Okay, so I was driving home from work today and I notice that my truck (2006 F-150 5.4L) begins to shutter. Seemed like it was coming from the engine compartment. I scan the gauges and nothing looks abnormal. I was getting on the freeway, so once I was able to merge I checked what temps my Edge evo was reading. Everything was normal except the oil temp had jump 12 degrees higher than it usually ran. I was getting a reading of 194, when it usually runs at 182. The shutter was felt through idle, and acceleration, then it smoothed out. It has since gone away and the oil temp remained high for a little while.

I was driving the truck hard due to running late and traffic pushing me even later. Once the problem came about I backed off the accelerator. Everything seems to be fine now. And I used the Edge to check for any codes, but nothing came up. I'm going to check the oil in the morning to make sure it is not burnt or anything. I know there is enough oil in the truck because I just checked it.

Any help would be great. 2006 5.4L, Edge Evo, AMSoil bypass oil filter, KN cold air intake, Flowmaster cat back. Thank you.

 

It's good that you monitor oil temps and notice a change from normal for your truck, but you can rest assured 194* is no where even close to concern for an oil temp. Don't know what your problem is but hour oil is completely fine...guaranteed.

Just out of curiosity, what was the outside air temp that day? My trucks oil temp runs pretty darn consistently right at 100* above OAT under normal, non-towing conditions.

 

That's not really high. The variable cam timing doesn't start working until EOT hits about 180 degrees anyways.

 

Any API tested motor oil is tested at 302F. Any Ford speced motor oil will be tested at twice the test time meaning the oil is subject to shearing for 16 hours at 302F. That's something your engine is not going to see and survive. For Ford approved oil, the oil cannot shear or oxidize out of it's respective viscosity range and cannot have more than 30 grams of deposits over the length of the test. This is any motor oil having Ford approval. You didn't say what oil you are running but you did state you have an Amsoil by-pass unit. If you are using Amsoil, it is not API certified which is required by Ford to maintain your warranty. If you are having issues with the cam phasers and the dealer breaks the engine down, there will be a report on the oil generated according to a memo from Ford. If the oil comes back high in ZDDP, which Amsoil is noted for, your warranty claim will probably be denied and you'll end up owing for the repairs. I'd get rid of the Amsoil until the issue with the shuddering is resolved. You can drain it and put it back in later if you like. If you are using ASM 0W-20, it's good oil, just not API certified. If you are using the XL oil, it's a grossly over priced dino synthetic and you can buy better for a lot less money. But the temp of the oil is nothing. When pulling trailers in the heat, you can see temps approaching the 260F mark. That's just fine as the oil is built to handle it. Always use a Xw-20 oil. It will absorb more heat, get back to the pan to release the heat faster than a heavier viscosity oil. The oil is about 15-18% of the cooling of an engine so it's important. It's also is what makes the cam phasers work correctly.

 

In almost every Amsoil related thread you mention the ZDDP content of Amsoil oils. This is not a factor for the vast majority of us on here. Any Amsoil oil with an API SM rating and any 20 or 30 weight oil (which 95+% of the guys should be using one of these on this board anyways) will have Zinc and Phosphorous contents of under 800ppm. This is required to achieve both the SM rating and the "energy conserving" certification. Further, the ZDDP contents of any of the Amsoil oils has nothing to do with why some of the oils are not API certified. Please include this info along with your normal pith the next time you make your ZDDP statements. I would also argue than an Amsoil product is going to fare much better in shear stability and other areas over the vast majority of API certified oils on the market today. I would also argue that the weight of the oil, and not any ZDDP content would have bearing over the performance of the cam phasers. If he's usin any Amsoil xW20, I would sleep very well at night.

 

Okay, I didnt think that that temperature was very high either, but I decided to check. I am using mobil one oil (0w-20), not AMSoil.

On a side note I know that some people on here don't think that the bypass oil filter is worth it, and that is completely fine. I have talked to people who believe that it is worth it, and I have seen oil that has been driven on with the bypass, and only after this did I decide to get one. I'm not saying it is or isn't worth it, but that I would like to try it on my truck to see what (or what it wouldn't) do.

Anyways, checked the oil this morning, after letting it cool over night. It was golden , and didn't look or smell burnt. It was just a little lower than the last time I checked it, so I added just a little bit. Drove around some today, the problem hasn't come back. So I guess I will just wait and see if it comes back, and in the mean time monitor my gauges. Thank you for the help and thoughts.

 

Wether a bypass set up on a gas motor is "worth it" is a personal decision based on the cost. Is running a bypass filter on a gas motor overkill?? Yes, but it sure does earn a lot of cool points. The absolutely only reason I don't have one on my truck right now is cost and the fact that I already have a remote filter which allows me to run a much larger filter than stock anyways.

Just for personal curiosity, why go with an Amsoil bypass set up and filters, but use Mobil 1 oil? Nothing wrong with it, just curious.

 

I did a lot of research before attempting anything on my truck. And from the research it seemed that AMSoil is a little overkill for the situation (which many might say a bypass filter is too, but please just go with it). Plus I wasn't really wanting to have to order oil every time I wanted to do an oil change. I would rather be able to drive to the local auto parts store and pick some up. So I did decide to go with a high quality brand Mobil One.

And yes, the cool points for the bypass are a plus. haha. I find it neat to explain to people what it is and what it does. They find it very interesting as well. If nothing else, the bypass oil filter has taught me a lot about how oil is circulated through out the engine, and how things are filtered and the effects of filtration systems. Plus it looks cool!

 

You say you don't want to order your oil but I'm gonna assume you order your filters...no?? What would be the difference? Couldn't find a local dealer in your area to do a pick-up?

 

Several oil and filter tests have proven that Mobil 1 and Motorcraft filters are up there as far as quality with Amsoil, Redline and Royal Purple. Getting Amsoil from a person, dealer, is a pain in the ***. You can get Mobil 1 and Motorcraft filters at Wally World for a hellava' lot less.

 

The bypass oil filter is the AMSoil filter, but this filter only needs to be changed every other oilchange (therefore according to AMSoil every 50,000 miles or one full year. Which ever comes first) This filter I will have to order. The regular flow filter is a Mobil One filter. And I was also thinking about having to add oil between oil changes. I would have to make sure I had enough AMSoil stocked just in case ANYTHING happened. I feel a little more comfortable knowing I can get the same oil that is in the truck just down the road if I had to. Plus keeping our garage organized enough to keep extra oil around is nearly impossible with my roommates. haha, but don't tell them that. I hope this clears some things up.

I am thinking about replacing both filters when I do do my oil change, and cutting them open, just to see. I don't know if that would show me anything, but would be interesting to see what the bypass filter was catching.

 

Mobil 1 spinon filters are excellent - they are in a whole higher class than Motorcraft, Wix, etc. They are damn near as good as Amsoil spinons.