Changed the oil in my truck for the first time since buying it.
The oil was PITCH BLACK and so heavy/dirty it almost overflowed the oil drain pan I was using because it was so thick it didn't want to drain down the center hole. And the oil filter? It was practically SEALED on. It was so difficult to get off, it took me an hour. Replaced with Mobil 1 Extended Life oil filter and full synthetic Mobil 1 oil.
Doing the oil change got rid of what I think was a slight case of lifter tick; the truck is now smooth and linear when idling, and feels like it has an insane amount of power now; all I have to do is touch the throttle and it takes off.
What do you guys think? How does your oil look come time to change it? Because of how dirty that oil was, I will be changing it again in about 3k miles. I'm actually surprised that the OLM (oil life monitor) still said the old oil had 30% life with how bad it was. The best description? It truly looked like and moved like molasses.
I'm betting that either the previous owner used crappy oil or it was due for a change before selling it and they just reset the OLM without changing the oil. My recommendation (and many others agree) is that you don't go off of the OLM and you change it on a more regular schedule. The OLM doesn't actually analyze the oil to determine it's remaining life. You could fill the crankcase with muddy water and it wouldn't know the difference. It estimates the oil's condition based off of mileage, engine loads, run time, temperatures, etc.
I only run synthetic and I've tried a few different brands. My last two changes have been with Pennzoil Platinum because that's the only oil that I've ran and never had the lifter tick at startup. The Mobil1 I ran before that greatly reduced the frequency of the tick down to maybe 5 occurrences over the 5K interval. The Pennzoil has totally eliminated it and the engine seems to run more smoothly. As far as appearance, 5K miles is about where it starts to get a little dark and that's why I change it. I don't mean black, but it's not damned-near clear like it is when fresh. It's more of a honey color. I also rotate the tires at this time. It's just easier to keep track when it's on a 5K-mile schedule: service at 135K miles, 140K, 145K, 150K, 155K, 160K, etc.
