Mixing oil

[TICKLE ZOMBIE]

Aloha!

When I bought my Ranger I immediately thought I would use Castrol Edge so I bought a quart to have in case I ran low on oil.

A few days ago I had the oil changed and shop used Amsoil OE.

I’m about to go on a long road trip soon, chances are high that I’ll never need oil but ya never know so should I get a quart or 2 of Amsoil OE to take with me or just use the quart of Castrol?

The things to ponder….?

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[Blmpkn]

Just stop using scamsoil period.

 

[BassRanger]

If you run into a situation where you need to put oil in your <1 year old truck on the road, the brand of said oil is going to be least of your concerns.

 

[Grumpaw]

Any synthetic or "dino" oil that is rated for your vehicle can be mixed without any harm.
Won't hurt your Ranger to mix similar weight oil.
Mix synthetic and "dino" oil.....what do you think "semi-synthetic" is ???
I use only synthetic in my vehicles, but I buy at WallyWorld, and frequently change between brands as costs go up and down for different brands.
Also, realize that the independent companies like Quaker State, Pennzoil, Amsiol, ect, do not have their own refineries....they buy their base stock from, and have it formulated by the oil companies that have their own facilities. Could be from any of half a dozen companies like Shell, BP/Mobile, Chevron (standard Oil).
The same T-Rex that turned into a barrel of oil could be spread between all the oil companies...result...same oil. What makes each a bit different is the additives each add to their "secret formula".

 

[Muddy Fenders]

In an emergency or an urgent situation I wouldn't lose sleep over it.
As long as the API rating is there, the oils will be compatible.
Be wary of mixing different viscosities, using different ones obviously will alter your desired viscosity rating.
As mentioned above, you would have bigger concerns if you needed to add oil by any significant volume at this early stage of your engines life. With that being said, no I wouldn't go buy the same type of oil. Use what you have if by some dumb luck you actually need it.

 

[THLONE]

What are you going to do with the answers you get on the web?

 

[Muddy Fenders]

What are you going to do with the answers you get on the web?

The same kind of information you would get from manufacturers and the like because all their info is posted and free on the google.

 

[FunInTheSun]

Mixing oil is a bad idea. Just because they meet the same specs, does not mean they are compatible. The base stocks are compatible, but the additive packages may react in unexpected ways. You might get lucky. Or you might not.

More detail: I worked in an FAA Repair Station servicing Engine Accessories for commercial passenger jets. The electrical generator (CSD/IDG) uses oils specifically formulated for this use. The oils are individually certified to meet all specifications, so they are technically "compatible"., but there is a very specific procedure to follow if switching oil brands. It calls for the component to be fully drained of the old oil, new filters installed, and the new oil installed and run until operating temp is achieved. Then the component is shut down, and the oil is drained and discarded. The filters are discarded, and new filters installed. Service (again) with the new oil, and then the component is considered airworthy and eligible for flight service.

Failure to follow this procedure is grounds for denial of warranty in the event of component failure (please note we are talking about an aircraft component, not an automotive engine). Failure to follow this procedure has resulted in the complete destruction of at least one IDG that I was personally involved with. Failed at 114 hours of operation. Filter analysis determined that the two different additive packages interacted to create a transparent film that restricted flow significantly. The cooling capacity of the system was reduced and the generator windings overheated and failed, The debris quickly spread throughout the gears and hydraulics of the IDG resulting in a total loss of the component. Cost to replace the IDG with new was over $300,000. Overhaul (teardown, cleaning, inspection and replacement of all damaged internal components) was over $180,000. To save the cost of 20 quarts of oil and filters.... Nope.

TL-DR = Buy a quart of whatever's already in there.

 

[Muddy Fenders]

Mixing oil is a bad idea. Just because they meet the same specs, does not mean they are compatible. The base stocks are compatible, but the additive packages may react in unexpected ways. You might get lucky. Or you might not.

More detail: I worked in an FAA Repair Station servicing Engine Accessories for commercial passenger jets. The electrical generator (CSD/IDG) uses oils specifically formulated for this use. The oils are individually certified to meet all specifications, so they are technically "compatible"., but there is a very specific procedure to follow if switching oil brands. It calls for the component to be fully drained of the old oil, new filters installed, and the new oil installed and run until operating temp is achieved. Then the component is shut down, and the oil is drained and discarded. The filters are discarded, and new filters installed. Service (again) with the new oil, and then the component is considered airworthy and eligible for flight service.

Failure to follow this procedure is grounds for denial of warranty in the event of component failure (please note we are talking about an aircraft component, not an automotive engine). Failure to follow this procedure has resulted in the complete destruction of at least one IDG that I was personally involved with. Failed at 114 hours of operation. Filter analysis determined that the two different additive packages interacted to create a transparent film that restricted flow significantly. The cooling capacity of the system was reduced and the generator windings overheated and failed, The debris quickly spread throughout the gears and hydraulics of the IDG resulting in a total loss of the component. Cost to replace the IDG with new was over $300,000. Overhaul (teardown, cleaning, inspection and replacement of all damaged internal components) was over $180,000. To save the cost of 20 quarts of oil and filters.... Nope.

TL-DR = Buy a quart of whatever's already in there.

Glad we arent flying then eh?
If the guys engine grenades, he can just turn towards the shoulder and throw on his 4 ways and call roadside assistance.

 

[RedDakooter05]

Mixing oil is a bad idea. Just because they meet the same specs, does not mean they are compatible. The base stocks are compatible, but the additive packages may react in unexpected ways. You might get lucky. Or you might not.

More detail: I worked in an FAA Repair Station servicing Engine Accessories for commercial passenger jets. The electrical generator (CSD/IDG) uses oils specifically formulated for this use. The oils are individually certified to meet all specifications, so they are technically "compatible"., but there is a very specific procedure to follow if switching oil brands. It calls for the component to be fully drained of the old oil, new filters installed, and the new oil installed and run until operating temp is achieved. Then the component is shut down, and the oil is drained and discarded. The filters are discarded, and new filters installed. Service (again) with the new oil, and then the component is considered airworthy and eligible for flight service.

Failure to follow this procedure is grounds for denial of warranty in the event of component failure (please note we are talking about an aircraft component, not an automotive engine). Failure to follow this procedure has resulted in the complete destruction of at least one IDG that I was personally involved with. Failed at 114 hours of operation. Filter analysis determined that the two different additive packages interacted to create a transparent film that restricted flow significantly. The cooling capacity of the system was reduced and the generator windings overheated and failed, The debris quickly spread throughout the gears and hydraulics of the IDG resulting in a total loss of the component. Cost to replace the IDG with new was over $300,000. Overhaul (teardown, cleaning, inspection and replacement of all damaged internal components) was over $180,000. To save the cost of 20 quarts of oil and filters.... Nope.

TL-DR = Buy a quart of whatever's already in there.

I have to agree except this ford ranger is a pile of turd on wheels compared to an aircraft.
A quart or two of a different brand/type of oil mix is perfectly fine if it's just to top off the crankcase.


Constantly mixing oils? Now that will cause issues later on.

 

[airline tech]

Glad we arent flying then eh?
If the guys engine grenades, he can just turn towards the shoulder and throw on his 4 ways and call roadside assistance.

The IDG is completely separate from Engine Oil, it is the Generator- If it fails and drops offline the opposite Engine (IDG) picks up the failed bus and the crew will start the APU and use that generator as back up - There is always redundancy protection (A Back-up) of some kind in commercial aviation
Yep-Mob Jet II, Is the Preferred - IDG Oil Now- Haven't seen a CSD in quite since awhile MD-80's retired - (If engineering and reliably group decides to run different oil) - it's a fleetwide campaign to Drain-Flush-Fill) with the new oil.
It's all depending on the Airline (As to what oil) is used - Mob Jet II,2380 or 2197
2380 - used to be the most widely used (IDG) oil - for all fleets, but have since swapped over to Mob Jet II
In my experience - You have less discrepancies on the IDG's with Mob Jet II (run's cooler)
There is an allowance to mix oil - but it must be documented and the IDG will have a limited number of flights or hours of use before it must be changed (removed and sent for overhaul) or oil drained-flushed and restored to original with filters changed
So, this instance will only be effective if the proper oil is not available other than that we are (NOT) allowed to mix oil - I have only seen this a few times

Talking about Oil - I've always wandered in my 30 years of Aircraft Maintenance as to why, aviation oil still comes in the old-school cans, and why it was never switched over to the plastic bottles like automotive oil did - the only thing I can come up with is the plastic locking ring-falling into the scupper or moisture protection (cans have better seal)-IDK. I've asked over the years, but nobody knows???

It's just one of those things in life that make you go-Hmmm

 

[FunInTheSun]

This particular IDG was on a 737 BBJ (same as 737 NG). True about separate oil supply, but it's still about 17 quarts or so (I think). I only saw them in the shop, so I don't know exact figures. Our standard oil at the time was 2380, and the unit is tagged accordingly. So there was a huge kerfluffle when the destroyed IDG arrived with black oil (really a super dark green as is normal for MJII). Because it was such a huge amount of damage, the customer demanded a complete overhaul for free. And at 114 hours, they were somewhat justified. They usually go 11,000 or so.

We asked why the IDG was not disconnected manually when the pilot noted it was running hot. Customer claimed there was no temp indicator. This was news to me. I knew there were no sensors on the IDG, but assumed the sensors had been moved off the unit to an external location to reduce nuisance IDG removals (pretty common for the Sundstrand IDGs). I was shocked to discover there are no temp sensors in the system. I actually wrote a letter to Boeing to confirm this and was told this improved reliability (lower nuisance removal numbers), but since it results in auto-disconnect being the only indication of overheating, it frequently results in a total destruction of the IDG. Thus I learned that higher reliability does not necessarily mean lower cost of operation.

Thanks...

 

[FunInTheSun]

I have to agree except this ford ranger is a pile of turd on wheels compared to an aircraft.
A quart or two of a different brand/type of oil mix is perfectly fine if it's just to top off the crankcase.


Constantly mixing oils? Now that will cause issues later on.

Note that the failure mode of the instance I cited was filter clogging due to adverse additive interaction. Even if this happens, it's not likely to result in catastrophic failure on the 2.3 EB. The engine oil performs a much different set of functions on an internal combustion powerplant as compared to an aircraft IDG. Low oil pressure will result in engine shutdown before failure. If not automatically, the red oil light flickering will alert you that something is wrong.

But if I have a choice, I'm going with the same stuff that's already in there. That's all I'm saying.

My story about the aircraft is something I found interesting to illustrate the kind of things that can happen that nobody without detailed knowledge believes before it happens to them.

 

[FunInTheSun]

Glad we arent flying then eh?
If the guys engine grenades, he can just turn towards the shoulder and throw on his 4 ways and call roadside assistance.

Haha. True. Can't just pull over at 30,000 ft.

 

[RedDakooter05]

But if I have a choice, I'm going with the same stuff that's already in there. That's all I'm saying.

My story about the aircraft is something I found interesting to illustrate the kind of things that can happen that nobody without detailed knowledge believes before it happens to them.

Totally. I only mix oils that are rated for the application when the need arises. Though in a pinch, I'll use a quart of at least automotive grade engine oil.


I barely attended highschool and I pull inventory for wire harnesses for a living. I'm far less knowledgeable than you in this case.

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