I plan to install an hour meter on the ICE in my Ford Escape Hybrid.
In city conditions, in mild weather, my engine is only "on" 25% of the time.
( 25% of the time does not = 25% of the miles )

I also use a lot of P&G or "pulse & glide".
Doing this, in the right conditions, my engine is off for over 50% of the miles.
We already know this car has a 10,000 mile oil change interval, for these reasons stated above, but I think an hours meter would make sense in my case.

The BIG question:

AFTER HOW MANY HOURS SHOULD MY OIL BE CHANGED?

The answer is: 200 HOURS!

Those who don't wish to read the whole thread, need not go further.
This was found right there in the Owner's Manual on 8/26.

-John

 

That is the question, like the mpg thread. It REALLY depends on the driving conditions.
For hybrids the issues might be a little different, but heres some things to consider.

1 Does the oil get to proper operating temp?(250 deg F) and how long does it stay there?
If it doesn't condensation from the combustion chamber will not "boil off"
Unburned fuel will remain in the oil causing some dilution.

2 Does the oil get to hot? (probably not) (320 deg F)
If so the chains will break and some of the lighter chains will vaporize leaving a heavier weight oil

3 What kind of additive package is in the oil? is it a long life or standard?

4 Does the engine require anti corrosive protection for the oil system? how good is that in the oil?


The people that have looooong drain intervals use oil testing to tell when to change. But this costs about $30 and they are running 100,000 mi on synthetic motor oil. But they also have exotic filters that filter the oil down to .5 micro. Most of the time they get a build up of aluminum and tin from the bearings that they cant filter, or the additives go and it needs more than a quart or so to get them back.

 

I just ordered online two (2) hour meters that measure hours and tenths ####.# of an hour.

Why two? I want one to be a "key on" meter, and one to be an "engine on" meter.

The units are digital and have an on-board lithium battery with 7+ year lifespan to keep the lcd display active 24/7, but data is never lost, even if the battery goes dead. The hours accumulate whenever a 2v DC to 27v DC signal is input to the input wire.

I think I have a lot of options when it comes to finding a 12v wire that is hot anytime the key is in "run".

What are some suggestions for a 2-12v source that is on only when the engine is on? Fuel pump comes to my mind.

Most meter manufacturer's suggest an alternator wire.
But this car has none!

TIA
-John

 

The 2006 and up Crown Victoria police cruiser has an hour meter that only records time when the engine is running and the car is in neutral or park. Ford states in the Police interceptor manual that each hour on the hour-meter is equivelant to 33 miles of travel.


Hope this info helps,

08FEH

 

That's interesting... are you saying it ONLY records idle time in Park and Neutral? ( Not in drive )?

Is that so Maint. persons have to add 33 miles to the odometer per hour?
I can understand this, if that's how it works.

Police cruisers, ambulances, and fire trucks especially probably spend MOST of their "engine on time" at idle, parked, at an accident scene.

I think Ford already "extended" the oil change interval in the FEH because it has such little engine idle time. Are there any non-hybrids with a 10k OCI?

 

I know that one of the power outlets, the one on the dash is key power, the one in the console with the 110v outlet is battery. I will look monday when I get to the shop to see what you could use for engine running circuit. Sounds like a cool experiment. You could run another oil pressure switch which is what they do on tractors.

 

Also the fuel pump circuit, if it follows MOST of Ford late systems is a variable voltage to control the pressure and flow.

 

Okay, thanks. I have the wiring diagrams, but there are so many, I need a place to start and look. I'll see what I can find regarding the oil pressure switch and fuel pump. With the two timers, I will be able to see what percent of the time my engine is off. In the city, it's pretty significant.

 

Reading thru this thread, made me wonder if a hybrid should have an electric oil pump? My concern are those first few seconds after starting, that an ICE doesn't have full oil flow yet. For an hybrid, there are a LOT more ICE starts, and therefore, more seconds (is it just seconds?) of "dry" running. An electric oil pump could be started first, and then the ICE.

 

Neat idea.... wonder if we could get the scanguage guys to do something similiar.... All it has to do is measure the amount of time the RPM's read >0 and tally it with a reset button.