Ford V10 - engine oil

dhermesc · Jun 4, 2022

I just bought this truck today 1999 F250 with the v10. Brought it home and changed the oil and filter. Refilled with 6 quarts and back it
off the jack stands. First thing I noticed was there was only 3 quarts of old oil. Checked the oil and it appeared to be over filled. Old
oil was black - but not sludgy. I decided to drain the oil again. Got 5.5 quarts out but it looked as dirty as it would at 3000 miles - it
has only driven 10 feet.

Do you think I have an engine full of sludge?

Truck only has 130K miles on it and looks it. Previous owner claims it had a long block installed at 110K miles.

dhermesc · Jun 4, 2022

Truck appears to run well with no knocks or pings. No smoke either.

leroy in ne · Jun 4, 2022

Not familiar with that unit but some engines had 2 drain plugs. 1 ahead of cross member and 1 behind. I suggest checking for this.

Steve@Advance · Jun 4, 2022

Have you looked under the oil cap and any place you can peek into the valve covers?

If it is sludged up top, good chance it's dirty down below too.

If it got that dirty in 20,000 miles something is wrong or he hasn't got the story straight. It would not have sludged up in 20,000 miles if the oil had not been changed since the new engine.

Any check engine codes? Running extremely rich, open thermostat, excess idling and short trips would have explained the very dirty oil. It would have also clogged the converters.

Chances are there was no new long block, and the oil has been neglected for a long time. I would leave the new oil in and watch it, change it again when it gets to looking dirty, see what happens.

Mike(NEOhio) · Jun 4, 2022

I had a '99 with the 5.4 and it was always a quart or two low. Never leaked or smoked but always low. I think it's characteristic of overhead cam engines. Maybe valve guide seals need to be replaced.

Indiana Ken · Jun 4, 2022

The oil may look much darker in the bottom of a large pan as compared to a thin stream poured out of the bottle. You might put some new oil and some fresh drained new oil in identical clear glass jars. Set the jars side by side and compare in the sun light.

dhermesc · Jun 4, 2022

I put 5 quarts of new oil back in it and a pint of SeaFoam. Let it sit and idle for 20 minutes. The dipstick said it was over full. Drained it and got 5 quarts back out of it. Nothing more, again the oil looked extremely black for sitting and idling for 20 minutes,

Then I pulled the driver's side valve cover. The valves look VERY CLEAN no sludge - not even the usual scum/scale you see a lot of times.

dhermesc · Jun 4, 2022

It is giving code about the low flow in the EGR. Cleared it and it has not come back - yet.

DWF · Jun 4, 2022

I have a 2006 F350 with the V10. It takes 7 quarts to change oil. 5W20 is what the manual says to use. I have put 5W30 in it if I am doing a lot of towing in the summer.

DWF

37 chief · Jun 4, 2022

You are probably going to be ok. Maybe change the oil again after a few hundred miles. I have the same motor in my 02 motorhome. I also have a V10 in my 96 Dodge 3500. One thing about the V10 they like gas. Stan

Gambles · Jun 4, 2022

The V10 has only one drain from lug.
Certain Fords DID have two drain plugs. Didnt say much for their engineering, did it?

Gambles · Jun 4, 2022

I put about 2000 miles on a three-day trip with a 2004 F250 V10 about two months ago. It was about a quart low after the trip and I then did an oil change on it after I got back. I run 5W-30 in it and it passed everything except the gas pumps. Kidding, a little bit. For a V10, it didnt do too bad. After all, it was pulling a tractor and trailer behind it in the return trip. I wouldnt worry too much about sludge. These engines run pretty clean unless really neglected.

BobTx · Jun 4, 2022

I bought a new Pontiac Tempest in 1966. The transmission started acting funny. Dealer suggested we change the transmission oil. I very carefully watched the mechanic refill it, it showed overfull. I know we put the right amount of oil in. We measured the dipstick against another Tempest . My dipstick was too long, must have been from the big Pontiac. Put a new mark on the dipstick and all was well. You might check to be sure. Bob

Steve@Advance · Jun 4, 2022

That's good!

A healthy emission controlled engine will run very clean on the inside, even after a lot of miles!

D Slater · Jun 4, 2022

If a long block was installed the dipstick may not match. Ford had dipsticks off in some of those engines. Should have at least 6 quarts. Long block could have a different oil pan if included.

ss55 · Jun 4, 2022

After idling for 20 minutes the Seafoam probably cleaned off most of the sludge in the engine.

dhermesc · Jun 4, 2022

I might have an issue with the dipstick or I have something taking up a lot of room in the oilpan (Big lump of sludge?). Either way this
thing has been getting run with a vary small amount of oil in it.

I believe my mechanic has bore scope to look through the oil drain hole - he could tell if there is sludge (or something) in the oil pan or
see if the dip stick sits too deep in the pan.

The guy I bought it from texted me the paperwork for the engine. Supposedly it now has a 7 quart capacity - it was replaced in 2019 and
only had a 1 year warranty. I left the oil filter on and refilled with 5 quarts of oil - the dipstick shows it more than an inch and a
half overfull.

dbNga · Jun 4, 2022

my 02 f250 v10 takes 7 quarts of Ford 5w20 from wally world and it is so clean I can't see it on the dipstick until I drive it a while-only 125000 miles on it. Yes it loves the gas when doing any kind of pulling, usually 15 mpg on interstate doing speed limit. It's a keeper anyway.

DoubleO7 · Jun 5, 2022

Dipstick specs for a 2000, in a SD truck:
Part Number F81E-6750-JA
(all measurements from seating flat on handle)
o-ring 5/16
max (hole) 31-1/4
top of hatches 31-9/16
bottom of hatches (hole) 32-3/4
But if the block has a shorter tube, like for a van or motorhome application (maybe).........the above stick would be reading over full.

A 2 valve head V10 takes 6qts
A 3 valve head V10 takes 7qts

Texasmark · Jun 5, 2022

Yes. Drain the oil and stick your finger in the drain hole, rubbing the bottom of the oil pan. You need to put something like Sea Foam (I use the whole can (16 oz.) in a fresh oil fill.....of the proper quantity...dipstick full for reference, with a new filter and turn on the AC (for your truck to help the engine get hot) and run it for half an hour, sitting in the driveway.........run the RPMs up somewhat from time to time to get good circulation...... Drain that and install new oil and filter and the dipstick should come out clear this time.

I had a clear plastic container that I used for a tractor oil change once with lid. For some reason I sat it on a shelf and it sat there for several years. Sometime later I came upon it and noticed that the oil was clear, no longer black and there was a definite condensed pile of sludge on the bottom. I did it for a neighbor's 2016 JD 4052 that sat too long and a 1988 Ford 3910 I bought 2 years ago with 900 hours in an estate sale where it was obvious the old owner didn't use it any longer. Your engine has the same thing.

dhermesc · Jun 5, 2022

See my post below - I've already done that.

I bought a cable camera (would have saved me pulling the valve cover) and will drain it again and get a good look inside the pan. I am betting I find the dip stick tube has been cut too short and the dip stick it going way too deep into the pan. I will check that out and make sure there is no build up of sludge. I have a feeling the pan was grunged up after being run 20K miles with only 4 quarts in the pan. Putting 6 quarts in the pan cleaned the area up.

How full should an oil pan be? This pan has a flat top and baffles to keep the oil from splashing to much over rough terrain. I figured full should be up to the point that the crank can't splash into the oil. By flat top I mean it bolts to the bottom of the engine block without front and rear inlets (half circle) for the crank shaft bearings. The crank bearings for a Triton are entirely enclosed in the cast block.

Ford V10 - engine oil

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