Super easy oil change, shocked!

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Whimsey

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With much trepidation I proceeded to change the oil in my wife's 2017 2.3 Ecoboost Explorer because we are going on a long distance vacation to Key West from NJ and 3 weeks later my wife and her sister are going to Nashville, without me
grin.gif
. It has to be one of the easiest oil changes I've done in over 40 years, I'm shocked for a new vehicle! Drove it up on Rhino ramps and the FL910S oil filter is right in front, easy to get to, not buried. The drain plug is at the back of the pan, again easy to reach. Thankfully there is no sort of engine shielding hiding everything. It took me maybe 15 minutes, start to finish without rushing,, including clean up to do the oil change service. I replaced the dealer's "free conventional" oil fill with Mobil 1 5w30. The dealer oil replaced the factory fill at 2,000 miles and the mileage is now at 5,200 miles. The OLM said 67% oil life remaining at 3,200 miles on the oil. The oil came out black, I'm not use to seeing that since the days of carburetors. When I change the oil next I will do an UOA since I've not seen any for the Ford 2.3 Ecoboost engines and I'm curious to see how ours is doing.
Whimsey
 
It would be interesting to know how the Mobil 1 does. I predict it will not be as dark as the dealer oil (less coking).
 
I guess since it’s a 2017 it’s still under warranty, Ford doesn’t like DIY oil changes, too bad.

It’ll be interesting to see what the wear metals will be like in your UOA. I think with a turbo you my see more copper in the wear metals since lead babbit bearings can’t take turbo heat. Many turbos have bronze bearings with oil pressure lube.

On my next new-ish car I’d like to get FilterMags on the spin-on filter asap, trouble is dealer or shop need to do some filter changes for a warranty paper trail, don’t know if I can trust a tech not to “lose” the Filter Mags or put them on the oil filter properly.

In your application, does the oil filter have clearance from the block, etc, all the way around, ie, 3/4” or so, then a pair of Filter Mags will fit.

In the past I was sure black engine oil in 3,000 miles was due to soot, ash, etc, however pulling metals out of the oil kept it nearly clear up to 7,000 miles! New engines have fairly aggressive engine ventilation systems so soot and other by products don’t accumulate as much.

See some good Pics here:

FILTERMAG vs HOMEBREW
https://app.box.com/s/uxvu8dmscf5wcgftutdm0ejqwgn86tw7
 
Originally Posted By: Leo99
I'm surprised you need ramps to change the oil in an Explorer.


Exactly! my wife's 2009 Ford Flex allows me to change oil without need to raise it up. Easiest oil & filter change in my fleet.
 
Originally Posted By: Leo99
I'm surprised you need ramps to change the oil in an Explorer.


The current explorer almost touches the ground with its chin spoiler. Its a beefy crossover these days.

I will say the Ford Edge I do changes on is one of the easier vehicles to change as well. Easy filter placement, and drain plug aiming the right way.
 
Originally Posted By: Whimsey
With much trepidation I proceeded to change the oil in my wife's 2017 2.3 Ecoboost Explorer because we are going on a long distance vacation to Key West from NJ and 3 weeks later my wife and her sister are going to Nashville, without me
grin.gif
. It has to be one of the easiest oil changes I've done in over 40 years, I'm shocked for a new vehicle! Drove it up on Rhino ramps and the FL910S oil filter is right in front, easy to get to, not buried. The drain plug is at the back of the pan, again easy to reach. Thankfully there is no sort of engine shielding hiding everything. It took me maybe 15 minutes, start to finish without rushing,, including clean up to do the oil change service. I replaced the dealer's "free conventional" oil fill with Mobil 1 5w30. The dealer oil replaced the factory fill at 2,000 miles and the mileage is now at 5,200 miles. The OLM said 67% oil life remaining at 3,200 miles on the oil. The oil came out black, I'm not use to seeing that since the days of carburetors. When I change the oil next I will do an UOA since I've not seen any for the Ford 2.3 Ecoboost engines and I'm curious to see how ours is doing.
Whimsey


That has to somewhat make up for your Contour if you had the Zetec. I had one. What a pain that was relative to some other vehicles. Not has hard as my '95 Tbird with the 4.6L V8, but not as easy as my 79 Fairmont where you could do the entire oil change from the top.
 
Originally Posted By: KGMtech
Originally Posted By: Leo99
I'm surprised you need ramps to change the oil in an Explorer.


Exactly! my wife's 2009 Ford Flex allows me to change oil without need to raise it up. Easiest oil & filter change in my fleet.

Some of us are fatter than others...
happy2.gif


Also, as pointed out, air dams and such can create vehicles that are tall, but not easy to get under.
 
Lucky you....... I did mine last week....... Cover had to be removed and when I went to put it back the Ford supplied
grommets became brittle and would no longer hold the shield screws. What a fiasco........
On a new car. Ford had a few grommets but luckily for me I had the screws cause they didn't.
What a hassle- other than that it was okay except for the factory over cranked filter. I have a great setup for that.
 
I don't think oil changes could be much easier than my 2500 Dodge with the Hemi.
Oil filter in the front , not hidden and high enough to go under without ranps.
Takes 10 minutes.
Best oil change vehicle I ever had. Now the Ford F150s. Arrrrggg.
 
Originally Posted By: Leo99
I'm surprised you need ramps to change the oil in an Explorer.
Any vehicle that requires using ramps or crawling underneath to change oil and filter is NOT an easy one!
 
It's nice when maintenance is easy and enjoyable. I hate vehicles that have filters and drain plugs in places where no matter what a mess is unavoidable. My sister's 2005 Civic comes to mind. The oil filter is mounted horizontally on the back of the engine block. Every time the filter is loosened oil flows down the back of the block and also dumps on the exhaust pipe. I can change the oil on a lot of other vehicles with no mess, but this one always gets me somehow.
 
Originally Posted By: Leo99
I'm surprised you need ramps to change the oil in an Explorer.


I think they lowered the front end bottom clearance so as maybe not for trucks to run over people, seriously I read that, and possibly for better aerodynamics
confused2.gif
. I have to use ramps to access the oil filter on our 2005 4.6 V-8 Explorer also. My 2002 F-150 I did not have to use ramps.

Whimsey
 
Originally Posted By: javacontour
Originally Posted By: Whimsey
With much trepidation I proceeded to change the oil in my wife's 2017 2.3 Ecoboost Explorer because we are going on a long distance vacation to Key West from NJ and 3 weeks later my wife and her sister are going to Nashville, without me
grin.gif
. It has to be one of the easiest oil changes I've done in over 40 years, I'm shocked for a new vehicle! Drove it up on Rhino ramps and the FL910S oil filter is right in front, easy to get to, not buried. The drain plug is at the back of the pan, again easy to reach. Thankfully there is no sort of engine shielding hiding everything. It took me maybe 15 minutes, start to finish without rushing,, including clean up to do the oil change service. I replaced the dealer's "free conventional" oil fill with Mobil 1 5w30. The dealer oil replaced the factory fill at 2,000 miles and the mileage is now at 5,200 miles. The OLM said 67% oil life remaining at 3,200 miles on the oil. The oil came out black, I'm not use to seeing that since the days of carburetors. When I change the oil next I will do an UOA since I've not seen any for the Ford 2.3 Ecoboost engines and I'm curious to see how ours is doing.
Whimsey


That has to somewhat make up for your Contour if you had the Zetec. I had one. What a pain that was relative to some other vehicles. Not has hard as my '95 Tbird with the 4.6L V8, but not as easy as my 79 Fairmont where you could do the entire oil change from the top.


Yes, I still have my 1996 Zetec Contour. I love my Contour, it's still great to drive 21 years later but you're right changing the oil filter is a real beasch. I found that jacking the passenger side up, removing the tire then with the suspension hanging you can remove the oil filter with a lot less mess and effort.

Whimsey
 
Originally Posted By: redbone3
It would be interesting to know how the Mobil 1 does. I predict it will not be as dark as the dealer oil (less coking).
less break in stress.
 
Originally Posted By: AirgunSavant
Lucky you....... I did mine last week....... Cover had to be removed and when I went to put it back the Ford supplied
grommets became brittle and would no longer hold the shield screws. What a fiasco........
On a new car. Ford had a few grommets but luckily for me I had the screws cause they didn't.
What a hassle- other than that it was okay except for the factory over cranked filter. I have a great setup for that.


I'm guessing this is on your Ford C-Max.
 
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