This is my first post here,and Im sure it won't be my last.I was a active member over on the rangerforum for when I had my 4x4 ranger,but I have sold it and bought me a 2001 F150 Lariat offroad package 4x4 supercab with the 5.4L V8 in it.I have just had the truck for a week now but love it.It has 117000 on it.Just had a few questions about the oil it uses. My dad has a 02 F250 with the 5.4L in it and it calls for synthetic 5w-20,was looking in my owners manual and mine just calls for standard 5W-20 oil..Is that right? Does it call for just plain 5W-20 oil? The guy I got it from said he had been useing castrol oil in it.Which i've always used castrol in every vehicle I have owned.Castrol oil with a Fram ToughGuard filter.I also changed the oil today and put 6 quarts in it.I have been reading on here and I hear some folks say 6.5qts.That 6 qts will only put it about mid ways in the min-max area on the dipstick.I didn't check the oil after I changed it cause I was sitting on a small incline and it was right at dark.Im gonna check it in the AM and see where it sits.If it is midways on the the dipstick should I add another half quart to bring it to the top?

 

Have same truck and took 6 on the money. But stay away from fram! These truck do not like them at all. (No vehicle prob does). Stick with motorcraft or wix or purolator fiters. Fram is crap and can kill the motor. It needs a good anti drain back valve.

 

I've always used Fram,bought my ranger with 40K on it,always used Fram filters,sold it last week with 250K on,and it doesn't burn a drop of oil between changes.My dad bought a 93F150 new he had always used Fram filters and it has 325K on it,and it doesn't use any oil..But of course that is the awesome 300 6cylinder...SO what would be a good filter to use,that does have a antil drain back valve? I did some research and found out that Fram filters doesn't have one...And the filter on the 5.4L is horizontal so it could be a issue I suppose.

 

I'd use motorcraft or wix for the filter. I'm sure there's people that will disagree with me, but I doubt it will cause any problems to wait until your next oil change to switch it out. As far as where the oil is on the dipstick, check it in the morning. If it is halfway up the dipstick you'll be fine, if you want to add more it's up to you. As long as it's below the max and above the min you'll be good. I'm not sure about regular vs synthetic oil, but in my 2004 I always use synthetic. I couldn't tell you what the manual says to use in it.

 

I just use the plane old castrol in my truck but I still change it every 3K miles.
Spend a couple extra dollars on a better oil filter. Motorcraft,purolator,wix. Better safe then sorry.

 

I'll take being .5 qt LOW over being .5 qt OVER any day...

Some want to put the oil level at the "max" mark, some like it in the middle.

What I did on my first oil change is I only put in 5 qts. Noted where that level was on the stick. (it just touched the bottom of the stick). I put in the 6th qt and it brought the level to the middle of the stick. That's where I try to keep it. I'll check and add oil at around the 3000 mile mark. It usually takes .5-1.0 qt at that time.. Depending on how hard I've worked the engine (towing, it'll need 1 qt. Not towing, .5 qt).

I change it between 5000-6000 miles.

I'll pre fill the new oil filter before I put it on. Not sure how much I'm putting in, but it's part of the 6 qts I put in total, so it's still just 6 qts in the system...

I use the Walmart Motorcraft 820S filters and 5w30 oil of my choice.

Mitch

 

Stay away from the orange can of death fram filter. They are GARBAGE! Castrol makes decent oil. If you like that good. Motorcraft filter are the minimum standard filter. Fram filter can do permanent damage to modular engines and should NEVER be used. The way you handle filling it and keeping it filled is to mark the dip stick with a file at the full mark right after changing the oil. Thats the full mark..

 

So what are yo referring to , Kilo's or Miles? I don't believe that. I've never seen one anyway.

 

Right, - that's how you get them to last IMO.

 

That's the smart way to do it. Great posts in this thread. Well, most of them anyway

 

+1 on staying away from Fram filters! Stay with the 6 quart oil fill. FULL is in the middle of the hash marks on the dipstick.

 

im saying miles.....Why would i lie??I'd gain nothing from it.The oil was changed every 3000-3500K

 

Stay with the oil it has been using, and go with 6 qts. Do use a filter other than Fram. Just use the search button and do some reading about some of the Fram filter problems.

 

That's pretty incredible for anything running a Fram. They take their tole on any engine. When you've seen enough engines destroyed by using less than OEM parts, you would see what I mean. Fram oil filters and Air Filters are the worst you can do. Dry starts add up, but never to your mileage. They're air filters don't filter, period. They fall apart inside the box leaving you unaware until you decide to do some maintenance.

So don't tell me any miracle "Fram" stories, -because those have to be 100 to1. If that.

I don't know why you would lie. Or what you would gain. There's some strange characters about us.

 

Well I checked the oil and it was real close to the Max or full mark on the dipstick.I just got back from walmart and bought a motorcraft filter and another quart of oil.If I hadn't of looked here I would have never known about the Fram oil filter issues..