2017 Mustang 5.0 Oil Advice

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Just inherited an almost new 2017 5.0 Mustang GT. I have never owned a V8 anything. The car has ~700 miles. It arrived Friday evening so I haven't gotten to the DMV to get plates. It really has a nice sound.

Two questions;

When should I change the oil?
Should I take it to the local Ford shop? The car came from Florida, I'm in NC.

The oil cap says to use 5W-20. Doesn't say synthetic or conventional. I use Pennzoil in my other vehicles.

Nothing is official till there is a picture; here it is.


 
Change it now if it makes you feel better. The dealership isn't necessary.

Run a 5w-20 whatever you want. If you want to run longer oil change intervals than 3000-5000 miles use Synthetic. It is really what your comfort level is. All name brand oils but conventional and Synthetic are good oils.

The reality is oil related failures are almost non existent in decently maintained vehicles. Also most people don't keep cars long enough to worry about engine wear over the long run.
 
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Congratulations on the car and my condolences since it was inherited.

5w20 is the correct viscosity. Fords spec does not require synthetic. Most conventional oils meet the spec. Any 5w20 pennzoil will be perfect. Synthetic would certainly not hurt. Those engines hold about 8 quarts amd some have been know to use a quart here and there so check it once or twice within and interval. Enjoy the car!
 
If it were my car and being under warranty I’d go Motorcraft 5w20 and MC filter, cheap, easy to get, no questions asked
 
Requires oil to meet Ford WSS-M2C945-A specification. OEM spec is semi-synthetic Motorcraft. Pennzoil Gold meets the minimum requirements and Platinum full synthetic would be a nice upgrade.
 
My condolences and congrats on the car. Mustangs are a lot of fun to drive. The car has an OLM that can be displayed, check your owners manual on how to, and have fun.
 
I’ve found Ford’s oil life monitor to be very accurate. The V8 is a great engine and doesn’t seem to beat up oil like the EcoBoosts, so I see no reason not to follow it. I like to change the factory fill after a few thousand miles, but there’s no scientific evidence that it provides any benefit. I also only run full synthetic and the recommended viscosity, but just make sure whatever oil you pick meets Ford’s spec.
 
Originally Posted By: Passport1
When should I change the oil?

I would change the current factory fill out at 1,000 miles. Just to flush out any extra metal particles. You don't have to do that; its totally optional; only if you really want the best care possible.
Originally Posted By: Passport1
Should I take it to the local Ford shop?
Again, if you want the best, change the oil yourself to make sure its done right. The dealership would probably install a Motorcraft oil filter which have a bad reputation for breaking open inside (tearing a hole in the media) in service. A Fram Ultra oil filter (walmart or amazon) filters the best and is very robust. I recommend Mobil1 Annual Protection or Mobil1 Extended Performance (more PAO in those) if you want the best, otherwise use any full-syn 5w20 you see at walmart as a choice thats almost as good. You could even save a little more money, if 'value' is your thing, by getting Walmart's SuperTech 5w20 conventional oil.
You don't have to do all that. (Only if you're an enthusiast.) If you do take it to the dealership for oil changes, at least check to make sure they didn't overfill the sump, as that happens a lot at those places. Check the oil in the morning to get the right level measurement.

Primary advantage of a full-syn is lower piston deposits.
When you do change oil, be sure to reset the IOLM which monitors driving conditions and tells you when to change oil in the future. Follow that after your first oil change. The dealership knows to reset it, if thats the way you go.
 
Originally Posted By: oil_film_movies
I would change the current factory fill out at 1,000 miles. Just to flush out any extra metal particles. You don't have to do that; its totally optional;


It really isn't needed, the parts are cleaned VERY well before assembly in a VERY CLEAN environment.

Ford's engine assembly plant is truly world class.
 
I'd be running "the straighter" 5w20 as recommended. It's not a very stressed engine with very high cylinder pressures or temps, it just revs high to get the HP. Think of it as a couple of 2.5L 4 cylinders making 217hp and 200ft/lbs each. What kind of oil is the OLM calibrated for?
 
A car that new, I would switch to a full synthetic 5W-20 oil with a good filter like Motorcraft or for an upgrade, a Fram Ultra. You could still follow the oil life monitor, but know that if you happened to go over the indicated limit a some, you would still have a margin of protection vs a conventional oil. Mobil 1, Quaker State full syn, or your oil of choice, Pennzoil Platinum would all be on my list. The difference these days in price between conventional, syn-blends, and full synthetics is almost negligible, so for a little bit extra cost, I would protect my pistons (ring area mainly) from oil deposits the best I could with a full synthetic. This will help the engine to maintain factory new compression (horsepower) as well as minimizing oil consumption in the long run by keeping those pistons cleaner than they would be with lesser oils.
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex
Originally Posted By: oil_film_movies
I would change the current factory fill out at 1,000 miles. Just to flush out any extra metal particles. You don't have to do that; its totally optional;
It really isn't needed, the parts are cleaned VERY well before assembly in a VERY CLEAN environment.Ford's engine assembly plant is truly world class.
We always see lots of iron in UOA's from FF's dumped early or at the end of a normal OCI.
Newly machined surfaces have asperities that get knocked off during break-in.
Its not the factory cleanliness or the parts cleaning, its the asperity mountain tops that get loose. The oil filter catches particles bigger than about 30 microns, leaving some very find iron and aluminum 'dust' running around in there that you could get rid of. Not required, but the extra particles are there.
 
I have a 2013 GT 5.0 and I use Valvoline Synpower 5w30 although the recommended fill is 5w20. I change mine once a year or roughly 5-7,000 miles. Don't worry if your 5.0 drinks a bit of oil between changes mine will use a quart about every 5k and many do.

My advice to you is don't get into the 5w20 vs 5w30 debate on the Mustang forums it will drive you crazy! Either oil weight will work fine. I run 5w30 Valvoline Synpower for the simple reason I use it in several other cars I have and it also runs just fine in my 5.0.
 
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