Why I Change My Own Oil

[amschind]

My issue with BMW and Daimler is their insistence upon extreme levels of complexity that border on sadism. BMW actually invented a cylinder head with 3 cams such that one cam interacted with the intake cam to replace the need for a throttle body. The air-water intercoolers and hot core V8s are another great example. The absolutely wild coolant and oil piping sometimes resemble a chemical plant.

The greatest quote on engineering, for me, is from Antoine de Saint-Exupery:
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

The Germans do not get that.

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[TheGoatman]

My issue with BMW and Daimler is their insistence upon extreme levels of complexity that border on sadism. BMW actually invented a cylinder head with 3 cams such that one cam interacted with the intake cam to replace the need for a throttle body. The air-water intercoolers and hot core V8s are another great example. The absolutely wild coolant and oil piping sometimes resemble a chemical plant.

The greatest quote on engineering, for me, is from Antoine de Saint-Exupery:
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

The Germans do not get that.

It’s call a pushrod v8

godZilla and gm gen v motors - peak of the ice

 

[Snakebitten]

I have picked some good ones over the years. My first Mercedes was a 1992 500E. It was without a doubt the finest vehicle that I have ever owned. I gave it away with 340K miles on it. I regret it to this day. My first Porsche was a 1978 930 Turbo (I still have it). Oil changes are not a problem. A spin on filter in the engine compartment, but you do need a large catch pan to accommodate the 12 quarts in the dry sump. There is a factory sticker under the hood that states to use Mobile 1 only. It is my oil of choice to this day. My first car was a 69' Camero Z/28 that I ordered the summer of 1968. I worked 40 hours a week during high school and 90 hours during the summer to pay for it. I pumped a lot of gas at $.19 a gallon and changed a tanker full of oil to be able to drive that car. It's another car that I wish that I still had. I don't understand why kids won't even think about working these days. I wouldn't be the same person today without the cars that I have owned and the jobs that I have had. I learned from every one of them.

A question about new F-150's, I have a regular cab with 6.5 bed, 4x4, and a 5.0 V8 on order. The 3.73 rear end is the only rear end available, which happens to be the same gear as my Z/28. Back in the day, I could only dream of a ten-speed transmission with the gears spread like the ones today. I can run the numbers, but I just have a tough time picturing how it will behave in the real world. Some of the models come standard with 3.31 gears with the same 5.0 in a heaver truck. First gear is so low that I hear that it is rarely used and 9 and 10 are so high that they are seldom used. Does the rear end gear really matter when you have a ten-speed transmission?

Just as you suspect, the 10-speed is very much an equalizer for 90% of the ordinary use of your truck.
I've had both a 3:31 & now a 3:73.

The difference between them is far less than what you and I experienced in our youth.

 

[Dale B]

My issue with BMW and Daimler is their insistence upon extreme levels of complexity that border on sadism. BMW actually invented a cylinder head with 3 cams such that one cam interacted with the intake cam to replace the need for a throttle body. The air-water intercoolers and hot core V8s are another great example. The absolutely wild coolant and oil piping sometimes resemble a chemical plant.

The greatest quote on engineering, for me, is from Antoine de Saint-Exupery:
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

The Germans do not get that.

You say that yet you drive a twin turbo V6 from Ford that has more computing power than the moon landings. You are correct that the higher end models are so complicated that I can't imagine keeping them beyond 100K miles due to the cost of repair. That is the reason that they depreciate so quickly. That is also the reason that I insisted on a normally aspirated engine when I was looking for a truck.
My daily driver is a 1999 SL500. The reason for driving a 25-year-old car is that the newer models are so complicated that it is nearly impossible to keep them on the road long term. They are fantastic when everything is working right, but when they start to age there are just so many things to go wrong.

 

[Big Dog Daddy]

A question about new F-150's, I have a regular cab with 6.5 bed, 4x4, and a 5.0 V8 on order. The 3.73 rear end is the only rear end available, which happens to be the same gear as my Z/28. Back in the day, I could only dream of a ten-speed transmission with the gears spread like the ones today. I can run the numbers, but I just have a tough time picturing how it will behave in the real world. Some of the models come standard with 3.31 gears with the same 5.0 in a heaver truck. First gear is so low that I hear that it is rarely used and 9 and 10 are so high that they are seldom used. Does the rear end gear really matter when you have a ten-speed transmission?

The 10R80 makes a big difference in these trucks for both high and low end ratios. My 5.0 is equipped with a 3.31 rear and makes it a nice highway cruiser. From a standing start it always starts in first gear and often time jumps straight to 3rd, by design as I understand. It defiantly moves right into tenth at highway speed only using 8 or 9 during acceleration. The 10R80 really gives you the best of both worlds. For comparison see the attached spread sheet. First is my 2012 with the 6R80 then my 21 with 3.31 and 10R80 and 3rd is your truck 10R80 with 3.73.

 

[amschind]

You say that yet you drive a twin turbo V6 from Ford that has more computing power than the moon landings. You are correct that the higher end models are so complicated that I can't imagine keeping them beyond 100K miles due to the cost of repair. That is the reason that they depreciate so quickly. That is also the reason that I insisted on a normally aspirated engine when I was looking for a truck.
My daily driver is a 1999 SL500. The reason for driving a 25-year-old car is that the newer models are so complicated that it is nearly impossible to keep them on the road long term. They are fantastic when everything is working right, but when they start to age there are just so many things to go wrong.

I look at it slight differently. I don't penalize computing power incorporated into a design for a few reasons:
1) a computer is a solid state device that should theoretically last forever if not abused.
2) complex controls are unavoidable for higher performance and efficiency
3) a computer allows us to isolate complexity into a solid state device which would otherwise have to exist in mechanical form.

Think about a camshaft: it's a solid state memory device. The number of heavy moving parts required to write, read, and actuate that form of memory are immense vs say an electronic fuel injector.

Now a fuel injector requires far less force, so the actuator can be far smaller. But consider an opposed cylinder direct injected 2 stroke with a hybrid ultracharger (exhaust turbine, intake compressor and motor/generator all on one shaft). Despite the extreme computer requirements, the mechanical parts count falls to cranks, con rods, pistons, the gears to connect the cranks, water pump impeller, oil pump impeller, and the common ultracharger shaft. We could argue about complexity there, and while there is certainly a great deal, it is almost all isolated in the software.

If you can isolate complexity in a solid state device, you avoid many of the pitfalls of complexity. But perhaps an even bigger benefit is that sometimes systems which appear simple really aren't. A 2 stroke weed eater engine might appear simpler than the engine described above or the Ecoboost, but in terms of the fluid dynamics and thermodynamics, it is arguably more complex. Sometimes, a mechanically MORE complex system is actually SIMPLER than a mechanically less complex system because it makes the complexity explicit and controllable. That's most of why the Otto cycle is so popular: it's much simpler to control than a 2 stroke. If we can make the complexity explicit while isolating it to a solid state computer system, we can get the best of both worlds.

I strongly agree that the PB is overly complex, which is why I'm such a fan of an opposed piston engine powering a series hybrid.

 

[Calson]

A question about new F-150's, I have a regular cab with 6.5 bed, 4x4, and a 5.0 V8 on order. The 3.73 rear end is the only rear end available, which happens to be the same gear as my Z/28. Back in the day, I could only dream of a ten-speed transmission with the gears spread like the ones today. I can run the numbers, but I just have a tough time picturing how it will behave in the real world. Some of the models come standard with 3.31 gears with the same 5.0 in a heaver truck. First gear is so low that I hear that it is rarely used and 9 and 10 are so high that they are seldom used. Does the rear end gear really matter when you have a ten-speed transmission?

The engineers at Ford think it does. Check the Ford Towing Guide and look at the max tow specs for the different engines and different gears and there is quite a wide spread. This also shows up with the Ford Max Tow package that provides either 3.55 or 3.73 gears for the three engine options.

When 5-speed transmissions first became available I still went with 4.10 gears as the 5th speed was an overdrive gear. My 2022 F-150 with the 10 speed transmission has 3 overdrive gears. The overdrive ratio is .636 for 10th gear, .689 for 9th gear and .854 for 8th gear.

 

[Dale B]

The 10R80 makes a big difference in these trucks for both high and low end ratios. My 5.0 is equipped with a 3.31 rear and makes it a nice highway cruiser. From a standing start it always starts in first gear and often time jumps straight to 3rd, by design as I understand. It defiantly moves right into tenth at highway speed only using 8 or 9 during acceleration. The 10R80 really gives you the best of both worlds. For comparison see the attached spread sheet. First is my 2012 with the 6R80 then my 21 with 3.31 and 10R80 and 3rd is your truck 10R80 with 3.73.

Thanks for the spreadsheet. You can even compare tire sizes. It is interesting that I can get close to the effective ratio of a 3.31 by increasing the tire size. The sheet is a very useful tool.

 

[Big Dog Daddy]

Thanks for the spreadsheet. You can even compare tire sizes. It is interesting that I can get close to the effective ratio of a 3.31 by increasing the tire size. The sheet is a very useful tool.

Your welcome, Sir
I was actually looking at your trucks 3.73's / transfer low and first gear at 1100 rpm, it becomes a real rock crawler.

 

[Dale B]

I look at it slight differently. I don't penalize computing power incorporated into a design for a few reasons:
1) a computer is a solid state device that should theoretically last forever if not abused.
2) complex controls are unavoidable for higher performance and efficiency
3) a computer allows us to isolate complexity into a solid state device which would otherwise have to exist in mechanical form.

Think about a camshaft: it's a solid state memory device. The number of heavy moving parts required to write, read, and actuate that form of memory are immense vs say an electronic fuel injector.

Now a fuel injector requires far less force, so the actuator can be far smaller. But consider an opposed cylinder direct injected 2 stroke with a hybrid ultracharger (exhaust turbine, intake compressor and motor/generator all on one shaft). Despite the extreme computer requirements, the mechanical parts count falls to cranks, con rods, pistons, the gears to connect the cranks, water pump impeller, oil pump impeller, and the common ultracharger shaft. We could argue about complexity there, and while there is certainly a great deal, it is almost all isolated in the software.

If you can isolate complexity in a solid state device, you avoid many of the pitfalls of complexity. But perhaps an even bigger benefit is that sometimes systems which appear simple really aren't. A 2 stroke weed eater engine might appear simpler than the engine described above or the Ecoboost, but in terms of the fluid dynamics and thermodynamics, it is arguably more complex. Sometimes, a mechanically MORE complex system is actually SIMPLER than a mechanically less complex system because it makes the complexity explicit and controllable. That's most of why the Otto cycle is so popular: it's much simpler to control than a 2 stroke. If we can make the complexity explicit while isolating it to a solid state computer system, we can get the best of both worlds.

I strongly agree that the PB is overly complex, which is why I'm such a fan of an opposed piston engine powering a series hybrid.

I agree that the complexity is necessary to achieve the fuel economy required today. In my hot-rodding days, I dreamed of a 5.0 V8 that could produce 400 HP on regular gas.
I would disagree on your thoughts that solid state computers are trouble free. The main problem is the hundreds of sensors, solenoids, modules, and actuators that those computers are connected to. As someone that has been stranded, dead in the water, because a crankshaft position sensor failed. They either work or they don't, and that engine isn't going to start until you replace that sensor and there are no work arounds.
I had to scrap an S430 earlier this year because the solid-state instrument cluster just quit. I didn't worry about losing the speedometer, but the fuel gauge and odometer were part of the cluster. They stopped producing the cluster a decade ago and you can't go to a junk yard and get another one because the main computer checks the odometer reading and compares it to the last reading and will shut everything down if it is more than a couple of percent off. That is to prevent someone from changing the instrument cluster to 'roll back the mileage'. The body and drivetrain were in great shape, but it just made since to scrap it.
The problem is that there are hundreds of parts that have to work with the computers that require compatible firmware and revisions to work properly. The manufacturers don't continue to make those parts for very long after the car is built. I know that because I have several very nice cars that are over 20 years old and parts can be very hard to find, especially some electrical parts. I have passed on several cars that were less than ten years old with less than 50K miles on them because many of the electrical parts are no longer available. A little closer to home is that I have read on this forum that some of the current high-end models of the F-150 have as many as four electrical modules in the rear taillights and a replacement can run over $3,000.

That is one of the reasons that I want a basic truck with few bells and whistles. Ford is one of the few sources for a basic truck. I don't want a back seat, I don't want carpet, I don't need two zones of A/C, I don't want a heated steering wheel, or electric seats, and I don't want turbo chargers. I would even take a delete for roll up windows if they made those. None of the dealers seem to want to stock such vehicles unless I want it white. I had a 2023 on order, but when the 2024 was announced, the price dropped over $2,000. It didn't sound that way on the surface, but when you configure one with a 5.0, locking rear differential, 4X4, and the safety features, they are all standard on the 2024. The result is a $2,000 price drop over the same 2023. So, I cancelled the 2023 and ordered a 2024.

Basically, I am just a grouchy old man that has passed the baton on to the younger generation. God help us.

 

[Dale B]

Your welcome, Sir
I was actually looking at your trucks 3.73's / transfer low and first gear at 1100 rpm, it becomes a real rock crawler.

I have a pretty good-sized place and there is a spot with a steep hill that several times after a good rain, I had to just leave my old '87 F-150 and walk home. It was a long bed with a 4.9 six without Posi traction. I would have to wait several days for the ground to dry out before I could walk back and retrieve the truck. I decided that it was time for a 4X4 truck.

Since I ordered the truck, I have read about the supercharger option and the old hotrodder in me says 300 HP for $10K has my name all over it. Dreams are free.

 

[Dale B]

Does anyone on here pump the oil in the crankcase out through the dipstick tube of their F-150? I have been doing that with my other cars for years and wondered if anyone else is using that method.

 

[amschind]

I agree that the complexity is necessary to achieve the fuel economy required today. In my hot-rodding days, I dreamed of a 5.0 V8 that could produce 400 HP on regular gas.
I would disagree on your thoughts that solid state computers are trouble free. The main problem is the hundreds of sensors, solenoids, modules, and actuators that those computers are connected to. As someone that has been stranded, dead in the water, because a crankshaft position sensor failed. They either work or they don't, and that engine isn't going to start until you replace that sensor and there are no work arounds.
I had to scrap an S430 earlier this year because the solid-state instrument cluster just quit. I didn't worry about losing the speedometer, but the fuel gauge and odometer were part of the cluster. They stopped producing the cluster a decade ago and you can't go to a junk yard and get another one because the main computer checks the odometer reading and compares it to the last reading and will shut everything down if it is more than a couple of percent off. That is to prevent someone from changing the instrument cluster to 'roll back the mileage'. The body and drivetrain were in great shape, but it just made since to scrap it.
The problem is that there are hundreds of parts that have to work with the computers that require compatible firmware and revisions to work properly. The manufacturers don't continue to make those parts for very long after the car is built. I know that because I have several very nice cars that are over 20 years old and parts can be very hard to find, especially some electrical parts. I have passed on several cars that were less than ten years old with less than 50K miles on them because many of the electrical parts are no longer available. A little closer to home is that I have read on this forum that some of the current high-end models of the F-150 have as many as four electrical modules in the rear taillights and a replacement can run over $3,000.

That is one of the reasons that I want a basic truck with few bells and whistles. Ford is one of the few sources for a basic truck. I don't want a back seat, I don't want carpet, I don't need two zones of A/C, I don't want a heated steering wheel, or electric seats, and I don't want turbo chargers. I would even take a delete for roll up windows if they made those. None of the dealers seem to want to stock such vehicles unless I want it white. I had a 2023 on order, but when the 2024 was announced, the price dropped over $2,000. It didn't sound that way on the surface, but when you configure one with a 5.0, locking rear differential, 4X4, and the safety features, they are all standard on the 2024. The result is a $2,000 price drop over the same 2023. So, I cancelled the 2023 and ordered a 2024.

Basically, I am just a grouchy old man that has passed the baton on to the younger generation. God help us.

A lot of those evils arise from two sources:
1) Deliberate specificity to ensure vendor lock in and ultimatley replacement and
2) Good old fashioned crummy engineering.

The solution to that is smaller companies that cannot afford to screw us. I'm very strongly considering buying an Aptera because one of their core goals is that the owner can repair the vehicle. Every part has a bar code on it that the user can scan and order a replacement for. The Big 3 are (probably?) smart enough to figure out how to achieve that, but they don't want to so that we have to buy new cars from them and we refuse to force their hand. Most of these ills trace back to us, the consumers. If we don't demand better, the companies will give us as little as we're willing to tolerate.

 

[Dale B]

The engineers at Ford think it does. Check the Ford Towing Guide and look at the max tow specs for the different engines and different gears and there is quite a wide spread. This also shows up with the Ford Max Tow package that provides either 3.55 or 3.73 gears for the three engine options.

When 5-speed transmissions first became available I still went with 4.10 gears as the 5th speed was an overdrive gear. My 2022 F-150 with the 10 speed transmission has 3 overdrive gears. The overdrive ratio is .636 for 10th gear, .689 for 9th gear and .854 for 8th gear.

I think that way as well, but then why for a 2024 F-150 regular cab with a 6.5' bed the only engine option is a 5.0 V8 and the only rearend available is a 3.73 with lock up. Yet a regular cab with an 8' bed with a 5.0 V8 comes standard with a 3.31 and no locking? It would make sense that the 8-foot bed with its greater load capacity would need a lower gear than a lower capacity 6.5-foot bed. I don't understand the logic.

What I think has happened is that Ford is trying to streamline the manufacturing process by eliminating many of the options. The result is that arbitrary decisions have been made. It works for me because the available options that I would have ordered are now standard on the 2024 truck. It is exactly what I wanted. Some of the things that I wanted were not available on the 2023 model such as LED headlights and LED fog lights but are now standard or included in group 103A. By the way, that configuration is now over $2,000 less on the 2024 model than the same truck for 2023 due to the options that are now standard.

 

[notabot]

Does anyone on here pump the oil in the crankcase out through the dipstick tube of their F-150? I have been doing that with my other cars for years and wondered if anyone else is using that method.

Could not do that on my 2016 2.7L motor, dipstick tube did not route to oil pan. Not sure if the 3.5L ecobeast is different but I would appreciate some education on the topic for this motor!

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