Suggested Truck/Engine Options?

[Ashful]

I thought all the 4.8/5.3/6.0 gas engines took 6 qts also. All the 6.0 trucks I have had only take 6 qts.

Damn, that’s a small pan capacity for a 6.0L in a truck. Even my wife’s little Volvo 2.5L takes more oil that that, and they’re not planning for consumption of multiple quarts between oil changes. My RAM, our little SUV, and my sedan all spec 7.0 - 7.2 quarts.

No oil coolers on GM’s heavy duty trucks? That can add another quart, in most cases.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Speaking chronologically, think your vehicles are on either side of the GM small block “short skirt” debacle, that is the source of so many of the problems mentioned here.

I most likely(fortunately) missed those years. I did hear other GM owners online complain about excessive oil use ,though some were doing a lot of towing with a V-6 or small 8 .

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Damn, that’s a small pan capacity for a 6.0L in a truck. Even my wife’s little Volvo 2.5L takes more oil that that, and they’re not planning for consumption of multiple quarts between oil changes.

My wifes Camaro has a 6.2 and its 8QTs .

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I thought all the 4.8/5.3/6.0 gas engines took 6 qts also. All the 6.0 trucks I have had only take 6 qts.

Im going by my 2010 and 2015 manuals, i guess other years could be different.

 

[Medic21]

Speaking chronologically, think your vehicles are on either side of the GM small block “short skirt” debacle, that is the source of so many of the problems mentioned here. Google “GM piston slap,” if you were somehow living under a rock and missed this whole mess, fifteen years ago. In any case, it seems the “it’s normal for your vehicle to burn half a crankcase worth of oil between oil changes” statements all began with regard to this redesign.

I changed a lot of ford motors back in the late 90s For piston slap. The difference was Ford said that’s not normal and fixed them under warranty and GM said it’s normal for a gas motor to sound like a diesel for the first 5 mins lol.

 

[Highbeam]

The only reason I care about what the manufacturer thinks is the oil capacity is so that I buy enough oil for a change. Then I refill to the fill line and put the leftovers on the shelf. Are you folks really just dumping in what the book says it needs regardless of the dipstick reading?

15 quarts in the 7.3 diesel BTW. Just the filter holds two quarts. Lots of oil remains in the engine during a routine O&F job.

 

[Bad LP]

Every 6.0 I’ve owned including this 2018 was 6 quarts. Both my 13 and 16 were the same.

Here’s a picture taken 2 mins ago.

 

[Bad LP]

Picture got chopped but you get the point. Sorry for the dirt. It snowed last Friday up north and the crap was still melting and falling off yesterday not forgetting its raining down here to boot.

 

[Ashful]

The only reason I care about what the manufacturer thinks is the oil capacity is so that I buy enough oil for a change. Then I refill to the fill line and put the leftovers on the shelf. Are you folks really just dumping in what the book says it needs regardless of the dipstick reading?

I put in 1 quart shy of the specified fill, and then start checking with the dipstick. If I just spun a new dry filter onto the motor, then I fill right to the top of the range on the dipstick, knowing the initial filter priming is going to knock it back down a bit. If just topping off between changes, or on small engines without filters, then I fill to the middle of the range on the dipstick.

Another factor is that, other than my pickup truck, I usually do my changes on ramps, now. I can’t get a good reading on most vehicles on a ramp, so knowing the capacity is the only way to get anywhere close, before you back it off the ramps and do a check with the dipstick.

 

[Highbeam]

I put in 1 quart shy of the specified fill, and then start checking with the dipstick. If I just spun a new dry filter onto the motor, then I fill right to the top of the range on the dipstick, knowing the initial filter priming is going to knock it back down a bit. If just topping off between changes, or on small engines without filters, then I fill to the middle of the range on the dipstick.

Another factor is that, other than my pickup truck, I usually do my changes on ramps, now. I can’t get a good reading on most vehicles on a ramp, so knowing the capacity is the only way to get anywhere close, before you back it off the ramps and do a check with the dipstick.

Good point about ramps. I built a shop with a level concrete floor but I usually park my vehicles on a gently sloped garage type floor. The difference on the dipstick level is pretty amazing. I can only imagine the frustration of ramps. Time for a lift ashful! My long arms allow me to change even the car oils from the side because I can't slide under so no ramps or lift yet.

 

[Sodbuster]

Was reading that GM acceptable rate is 1Qt for 2000 miles. So 6 qts in 3000 miles would indicate something wrong. Ill be checking mine tomorrow as iv put about 3000 miles on since i had it changed to synth. GMs v6 takes 6qts and all 8cyl engines take 8.5Qts of oil.

My 6.2 takes 6 qts, but it is 10 years old.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

My 6.2 takes 6 qts, but it is 10 years old.

The 6qts i was referring to was Medic21s post about his truck burning 6qts in 3000 miles. My wifes 6.2 Camaro is also 10 yrs old but takes 8Qts s according to the owners manual.

 

[Sodbuster]

The only reason I care about what the manufacturer thinks is the oil capacity is so that I buy enough oil for a change. Then I refill to the fill line and put the leftovers on the shelf. Are you folks really just dumping in what the book says it needs regardless of the dipstick reading?

15 quarts in the 7.3 diesel BTW. Just the filter holds two quarts. Lots of oil remains in the engine during a routine O&F job.

Highbeam, I do just dump in the 6qts, because I've done it enough times that I know that brings me up to the full mark. I can do an oil change without ramps so the truck is level. My filter is perfectly vertical, so I take a hammer and a spike and puncture the bottom of the filter and let that drain until it stops, then I empty the crankcase. I have a Fumoto valve in place of the drain plug just to make it less messy. I open the valve and give it about 1/2 hour to make sure it's completely drained. Then I dump what remains of the 6qts in the crankcase start the engine let it run for about 3-4 minutes, then wait a bit and check it, and it's always perfectly at the full mark not above it.

 

[Sodbuster]

It appears that GM increased the oil change capacity in some models and not in others , not sure why. My manual clearly states 6 qts. Maybe in some performance cars like the Camaro, they wanted more oil. 8 qts in mine would way over-fill it. I suspect they modified the oil pan? Trucks with a higher clearance would not have room for the deeper pan.

 

[SpaceBus]

It's most likely 4x4 vs RWD

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I changed a lot of ford motors back in the late 90s For piston slap. The difference was Ford said that’s not normal and fixed them under warranty and GM said it’s normal for a gas motor to sound like a diesel for the first 5 mins lol.

No excuse for any auto maker shirking their warranty obligations. Id be pissed too.

 

[Ashful]

Time for a lift ashful!

I've debated it, but I don’t work on hotrods anymore, and I didn't want to dedicate that much shop space to something that only gets used a few hours per year. Back when I really should have had one, I couldn’t afford it!

 

[bholler]

I've debated it, but I don’t work on hotrods anymore, and I didn't want to dedicate that much shop space to something that only gets used a few hours per year. Back when I really should have had one, I couldn’t afford it!

I have a lift but currently no shop other than the business one high enough to install it. Sooner or later I will pull the roof off of my automotive shop with 9' ceilings and add 4 or 5' to it so I can use the lift. If that was all the building needed I probably would have done it by now. But the back wall is pushing bad so it needs relaid to. Fun fun fun. You can usually find lifts pretty cheap if you aren't in a hurry.

 

[Ashful]

You can usually find lifts pretty cheap if you aren't in a hurry.

I just finished building my current shop in 2015, and already regret the decision to not add another bay, but the existing layout and my own limited imagination didn’t make that seem practical at the time. In any case, I installed a second floor over both of the primary bays, so I’m limited to something like 8’-6” now. That would mean a shortie lift, which would still be nice, but I‘ve been trying to keep the floor space flexible. I’ve even sold off all of my 1000+ pound antique industrial woodworking machines, trading down the old industrial equipment for some newer and lighter commercial grade machines, so I can move stuff around and get cars and tractors in and out more easily. Ever try to move a 2200 lb. table saw, or a 1200 lb. 9 ft tall band saw around the shop? My old jointer was almost the footprint of a twin mattress, and my table saw was the size of a small car.

And to be at least a little on-topic, my shop is too shallow for almost any truck, regardless of engine. I do my truck maintenance in the driveway, but being a newer truck, that’s really only oil changes and occasional brake work.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I get all my auto work done by a trusted reasonably priced local mechanic. My yearly bill is most likely less than the property taxes and other expenses would pay to dedicate a garage bay for car and truck repairs ,not to mention the time. The older i get the less i want to be a part time mechanic.

 

[Ashful]

The older i get the less i want to be a part time mechanic.

The more experience I get, the more I fear letting “professionals” work on my cars. If you have a trusted local mechanic, you are very lucky. To often, I find stuff done wrong or half completed, when I receive one of my cars back from a major repair.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

The more experience I get, the more I fear letting “professionals” work on my cars. If you have a trusted local mechanic, you are very lucky. To often, I find stuff done wrong or half completed, when I receive one of my cars back from a major repair.

My mechanic is my age. Old school. One of those guys that say ,you dont own me anything, it was just a loose connection. Once installed a new gas tank on my truck and billed me $20 labor. I supplied the tank at his request. On the flipside, there are lots of parts changers out there, even at dealerships , Its probably this or probably that. And you pay for their guesswork .

 

[bholler]

I get all my auto work done by a trusted reasonably priced local mechanic. My yearly bill is most likely less than the property taxes and other expenses would pay to dedicate a garage bay for car and truck repairs ,not to mention the time. The older i get the less i want to be a part time mechanic.

I enjoy working on vehicles. As long as I don't have a deadline for it I find it relaxing. We have a couple mechanics we trust and use mainly for work trucks that need fast turnaround. But I do almost everything on my personal vehicles myself.

 

[Medic21]

My mechanic is my age. Old school. One of those guys that say ,you dont own me anything, it was just a loose connection. Once installed a new gas tank on my truck and billed me $20 labor. I supplied the tank at his request. On the flipside, there are lots of parts changers out there, even at dealerships , Its probably this or probably that. And you pay for their guesswork .

There are times with Ford you have to change a part. TSBs will be straight forward that if this code is present then change this. After that if there are still problems you can diag. They changed labor times that if it’s a TSB there are no diag times paid. When your flat rate you just go with the flow lol.

That said I do have known good parts for a lot of that so I can swap that and then diag if it doesn’t fix a problem.

On the other side of that I just ran a vehicle out that I had 12 hours of diag in. Throttle position would not read. Everything tested good in the wiring. Changed parts and same problem. It wasn’t until I went old school and isolated the wire out of the system and tried to use it to light a headlamp assembly did I find the problem. Continuity was good until the circuit had a load on it, then it opened. I lost my ass on this because Ford pays .8 hrs for a electrical diag.

 

[Sodbuster]

I'm at the point in my life, that I don't enjoy working on cars especially in the winter. The salty slush dripping on me while I'm under the vehicle just isn't worth the little I save. That being said, I don't trust the quicky lube places either. My Chevy 1500 is a breeze to change, while my wife's Camry with it's cartridge oil filter is a PITA.