 6.4's are holding up well in school bus form too. I like the main bearing setup on that 6.4 as well. Any bets on how the new 6.7 will hold up? I say good, but time will tell.

 

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: Michael_P
The 6.7 is not a Navistar / International. It is a Ford engine designed from the ground up and shares no internal parts.



Gotcha, the diesel formerly code-named "Scorpion." Its a bit of an unknown so far, but Ford (to their credit) did as much pre-market durability testing on it as I've ever read about. It looks awesome on paper, maybe the first REAL equal of the Cummins in the pickup market (sorry, Duramax- close but not quite). About the only thing that even slightly worries me is the use of aluminum cylinder heads, but that shouldn't be a show stopper if done right. One of the coolest things about the 6.7 is the "reversed" air flow. Intake on the outside of the heads, exhaust in the center of the "V" where it feeds directly to the turbo- same way locomotive and industrial/ship V-type diesels have been made for decades and decades. Much better thermally- less heat rejected to the engine compartment, as much energy as possible gets to the turbocharger.

So this is a 2011 pickup. I read quickly and didn't notice that at first.

 

[TripperRB]

Thanks everyone for the replies! I really appreciate it. Any additional feedback is appreciated as well.

 

[Steve S]

I also know the engine is a new Ford design . I would be cautious.

 

[Michael_P]

Duramax's are aluminum heads and have held up well. (LLY, LB7, LMN's). The type of aluminum and steel Ford has used supposedly have extremely similar expansion coefficients to reduce head gasket abrasion. Of course they said that about my old Vega I used to own.