15w40 Oil Choices For 2011 Ram 3500 6.7 Cummins

[turbowhistle]

Looking for some opinions. I used to own a 2002 Powerstroke 7.3 diesel, in the past, great truck. I now have a 2011 Ram 3500 with the 6.7 Cummins, purchased recently with 15,300 miles on it. For my next oil change I am leaning toward the Valvoline Blue mainly because it is endorsed by Cummins. In the past, with the 7.3 Powerstroke, I have used the Motorcraft oil, Rotella and Delo which are all good oils. If I choose the Valvoline Blue, this will be my first time using it. Does the Valvoline Blue fare any better or worse than all the other brands?

Thanks

 

[skyactiv]

Use it, it will work fine. BTW, I'm a UPS diesel/CNG semi mechanic. I also work on the yard shifter trucks. The spotter trucks use a detuned version of the 5.9 or 6.7 Cummins depending on the year. Those trucks go about 25-30K hours before needing an overhaul when doing 250 hour OCI's.

 

[turbowhistle]

Thanks good to know.What brand of oil are you guys running?

 

[Donald]

I am using Rotella T6 in my 1999 Cummins with great results. Its a 5W40 but that should be fine. Last OCI was 18K.

 

[Neely97]

I have the same truck , 2011 3500 with 51k.
I run the T6 year around & regular cummins filter, I have done 4 round trips ( 5k ) from south Texas to New York. Never had a problem. The oil gets a wide range of temps, -10 to 100+. .
I know the valvoline blue is fine oil but not always easy to find, and good ole WM always has T6, good luck and enjoy your new ride.
Hope this helps.
Ps, don't forget the one and only grease fitting , located on the front drive shaft ( 4x4 ) only, if not have fun locating it

 

[Brigadier]

My local NAPA had the Valvoline Blue 15W40 on sale for $11.99/gal.

 

[vintageant]

More info here:

http://speedtalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=35836

Highest ZDDP is 15W40 MOBIL DELVAC 1300 SUPER Diesel Oil conventional.

 

[Chris142]

Unless city star starts offering a 15w40 you can't go wrong with any.delo is king here and rotella is ignored. Mine likes delvac and st.

 

[donnyj08]

I don't personally own a diesel but the guys I know around here run delo or the valvoline blue. The blue should do well for you. The local farm stores stock a lot of it.

 

[JimPghPA]

15W becomes too thick in temperatures below 20 Fahrenheit. If your truck is going to see winter temperatures in Maryland, you might want a 5W such as T6, or better yet a 0W such as the new Castrol 0W-40, or Mobile one 0W-40.

 

[Ramblejam]

Originally Posted By: JimPghPA
15W becomes too thick in temperatures below 20 Fahrenheit. If your truck is going to see winter temperatures in Maryland, you might want a 5W such as T6, or better yet a 0W such as the new Castrol 0W-40, or Mobile one 0W-40.


From the owners manual:

As well:
"Use SAE 15W-40 MOPAR or an equivalent engine oil meeting Chrysler Material Standard MS-10902. Products meeting Cummins CES 20081 may also be used. In ambient temperatures below 0°F (-18°C), SAE 5W-40 synthetic engine oil that meets Chrysler Materials Standard MS-10902 and the API CJ-4 engine oil category is required."

Neither Castrol or Mobil 1 0w-40 are appropriate.

 

[Clevy]

Originally Posted By: JimPghPA
15W becomes too thick in temperatures below 20 Fahrenheit. If your truck is going to see winter temperatures in Maryland, you might want a 5W such as T6, or better yet a 0W such as the new Castrol 0W-40, or Mobile one 0W-40.



Absolutely horrible advice. Those aren't diesel hdeo's and aren't appropriate whatsoever.

 

[TiredTrucker]

Valvoline is endorsed by Cummins because they have interest in Ashland oil who makes it. Doesn't make it bad, just an observation.

Delo 400LE 5w40, Rotella T6 5w40, Mystic JT8 5w40 ( a real sleeper of an oil with good quality and usually great pricing at farm and home type of stores ), etc, etc, etc. There are stacks of good quality HDEO's in the market. If Valvoline PB trips your trigger, then go for it.

 

[turbowhistle]

Originally Posted By: Neely97
I have the same truck , 2011 3500 with 51k.
I run the T6 year around & regular cummins filter, I have done 4 round trips ( 5k ) from south Texas to New York. Never had a problem. The oil gets a wide range of temps, -10 to 100+. .
I know the valvoline blue is fine oil but not always easy to find, and good ole WM always has T6, good luck and enjoy your new ride.
Hope this helps.
Ps, don't forget the one and only grease fitting , located on the front drive shaft ( 4x4 ) only, if not have fun locating it


Thanks for the advise. I do know about the grease fitting at the front section of the drive shaft. I thought there were two grease fittings aroud the front end area (tie rods)?

 

[turbowhistle]

Originally Posted By: Brigadier
My local NAPA had the Valvoline Blue 15W40 on sale for $11.99/gal.


Thanks, good to know.

 

[SilverC6]

I'm using Delo 400LE 15W-40 in my Cummins 6.7.

I also bought some Delo 5W-40 synthetic to use this winter.

There's really no bad answer when it comes to 15W-40 HDEO.

Anything will do the job with the possible exception of Lucas.

http://www.pqiamerica.com/samplesummaryHDEO2.htm

 

[dnewton3]

Simply put, and CJ-4 certified lube will do quite well.

The differences separating lubes in true performance is negligible to non-existent, presuming you're going to follow OEM OCIs.

The differences separating lubes in people's mindset is huge, based upon brand loyalty and lube-bigotry.


Data inputs (PQIA info) and data outputs (UOA info) prove this to be true.

 

[turbowhistle]

Yes, I agree. I am a firm believer in following the requirements regarding maintenance.

 

[Joel_MD]

I have been using Amsoil DEO 5W-40 synthetic in my 2007 Cummins. According to Blackstone Labs analysis, my oil is holding up well enough to extend the OCI upwards of 17k miles (my engine is sans EGR/DPF/catalyst). Personally I don't think it matters much what brand oil you use. Just make sure it's rated for CJ-4, although you could get away with CI-4 (more sulfur/higher TBN) if you're running a "deleted" setup. If you operate in very cold temps (<0 F) you should go with 5W-40, and if I recall correctly that viscosity only comes in synthetic.

 

[Dak27]

Originally Posted By: skyactiv
Use it, it will work fine. BTW, I'm a UPS diesel/CNG semi mechanic. I also work on the yard shifter trucks. The spotter trucks use a detuned version of the 5.9 or 6.7 Cummins depending on the year. Those trucks go about 25-30K hours before needing an overhaul when doing 250 hour OCI's.


I agree. Those Hostler Trucks take quite a beating, and are constantly pulling around some heavy trailers. The Hostlers I've been around are not gentle on their equipment.

I'm an OTR Truck Driver, and the last Company I drove for convinced me on the durability of the Cummins motor that is in the Dodge pickup trucks.

Years back, I owned a Ford pickup with the 6.9 Navistar motor, and after that, I owned a Ford pickup with the 7.3 Navistar Motor. I wasn't a truck driver back then, but I come from a family of them. Rotella-T and Delo 400 were recommended to me; I went with 15w40 Delo 400 based on price and availability. Winter gets plenty cold here in Utah, so I ran a Chevron diesel rated 10w30 through the coldest months. I followed the Manfacturers OCI intervals, and neither pickup gave me a bit of oil related problems, I ran both pickups plenty hard, too.

Since I started driving big truck, the companies I've driven for have used either Rotella, Delo, or Delvac in their trucks. All companies used differing PM schedules, and I've never lost a motor in any of them due to oil failure.

I recently bought my own truck, and I use Delvac 15w40, in the winter months, I plan to use Delvac 10w30 to make cold startups a bit easier on my motor. The only reason I chose Delvac over Delo or Rotella is it's lower priced in my area, it's easy to find across the country, and the company I leased on to has accounts at T-A and Petro Truck Stops, which offer Delvac at their PM shops, -they also offer Delo and Rotella.

Congratulations on your Cummins/Dodge pickup. If I were in the market for a diesel powered pickup, the Dodge would be my first choice, due to that Cummins motor, and from witnessing the abuse it withstands in the countless yards I've been in.

Long story short, in my opinion, choose one of the "Big Three" brands, based on price and availability, if the motor is under wartanty, stick with the manufacturer's OCI schedule, and rest easy.