I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm new to the board. I have recently purchased a 2008 Ford F150 FX4. This isn't my first truck or Ford. My first Truck was back in High School where I had an 85 F150, after that I spent many years in the sports car area, Ford Probe GT after high school, a Mustang GT and 2 different 03/04 Mustang Cobra's. And now my current Truck.

I absolutely love this truck. I can see myself keeping it for a long time unlike my previous vehicles. My truck is a Silver, supercrew with the FX4 luxury package, black leather interior and more.

I do have a question in regards to maintenance on my truck. I was given 2 maintenance schedules, one by the dealership and one from Ford. The dealership has 3k mile service intervals, the Ford manual has 7500 mile service intervals. My goal is to protect my investment, leave my truck stock until it is paid off or out of warranty. I also don't want to flush money down the toilet if 3k mile intervals aren't necessary.

So what do you guys do? Fords 7500 or dealership money maker 3k?

 

Congrats on the new purchase and welcome to the forums! I would use the Ford recommended interval. They've switched to 7500 miles now? My '06 was recommended at 5,000 miles. I think 3,000 miles is overkill. Also something I like to do (just personal preference, if its a brand new vehicle) is do the first oil change early. I did my '06 first at just under 1,000 miles. Then I switched to the regular recommended interval schedule.

 

I thought of doing that also but was wondering would that mess with the "break in" process.

I was going to use synthetic because I've used it with all of my vehicles for the last ten years or so and I love the way it performs compared to regular oil.

who thinks going synthetic so early is a good idea?

thanks.

 

Congrats, I too just bought a silver 08 FX4 supercab and was also a little suprised by the 7500 mile service interval. My dealer also reccomended the 7500 interval so i think it is probably just your dealership trying to make a few extra dollars by reccomending that you get your oil changed every 3000. That said, I will be changing my oil the first time at 1,000 miles and will only go 5,000 between changes. I do not put that many miles on my truck and if I wait 7,500 between changes I will barely change the oil once a year. I also just plain think 7,500 between oil changes is stretching things a bit.

 

Welcome fellow blue oval fan.

I change mine at 3k with Moto Syn Blend at the dealer. If I was paying I'd have no problem going 5k.

Here's some reading for you---> http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/

 

Welcome to the site Adgar and congratulations on your new purchase. I did almost the exact service on mine as VT. First change around 1,000 miles and then close to 5,000 thereafter. My last change was a few weeks ago and the oil is so clean you can hardly see it on the dip stick. My truck is an 04 sc, had it almost four years now with a little over 16,000 miles on OD.

 

If you change at 1000 miles, I wouldn't use a full synthetic - I'd use the 5W20 Motorcraft semi-synthetic that the truck came with. It's best to make sure it's well broken in before changing to full synthetic. The 3000 mile point is fine for switching to full.

Read the manual carefully - there are 2 schedules that apply in there - normal service and severe service. Also, there is both a mileage and a time factor, whichever occurs first. Follow the applicable schedule and use products that meet Ford specs to preserve your warranty.

The dealers that are pushing 3000/3 months across the board are just trying to maximize their service income.

 

I've never used full synthetic in any vehicle I have owned and I have had alto of vehicles over the many years. My neighbor, a real jerk, keeps preaching to me to use Slick 50, he said he gained 7-8 mpg just using it, I called BS. I have never had any issues regarding the oil I use. I use 5w20 Motocraft w/Motorcraft filter. I'm happy with it and think full synthetic is a waste of $. Clean oil,fuel and air makes an engine happy.

 

I used the synthetic blend for the first 10,000 miles, then switched to full synthetic. Why?? I don't know... I've never used synthetic in my prior vehicles so I want to see if there is a difference on how an engine holds up on full synthetic compared to regular oil. I don't think it matters too much if you change regularly. My dad has a '97 Expedition with almost 170K miles and I've been changing the oil regularly using plain ol' Castrol GTX. Still runs great and no oil has to be added between changes. I think that's pretty good.

 

The dude who has the www.millionmilevan.com did not use synthetics & he changes the oil when it gets black! Once at a 50,000 interval........ Synthetic is pathetic!.........

 

Good for you, new truck, and a real American truck. Mine was new once too (2004 and 65,000 miles ago) and I say stick with the owners manual recommendations like others have said. Look closely to see if you run in the normal or severe operating category. For me I run Mobil 1 synthetic oil and have been doing so for 20+ years as cheap insurance on all my stuff. Use good filters and change them, maybe more often than recommended if your truck has to eat dust and towing. Motorcraft oil filters for $4 at WallyWorld can't be beat - the anti drain back valve is most important. Do your own oil and filter changes and you will always be able to see how dirty things get. Is the 08 oil filter still mounted on a slant like the 04? If so the dry filter rattle at start up after an oil change is very unsettling and there is a neat fix for that on this site so search and ye shall find. Stay with this site and you can learn a lot from guys who really know their stuff - not me - them other guys. I even learned how to properly detail a vehicle on the "detailing" forum so I didn't screw up the finish and mine still gets compliments on how it looks.

 

Gents, thanks for the input. I was planning on changing the oil at 1k mile mark, just for break in purposes. I have been pretty dedicated to Motorcraft oil and filters, they have never done me wrong so that is what will go in my truck. I will play it by ear on the maintenance 7500 seems like a long time and a lot of miles, I will look at the 5k mark and make my judgment call then. I figure as long as I hit the major service intervals 15k, 30k, 45k.... I shouldn't have any issues if any warranty work is needed.

This site is awesome one of the best sites I have come across in terms of Tech, Talk and more.

 

I work at a non-Ford dealership (where's the smiley that ducks for cover?). Most of the dealer service menus are a combination of money makers (over maintenance and keep ya coming in for non-warranty) and recommendations for local climate (extreme heat, cold, dust, water, etc). The maintenance schedule(s) in the manual are basically what's required to keep your truck in warranty.

After beating it in people's heads for years, my oil gets changed every 3k religiously. If it cost more than $20, I couldn't use a lift and had to get rid of the old oil on my own I'd probably go longer. If you're using regular oil, do 3k...it can't hurt and it's not that expensive. If you're going to switch to synthetic, do it every 5k-7500k. In the end, it'll probably cost you pretty close to the same.

I've never heard of any problems with people over-maintaing their vehicles, but I have made a lot of money off those who under-maintain. Enjoy your truck....it sounds like a beauty (ahem...pics?!?). I look forward to the days when I can drive mine.

 

I spent a few hours today washing my truck. This thing is big and takes of your time when it come to cleaning.





I know a factory truck isn't all that exciting, but I like it.

 

Congrats on the new truck and welcome to the board.