Ready for First Service at 10,000 Miles - 2015 Ford F-150 Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.comEdmunds.com Member, Administrator, Moderator Posts: 10,316
edited June 2015 in Ford
imageReady for First Service at 10,000 Miles - 2015 Ford F-150 Long-Term Road Test

After 10,000 miles in our long-term fleet, it's time for the 2015 Ford F-150 to go in for its first service.

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  • allthingshondaallthingshonda Member Posts: 878
    Is the oil change mileage based or does Ford use an algorithm like GM's oil life monitor? Also, why don't you guys change the oil yourself instead of taking it to a shop. You have a hydraulic lift, use it.
  • 500rwhp500rwhp Member Posts: 99
    allthingshonda said:

    Is the oil change mileage based or does Ford use an algorithm like GM's oil life monitor? Also, why don't you guys change the oil yourself instead of taking it to a shop. You have a hydraulic lift, use it.

    Yes, it does. There is an algorithm that looks at engine loading, RPM, and oil temperature to accumulate oil life usage.
  • karmonkarmon Member Posts: 7
    Ninety-seven THOUSAND miles........err, how 'bout Ninety-Seven HUNDRED
  • tlangnesstlangness Member Posts: 123
    Nah, we were driving to the moon @karmon -- haha thanks. We'll have the production guys get that changed.
  • fordson1fordson1 Unconfirmed Posts: 1,512
    Well, for one thing the title is wrong...it was ready at 9,700, not 10,000. And while I don't share some folks' anxiety about a small-displacement, fairly highly-stressed turbo engine in this truck, neither does taking it a minimum of 1,200 and a maximum of 2,100 miles beyond its first change request sound like a really good idea.

    You knew the max before first change would be 10k, and you knew 10k would come during the trip to Idaho...should have done it before you left.
  • socal_ericsocal_eric Member Posts: 189
    The newer Ford intelligent oil life monitor does use sensor data and algorithms to determine mileage but it can't easily tell if you're towing or driving in severely dusty areas, for example, that might push you into the 'severe' or 'extreme' service conditions. As such, if an owner is doing a lot of those types of activities it wouldn't hurt to change it sooner according to recommendations. The factory fill Motorcraft semi-synthetic is a very high quality oil, but if you're doing tons of towing and want to go off the oil life monitor it might pay to switch to a full synthetic and do a used oil analysis to verify.

    Side note, my old '13 Focus ST called for a first change at almost the exact same mileage. Although it had a lot of highway miles it did see some driving in desert heat and the turbo was well utilized, an oil analysis showed the factory semi-synthetic wasn't quite at max service life so it appears the Ford system does leave some margin of error.
  • allthingshondaallthingshonda Member Posts: 878
    The newer Ford intelligent oil life monitor does use sensor data and algorithms to determine mileage but it can't easily tell if you're towing

    Actually if it is an algorithm based system it does know when you're towing and how many miles you towed. The truck's computer knows when a trailer wiring harness is connected and engaging tow/haul mode would also tell it you're towing or hauling heavy loads.
  • 500rwhp500rwhp Member Posts: 99
    allthingshonda said:

    The newer Ford intelligent oil life monitor does use sensor data and algorithms to determine mileage but it can't easily tell if you're towing

    Actually if it is an algorithm based system it does know when you're towing and how many miles you towed. The truck's computer knows when a trailer wiring harness is connected and engaging tow/haul mode would also tell it you're towing or hauling heavy loads.

    My truck certainly knows when it is towing. It even tells you if the trailer lights are all working. Towing would have an impact on engine loading as well, so the algorithm should pick up the impact of the towing as well as the towing itself. Not all towing is created equal.
  • socal_ericsocal_eric Member Posts: 189
    From the Ford tech docs I've read it doesn't *directly* read any inputs like if a trailer electrical (brake) light harness is connected via the body electronics controller or if the tow/haul is engaged and it really doesn't need to. The primary sensor data used by most good algorithms is based off coolant temp, calculated or direct oil temp, rpms, and engine load conditions (via the MAP sensor and/or MAF depending if the system is speed-density, airflow based, or a combination system like some newer Bosch controllers).

    So while the controller knows when the engine is working harder, there are still other variables like dirty/dusty conditions that can push you into the severe/hard duty maintenance schedule. There may also be some added safety built into the recommendation that even though the oil life monitor should be able to account for higher loads the engine is seeing, the manufacturer still plays it safe and calls for accelerated change schedules.
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