Question about maintenance and fuel rating

[Dr. Norts]

A bit of bullshit floating around here.

87 vs 93 octane....use whatever the hell you like. You won't notice a difference in fuel economy or power. Those that say otherwise either have a major placebo effect or had a bad tank of gas. Neither fuel is going to protect or degrade the engine mechanics or longevity over the other.

Here's one of the bits floating around. ^^^^^^^^

Sponsored

 

[CoolRod]

I believe factory and dealers use a 5w-20 synthetic blend. If you use a synthetic blend or full synthetic I don't think it really matters at all.

If you can't afford an extra $20/oil change 2x a year, then you can't afford a Mustang GT.

 

[wireeater]

I don't even stress the oil. I take my car to the dealership every 6k-ish miles and let them do it for me since it's pretty cheap ($54 with taxes for oil/filter change). They use the semi. I run e85 and check it occasionally and haven't notice the viscosity or anything being thin. This is the first time I let dealers change my oil but I'm just getting to the point were I stopped letting marketing departments of companies to influence me to pay more money for a product that in reality is marginal differences in the end. Normal driving only requires normal maintenance. If you are constantly racing your car (track for hours) and getting high oil temps, then ya maybe you should bump it up to a more "expensive" product.

 

[Zelek]

I'm already very familiar with V8 engines in this class using 93 octane so I don't use anything lower than that even though it can. Plus, when the engine gets tuned, it's going to be set on timing for 93 octane so I definitely will not be using any lower.

A stock tuned vehicle, 87 vs 93, probably not much difference. It's already tuned pretty conservatively to handle this and adjust.

For oil, I plan on going full synthetic as soon as possible when I get to around the 3,000 mile mark. I typically like sticking to the brands like Pennzoil, Amsoil, Mobil-1, but I'm going to do a little research on that with this engine. I check my oil dipstick around the 7,000-8,000 mark to see if an oil change is necessary.

 

[millhouse]

If you can't afford an extra $20/oil change 2x a year, then you can't afford a Mustang GT.

I’m sorry, but this is total bullshit. This has nothing to do with not being able to afford $20 extra per oil change. Why not spend an extra $50/oil change twice a year…or hell, $100? This isn’t about the marginal extra cost, it’s about what that extra cost gets you. On a 5000 mile oil change daily driver, it doesn’t get you jack shit.

Now with that said, I’m not saying there isn’t an advantage to running higher end full synthetics if you plan on hot lapping the track to strip where oil is likely to get far hotter. What I’m saying is, if you think for a second that at 200k miles your engine is going to be in better condition than mine because of that extra $20 per oil change, you’re smoking crack (and that’s assuming you still have your car).

I don't even stress the oil. I take my car to the dealership and let them do it for me since it's pretty cheap ($54 with taxes for oil/filter change). They use the semi. I run e85 and check it occasionally and haven't notice the viscosity or anything being thin. This is the first time I let dealers change my oil but I'm just getting to the point were I stopped letting marketing departments of companies to influence me to pay more money for a product that in reality is marginal differences in the end. Normal driving only requires normal maintenance. If you are constantly racing your car (track for hours) and getting high oil temps, then ya maybe you should bump it up to a more "expensive" product.

Ditto, I have a 10 year 200k mile powertrain warranty through my dealer as long as I let them do the changes. They throw in the motorcraft for a price that is cheaper than what I can do it myself for.

 

[NoVaGT]

I check my oil dipstick around the 7,000-8,000 mark to see if an oil change is necessary.

You need to be checking your oil every 1k miles on a new Mustang. Some of them burn oil, you need to monitor it.

 

[wireeater]

Eh. I checked mine every fill up for the first 15k miles then I stopped. If it isn't burning it between that time then it's not gonna start. I check it maybe every 4th fill up or so which would probably be around every 800 miles now.

 

[Zelek]

You need to be checking your oil every 1k miles on a new Mustang. Some of them burn oil, you need to monitor it.

Just checked mine on Saturday and it looks good at the cold level from sitting overnight. I got some good hard pulls in here and there on my way to the 1,000 mark. Looks to be doing alright so far, but I will continue to monitor it.

 

[NoVaGT]

Just checked mine on Saturday and it looks good at the cold level from sitting overnight. I got some good hard pulls in here and there on my way to the 1,000 mark. Looks to be doing alright so far, but I will continue to monitor it.

Beat on your motor. Lots of people that baby their Coyotes during break-in, end up with diesels.

 

[CoolRod]

I’m sorry, but this is total bullshit. This has nothing to do with not being able to afford $20 extra per oil change. Why not spend an extra $50/oil change twice a year…or hell, $100? This isn’t about the marginal extra cost, it’s about what that extra cost gets you. On a 5000 mile oil change daily driver, it doesn’t get you jack shit.

Now with that said, I’m not saying there isn’t an advantage to running higher end full synthetics if you plan on hot lapping the track to strip where oil is likely to get far hotter. What I’m saying is, if you think for a second that at 200k miles your engine is going to be in better condition than mine because of that extra $20 per oil change, you’re smoking crack (and that’s assuming you still have your car).



Ditto, I have a 10 year 200k mile powertrain warranty through my dealer as long as I let them do the changes. They throw in the motorcraft for a price that is cheaper than what I can do it myself for.

That was just a dish on his previous comment about if you can't afford 93 octane then you can't afford a Mustang GT. Which is total bull shit...

 

[millhouse]

That was just a dish on his previous comment about if you can't afford 93 octane then you can't afford a Mustang GT. Which is total bull shit...

LOL, my bad. I've become a cranky old shit and I'm not even 40 yet. :cheers:

 

[Genxer]

do you notice any change using diff oils? (performance wise)

No difference noted between oils. Seems like the Mustang runs better after an oil change but it's probably placebo. The oil that came out this last time looked dirty enough to make me feel right about changing it at the interval I did. It wasn't inky black but dark enough. I usually change my own oil and note how clean it looks. My judgment is pretty subjective but based on that I'd would never take my cars over 7500 miles unless running full synth. I'll spoil the Mustang and never go that long.

You can sure tell when looking at the color of ATF. You never ever want it black. Maybe a shade of brown.

 

[69mach1-395]

To get full power benefits of the 5.0, use premium gas. If not, then you'd be just as happy with a V6.

Really? IIRC, the hp difference is only a few near redline, not over 100 like a V6 would be. I think using top tier full is more important than a few octane or hp...:shrug:

 

[wireeater]

The whole argument of "you shouldn't have gotten a Mustang if you run regular..." is stupid (compensation problems?). The benefits of using regular over premium are pretty much nothing so I'm not sure why people get so bent up on it. Higher octane allows for better timing but a stock tune surely isn't going to be benefiting from that very much. It may pull a little timing if it's getting knock on regular but it's funny when people act like losing 5bhp-10bhp is going to be noticeable. To take advantage of premium you want to get a tune where the timing can take advantage. Like the guy above said, I'd be more worried about running top tier gas than the oct rating. Burning a gas that burns cleanly is more important to your car.

 

[Zelek]

The whole argument of "you shouldn't have gotten a Mustang if you run regular..." is stupid (compensation problems?). The benefits of using regular over premium are pretty much nothing so I'm not sure why people get so bent up on it. Higher octane allows for better timing but a stock tune surely isn't going to be benefiting from that very much. It may pull a little timing if it's getting knock on regular but it's funny when people act like losing 5bhp-10bhp is going to be noticeable. To take advantage of premium you want to get a tune where the timing can take advantage. Like the guy above said, I'd be more worried about running top tier gas than the oct rating. Burning a gas that burns cleanly is more important to your car.

I typically stick to Chevron / Shell on my Gasbuddy for these reasons.

Sponsored