New truck-first diesel ever-a little help?

[acleary555]

Ok im new to the world of diesel and i have some questions i heard might could be answered here. I have a 1992 F350 dually with the Banks turbocharged 7.3 IDI motor. Im trying to figure out the BEST weight/kind of oil to use. Ive heard 30w but i dont know. And the big fuel filter or whatever that is under the hood does that need changed when i change my oil filter and oil? Still every 3000 miles even with all that oil? How MUCH oil? I just want to keep this thing running as smooth as it does now because im in love. Any helpful hints would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[whiteboyslo]

15w40. Brand is up to you. Ask a million people, get a million answers. Oil qty is 10-12 quarts depending on what kind of filter you use. Buy 3 of the gallon-size jugs and you'll be good to go. My truck still had the OE sticker on the engine, and it says 5000 miles for oil change intervals.

Fuel filter doesn't need changed that often. Every 20K miles or so?


Mike

 

[Trying my best]

I use Delo oil. About 11 qts, about 3000 miles. You prolly want to run some fuel additive.

 

['94IDITurbo7.3]

you use 11qts in 3K miles JK i know what you meant lol

15-40 non-synth Valvoline premium blue here.

 

[Trying my best]

you use 11qts in 3K miles JK i know what you meant lol

15-40 non-synth Valvoline premium blue here.

Hahahahaha

 

[kc0stp]

as stated above 15w-40, OEM recomendation for light duty work (minimal to no towing, 10+mile trips) was 5k, "severe" is 2500, personally for the fuel filter I follow the same theory we do on the buses/trucks at work, once a year unless it gets damaged some how (debri, poor install etc) when you replace either the fuel or oil filters make sure to refill them first (atf works for the fuel filter)

 

[idi_econoline]

Yep, Delo 15W40 over here also. I'm fond of Lucas Oil Stabilizer, but not everyone's cuppa tea.

Woohoo.... looks like the first one to say welcome to the OB IDI forum, acleary555. Hang with us, and you'll learn a LOT. And get to know some fine fellow IDI lovers in the process!

 

[OLDBULL8]

Since they have changed Delo 400 to Delo LE it's not as good as it was. Personally I changed over to Castrol ATX 15W-40. But it's your choice. Just make sure it's diesel rated.

Welcome to the OB. Just remember no question is too dumb to ask. Ask and you shall receive.

 

[RLDSL]

One thing nobody has mentioned yet that a lot of us do here is use a powerstroke oil filter for more capacity and better filtration( it's a tad bigger and filters down a bit finer) get one for a 96 powerstroke and it will fit just fine, it's just a larger filter.

COngrats on the new truck. Now is a great time to start taking care of it, especially since nobody probably has before. Chances are the insides of your engine are due for a REAL good cleaning to bring it up to peak performance and minimize oil consumption. You might want to consider running a couple of treatments of Auto Rx sometime in the next few oil changes to help bring the thing back to it's original performance. having free floating rings is a must for diesels, but over time, they get packed up with soot and varnish, no matter what oil you use ( although high end synthetics slow down the process drastically )

Delo 15w-40 is good stuff, Ran that in big trucks for years. Holds up well to hard use and high heat and would be my first choice in any diesel that I'm not running synthetic in.

I run Amsoil 15w40 Diesel and Marine in mine and change it..... er well I dont I have a bypass filter on there and and last test the oil had about 70k miles on it and was still fine the amount of oil the thing burns would be the equivilant of most folks who change if they changed at 5000 miles, actually never having to add any between changes, but since i keep going, I end up having to add a couple qts around that point

 

[fuzzy1626]

15w-40 Rotella every 3,000 miles. Why, because thats what was in it when I bought it in 07 and with 188,000 on the clock now, it still uses less than a quart in 3,000 miles...

 

[icanfixall]

Welcome to the forum. I run Chevron Delo 15W40 all year round and I use the powerstroke filter called 1995. Its made by Motorcraft too. Baldwin makes a great filter as does Wicks. Using the powerstroke filter gives you a larger filter and it cleans to a finer partical. The psd engines rewuire a cleaner oil. The 1995 filter holds an extra quart of oil too. Our engines take almost 11 quarts with the stock filter and almost 12 quarts with the psd filter. Never ever use the fram filters. They are not a quality filter. The fuel filters are a long use filter. Around 20,000 miles or so is a good place to change them. We do have a filter lite on the dash that will alarm when it gets plugged up too.

 

[idi_econoline]

Good points, guys. Finally put the bigger and better psd filter on, and my Baldwin bypass head and filter await install.

We used to have a huge Baldwin distributor here 30 yrs ago. No more; now get mine online from AZ.

 

[89greendiesel]

i guess i'll chime in. I change my oil every 2500ish with 15w40 Rotella T6 full synthetic. I don't use the powerstroke diesel filter but i think i will next time. I have a lot of relatively short trips doing building maintenance so i use the shorter interval. I'm gonna send in a blackstone oil sample soon just for poops and giggles.

I did my fuel filter when i did my fuel tanks about 5kish ago. I imagine i will do it again in the spring. I'll probably be around 10k on the fuel filter but it will have been on there for 1.5 years. It'll just be time. I mean, it's just a fuel filter, really cheap insurance.


WELCOME TO THE FORUM!

 

[acleary555]

Thanx you guys rock. This truck has 325000 miles but is like brand new. Motor has been rebuilt supposedly but not sure when. Sure appreciate the help.

 

[acleary555]

Do I need to fill my filter with oil before installing it?