2012 f150 oil

Lowell Gehring · Dec 11, 2015

Good evening I have a 2012 f150 5.0 engine 2wd automatic. The book says full synthetic 5w-20. Seems really light. The pickup gets driven 6blocks to work and 6 blocks home 5 days a week. 30 mile round trip to town once a week with some longer trips mixed in. We bought it from a reputable dealer a year ago with 30k on it. It went 4500 mi on their oil in it. Do not know what oil was in it. My first oil change with Valvoline full synthetic 5w-20 went 2200 mi when change oil warning came on. What oil do other Ford owners use??? Lowell

Bob · Dec 11, 2015

"went 2200 mi when change oil warning came on."

"Change oil light" is based on the miles driven, gallons fuel burned, temperature or whatever else the manufacturer programs in and has NOTHING to do with the ACTUAL condition of the oil... does not in any way "sense" oil quality.

For that matter, my wife's Jeep which is a few years older is simply based on MILES DRIVEN and that interval can be set by the driver, though buttons on the dash. Dunno how your Ford works... take a look in the Owner's Manual and see if the driver can set the oil change interval.

VicS · Dec 11, 2015

I always use 5x30 valvoline semi synthetic. In our 5.4. Fords. My 6.2 f250 calls for 5x30 on the fill. Eco-boost calls for 5x30. I have went to full Valvoline synthetic 5x30.

huntingreen2day2 · Dec 11, 2015

You need to set the oil to 100 percent when you change oil. Look at your owners manual. It is based on miles driven after you reset it. nothing to do with the oil itself.

RM-MN · Dec 12, 2015

While you are looking in the owner's manual to see how to reset the change oil indicator, look at the specification for the oil to use and use that oil. My Ford Escape calls for 5W20 and I use the synthetic blend. It gets changed twice a year when it fits my schedule and at 135,000 miles it still doesn't use enough oil to need any added between changes.

John M · Dec 12, 2015

You have to rest that when you change your oil. If the book says 5/20 syn, use it.

showcrop · Dec 12, 2015

I have read that the manufacturers spec the light oil to help them meet corporate fuel mileage mandates. My F-350 with 6.0 specifies something like 5-20 unless towing, then 15-40.

Brendon-KS · Dec 12, 2015

Starting the engine cold then driving six blocks morning and evening is about as hard on oil life as you can get. This usage will cause the service reminder to come on with far fewer total miles than if you were driving ten miles to work each day. The thing to remember is that the oil life monitor does not actually sample the oil directly - it uses algorithms based on data that is already available to the computer such as total engine revolutions, speed, temperature, throttle position, etc, to calculate the oil condition.

As for the oil viscosity, running a thicker oil than what is specified can cause a lack of lubrication in the very close tolerance interfaces between components, especially under usage conditions that you describe. Modern machining techniques have allowed these tolerances to shrink over time as the precision has improved. This allows the use of thinner oils which in turn help improve fuel efficiency.

WGM · Dec 12, 2015

Per the manual, Motorcraft synthetic blend 5W20. Have been using it for years and have gone 200K + with no oil usage.

Russ from MN · Dec 12, 2015

Right, it doesn't test oil quality, but it predicts it! 6 blocks back and forth to work is about the worst thing you can do to engine oil. I would suspect it was reset and it is an accurate prediction, and get it changed and then leave it home in the garage and walk to work!

GVSII · Dec 12, 2015

(quoted from post at 05:10:39 12/12/15) You have to rest that when you change your oil. If the book says 5/20 syn, use it.

My '06 and '11 both spec. 5-20 but syn. is NOT required.The '11 has the oil life remaining feature which is reset to 100% at oil change but not the '06.I'd use whatever the manual calls for.

Gary Mitchell · Dec 12, 2015

I've run 05-20 Mobil one in my 2002 F-150, 5.4 since the break in period was passed. I run 8,000-10,000 between changes. 271,000 miles so far w/o a glitch. gm

Smalltowner · Dec 12, 2015

I have same truck exactly, use 5W-20 Valvoline MAxLife, holds 7.7 quarts, run it 4000 between changes, no problems. I guess you have noticed the auto trans is sealed, no dipstick, same with rear end "3rd member", and no grease certs anywhere I can find. I am very happy with the 5.0 engine, plenty of power and average 18.2 MPG. Ford is building good trucks these days.

Ozlander · Dec 12, 2015

6 blocks???
I'd be walking. Best thing you ever did.

onefarmer · Dec 12, 2015

Or a bicycle.

Jeff B. · Dec 12, 2015

I'd go with what they call for. All the newer rigs use super thin oil. My new 2016 Outback calls for 0W-20 synthetic.

wisbaker · Dec 12, 2015

If Ford is to stupid to know what weight of oil should be used in the truck they designed and built why did you buy one of their trucks? As other posters have said newer engines have tighter tolerances and need a thinner oil to provide effective lubrication in the tighter spaces. You'll also find some manufacturers have products that won't function properly if the wrong weight oil is being used, multi-displacement (systems that de-activate cylinders when the car/truck doesn't need the power) from Mopar won't work unless you have the specified oil viscosity, some of the Japanese engines with variable vale timing won't work unless you have the specified grade oil. Also consider the use of roller tappets or cam followers with bearings have changed the lubrication needs of modern engines.

David G · Dec 12, 2015

Did the change oil light come on when you changed the oil the first time?

I have had the dealers forget to reset the oil change signal and have it come on 1000-2000 miles after they changed it.

4play · Dec 13, 2015

Its not the tolerances that have changed, its not like older engines were built loose so thick oil is needed. Oil quality has changed and the engines and technology have changed too. Modern engines demand more from oil than they used to. You have things like overhead cams, variable cam timing, cylinder deactivation, direct injection etc. Modern engines run harder, make more power and last longer that older engines did, all while being cleaner and more efficient. Listen to the engineers about what oil they know is good for their engines.

On top of that they are actually trying to squeeze another .1% of a MPG of fuel economy across the board, it may not seem like a big deal to you and your truck but when you sell millions of vehicles it is a big deal. If you want a thicker oil, go ahead and try it, after all you own it, or at least make the payments.

2012 f150 oil

Lowell Gehring

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Bob

Well-known Member

VicS

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huntingreen2day2

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RM-MN

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John M

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showcrop

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Brendon-KS

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WGM

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Russ from MN

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GVSII

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Gary Mitchell

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Smalltowner

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Ozlander

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onefarmer

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Jeff B.

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wisbaker

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David G

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4play

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