Maintenance Items - 2016 Expl Sport - Where do I start?

[Lexingtonian]

I have a 2016 Expl Sport in Metallic Gray (which I freaking love). This is an amazing vehicle and I want it to last a long long time - I drove it home with 11,000 miles on it, it now has around 15,000 miles.

Things I've done:

1.  I bought a 2 valve UPR Oil Catch Can (yet to be installed) and changed the oil to full synthetic the weekend I got it home.
2.  I've picked up a ForScan setup and made a bunch of changes to my liking (love love love how hackable this vehicle is).
3.  I've been upgrading the sound system to something a bit more ambitious. See link for by Build Log http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/build-logs-project-install-gallery/325353-2016-ford-explorer-sport-build-log-5.html#post4664714

Things I'm Considering:
1.  Ford ESP Extended Warranty
2.  A Tune

I've been reading about PTU oil changes and other things. Seriously looking at a tune as I run 93 Octane anyway. This question is for the guru's. Keeping in mind that I'm a better than average shade-tree mechanic, what are the next steps I should be taking to maintain this beast?

Thanks very much in advance.

Lex

 

[SHOdded]

No response?  C'mon, sleepyheads!  LOL!

Basic maintenance I consider necessary before a tune is applied:
1.  Spark plugs, new & gapped to 0.030 (or whatever your tuner recommends).  Tuned vehicles will eat plugs faster than non-tuned, keep that in mind.
2.  Check turbo/turbo related piping - clamps come loose or pipes split at the clamps (underside for some reason); put clamps on piping atop engine (no clamps from factory)
3.  Change all fluids - trans, PTU, RDU, coolant, brake, power steering (J/K on the PS) ... PTU fluid change I think will require you to drop a downpipe, since you have a monitored/cooled unit.
4.  Check all tires make sure they are in good condition for power driving
5.  Check shocks and struts to make sure they are not leaking; probably too early in the life cycle for your ride, but you never know
6.  Follow the Special Operating Conditions schedule for maintenance.

 

[ZSHO]

X2 on above and wholeheartedly agree.

If your looking to keep it long term such as me would suggest using a quality full
synthetic motor oil such as Amsoil,Redline along with a Motorcraft FL-500S oil filter.
I personally changed my PTU,RDU,TRANS Fluids along with the Coolant,Brake fluids roughly around 30k for a piece of mind and for reassurance purposes. Z

 

[MiWiAu]

I bought my XSport @ 28500 mi and changed my PTU @ 30k (along with synthetic motor oil and trans, RDU was shortly after). PTU oil analysis showed fluid was on the verge of becoming abrasive (pretty good for a lifetime fluid, SMDH).

If I were starting from scratch, I'd change the PTU fluid every 15k miles. It's a bit of a pain the first time, but you may want to consider PTU fluid change now vs later.

I'm coming up on 15k since my last PTU fluid change and will send in a new sample of oil for analysis.


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[Lexingtonian]

I really appreciate all the replies. Huge help! I will check everything out. I bought my XSport with a touch over 11k Miles and I now have nearly 16K miles. The weekend I got it home I dropped the engine oil and replaced with Mobile 1 Full Synthetic 5w30. Just changed the oil again with less than 5000 miles on it and sent to Blackstone Labs for analysis. Picked up a bundle of Motorcraft 500S filters from Rocks Auto.

Ordered 2 quarts of Motorcraft 75w140 Synth Gear Oil from Amazon over the weekend. Going to do a change on the PTU, drive it a couple hundred miles and change it again to ensure I sop up any gunk.

I plan on doing the PTU Change as illustrated here:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2t2YR1LVN3s

 

[SHOdded]

Great start!

 

[MiWiAu]

I plan on doing the PTU Change as illustrated here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t2YR1LVN3s

This is how I did mine. Also, I took the short end of an Allen wrench for the drain plug and shortened it by half on a grinder. It cleared the exhaust better and made removing/installing the plug less tedious.

I did a drain and fill, ran for about 20 miles, then did another drain and fill. It was black on the second drain as well, but didn't stick as bad to the walls of the glass jar I was draining into.

If you were so inclined, I'd be SUPER curious to see what a Blackstone oil analysis shows on just 15k miles of PTU fluid from the factory, since mine was toast @ 30k.



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[Lexingtonian]

If you were so inclined, I'd be SUPER curious to see what a Blackstone oil analysis shows on just 15k miles of PTU fluid from the factory, since mine was toast @ 30k.

I'm nearing 16,000 miles now, plan on doing the PTU in the next 2 weeks will definitely run a Blackstone on it as I'm curious too. How much oil did you get from the PTU when you drained it? Did you try to get a Mityac in there and get more fluid? I've seen guys say theirs was underfilled but it's nigh impossible to know without removing the down pipe and filling through the sensor (which I really don't want to do if I can keep from it.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Lexingtonian]

Thought I'd add my first Engine Oil Analysis.. Not a bad start!

 

[SHOdded]

This was on Motorcraft semi synthetic 5W30?  trying to figure out how far gone the oil was at time of OC

 

[BlueSHO]

This was on Motorcraft semi synthetic 5W30?  trying to figure out how far gone the oil was at time of OC

Says Mobil 1 5w-30 on the analysis sheet..

 

[MiWiAu]

How much oil did you get from the PTU when you drained it?

I don't recall exactly. When I first pulled the drain plug, a bunch went straight onto the driveway, so I never got a good measure. LOL Based on what I captured, and what I mopped up, I'd guess 16-17 oz.

I did a refill, drove for a few dozen miles and drained it again. When I drained it the second time, I pulled up on a ramp on just the driver's side, so it was listing toward the drain plug by quite a bit. I got all 18 oz out that I had added when I drained it this way (and didn't lose it in the driveway).

After drain #2, I added fluid from the top with the plug out until fluid coming out looked clean. Not sure how effective this was at flushing out the junk or if I was just wasting oil.



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[SHOdded]

I have to find the TBN for the Mobil1 5W30, but here are the rest of the specs:
http://www.mobil.com/english-US/Passenger-Vehicle-Lube/pds/GLXXMobil-1-5W30

TBN is 9.7, so not that much remaining.
http://www.pqiamerica.com/March2013PCMO/mobil1.htm

If we assume same rate of erosion, then you are dependent on oil alone and the additive packs are depleted by 6000 miles.

Xsports may just be harder on the oil I don't know.  This is how Mark's results looked on his SHO

Based on same TBN calculations, the oil was good for nearly 12,000 miles before the add packs wore out, under his driving conditions.  But the flashpoint was too close to end-of-life, I think.  So probably 9K is the "excellent" range for that oil.

All this, just speculation on my part, of course.

 

[Lexingtonian]

This was on Motorcraft semi synthetic 5W30?  trying to figure out how far gone the oil was at time of OC

Says Mobil 1 5w-30 on the analysis sheet..

I drained whatever was in it when I brought it home. It had around 11,200 miles. I replaced with Mobile1 5W30 full syn. Hope that helps make sense.

 

[Lexingtonian]

I have to find the TBN for the Mobil1 5W30, but here are the rest of the specs:
http://www.mobil.com/english-US/Passenger-Vehicle-Lube/pds/GLXXMobil-1-5W30


TBN is 9.7, so not that much remaining.
http://www.pqiamerica.com/March2013PCMO/mobil1.htm

If we assume same rate of erosion, then you are dependent on oil alone and the additive packs are depleted by 6000 miles.

Xsports may just be harder on the oil I don't know.  This is how Mark's results looked on his SHO

Based on same TBN calculations, the oil was good for nearly 12,000 miles before the add packs wore out, under his driving conditions.  But the flashpoint was too close to end-of-life, I think.  So probably 9K is the "excellent" range for that oil.

All this, just speculation on my part, of course.

Very interesting stuff, your oil kung-fu is far more advanced than mine for sure. It appears you're saying for my driving habits, there was far more life in my oil that even Blackstone said. Correct? Curious about the use of 5W20, thought all Eco 3.5's were 5W30?

I know there are better oils, or more to the point, oils that perform on specific specs better than Mobile 1 Synth, but I also don't mind changing it every 5-6k miles. So, in the end it's unclear how much more those better oils actually help as long as an oil is within its useable life. I'll keep doing analysis each change and watch the progress. Ordered another kit from Blackstone for the PTU and will change it once it arrives as well.

All the info is very much appreciated!

 

[SHOdded]

No, Blackstone was saying 7,000 on the Mobil1 5W30 for your X, and I am saying looks like 6,000 is more appropriate.  I was using Mark's car/results to illustrate that the right OCI will differ for different type of vehicles and different oils as well.

Mark's SHO is a 2010, and 5W20 was spec'd for that model year, and I think, part of MY 2011 as well.  You should be using 5W30, which you are

And your plan is a solid one.  I would say, you should def change the Mobil1 by 6000 miles max.

 

[hawkeye93]

FWIW, I also use Mobil 1 5W-30, and I change every 5K, regardless of what the car's oil monitor says (it often says I have over 40 or 50% remaining).  It's an easy reminder of when I need to change, whenever the odometer reaches a multiple of 5K.  Might be a tad bit too often, but I figure oil changes are one thing I have easy control over, and too often can't really be bad.

 

[Lexingtonian]

No, Blackstone was saying 7,000 on the Mobil1 5W30 for your X, and I am saying looks like 6,000 is more appropriate.  I was using Mark's car/results to illustrate that the right OCI will differ for different type of vehicles and different oils as well.

Mark's SHO is a 2010, and 5W20 was spec'd for that model year, and I think, part of MY 2011 as well.  You should be using 5W30, which you are

And your plan is a solid one.  I would say, you should def change the Mobil1 by 6000 miles max.

Thanks for clearing that up! I'm getting the itch to change my PTU fluid, may give it a go tonight or at least get all of my tooling and bits needed together such as the 1/4" ID Fuel Line and whatever I'm going to use to open the drain plug.

 

[Lexingtonian]

FWIW, I also use Mobil 1 5W-30, and I change every 5K, regardless of what the car's oil monitor says (it often says I have over 40 or 50% remaining).  It's an easy reminder of when I need to change, whenever the odometer reaches a multiple of 5K.  Might be a tad bit too often, but I figure oil changes are one thing I have easy control over, and too often can't really be bad.

I'm pretty much in the same boat, long time Mo 1 user. I'll typically run Mobile1 Full Synth around 6K in a gasser. I had a Diesel VW at one point and did Mobile 1 Turbo Diesel Truck oil for 10k intervals religiously. Put 348K miles on the VW before I sold it and it was still running like a sewing machine. I saw somewhere a person in the position to speak on the subject about the efficacy of oil said something to the effect of, "Oil is oil." Essentially some will last a little longer than others, but if you know how long yours lasts and keep the change interval in within the tolerance of that oil, the net result  on the engine is essentially the same. I like a more frequent change interval especially if I'm doing analysis as it would help me catch something that was an issue sooner than later. This last change I sent to Blackstone was at that 4500ish mile mark mostly because I wanted to get the previous oil mixed in with the Mo1 out sooner than later and was naturally curious how things are performing. I drive the truck medium-hard I suppose, It's hard for me to keep my foot out of for sure.

 

[SHOdded]

3/8 hose for the ptu fluid may work better.  although it should be freely flowing still at this mileage.