I changed the oil tonight in the '10 FEH and switched from Mobil 1 Extended Performance 5w-20 to the Advanced Fuel Economy 0W-20, with a new Mobil 1 M1-102A EP filter.

I did it with a friend and the first thing he noticed while were were under the car was that *all* the oil came out. He was like: "How much did you put in?" I said: "5 quarts last time." .... "It looks like more..." ... "It's not. That's 5 quarts."

What came out was "dark chocolate brown" but not black and it didn't smell "funny." (I didn't taste it, lol.) He just was not used to seeing the whole ~5 quarts come back out of the engine after 10,000 miles. After we refilled and used the new bottle to hold the old oil, it was full to the same level that came out of the bottle. Maybe an ounce difference. Reset procedure for the info. display is according to the manual, as usual. Scroll out to the 0% Oil, hit RESET for a few seconds, voila 100%.

So the engine used/burned almost NO oil in 10,000 miles. I am not "pounding" on the car but I am not babying it, either. Afterward, I took it out for a drive and noticed that it seems even smoother and quieter with the 0W-20 in it. Even at 4K+ RPM the engine is quieter. That may be my "placebo effect" but I think it's real.

In any case, this 2.5L engine is holding up well and it is not burning/leaking/using very much oil at all, which makes me very happy, because I don't want to deal with leaks or the PCV system right now.

I know people get quasi-religious about oil and filters, but I stick with Mobil 1 products because I have used them on eight cars over more than 20 years with more than 1.2 million combined miles and I have *NEVER* had an oil-related problem, including a couple of turbocharged cars, hot/cold climates, etc. I have also never had to replace a PCV valve. We have another Ford with more than 370,000 miles on it that has been Mobil 1'ed its entire life and it is still running strong.

"When the light is green, the trap is clean" as Dr. Stantz said in Ghostbusters.


YMMV...

https://www.mobil.com/en/sap/our-pro...s/mobil-1-0w20

 

When I changed the oil I was amazed how clean it was. No soot in my tail pipe either. The honda burned oil like mad so this was a pleasant change.

 

There's a lot to be said for building a relatively uncomplicated, under-stressed engine with good components like the 2.3-2.5L in these cars. Is it the smoothest/quietest/most specific HP inline-4 in the world? No. Will it last a long time and not give you a lot of grief? Looks like it to me.

It reminds me a little of the 2.3 liter inline 5, naturally aspirated SOHC engine in the Audi 4000 CS Quattro I once owned. Super powerful? No. Exotic? No. Reliable and tractable? Yes. The Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection could be finicky at times, as were the other electronics particularly the Idle Stabilization system, but the basic engine was almost bulletproof and "powerful enough." In the winter ice/snow on Nokias you'd be driving along with the differentials locked and Jeeps would be stuck, you're in this little red Audi 4-door sedan and they're like "WTF?"

"I have some rope here, tie it on the tow hooks, I'll yank you out!"

 

By the way last night after changing the oil I pulled into a gas station/convenience store for some gas and stuff, and right next to me was an '05 Hybrid, looked like Dark Shadow Grey Clearcoat Metallic, in very nice shape. Owned by a younger couple, used. I said: How many miles? "183,000."

"Oh, you're just getting started. Here, let me give you a couple of tips." I gave them the link to this forum and to Ford TechMakuloco, told them his story. I was wearing one of his t-shirts! "I don't get any money for this, he's just a square guy, and so are the people on that forum if you need help. Change the transaxle fluid!"