Changed the oil in the Taurus on Saturday

[redhat]

Changed the oil in the Taurus on Saturday. It looked clean, but I preferred knowing what is in it and what filter is on the motor.

Car has 5,600 miles on it, bought it with 4,500 miles on it. So 1,100 miles on oil.

OUT
Out went some bulk (but clean) 5W-20 and a Mighty jobber filter.
IN
In went 6qts of fresh Motorcraft Synthetic Blend 5W-20 and a FL500S.

This might be my go-to for this car, reasonably priced. Probably will do 5k intervals. Might even change this early to get on a 10k, 15k, 20k interval. Nice and easy.

Also bought a 12pk of FL500S on eBay for $36.99. Good deal.

 

[dogememe]

Do you find the Motorcraft oil quiet? I found it to be a little noisy in my Escape. Valvoline SynPower was quieter after 10k miles than Motorcraft after 5k. Not saying it's bad, just curious if your experience is the same or different.

 

[redhat]

Originally Posted By: dogememe
Do you find the Motorcraft oil quiet? I found it to be a little noisy in my Escape. Valvoline SynPower was quieter after 10k miles than Motorcraft after 5k. Not saying it's bad, just curious if your experience is the same or different.


Yes I do find it quiet. I am still of course learning what noises this thing makes, but it does seem quiet. One thing I've noticed is that the 35 Duratec has noisy injectors. But -- this whole engine/powertrain is light years ahead in the quiet department compared to the buzzy Honda 4-cylinder I'm used to.

 

[mx5miata]

Motorcraft is Kendall. Great oil my f150 loved it

 

[volk06]

Originally Posted By: mx5miata
Motorcraft is Kendall. Great oil my f150 loved it


Not correct. Kendall and Motorcraft are made by the same company and are indeed similar but they are not the same. Motorcraft does not use the titanium that the rest of the kendall (minus dexos and euro) uses.

 

[FermeLaPorte]

My cousin was so fat he didn't fit in his Taurus SHO so he had to get an F150. I think the Taurus is more respectable. Too bad for my fat cousin.

 

[ZeeOSix]

From a collection of UOAs on a Ford Mustang chat board, it showed that Motorcraft sheared down in viscosity quite a bit compared to other brands. Running it 5K miles should be OK, but wouldn't go longer on 5W-20 due to the shearing factor.

 

[redhat]

Originally Posted By: FermeLaPorte
My cousin was so fat he didn't fit in his Taurus SHO so he had to get an F150. I think the Taurus is more respectable. Too bad for my fat cousin.


Just spit water out reading this. Made me laugh.

 

[ka9mnx]

Originally Posted By: ZeeOSix
From a collection of UOAs on a Ford Mustang chat board, it showed that Motorcraft sheared down in viscosity quite a bit compared to other brands. Running it 5K miles should be OK, but wouldn't go longer on 5W-20 due to the shearing factor.


From my experience of using Motorcraft 5w-30 (and 5w-20) it's a 5k (or less) engine oil.

 

[Kestas]

I still don't understand why the oil was changed when it only had 1,100 miles on it.

 

[ka9mnx]

Originally Posted By: Kestas
I still don't understand why the oil was changed when it only had 1,100 miles on it.


He just bought the car and wanted an oil of known quality in it. I would do the same, and have...

 

[69Torino]

Originally Posted By: ka9mnx
Originally Posted By: Kestas
I still don't understand why the oil was changed when it only had 1,100 miles on it.


He just bought the car and wanted an oil of known quality in it. I would do the same, and have...


Add another vote to this. Good practice. Especially with some junk jobber filter on it. Every car I buy, either with intention to flip it or keep it, gets quality oil and filter when it gets into my possession, regardless of what the previous owner says. Could have been changed that day. Don’t care.

 

[69Torino]

Oh and to the OP, enjoy the new Ford. One Ford fan to another. The Duratec line of engines is legendary in my book. Such a solid design, plenty of power and run forever.

 

[redhat]

Originally Posted By: 69Torino
Oh and to the OP, enjoy the new Ford. One Ford fan to another. The Duratec line of engines is legendary in my book. Such a solid design, plenty of power and run forever.


Thank you! I have really become a fan of the newer Fords. I really think they’re putting out some of the best American vehicles. I still love Honda but when the new Accord, comparably equipped costs $7k more (and a smaller car)... it’s a tough pill to swallow. Love the Duratec. Plenty of power and it doesn’t hate being revved or give you any inclination it hates it. Pretty under rated engine IMO.

 

[redhat]

Thanks all. You all get it. I really just wanted to know what was in the crank and on the side of the little Duratec.

 

[bbhero]

+3

Right on. No telling what was in there to begin with. I'd want to put a known oil in there has well.

 

[dlundblad]

What engine does this baby have?

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: 69Torino
Originally Posted By: ka9mnx
Originally Posted By: Kestas
I still don't understand why the oil was changed when it only had 1,100 miles on it.


He just bought the car and wanted an oil of known quality in it. I would do the same, and have...


Add another vote to this. Good practice. Especially with some junk jobber filter on it. Every car I buy, either with intention to flip it or keep it, gets quality oil and filter when it gets into my possession, regardless of what the previous owner says. Could have been changed that day. Don’t care.


Add me to that list.

 

[dnewton3]

Originally Posted By: dlundblad
What engine does this baby have?

If it's the one in his signature line, it's the only engine available ... 3.5L n/a v-6.
It's been around a while now; lot's of applications (Edge, Taurus, Taurus X, Explorer, Flex, etc).
Great running engine.
Until the water pump needs attention, then it's stupid expensive to deal with. Pump is inside the engine, driven by the timing chain; about 11-12 hour quoted job from many sources. Some places pull the engine out of the chassis (drop it out the bottom). Others R/R with the engine in the car. Either way, it's about the same cost in time and parts. Worst part is that when it leaks, if it leaks past the secondary safety seal, or out the outer shaft seal, the coolant goes directly into the oil pan ...

 

[EricBeau]

Ford service advisor here, can confirm. Other than that though I rarely see issues with the 3.5L. Things to keep an eye on withthe Taurus are wheel bearings (I’ve seen them replaced as early as 30,000 miles) and alignment. For whatever reason the Taurus and MKS are very sensitive to uneven road surfaces. We use a Hunter Engineering Quick Check system at work to check tires, battery, OBD-II scan and alignment and the Taurus is the #1 vehicle that is out of spec in at least one of the four major categories (Front Toe, Rear Toe, Front Camber and Rear Camber). Also- it is imperative that you rotate your tires regularly. This being an AWD vehicle with high-performance 19” tires will need tire treads to wear evenly. I can think of half a dozen PTUs that I’ve seen burned up partly due to insufficient tire rotation.

Just my two cents. Enjoy your new car! The Taurus is a comfortable cruiser for sure and the 3.5 is a safe bet.