Mike Ford - AMSOIL Independent Dealer

How Often Should I Change Front or Rear Differential Fluid? John Baker | Apr 16, 2019 12:05 PM How often you should change front and rear differential fluid depends on your vehicle, driving conditions and differential fluid quality. That’s a vague answer, but it’s true. If you drive your truck primarily on the highway in temperate conditions and rarely tow or haul , you likely don’t need to change front or rear differential fluid very often. But, if you tow a trailer or haul supplies frequently and the temperature fluctuates as wildly as your health insurance premium , then you need to change differential fluid more often. The only way to know the exact mileage interval is to check your owner’s manual or visit the dealership. Differential fluid change intervals Why the varying fluid-change intervals? Because severe operating conditions break down differential fluid more quickly and place greater stress on the gears and bearings, inviting wear. The truck ma...

John Baker | Jun 10, 2016 8:42 AM   The simple answer: Yes, provided the diesel oil meets the appropriate specifications and viscosity requirements of your engine. For example, if your gas engine calls for a motor oil that meets the API SN specification, you can safely use a diesel oil of the correct viscosity that meets the API SN spec. For the typical gasoline application, a diesel oil isn’t required and the more appropriate choice is a quality gasoline motor oil for both performance and value. The detailed answer: It’s common for some owners of modified gasoline-powered vehicles to favor diesel oils over their gasoline counterparts. Many assume diesel oils are more durable and more capable of withstanding the increased heat of a powerful, turbocharged engine. Others lean toward higher-viscosity oils to protect against wear, and it’s sometimes easier to find a 40- or 50-weight diesel oil than a gasoline motor oil. Others favor the incr...

John Baker   Jun 13, 2016 1:37 PM   An eye-opening news report surfaced the other day: Norway plans to ban sales of new gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles starting in 2025. Elon Musk, CEO of electric-car-maker Tesla, tweeted his approval to the plan. It turns out the news report was inaccurate, with a press release later saying, “… there is no talk of banning the sale of diesel and petrol vehicles in 2025…” However, a Norwegian political party leader also said, “No, Norway isn’t banning diesel and petrol cars – yet”. I’m interested to see how this all plays out in the years ahead as governments continue pushing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But for now, let’s focus on how you can help reduce emissions in your fossil-fuel-powered vehicle today without swapping it for a plug-in unit. Synthetic motor oils can reduce tailpipe emissions We tend to associate only the byproducts of gasoline or diesel combustion with harmful t...

Ed Newman | Apr 15, 2016 1:17 PM   Mechanical engineer Mark Nyholm is a diesel enthusiast who is truly happy to have found a career working with something he loves. Mark is Technical Product Manager – Heavy Duty here at AMSOIL, a position for which he is well-suited being technically and process oriented as he is. Before arriving here he had experience in automotive design, aerospace design and medical device equipment design. Having so much on the line spurs him on to pay attention to the most finite of details. “And in the end,” he says, “I always want to know why.” Why did this happen and not that? Here at AMSOIL he drives his department to dig into the nitty gritty and provide solutions with lasting benefits for customers. In addition to managing our diesel oil line, Mark helps develop best-in-class diesel fuel additives. One of these is  AMSOIL Diesel Injector Clean , a product he’s al...

What Is Cetane and Why Does It Matter? Ed Newman | Feb 24, 2016 1:18:21 PM Cetane is a   colorless,   liquid   hydrocarbon   of   the alkane series,   C   16   H   34 ,   used   as   a solvent   and   in   cetane   number   determinations. In the same way that octane number ratings are applied to rate the ignition stability of gasoline, cetane values are assigned to diesel fuel to rate its combustion quality. Cetane numbers are used to indicate the combustion speed of diesel fuel. Diesel fuels with higher cetane ratings have shorter ignition delays, providing more complete combustion and allowing engines to operate more effectively. We asked mechanical engineer Mark Nyholm, AMSOIL Product...

Do Fuel Additives Work? John Baker | Nov 25, 2015 9:20:14 AM Store shelves are littered with fuel additives that claim to provide a number of benefits, including... • Increased fuel economy • Smoother engine operation • Reduced emissions • Extended engine life • Maximum horsepower Do they work? A quick Google search reveals multiple articles that claim they don’t. There must be a good reason so many people regard fuel additives with skepticism. One reason is, while most motorists expect to experience the benefits promised by fuel additives immediately , it takes several tanks of treated fuel before most additives provide any noticeable performance improvement. That doesn’t bode well in a society used to getting what it wants, when it wants it. Engine condition plays a vital ...

AMSOIL Diesel Injector Clean (ADF) is now available in a convenient 8-oz. bottle. The chemistry is the same, but the mix ratio has been adjusted to allow the entire bottle to be added to the average passenger car/light truck fuel tank, treating up to 20 gallons. Read more and purchase here .

Written by Mark Nyholm  Mar 16, 2015 4:13:00 PM from AMSOIL INC Blog By now you’ve inevitably seen this term in turbo diesel enthusiast magazines.  And if you own a Ford Powerstroke 6.0L diesel engine, then you likely have experienced it. Stiction… it’s a combination of two words. Static and Friction. What it really means is that there are two components touching each other and a specific force is required to get them to move relative to each other. Like your pen resting on your desk. It requires a certain amount of force to get your pen to slide across your desk. Stiction has been a marketing term in the turbo diesel market for about the past 6-8 years now with the issues that Ford has seen with their 6.0L diesel engine. It’s a HEUI motor that, unfortunately, Ford made a poor decision to crank up the fuel pressure while utilizing similar injectors to the 7.3L diesel and they just aren’t capable of handling the pressure. So what happens is the solenoid on the injector t...