5.0 Ford Coyote oil ?

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For my 2013 Mustang (5.0 Coyote V8) they recommend 5w20 weight oil. My car is a non Track Pack car if my car had the track pack they would recommend 5w50 weight full synthetic oil. According to Ford there is no difference in the motor other then the Track pack adds an oil cooler and slightly larger radiator. So my question is how can a car engine have such a wide range of oil recommended from a 5w20 to a 5w50 seems like a real wide spread? Also if the spread is so wide why couldn't you run 5w30, 0w40, 10w40, or whatever grade oil up to 5w50?
 
The track pack has different engine management software which will never cut power even if you over heat. The stock ecu will cut power when your temperatures get too high. If you're not racing or tracking or driving it super hard the 5w20 is correct.

The engine will tolerate any grade of oil, but that doesn't mean it's optimal. Thicker oils result in higher oil pressure which means higher chances of filtration bypass.
 
That 5.0 Coyote is a swell engine. Recommended viscosity will likely be fine unless you're flogging it during track days.
But if that was your intent you'd have specified the Track Pack.
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5.0 Coyote oil thread
 
In my 2013 F150 5.0 the current fill is 1/2 and 1/2 0w30 and 0w20. Once all the 20 weight has been used up it will be 0w30.

Lots of reading and research both here and on other forums, as well as poking around the international Ford sites. It might cost me a couple mpg around town, but my driving is >90% highway at altitudes above 2000' . Th 30 weight may reduce bearing wear as well, but that has not been proven, just conjecture from piecing together many different sources.

Yes, I know many use 5w20 without issue for 200k.
 
The thread splinter posted has a lot of good discussion. Somewhere in that thread this excerpt is posted if you find the link.

Quote:


Coyote Oiling
Considerable work went into prepping the Coyote's oiling system for its 7,000-rpm redline and high-g Mustang home. It begins with thin 5W-20 mineral oil for reduced oil-pump-drive requirements, less internal drag, and quicker cold-start lubrication. Oil capacity was increased to 8 quarts, both to ensure adequate supply at high engine speeds and to increase oil change intervals to 10,000 miles.

The oil pan shape and baffling was aided by computer modeling to check sloshing behavior while braking and cornering. Testing also showed oil drainback out of the valve covers while cornering (and drifting!) proved inadequate with the initial design, requiring slight but vital revisions to the drainback channel shape in the side of the block.

At 1g cornering, the oil was accumulating in the valve cover and flinging into the PCV system via the camshaft-timing wheels. These "pip wheels" make great oil paddles at 3,500 rpm, so Habib Affes Ph.D., CAE technical expert, modeled the situation, disclosing that down in the block's oil drain passage there was a curve or bump. At 1g cornering, this bump-physically angled at 45 degrees-was sensed as flat by the oil, so it would not drain past it. Straightening the curve lowered the oil puddle depth around the pip wheel from 11mm to 3mm, curing the PCV problem.

Interestingly, one item needing less oiling are the VCT phasers on the camshafts. Thanks to the cam torque actuation strategy, the phasers do not require high-pressure oil from the pump, but are instead fed bleed oil from the front cam bearing. Had CTA not been used, the oil pump would have needed enlargement to keep a relatively large volume of pressurized oil ready to go next to the phasers in the cylinder heads. And that would have cost horsepower.

Crankcase ventilation and oil drainback are major oiling improvements in the Coyote. Crankcase breathing has never been particularly good in high-rpm modulars, and early testing showed the Coyote's high volumes of drainback oil at high rpm were air-locking the crankcase from the top of the engine. In other words, the gush of oil trying to drain down at 7,000 rpm was blocking the pressurized crankcase air trying to find its way up, effectively choking the PCV system and inhibiting drainback.

The cure was to separate the drainback paths from the crankcase breathing chimneys. Thus, Coyotes have three large oil drainbacks on the exhaust or lower side of the cylinder head. They mate to corresponding passages on the outer side of the block that downspout the oil into the pan-similar to the dry-sumped Ford GT block.

For PCV gasses, passages are placed at the top of the crankcase, about where the camshaft would be in an OHV block. These passages connect to corresponding flues on the intake side of the cylinder heads. Thus, the oil drains and breather vents are completely separated and probably approach double the combined area of previous modulars.

Consideration was given to an external oil cooler, but ultimately it was decided not to penalize all Coyote buyers for the occasional antics of a miniscule fraction of owners. Oil temperature rises precipitously when the Coyote is revved more than 4,500 rpm for extended periods, and then an external oil-to-air cooler is vital. But those conditions can only be reached on a road-racing track, so the expensive cooler was ditched and engine management strategies were used to protect the engine during hot idles. However, the mounting area for the cooler was "protected" during the 2011 Mustang's development. That makes it easier for the open-trackers among us to fit a cooler (highly recommended by Coyote engine designers), and tells you something about Ford's intentions for special editions of the Coyote-powered Mustangs.

And don't worry about the occasional open-track without an oil cooler. The engineers say the oil cools quickly as soon as you take your foot out of it, and the engine management will limit the torque output if the oil gets too hot.



Read more: http://www.mustangandfords.com/parts/m5lp-1003-2011-ford-mustang-gt-50-coyote-engine/#ixzz3dMDkUcqv
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You are definitely over thinking this oil selection thing if it's stock then 0w20 or 5w20 works perfectly fine unless you plan on dropping tons of money into some heavy mods no point in thinking about it and I highly doubt it gets really hot where you are either
 
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To answer your actual questions, most all engines will operate on a wide range of different viscosity oils, from 0w20 to 20w50 without much notice unless you're cold starting at low temperatures.

If the engine is able to run between a 5w20 and 5w50 that would also include 5w30 and 5w40.

However in this specific application there are enough differences between the two cars, one track pack with oil cooler and one non track pack with ecu nannies that 5w50 is not needed needed on the base model but may be dangerous on the track pack since it will let you run it into the ground with elevated oil temperatures and will not reduce torque at all.
 
I am continually tempted to switch to a 5w30 in my '11 F150 5.0 due to the tick these motors are known for as well as the fact it sees more highway than short trips... Somehow I just won't pull that trigger, though, and stick with the recommended 5w20. What I do to rest my fears about 5w20 in the summer heat, or while doing whatever or just because I think too much is run a decent synthetic. At the moment I have been running QSUD which has done well, plus is nice a quiet, over the past couple OCI. This week I will be switching to Pennzoil Platinum since I do not believe the QSUD is very good at preventing and cleaning deposits (based on extremely long duration of transparency of the oil).
 
Mobil 1 High Mileage 5w20 is an alternative unless manual doesn't allow api SL. Even so I'd run it outside of warranty, it's got extra ZDDP and other goodies.
 
Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
Mobil 1 High Mileage 5w20 is an alternative unless manual doesn't allow api SL. Even so I'd run it outside of warranty, it's got extra ZDDP and other goodies.

A SL oil will not begin to fill the warranty requirements of a vehicle mfgr after 2004 & anyway the extra zinc isn't needed in a roller tappet engine...

Back when I joined in '10 and mentioned I was using 5W-30 in my '07 Mercury specked for 5W-20, you couldn't see for the dust that flapping stirred up... Ohhhh it has tight tolerances(which have NOTHING to do with weight of oil required), preached all kind of gloom & doom... It recently came off a 18 month 11,030 mile OCI using M1 5W-30 EP, didn't use more than a tea cup, level was just barely below full on stick(not sure it wasn't since the change)...

You wanna use 5W-30?? No problem, buy a change of 20 & 30 each mix half and half, you'll still have a light 5W-30 plus a receipt for the 5-20 if it were ever questioned... Me, I quit worrying about a year after I bought the car...
 
The Mustang and F150 share the same 5.0L Coyote engine, although they are tuned differently for each application. Show the great versatility of this engine.

In reality most engines won't know the difference between 5W20 and a 5W30. A XW40 wt you may feel some difference. In your stock 'stang going with the factory recommended 5W20 will provide all the protection you need. I suggest a good full synthetic like Pennzoil Platinum, Mobil 1 ...look for something with a good low NOACK. If it makes you feel better and sleep better at night, go with a 5W30. Consider this though, your 'stang came from the factory most likely filled with Motorcraft Semi-Syn 5W20. using the same weight but a full-syn you should be good to go.

In my F150, I have Pennzoil Platinum 5W20 sitting on the shelf waiting for the next OC. this will be for a summer of haulin' toys, family road trip, etc.
 
Originally Posted By: buck91
I am continually tempted to switch to a 5w30 in my '11 F150 5.0 due to the tick these motors are known for as well as the fact it sees more highway than short trips... Somehow I just won't pull that trigger, though, and stick with the recommended 5w20. What I do to rest my fears about 5w20 in the summer heat, or while doing whatever or just because I think too much is run a decent synthetic. At the moment I have been running QSUD which has done well, plus is nice a quiet, over the past couple OCI. This week I will be switching to Pennzoil Platinum since I do not believe the QSUD is very good at preventing and cleaning deposits (based on extremely long duration of transparency of the oil).
I've been using 10W-30 since I drained the free oil change oil around 15K. From everything I've read a 30 sure isn't going to hurt and may help things like the 50 ft of timing chains. It's abundantly clear that 5w-20 isn't optimal under all conditions.
 
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I'd use the Ford spec 5W50. Maybe you can find a good deal on Motorcraft 5W50. Do you have any friends who work at any dealerships,parts stores,etc? If so,you'd be able to probably get it at a 20% discount.
 
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I'd use the Ford spec 5W50. Maybe you can find a good deal on Motorcraft 5W50. Do you have any friends who work at any dealerships,parts stores,etc? If so,you'd be able to probably get it at a 20% discount.


The engine is specified for 5w20. The OP DOES NOT HAVE the track pack.
 
Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
I'd use the Ford spec 5W50. Maybe you can find a good deal on Motorcraft 5W50. Do you have any friends who work at any dealerships,parts stores,etc? If so,you'd be able to probably get it at a 20% discount.


The engine is specified for 5w20. The OP DOES NOT HAVE the track pack.


I know the base GT doesn't spec 5W50 per se,the point I was making was that 5W50 is a "Ford spec" versus a 15W40,15W50,or 20W50.
 
I used motorcraft 5w20 semi synthetic the whole 20k miles I had mine til I wrecked it. So two oil changes.

That 8 quart sump means it's easy on oil. Just pick a namebrand 5w20 conventional or synthetic.
 
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