Anything Auto Immune

Archive for November, 2009

The secret to long life is contained in one of the earth’s most valuable compounds. No, it’s not a magic elixir, it’s oil, and the long life it ensures is that of your 4×4s.
Texas-based outfitter Rick Hodges believes in the power of oil. He uses a weathered Ford F350 crew cab to ferry quail and dove hunters from field to field. When I hunted with him a couple of years ago he had logged 225,000 miles on his 6.9-liter diesel, all without a rebuild or major repair.The secret to the engine’s long life? Frequent oil and filter changes.
“I change my oil and filter religiously every 3,000 miles,’ Hodges says. “Out here, my truck has to deal with dust, mud, and water, and I use it to haul feed, trailers, and clients. I’m often in high-rev low-speed situations, like in mud and water, and grinding along in low gear can take a heavy toll on any engine.”
Clyde Pritchard, a Nebraska-based hunter, is also a believer. With more than a half-century of experience under his belt, he’s seen plenty of 4×4s come and go. Recently, he told me how he was able to put 180,000 miles on an old Jeep Wagoneer. “I hunted all over the Black Hills for deer and pheasants and in Wyoming for antelope, and towed a lot of trailers with it,” he said. “The truck did everything I ever asked it to do. The one thing I always did for it was feed it good oil. Because of all that dirt and dust I often changed the oil between 1,500 and 2,000 miles, and I always changed the filter with each oil change.
“I treat my new GMC pickup the same way, and I taught my sons to do the same. But, they’ve got a friend who has already gone through a couple of engines. He’s not stupid; he just doesn’t pay attention. Mainly; though, he doesn’t change the oil.”
Our last testimonial comes from a service technician who specializes in 4×4s. He says, “I’ve got 136,000 miles on my Suburban. The other day a neighbor dropped by, and when he noted the ding in the front quarter panel and a couple of other rough spots, he told me, ‘Your truck is on borrowed time. It’s going to rust out!’ I told him I would be driving mine when he was three or four cars down the road because he didn’t regularly change the oil like I do.”