2014 2.0L Fusion Service Question

[webibeay]

Hi Folks -

 

Question - just picked up my 2nd Fusion - spouse took the 2011 Sport which I used to drive and I got a 2014 2.0L Titanium for myself. I know the Oil changes on the 3.5L sport were supposed to be 5,000 miles but the Titanium is telling me 10,000 miles on the service reminder. Does that seem right? Does it use more or a special oil to get that long out of it?

 

Last Turbo I had was an 80's Chrysler product with repeatedly blew up - Just want to make sure I service this one appropriately.

 

Thanks in advance -

[FusionDiffusion]

10,000 miles is the new norm. Your car has an intelligent oil change monitor, so just change the oil when it tells you to. It will account for your driving style and adjust the interval automatically. As long as the oil meets Ford specs you don't have to worry about what kind, but just FYI the oil they use at the dealer is a synthetic blend.

[bbf2530]

Hi Folks -

 

Question - just picked up my 2nd Fusion - spouse took the 2011 Sport which I used to drive and I got a 2014 2.0L Titanium for myself. I know the Oil changes on the 3.5L sport were supposed to be 5,000 miles but the Titanium is telling me 10,000 miles on the service reminder. Does that seem right? Does it use more or a special oil to get that long out of it?

 

Last Turbo I had was an 80's Chrysler product with repeatedly blew up - Just want to make sure I service this one appropriately.

 

Thanks in advance -

 

Hi webibeay. Just an additional FYI - You have an oil life monitor in your 2011 Fusion Sport and the Fords oil change recommendation is as follows (from the 2011 Owners Manual) -

"NORMAL SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE AND LOG

For your convenience, your vehicle is equipped with a message center

which determines the proper oil change service interval. You should

perform the engine oil change as indicated by the message center. The

message center will display ENGINE OIL CHANGE SOON or OIL

CHANGE REQUIRED to indicate when an oil change is needed. The

engine oil change service needs to be completed within two weeks or

500 miles (800 km) after the OIL CHANGE REQUIRED message is

displayed. Your oil change service interval can be up to one year or

10,000 miles (16,000 km). Reset your Intelligent Oil Life Monitor™ after

each engine oil and filter change; refer to the Instrument Cluster chapter.

If your message center is prematurely reset or becomes inoperative, you

should perform the oil change interval at six months or 5,000 miles

(8,000 km) from your last oil change."

 

Not telling you what to do with your car, just providing the information so you can make an informed decision. Whatever you decide to do, good luck.

Edited April 28, 2014 by bbf2530

[junehhan]

My advice to you is to do what makes you feel comfortable. We can talk about theoretical intervals per a computer's recommendation or oil waste or money wasted, but the fact remains that peace of mind can be worth far more than any of those possible arguments. One thing I will say is that this engine uses direct fuel injection, and direct fuel injection systems are prone to oil dilution if you like to make a bunch of short trips. Like you, I am a bit hesitant of going so long, but the folks at Ford did spend a lot of money developing the oil life monitoring system. Have you thought about using a fuel synthetic oil like Mobil 1? I did my first oil change at 6000 miles and plan on doing them every 7500 miles from now on since I have switched to Mobil 1 with a Mobil 1 filter.

[RNGMSTR]

I

Edited May 15, 2014 by RNGMSTR

[junehhan]

You are right about what you noticed on the Ecoboosts. Direct injection engines are prone to fuel dilution, especially when you are making shorter trips. In fact, I remember reading about someone who did an oil analysis and found that the viscosity had gone way down by the time they changed the oil. As for the black soot that you see, I wonder whether it is the nature of turbochargers combined with direct injection. Direct injection setups tend to produce more particulates(just look at the exhaust and bumper stains on the next Hyundai Sonata 2.0T you see), and turbochargers do tend to cook the oil if you shut the engine down right after stomping on the gas. Either way seeing the black oil is not a bad thing as it shows that the oil is doing its job by keeping everything suspended instead of gunking up somewhere.

[akirby]

I think it's the combination of direct injection and running a rich mixture at times for better cooling. The next gen ecoboost engines (1.0, 1.5, 2.3, 2.7) are supposed to have better head cooling that should help with the latter.

[drolds1]

I guess they had a good reason to switch the EB engines from the 5W-20 oil to 5W-30.

[akirby]

I guess they had a good reason to switch the EB engines from the 5W-20 oil to 5W-30.

 

Which is why when I did my first oil change in the Fusion and accidentally used 5W-20 - I bit the bullet, drained it and replaced it with 5W-30.

 

Or as I like to say - I did a pre-change flush with 5W-20.

 

I figured there was a reason they spec'd 5W-30 when everything else uses 5W-20.

[junehhan]

I would also suspect that the 5w30 is better suited to handle a turbocharged environment because of the additional stability it offers at higher temperatures. I take my own oil to the dealer with every vehicle I have owned(Mobil 1 or Amsoil) mainly to make sure that what I want goes into the engine. I absolutely cannot wait to see what the new 2.7 Ecoboost will be able to do. With Ford switching it to a CGI block, that thing is very likely being calibrated to put out some major hp/litre. I kind of wish Ford would give up this V6 deal and go back to the days of the straight 6 like in the old F-series.