Is it possible that someone forgot or neglected to reset the oil life monitor with the previous oil change?
See, the thing is that changing your oil daily can't guarantee that the engine will last a quarter million miles. Some of them will. Some of them will last that long with the manufacturer recommended maintenance. Some will last that long with less maintenance. Some will last that long with ridiculously overconscientious maintenance. How many is some? Who knows. But the real number you need to know is "what is the difference in probability that the engine will last 250000 miles with the specified maintenance vs some other interval". It's probably a pretty low number. Then you figure out what the cost of the new engine will be. Let's say $5k. Then you calculate what the extra maintenance costs. Let's say $1k. Would a 100% chance of not spending $5k be worth $1k? Of course. Would a 1% chance of not spending $5k be worth $1k? No way. The thing is, you don't know that percentage. Only Ford can guess at that percentage with any credible data. The probability that a maintenance schedule from the internet will beat Ford's is probably a hell of a lot closer to 1% than 100%. Here's the other thing: you don't know what the percentage is with any specific alternate maintenance schedule. Is it 75% if you change the oil at 5k and 95% if you change the oil at 1k? Is it still 75% if if you change the oil at 10k? 85% at 3k? And remember, the important number is the difference in probability between different maintenance schedules, not the probability using one specific schedule. So if it's 95% likely to last 250k miles with the manufacturer schedule and 95.00001% likely to last 250k miles at a 5k schedule, you're spending $1k for .00001%. Don't go to Vegas to play those odds.
No, I had it since new and it was definitely 100% oil life on delivery. I only average 14.5mpg on account of always having a VERY good time driving my truck... After 6000 miles the oil was almost jet black, but still slippery, and without grit and goobers.
And Ford never will. The percentage of failure will always be unknown, bar a widespread catastrophic design or manufacturing flaw (ahem, Focus R/S headgaskets), so your guess of "it's closer to 1% than 100%" is just that; a complete guess. You take it on complete faith your truck will make it to 250k miles with what Ford suggests as a regular maintenance schedule.
So you don't get that some folks have extreme fuel dilution and the oil change monitor doesn't adjust oil change intervals for that?
Work on the reading comprehension. I didn't say the engine would make it to 250k with Ford's schedule, I said that the chance that your schedule makes it more likely to hit 250k than Ford's schedule is closer 1% than 100%. With all the ways an engine can fail (or the car can get totaled, or some other major component can crap out) to assert that a specific non standard oil change interval will significantly improve the odds that the thing will run longer is nothing but voodoo engineering. The engine may well blow up long before 250k, for reasons unrelated to the oil change interval.
And has no guarantee that it will increase the life of the engine. If that gives you peace of mind that's fine, but baseless. Also, don't forget a decent investment return on the $1k--same thing insurance companies make their money on.
I'm guessing you don't have a $30,000+ Ford Ranger with motor oil fuel dilution issues... shit happens.
Totally agree ! To each their own. 5K works for me.
How am I half right? I guessed you didn't have the fuel in oil issue?
