So yesterday I finally changed my oil. I had roughly 10k miles on the oil.

The oil came out black but nothing abnormal from a diesel. It still seemed in good condition. I pulled the filter and checked every riffle but found no deposits and the filter maintained excellent condition. I used the extraction tube to extract the oil first. Then I removed the cover, I didn’t know I was going to have to, and used a 32mm socket to remove the filter. It was on pretty tight so took a little elbow grease to break it free. I unscrewed it until it was loose and let it sit for 5 min or so while I gathered my oil and cleaned my area. Then I went back to the extraction tube and again started pumping. I did this over a 15 min period with periodic breaks, usually to clean things, and each time it’d find more oil to remove. Overall it appears to have gotten most of it out of the engine.

To replace the oul oil I did TONS of research and found what I considered to be the best choice. I went with the Ford Motorcraft FA-4 oil that is newly released. Meets and exceeds all requirements and was specially formulated for the f-150 diesel and new Diesel engines moving forward. I bought two cases of it off eBay for $6.00 a bottle and now have a supply for additional changes. The filters I purchased from eBay as well, it was just easier, but went with genuine parts. Having pulled it and looked it over I really don’t think there’s any “premium” option that would actually be better.

I set the filter and added 4 quarts then started the engine. I added the remaining oil and I can tell you after a little driving yesterday it sounds smoother running. I did the computer reset based on instructions here but right now I’m showing 2500miles exactly till next service. I’m not quite sure what that’s about but I’ll try another reset, perhaps I didn’t hold it long enough.

Overall it was a VERY easy process and now having done it once I don’t see any reason why it should take more than 15-20 minutes. It was pretty enjoyable doing it myself as well as knowing special care was taken and several $$$ saved. Good to go for another year.

 

I followed your recommendation and got the same oil off EBay and ordered the filter and plug off of oemparts. Total in for the change was around $70 with S&H. Did the vacuum extraction followed by drain plug pull. Last oil change was done by the dealership for the 16k checkup. Oil looked good, no debris or shavings on the plug or filter. I didn't do it myself I paid a local mechanic that works on Land Rovers he charged me $70 for the change which all in was about $260 cheaper than the dealership wanted at $399. They weren't even going to pull the plug for that price. Will likely do these myself going forward via extraction port, but FYI the dealership doesn't seem to pull the plug even on the yearly services.

 

How much extra came from the plug? I let mine sit and then would pump and get more.

 

Could you please share your process for the reset as mine didn’t / hasn’t worked

 

Sit inside, hit the ignition but don’t have foot on brake, pop hood, hood brake and gas down for 1min

 

Have about 70k and finally did one myself. Pulling the skid panel and plug was easier than I thought, especially compared to what I had to pull off to do the front brakes. Thinking the suction method from the top could never be as complete as a drain, especially for anything sludgy, but that’s just my opinion.

After much research, I could find no source for the special LR Castrol oil so bought it from the dealer at $12 quart. Atlantic British even says on their web site that it is only available from the dealer. There must be a reason LR couldn’t find an off the shelf oil that had the chemical compounds they wanted for the TD engine. If it were just a marketing label thing I wouldn’t care but it’s apparently a unique formulation. If anyone has any oil specs on what makes it different, or can prove it is the same as some other oil, that would be great !

The fact that dealers charge hundreds of dollars for this has been eye opening regarding what other repair charges must be like, so I bought the manual from Manual4you to see what else can be done by owners who have tools and no fear. (I have an old Lotus so used to working on British vehicles. ). Grin

 

The JLR spec for these diesels is an ACEA C1, although they used to say you could use a C2 if you had to. Ravenol has a C1 and Motul has a C1, but I don't like the specs of those oils as well as some ACEA C3 oils that are out there. C1 is a low SAPS oil, C2 and C3 are mid-SAPS. I suggest a C3 mid-SAPS with an HTHS ≥ 3.5 for protection of your bearings and camshaft lobes. FA-4 is basically the 5w-30 spec to the CK-4 which is a 5w-40 spec oil, but both specs still allow SA content to <1.0, so I would suggest a good C3 oil over those. The lower the SA content the better, as well as the lower the Noack (evaporation loss) which are important to engines with turbos. I was going to go with Motul 8100 X-clean EFE 5w-30 as I liked it's specs well enough until l decided to go with Hot Shot's Secret Diamond Euro 5w30 with their FR3 friction modifier already blended in. Between my Hot Shot's Secret Everyday Diesel Treatment and their oil with the FR3 in it, my motor sounds noticeably quieter and seems to rev quicker and smoother. After researching a lot of motor oils I have came to the conclusion that if an oil manufacturer isn't willing to give me the specs on their oil, then why would I choose it over someone else who will?

 

I'm just going to throw this out there, but the information in that post (as well as in the Td6 p2002 thread) ought to be distilled into a list of recommended motor oils (brand, weight) and additives and made into a sticky.

Just sayin.

 

If you enjoy this discussion on motor oil you'll love Bob Is The Oil Guy (BITOG) forums! Just know that the JLR spec is a 5w-30 ACEA C1 oil, which is a low-SAPS (sulfated ash, phosphorus, and sulfur,) oil. If your dealer tries to give you any sh¡t ask to see what they sell and use and if it isn't the Castrol ACEA C1 oil than they can't give you too much grief. I've literally walked into a Porshe dealer maybe seven years ago now and found the parts counter was telling me that the oil they use for all their diesels was the same oil they were using on the gas vehicles. I asked to speak to a service manager and said to him, where is Porsche C30 spec? To think a Porsche dealer didn't even know what they were doing blew my mind.

In my Jeep EcoDiesel they went from a 5w-30 to a 5w-40 because they were experiencing issues with the crankshaft bearings but in order to not give JLR a reason to deny warranty (don't think they would have a leg to stand on because a UOA would show that the oil was doing it's job, but...) I prefer an ACEA C3 over a C2 because of the higher HTHS around 3.5 (as opposed to 2.9); OEMs are pushing for the lower values to increase mileage by a fraction of a MPG and I'm not convinced that they provide adequate protection. I decided to stick to a 5w30 over a 5w40. (SAE 30 weight is 9.3 to 12.49 cStokes and SAE 40 weight is 12.5 to 16.29 cStokes.) BMW, Mercedes, and VW all have comparable ratings for use with modern DI, turbocharged diesels with SCR (inc particulate filters,) so as long as you use an ACEA C3 5w-30, you'll probably be fine. Look for any of the following specs to know if you're on the right track. VW 507 / Porsche C30, BMW LL-04, or MB 229.51/52.

Look up the specs of the oil that you are using and compare. I didn't like the TBN of the C1 oils as I thought they were too low. You want a low SA content (mid-SAPS is 0.50 to 0.80 wt%,) with a high flash and low pour point (speaks to the quality of the base stock of the oil used,) and a low Noack figure as that speaks to the amount of burn off leftover from your oil to leave gummy deposits. I like Ravenol and Motul, I've used Mobil1 for years, but I was using Hot Shot's Secret EDT diesel additive and saw that they had a motor oil, as well. They also have a friction reducer called FR3 that can be added to any oil, and it kind of reminds me of Slick 50 back in the 1990's. My Dad put some of that in his 1990 Jetta TDI and wow, it quieted it down immensely. I actually had two 5L jugs of that Motul 8100 X-clean EFE on my shelf that I intended to use but when I weighed into the equation of what looked like a well-spec'd oil from HSS coupled with the FR3 already blended in, I decided to give it a shot. I really like it and I'm convinced it runs quieter. I like how Hot Shot's Secrets speak about their products, they are transparent with their specs. I also like how HSS will give you free shipping on top of a small Veteran discount.

https://www.hotshotsecret.com/

 

Ford Motor, Ford oil.