Oils are so much better these days. I haven't heard of many oil related failures except the one that happened to my 1964 Karmann Ghia last week. The Ghia only takes 3 Qrts of oil, and there were some screws stripped in the sump by teh previous owner, so I was driving on the freeway and I noticed teh oil pressure light flickering. I pulled over and by that time, I had already blown the crap out of the engine...rod through the case.

As far as the modern engines go, they (engineers) have made more failsafe designs, plus a water-cooled engine (with exceptions to a few) and a higher oil capacity.

I have never heard of an oil related failure in a Ford. Defective workmanship, maybe, but not oil.

The only thing you have to worry about is the build up of harmful substances, some of which have already been mentioned, which contaminate the oil.

Changine the oil every 3,000 miles for dino oil, 5000 for OTC synthetics (like Mobil 1), and 10,000-18,000 miles for Red Line and Amsoil will eliminate any worry you may have. The formulations today take into account virtually all concerns.