buddy of mine recently (few months ago) bought a 2007 Grand Marquis, unsure of the mileage. its an extreme short tripper. He and his mom work at the same place, its right up the street from where they live. His mom has knee problems, so instead of walking they take the car. Its about 200 feet up the street, take a left and theyre at work. once in the morning, once for lunch, then again to go home. I told him to take it on a good long run every once in a while. What would be the best oil/filter combo for this situation? i was thinking PU 5W20 and a MC FL820S every 4 months? he does take it on a 80 mile round trip every other weekend but besides that, its short trip duty, 5 days a week.
severe short tripper
- Thread starter mobilaltima
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I think that 80 mile round trip really saves the situation.
Don't worry about taking the vehicle for a long run its better if you can convince the owners to take a short daily walk.
The exercise may even help mum with her knees. If they take their lunch to work it will be 2 short walks a day.
May sound harsh but very few ever go ill or got worse from over exercise.
This is not about an oil change but a severe lifestyle / health change.
Your buddy
The exercise may even help mum with her knees. If they take their lunch to work it will be 2 short walks a day.
May sound harsh but very few ever go ill or got worse from over exercise.
This is not about an oil change but a severe lifestyle / health change.
Your buddy
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Synthetic has no benefits in this short trip scenario. I would Motorcraft syn blend plus Motorcraft filter once per year. Dumping 4 month oil is just wasteful.
80 mile trip every other week plus the short trip is barley 2,100 miles, which is a 1 year OCI, if you want to use synthetic then stretch it out to 2 years. The 80 mile trip completely negates any short tripping by getting everything good and hot.
Tell them to buy bicycles if they don't want to walk.
ANY conventional 5W20 and Motorcraft filter once a year, or every 5K miles, which ever comes first. The 80 mile long drives are enough to get the engine oil hot and burn off any condensation/contaminants.
Originally Posted By: mobilaltima
What would be the best oil/filter combo for this situation?
I don't think it'll matter one way or the other. The oil will take a beating regardless, due to all the moisture and fuel.
I'd worry about the battery, personally. 2 weeks of such frequent starts will deplete the battery and it won't have a chance to recharge until he takes that 80 mile trip. While it's sitting discharged, it sulfates itself. Might want to consider a battery tender/desulfator, or just figure on having to buy a new battery more often than usual.
What would be the best oil/filter combo for this situation?
I don't think it'll matter one way or the other. The oil will take a beating regardless, due to all the moisture and fuel.
I'd worry about the battery, personally. 2 weeks of such frequent starts will deplete the battery and it won't have a chance to recharge until he takes that 80 mile trip. While it's sitting discharged, it sulfates itself. Might want to consider a battery tender/desulfator, or just figure on having to buy a new battery more often than usual.
A used hybrid would be a really good fit for this use. Either that or a electric conversion.
If it were me, I'd just change it at 3,000 miles regardless of the time it took to put it on. I've done that before in my old Altima that was mostly just driven on short trips and the previous owner of my Firebird mainly used it for short trips and he changed it every 2,000-2,500 miles regardless of the length of time (usually about once or twice a year) and it seems to be just fine. Also, definitely try to get it out for a longer trip once in a while to burn off the excess moisture/fuel/etc. as you already mentioned. Of course, I would go further than 3,000 miles if it wasn't a majority short-tripper.
Tell them to move closer to work to reduce their commute?
My vote is to suggest MC 5W-20 and a FL820S once a year regardless of mileage (within reason).
Then tell him that in 4-5 years you'll buy the car from him for a song (because of the abuse the short trips put on the car) and then flip it for a good profit.
My vote is to suggest MC 5W-20 and a FL820S once a year regardless of mileage (within reason).
Then tell him that in 4-5 years you'll buy the car from him for a song (because of the abuse the short trips put on the car) and then flip it for a good profit.
Oil pan heater?
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
I'd worry about the battery, personally. 2 weeks of such frequent starts will deplete the battery and it won't have a chance to recharge until he takes that 80 mile trip. While it's sitting discharged, it sulfates itself. Might want to consider a battery tender/desulfator, or just figure on having to buy a new battery more often than usual.
^^This is a really good point.
I'd worry about the battery, personally. 2 weeks of such frequent starts will deplete the battery and it won't have a chance to recharge until he takes that 80 mile trip. While it's sitting discharged, it sulfates itself. Might want to consider a battery tender/desulfator, or just figure on having to buy a new battery more often than usual.
^^This is a really good point.
Might I say, if the engine is the 4.6L v8, those things can take abuse. I mean, look at all the cop cars, taxis, etc. using them. In this case, obviously it is a severe short tripper, but I would not worry too much about it. I would say even with the short tripping, if the car does not have any problems already, it likely is not going to have many problems anyway. Like it was stated before, the battery would be the worry in this case. As for the oil question, just use whatever oil you want. And yes, the motorcraft filter is the right choice. The engine will not be the first thing to go in this car. Just change the oil twice a year and be done with it.
golf cart?
^ yea definitely time for a golf cart
or any "modorized kart" like a rascal or something
or any "modorized kart" like a rascal or something
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