Hi Folks!

My wife & I own a ’99 SE wagon with the Duratec V6 engine with 164,774 miles which we bought new in November 1998. Since losing its A/C a few years ago, although used regularly, the car has been relegated to short trips (5-10 miles - especially during the summer) with very little highway miles.

Last July, on a particularly hot day, the car started stalling at stop signs & lights. My wife was able to get it to our regular mechanic who found the oil level 4 quarts low. He added oil & the car test drove OK. He then did an oil change. After checking my records, I found it had been approx. 9 months & 5,000 miles since the last change.

Over 6 months has passed since then & the car has only been driven another 2,000 miles (again mainly short trips). I have been checking the oil level on a regular basis & finally had to add a quart of oil to bring the level up to the full mark on the stick.

Since it’s an older car & seems to be going through some oil, should I be considering using anything other than what Ford recommends (5W30)? Anything else I should consider doing taking into account its age, usage & symptoms?

Outside of a slight starting problem, for the most part the car runs great - engine’s strong & sounds good. And times being what they are we’d like to keep it on the road for as long as possible.

Any & all thoughts & recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Dave

 

If it were my car, i would use 5w-20 synthetic blend. change every 2,500 miles with the short trips this car makes.