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Which oil to use for a 2000 explorer with a 5.0 v8

Rick98

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City, State
Chicago, IL
Year, Model & Trim Level
2001 Eddie Bauer AWD
I heard some people say that either you have to use the 5w 30 motorcraft synthetic blend or at least a different brand synthetic blend. Is that true because at the moment im using conventional penzoil 5w30 and i dont want to destroy my engine
 



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I run Pennzoil 5-30 full synthetic....
 






You don't HAVE to use synthetic anything (blend or otherwise) in your 5.0 if you don't want to. Use conventional or full synth. Those "blends" seem to be a marketing ploy and nothing more (to me).

The conventional vs synth argument gets played out all the time and no one is "right". Do what feels best for YOU.

I personally use Amsoil Signature Series 0w30 full synth in my 5.0 and have since I got it 4+ years ago. It's good stuff.
 






0-30?

I think you mean 10-30

I wouldn't stray from the factory recommendation of 5-30 unless you're running a modded engine
 






0-30?

I think you mean 10-30

I wouldn't stray from the factory recommendation of 5-30 unless you're running a modded engine

Say what?

I think I know what oil is in my crankcase.

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You do realize that 0w30, 5w30 and 10w30 are the same oils at "operating temps" (i.e. once car is warmed up), right? 0w30 just flows better at very cold temps. I can attest to that during a recent -30C spell here in Calgary. 0w30 is awesome stuff in winter.

That's the first time I've ever heard your logic. Sorry, it's flawed.
 






Say what?

I think I know what oil is in my crankcase.

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You do realize that 0w30, 5w30 and 10w30 are the same oils at "operating temps" (i.e. once car is warmed up), right? 0w30 just flows better at very cold temps. I can attest to that during a recent -30C spell here in Calgary. 0w30 is awesome stuff in winter.

That's the first time I've ever heard your logic. Sorry, it's flawed.

I never heard it caled 0w-30... I always hear it called 30weight or SAE-30 and BTW, you are running a modded engine, so I was kinda saying you are open to run what you need
 






I never heard it caled 0w-30... I always hear it called 30weight or SAE-30 and BTW, you are running a modded engine, so I was kinda saying you are open to run what you need

Those oil weights you mention are different than 0w30. SAE-30 is not the same as 0w30 (or 5w30 or 10w30 for that matter).

My wife's stock Subaru Outback uses the same oil I use. It's good stuff in ANY engine (assuming 5w30 or 10w30 is recommended). Long time EF member "Aldive" uses it in his "Mileage Monster". He lives in Florida so I don't think he's worried about cold starts but he is getting all the benefits of using a kickass, 30 weight multigrade oil.
 






I have been using Royal Purple 5w-30 for the last year.
 






Yeah i perfer penzoil than that motorcraft crap because it got dirty and thin after a few weeks. The motorcraft filter is something else that i will never use again because even though the box said it had an anti-flow back seal the explorer would still dry start. So now I use Wix which has been doing great.
 






I use either Quaker State "Q" full-synthetic, or Mobil 1 Sythetic. Unless you're motor is already starting to smoke/knock/etc.. from other serious mechanical problems, I would run 5w30, especially in smaller engines. You can actually feel the difference between 10w30 and 5w30 in, say, a 2.2L Cavalier! I mght go along with the 0w30, if I built the motor myself, and knew it had pretty tight tolerances. Without knowing the previous history, I'm not comfortable going quite that thin, especially in the summer.

The Mobil 1 oil is $22/5 quarts at Walmart. Again, as long as your motor is mechanically sound/not misfiring/running rich, then you should be fine with 5-7,500 mile change intervals. Also be sure to use a decent filter, not the Walmart brand, or STP,etc... Personally, I like the Fram Tough Guard (Grey body, with the "grippy" stuff on the end). There will prob. be a bunch of guys jumping on here in 3...2...1..., to bash Fram. I've used them for approx 15 years, on many, many vehciles (including a 6-7,000rpm dirt stock car), and never had single oil-filter related problem.
 






Yeah i perfer penzoil than that motorcraft crap because it got dirty and thin after a few weeks. The motorcraft filter is something else that i will never use again because even though the box said it had an anti-flow back seal the explorer would still dry start. So now I use Wix which has been doing great.

You sure you don't have excessive blowby,misfire, or an over rich a/f mixture washing down the cylinder walls, and contaminating the oil? No oil should be "shot" in only a couple of weeks of normal driving, unless there is something else wrong.
 






Without knowing the previous history, I'm not comfortable going quite that thin, especially in the summer.

0w30 is NOT "thin". The "0" part only measures how easily the oil flows at very cold temps. Hence 0 flows better than 5 which flows better than 10 when it's super cold. At normal temps and at operating temps (when car ir warmed up), they're all 30 weight oils. 0w has benefits at startup only and gets the oil flowing (and coating) quicker than 5w or 10w.

A lot of folks (yourself included) simply don't understand how to read oil ratings and just assume 0w30 is "thin" because of the "0". It's not. 5w20 is actually "thinner" than 0w30. 30 weight oils are "thinner" than 40 or 50 weight oils. If 5w30 is your oil of choice, you can do no wrong using 0w30. In fact, 0w30 is actually a more useful oil to many people because of its ability to flow in cold temps. I rarely "need" the 0 rating, but it's nice to have it in winter when things do get that cold now and again.

Reading oil viscosity ratings <---
 






no the engine has no problems what so ever. The comparison between the motorcraft and penzoil is a huge difference. I change my oil EVERY 3000 miles no matter what and the penzoil would still have a nice golden color when I change the oil. I dont know but it seems like the quality in motorcraft oil is low, probably recycled oil. LOL but maybe its because I like to drive my EX pretty hard. I dont abuse it, I just have to have fun and perhaps the motorvraft stuff cant take it
 






no the engine has no problems what so ever. The comparison between the motorcraft and penzoil is a huge difference. I change my oil EVERY 3000 miles no matter what and the penzoil would still have a nice golden color when I change the oil. I dont know but it seems like the quality in motorcraft oil is low, probably recycled oil. LOL but maybe its because I like to drive my EX pretty hard. I dont abuse it, I just have to have fun and perhaps the motorvraft stuff cant take it

I have to agree on the motorcraft semi synthetic--

it does get dark fast, and, geez look at the price. I do not recommend it at all.

It did the same thing in my wifes Nissan. I tried to save some money but do not feel good about this stuff at all.

However, what I do is get the least expensive synthetic I can. If I want to splurge it is amsoil all the way.
 






Yeah I heard Amsoil is some top notch stuff but what about royal purple? is that any good and they are both just as expensive.
 






NAPA full synthetic...which is Valvoline Synthetic. On sale here every 6 months or so, and I buy a year's supply. $3/qt. Not bad. M/C oil filter. Since my 98 Mountie only gets 250 highway miles per week, I usually change the oil every 6500 miles or so.

I spent a couple of weeks on Bobs the oil guy .com a few years ago. It's the go to site on oil. Synthetic got the nod there

Now on my 89 Town Car with 260k miles, 20w50 dino Pennzoil.
 






0-30?

I think you mean 10-30

I wouldn't stray from the factory recommendation of 5-30 unless you're running a modded engine
Say what?

I think I know what oil is in my crankcase.

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You do realize that 0w30, 5w30 and 10w30 are the same oils at "operating temps" (i.e. once car is warmed up), right? 0w30 just flows better at very cold temps. I can attest to that during a recent -30C spell here in Calgary. 0w30 is awesome stuff in winter.

That's the first time I've ever heard your logic. Sorry, it's flawed.
The three engine options for the 2000 ford explorer which are the 4.0l v6 sohc, the 4.0l v6 (engine code x), and the 5.0l v8 all require 5 quarts of 5w30. However, ford recently put out a service bulletin for the 5.0l v8 engine and now recommends using 5w20 synthetic oil for this particular engine option. Jan 2, 2020
 






Nice Christmas Update to a 10 year old thread!!

Whatever oil you put in your 302m be sure to CHANGE IT OFTEN, that is the key :)
 






Ditto, my last two 302's have been oil burners. Changing oil regularly is key, leave it in too long and the filthy oil degrades the seals and valve guides faster, cylinders too. I prefer synthetic, it does protect better and allows less wear. Both of my 302's need head jobs likely, I'm sure most of the oil is going past the valves guides and seals. My prior 98 302 that I've had for 16 years didn't use much oil at all, it was well cared for.

Change it often enough, and with a best oil, don't forget the air filter also, it's equally important to oil quality.

Merry Christmas, 2020.
 



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0w30 is NOT "thin". The "0" part only measures how easily the oil flows at very cold temps. Hence 0 flows better than 5 which flows better than 10 when it's super cold. At normal temps and at operating temps (when car ir warmed up), they're all 30 weight oils. 0w has benefits at startup only and gets the oil flowing (and coating) quicker than 5w or 10w.

A lot of folks (yourself included) simply don't understand how to read oil ratings and just assume 0w30 is "thin" because of the "0". It's not. 5w20 is actually "thinner" than 0w30. 30 weight oils are "thinner" than 40 or 50 weight oils. If 5w30 is your oil of choice, you can do no wrong using 0w30. In fact, 0w30 is actually a more useful oil to many people because of its ability to flow in cold temps. I rarely "need" the 0 rating, but it's nice to have it in winter when things do get that cold now and again.

Reading oil viscosity ratings <---

And should you happen to have an ever so slightly leaking main seal, just like so many old Explorers have, then suddenly the whole reasoning around the viscosity at lower temperatures goes straight down the gutter by your driveway, simply because your beloved 0W30 will just leak out quicker. Similar with engines that burn more oil than they should.

Edit: Oh what an old thread :) Well that change to 5W20 for the V8 is interesting.

And: Frohe Weihnachten!
 






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