Oil Changes (and other maintenance) for the FFH

[stupac2]

Hi all, this car (the FFH) is the first car I've owned whose condition I cared at all about (my only previous car was a total clunker I used to get from point A to B in high school), and I'm wondering what the maintenance should be like. I'm assuming that whatever the owner's manual recommends is overly aggressive, but that's only out of cynicism. Should I keep to that schedule to as large an extent as possible?

 

Also, for oil changes, what kinds of oils are recommended? I saw a couple in a different thread, and I've read that hypermilers use thinner oils, but my knowledge of this kind of thing is rather poor. Additionally, is there any reason to have this done at a dealership rather than Jiffylube (or whatever), or doing it myself? I'm not sure if my dealership gave me the free oil changes others mentioned.

 

Thanks.

[Howie411]

I'd never take my car to jiffy lube or good year, they always seem to find something wrong. And also with this being a new year model car and a Hybrid, I'd rather have a trained tech doing it. I'm pretty sure at the Ford dealership they have specifically trained Hybrid Techs or so I was told.

[bbf2530]

Hi all, this car (the FFH) is the first car I've owned whose condition I cared at all about (my only previous car was a total clunker I used to get from point A to B in high school), and I'm wondering what the maintenance should be like. I'm assuming that whatever the owner's manual recommends is overly aggressive, but that's only out of cynicism. Should I keep to that schedule to as large an extent as possible?

 

Also, for oil changes, what kinds of oils are recommended? I saw a couple in a different thread, and I've read that hypermilers use thinner oils, but my knowledge of this kind of thing is rather poor. Additionally, is there any reason to have this done at a dealership rather than Jiffylube (or whatever), or doing it myself? I'm not sure if my dealership gave me the free oil changes others mentioned.

 

Thanks.

 

Hi stupac. :D I will answer your questions as best as I can. And just as an FYI, answers #1 & #2 are facts, #3 is my opinion:

 

1) No, the Ford Maintenance Schedule is not overly aggressive. And as long as your car is under Warranty, it must be followed to protect your Warranty rights. So yes, you should stick to the Ford Service Schedules (not what the Dealer will tell you, but what the Ford "Hybrid specific" Schedule in your Owners Manual (and the separate Ford Maintenance Schedule that includes non-Hybrid maintenance for the Fusion) states.

 

2) Use the oil that is recommended by Ford (I believe the Hybrid is also 5W-20). In your Owners Manual are Maintenance Product Specification charts. While you do not have to use the Motorcraft branded oil recommended by Ford, you do need to use an equivalent 5W-20 oil that meets the Ford specifications. If you do not and later have engine trouble that can be even remotely traced back to an incorrect oil viscosity/spec, Ford can/will deny your Warranty claim. Trust us when we state that hyper-milers and others who say otherwise do not know more than the Ford engineers (and be wary of anyone who pretends to know more than the people who designed your car). Additionally, if you have engine trouble and a denied Warranty claim, those who told you to ignore Ford's maintenance schedules will certainly not be there to pick up the tab for you. :titanic:

 

3) Concerning where to have service performed? My advice: I will not use Jiffy and Quik-Lube shops. Far too many horror stories for the few dollars you may save. You can get coupons for oil changes good at all Ford Dealers through the Ford Genuine Service and Ford Fleet websites. Again, in this way your Warranty rights are fully protected. If you decide to do your own oil changes and routine maintenance, be sure to keep good records and all receipts for oil, filters etc. And be sure to perform all maintenance on schedule according to the Ford Scheduled Maintenance Guides.

 

Hope this information helps.

 

Good luck. :beerchug:

Edited February 19, 2010 by bbf2530

[dogo88]

Hi stupac. :D I will answer your questions as best as I can. And just as an FYI, answers #1 & #2 are facts, #3 is my opinion:

 

1) No, the Ford Maintenance Schedule is not overly aggressive. And as long as your car is under Warranty, it must be followed to protect your Warranty rights. So yes, you should stick to the Ford Service Schedules (not what the Dealer will tell you, but what the Ford "Hybrid specific" Schedule in your Owners Manual (and the separate Ford Maintenance Schedule that includes non-Hybrid maintenance for the Fusion) states.

 

2) Use the oil that is recommended by Ford (I believe the Hybrid is also 5W-20). In your Owners Manual are Maintenance Product Specification charts. While you do not have to use the Motorcraft branded oil recommended by Ford, you do need to use an equivalent 5W-20 oil that meets the Ford specifications. If you do not and later have engine trouble that can be even remotely traced back to an incorrect oil viscosity/spec, Ford can/will deny your Warranty claim. Trust us when we state that hyper-milers and others who say otherwise do not know more than the Ford engineers (and be wary of anyone who pretends to know more than the people who designed your car). Additionally, if you have engine trouble and a denied Warranty claim, those who told you to ignore Ford's maintenance schedules will certainly not be there to pick up the tab for you. :titanic:

 

3) Concerning where to have service performed? My advice: I will not use Jiffy and Quik-Lube shops. Far too many horror stories for the few dollars you may save. You can get coupons for oil changes good at all Ford Dealers through the Ford Genuine Service and Ford Fleet websites. Again, in this way your Warrant rights are fully protected. If you decide to do your own oil changes and routine maintenance, be sure to keep good records and all receipts for oil, filters etc. And be sure to perform all maintenance according to the Ford Recommended Maintenance Schedules.on schedule.

 

Hope this information helps.

 

Good luck. :beerchug:

 

 

I agree with all you said. I would also like to point out that if you want to do your own oil changes get the oil and filter from Wal-mart. They have the Ford 5-20w oil and Ford Motorcraft filter FL-910 and lower prices than anybody else. Here are some instructions I copied from another thread:

 

If you have always done your own oil changes, the FFH is no different except for removing a couple access panels on the bottom of the engine.

 

There are 2 access panels on the bottom, one is marked "oil filter access" and the other "drain plug access" or something along those lines,

 

and you'll need a couple small sockets to remove those. Other than that, you need a 13mm socket for the drain plug, and a FL 910 Motorcraft filter.

 

Once done, you need 5 qts oil, I use 5W-20 synthetic.

 

If you don't mind taking 30 minutes of your time to change the oil, you will find no surprises on the FFH over other cars you've had.

 

Dan

[junehhan]

You have to be careful when you read what some hypermiles suggest, because some of them are actually crazy and won't pay for your repairs should something go wrong. The internet is full of hobbyists who often give improper advice.

 

If you wish to go to a thinner oil, I believe the only one that still meets Ford's specifications is the Mobil 1 0w20 full synthetic. Other than that, you will want to make sure that you use at least a semi-synthetic 5w20 that meets Ford's specs. What Ford suggests is not overly aggressive at all, and is viewed by some to be stretching things a bit longer than what many of us are used to.

 

Oh, and please do not use those Jiffy Lube and similar quick lube places. If you trust your dealership, you can always give them a try and establish a relationship with them. Some dealers are a lot more reasonable with their prices than others, so I can't suggest one way or the other for you. I have owned Fords, and I have the maintanence done at the local Chevy dealership as I built a relationship with them for several years, and they will do my oil changes for $6 if I just bring in the oil and filter for them.

 

I havn't needed to do an oil change yet, but I will likely continue with my tradition of using nothing other than Mobil 1 full synthetic combined with a Mobil 1 oil filter.

[mjoconnell]

After you change the oil, is there a maintenance mode to make the engine run to check for leaks and what not? I've always done this after an oil change to make sure the filter gasket isn't leaking.

 

I've looked around but haven't found a procedure. So far I've done things like turn up the cabin heat to force the engine to run (eventually).

[lolder]

Just get in the car, turn it on and step on the accelerator pedal about one third. The ICE will start and stay running as long as you hold the pedal but you don't have much control of the rpm. The HVB will charge all the way to "H" and then stop charging but the ICE will still run until you release the pedal. This is how you prepare the car for a long period of no use. (You disconnect the 12 v battery in that case.)