OIL CHANGE QUESTION - NEW 2018 RAM 1500 4X4

[KDP224]

I currently have 4,800 miles or 7,725 kilometers on my 2018 Dodge Ram 1500 4x4. My display says that I have 40% oil life left. In the past I would have changed the oil before it got to 5,000 kilometers however I have been told that I can trust the oil life sensor. I have two questions:

1. Should I change the oil now or can I wait a bit? Should I wait?
2. The truck is a lease however my intention is to keep it. Should I do synthetic and if so any recommendations?

Below is the excerpt from my owner's maual
(Change Engine Oil The oil change indicator system will remind you that it is time to take your vehicle in for scheduled maintenance. Refer to the “Maintenance Schedule” for further information. NOTE: 1500 Models Only • Under no circumstances should oil change intervals exceed 10,000 miles (16,000 km) or twelve months on 1500 trucks, whichever comes first.)

 

[gdawg55]

I would go ahead and change it. Since it's a lease, I'd let the dealer do it. I did my first oil change at 3400 miles and went straight to full synthetic. I wouldn't put too much stock in the oil life indicator. Change it every 5k miles or so and have you'll be good to go.

 

[grizzstang]

Since it is a lease you will need to follow the manufacturers recommendations until you own it.

I would switch to synthetic since you intend to keep it then change every 10,000 km (6000 miles). Ignore the oil change gage there is no sensor there. It is an algorithm based on how you drive but certainly not gospel on when you should change your oil.

If I were in your position and limited to 5W20 I would use Pennzoil Gold (semi synthetic but a great oil) or Pennzoil Ultra Platinum.

Both have the FCA stamp of approval for what that is worth.

 

[KDP224]

Thank-you for the comments. 5W20 I would use Pennzoil Gold (semi synthetic)
I do not know the difference or if one is better or not however what is the difference between semi and full synthetic. If I plan to keep it should I use one over the other? Thank-you

 

[Pull Ya]

No matter when you decide to do the first change, let the dealer do the first change. The robot that puts the filter on at the factory does not know his own strength and it is torqued at about 1000lbs.---well maybe not quite that much, but it is a ***** to get off. Let the dealer deal with it----
Jay

 

[Burla]

Thank-you for the comments. 5W20 I would use Pennzoil Gold (semi synthetic)
I do not know the difference or if one is better or not however what is the difference between semi and full synthetic. If I plan to keep it should I use one over the other? Thank-you

Semi synthetic is mostly less refined oil, meaning more contamination. Many guys run conventional oil and get 300k miles plus. So I'm just giving you a fact, not saying which one is better. If you want to do something really good for your truck, use synthetic filtration and have a short oil change interval. Read the oil filter thread in my sig. Look at the oil poll to see what other members use in their rams. Come up with a strategy off research you have done, is all you can do.

Oil choice tends to mean less in more forgiving vehicles, but there are some issues with rams and longevity that you may decide on clean base oil and maybe thicker oil, or not, each person picks their own strategy based on what they have found. We have slightly more then 1/2 the forum running 20 weight oil, the rest are running 30 weight or over, we also have many guys running conventional oil, unfortunately we never did a poll on that, but many guys use blends or conventional oils. you will get a bunch of answers but in the end searching this subject is a good idea with our application imo.

 

[Kap1]

I would do oil change with conventional to get any debris out from the factory build, then change it to synthetic. One of the better and more popular oils is redline and use royal purple full synthetic filter. Use 5-30 oil as it's better for the hemi engine, it protects it better than other kinds of oil. You may not know this but all hemi engines have common issue with lifters and cam at around 60-100k miles, so by using redline 5-30 you'll minimize chances of this happening, and your engine will sound much smoother than it is right now.

 

[ehart814]

10.5 quarts of 15w40 full synthetic every 9000 or so... that’s what I do.

3.0 diesel.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[slickracer]

No matter when you decide to do the first change, let the dealer do the first change. The robot that puts the filter on at the factory does not know his own strength and it is torqued at about 1000lbs.---well maybe not quite that much, but it is a ***** to get off. Let the dealer deal with it----
Jay

I did the first change last week on my 2018 and got lucky. The gorilla must have been off the day mine was built. I was pleasantly surprised that the filter came loose with a tug on the filter wrench.

 

[grizzstang]

I am not sure where you are and what GALT stands for but you may not be able to get the Pennzoil Gold.

Where I am at the Ultra Platinum is easy to find and I have yet to even see one bottle of the Gold.

I am also not sure what the terms of your lease are but I would assume they will require you to have the oil changes done at the dealer so you may want to check with them and see what they stock.

Once your lease is up and you own that truck I would recommend switching to PUP 5W30. I run that in our 2013 Jeep Wrangler with the 3.6 and it works well.