SD Rebel
Spends too much time on here
Did my first oil change on the 5.7L this morning, at 4,725 miles, or 1 year since I purchased the truck. The build date was actually Jan 2019, so this oil was over 1 year 7 months old, so good idea to change it.
I went with Shell Rotella Gas Truck synthetic 5W-20 and Mopar MO-339 filter. Purchased two 5 quart jugs at Walmart for $22 each and the oil filter at $10. I love the fact these jugs don't have the foil seal to worry about falling into the crankcase when pouring in, just a clean top after your remove the cap.
For lifting the truck, I used a set of Rhino Ramps 16,000 lbs capacity ($50 amazon). They held up great, absolutely no issues driving up and down ramps, zero signs of tension on the ramps. I also used two waterproof tarps to lay under the truck for oil spillage.
My greatest worry (as is many) was that the oil filter would be really hard to remove. Luckily for me, it easily came off. I wonder if it's because I got the engine to full operating temp before I did the oil change? Maybe the 200F heat made the filter easier to remove? Either way, I used a strap wrench (Lisle Small Oil Filter Wrench $13 amazon) from the back side and it easily broke the seal.
Note - I didn't spill a drop of oil removing the filter. I used a two zip lock bag method. After breaking the seal and loosening the filter a bit, I put the first bag on. I continued to loosen until oil started pouring out of the filter. After the oil stopped pouring out, about 1 minute, I removed the first bag. Then I slipped on the 2nd bag and finished unscrewing the filter. Once the filter came off, about 1/4 quart of oil poured from the oil filter mount. Hold the bag there for about 10 seconds to capture this oil. Then remove the bag and filter and you are good to go.
This was honestly one of the easiest oil changes I've done in a while, I think getting the motor up to temp before you perform it may help with that notoriously over-tightened factory filter. Or maybe the ape who normally installs them was off at work when my engine was being built?.
Note - The drain bolt removal and pouring on the sway bar wasn't an issue at all. Even though my oil was very thin because it was hot, it came out easily and didn't make a mess. The trick is to leave the oil fill cap on tight during the first part of the drain. This will make the oil come out slower from the oil pan. It does hit the sway bar, but that isn't a big deal. Within a minute or so, it's just drips falling straight down and into your drain pan no longer hitting the sway bar. Once it's down to a slow drip, then loosen your oil fill cap and dip stick to aid in draining.
The oil drain bolt is 13mm and the torque spec is 25 ft-lbs. The truck took exactly 7 quarts to get it just at the 2nd dot on the dip stick. I took a sample of the oil and sending to Blackstone Labs, will update when I get it.
I went with Shell Rotella Gas Truck synthetic 5W-20 and Mopar MO-339 filter. Purchased two 5 quart jugs at Walmart for $22 each and the oil filter at $10. I love the fact these jugs don't have the foil seal to worry about falling into the crankcase when pouring in, just a clean top after your remove the cap.
For lifting the truck, I used a set of Rhino Ramps 16,000 lbs capacity ($50 amazon). They held up great, absolutely no issues driving up and down ramps, zero signs of tension on the ramps. I also used two waterproof tarps to lay under the truck for oil spillage.
My greatest worry (as is many) was that the oil filter would be really hard to remove. Luckily for me, it easily came off. I wonder if it's because I got the engine to full operating temp before I did the oil change? Maybe the 200F heat made the filter easier to remove? Either way, I used a strap wrench (Lisle Small Oil Filter Wrench $13 amazon) from the back side and it easily broke the seal.
Note - I didn't spill a drop of oil removing the filter. I used a two zip lock bag method. After breaking the seal and loosening the filter a bit, I put the first bag on. I continued to loosen until oil started pouring out of the filter. After the oil stopped pouring out, about 1 minute, I removed the first bag. Then I slipped on the 2nd bag and finished unscrewing the filter. Once the filter came off, about 1/4 quart of oil poured from the oil filter mount. Hold the bag there for about 10 seconds to capture this oil. Then remove the bag and filter and you are good to go.
This was honestly one of the easiest oil changes I've done in a while, I think getting the motor up to temp before you perform it may help with that notoriously over-tightened factory filter. Or maybe the ape who normally installs them was off at work when my engine was being built?.
Note - The drain bolt removal and pouring on the sway bar wasn't an issue at all. Even though my oil was very thin because it was hot, it came out easily and didn't make a mess. The trick is to leave the oil fill cap on tight during the first part of the drain. This will make the oil come out slower from the oil pan. It does hit the sway bar, but that isn't a big deal. Within a minute or so, it's just drips falling straight down and into your drain pan no longer hitting the sway bar. Once it's down to a slow drip, then loosen your oil fill cap and dip stick to aid in draining.
The oil drain bolt is 13mm and the torque spec is 25 ft-lbs. The truck took exactly 7 quarts to get it just at the 2nd dot on the dip stick. I took a sample of the oil and sending to Blackstone Labs, will update when I get it.
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Yeah, the rear window frame is a bit worrisome, I can see the mold lines others have seen but so far no leaks and it's been out in some heavy rain. I replaced the halogen bulbs in the CHMSL and cargo lights with LED's and have worried about it leaking since I had to take out the whole assembly but so far so good.
