Oil Recomendations Please.....

[Maddogpro]

2004 TDCI MONDEO 130 GHIA X AUTO 83000 ish

LOOKING TO SELF oil CHANGE WHAT IS THE BEST AND WHERE FROM ? oh and what amount of litreage do i need ......

Cheers the dawg

[FOCA]

Hi the oil capacity is 6.5L, the difference between min and max (on the dipstick) is 2L

The old/ used oil is black - and easy to read on the dipstick modern (unused) oil is clear and hard to see, its easy to get a false reading - be careful

the car is supposed to be on a level surface to get a true reading on the dipstick - a slope can give a false reading

You can use 5W/30 5W/40 or 10W/40 (ACEA-A3/B3) The earlier cars used Semi-synthetic, 1st the oil change was 5000m, then 6000, then 10,000,(according to the Haynes manual) but i think that was with fully - synthetic oil

Some people use thicker oil in older, worn engines or change their oil viscocity summer/ winter (back in the day), but the modern oils offer protection in freezing cold to boiling hot conditions

i rate Castrol magnatec - its expensive though

Cheap pattern oil filters can restrict the flow and cause low pressure/ potential engine damage - better with genuine Ford or "premium" brands

If you leave your oil long enough without changing it, it "breaks down" and offers no protection, apparently it gets contaminated with water, combustion gasses (including carbon monoxide)

its toxic to plants (not too good for animals either) and a realatively small amount can pollute a large amount of land/ water (just ask BP - lets not go there) so the old stuff needs to be disposed of properly, and not poured down the drain

If you heat up your old nuts and bolts and drop them in used oil it rustproofs them

Can't think of anything else

[mintalkin]

Ford recomend 5w/30 6 litres

[stooge75]

Ahh blueing! Not blue'd anything in years. Brings back memories of bein an apprentice.

Used to hate the smell tho,of dropping metal into oil. Yuk

[stevegtuk]

5w/30 fully synthetic is the recommended oil, formula f or Castrol magnatec are the most popular options.

[BOF]

Essentially, there have been three Ford specs over time; the 'A', 'B' and 'C' (something like WSS-M2C 913-x, in each case).

The '-A' is now sufficiently old that you probably won't see it around any more (which isn't a problem for modern-ish cars, as they won't have been specified to use it in the first place). The '-B' must have been the current spec from about the mid-nineties to around 2011, or so. If the '-B' was current when your car was produced, you could argue that the '-B' was what Ford originally envisaged when the car came out and their life/service estimations were based on the '-B' so it must be suitable.

I wouldn't, however, argue that the '-B' was 'better' (your choice of word) than the '-C'. The '-C' quality level is harder to achieve and is therefore 'better'. That isn't the same as 'more appropriate', as with your driving conditions, whatever they are, it might, for instance, be more appropriate to use the '-B' and change more frequently, but that wouldn't make the '-B' a 'better' oil, just a more appropriate one.

Sometimes the '-B' is referred to as a semi-synthetic oil, and the '-C' as fully synthetic- this is an irrelevant misunderstanding. As far as I have been able to see, the Ford specs do not call out for any particular technology to be used, so, for example, if you looked at the Texaco Havoline oil meeting '-B', early on the oil claimed to be 'semi-synthetic' and later on, it claimed to be 'synthetic' (and also met the similar Jag spec) without any other change in what specs it claimed to meet. Even putting aside the argument about what synthetic might mean, the Ford specs tend to call out results, not marketing waffle (as they should). That said, most of the oils meeting '-C' are fully synth, and, early in its life the '-B' spec oils tended to be semis. (Again, not that 'synth' and 'semi-synth' are quality levels.)

Now, having said all that, there shouldn't be anything on the market meeting '-C' that is any way a bad oil for your engine; the '-B' should be cheaper to buy, but the '-C' should always be a good quality product.

As to brands, I'd agree with the others that the Magnatec (middle of the Castrol range) meeting the '-C' is a good oil. (Just to make the point, the top of the Castrol range, Edge is 'better', but may be less appropriate, and, in particular, if you chose the wrong viscosity may offer you more engine wear, higher price and lower fuel economy. Although the chances are that Edge would work fine, but won't have been tested in your engine and will invalidate any warranty. Although, I think something like the Focus RS or ST did use an Edge oil of a different viscosity.)

There is also a Castrol 'plain' GTX (white packaging) that meets a Ford spec; I haven't tried it, and probably won't. I just feel reasonably confident with the Magnatec and don't trust this (except, maybe, briefly, as a running-in oil).

I also note that Halfords seem to have the Mobil FE3000 on offer reasonably frequently (and the Magnatec, for that matter), it meets the '-C' spec, and I imagine that's a good oil, but I haven't actually tried it (yet?).

I have also used the Texaco (in the purple packaging) in a petrol Ford and was quite happy with that (although Morrisons fuel stations used to sell that cheaply, they seem to have stopped doing that...effectively, if you can't get that cheaper or more conveniently than the Castrol or the Mobil, I would probably not consider it.)

I have also used the Car Plan Triple R semi-synth in a petrol Ford for a short period, and was a bit surprised to find myself happy ('cos it was that cheap), but that was when the '-B' spec was coming to the end of its life; since they have gone over to a fully synth '-C' spec oil, I've only seen theirs at a fairly high price; probably a good oil, but again I can't see paying significantly more than the Castrol or the Mobil to get it.

Roughly, anything that meets the '-C' is going to be a decent oil, and you should be able to buy it with confidence. Well, unless you think the manufacturer is lying and the product doesn't really meet the spec.

[stooge75]

Doesnt really matter with these tdci engines what brand of oil ya use,as long as its often & a good filter is used. All that Castrol lark etc is ok if u can afford it,but any oil,as long as the viscosity is right,will be good for you,along with a quality filter.

Even asda,tesco,factors,bla bla is perfectly suitable.

[FOCA]

Modern "ultra" high - performance oils tend to be fully synthetic to reach the (high) - spec

the fact that an oil is fully synthetic may not be relevant directly, indirectly it is because of the better spec, which may exeed Fords minimum requirement

so the fully synthetic technology >>enables<< the higher spec,

fully synthetic oils can run for a much higher milage than semi- synthetic oils