Always thought cheap oil was fine until a rod knock in my F-150 taught me different

I ran budget 5W-30 for years in my 2011 F-150 because everyone told me oil is oil. At 165,000 miles I got a nasty rod knock and my mechanic in Green Bay showed me the sludge inside when he pulled the pan. Switched to Mobil 1 after that rebuild cost me $4,200 out of pocket. Anyone else get burned by cheap oil or am I just unlucky?

3 comments

3 Comments

amy_coleman211mo ago

My buddy Jake ran SuperTech in his Chevy Silverado for 120k miles and the thing sounded like a sewing machine, no issues. Meanwhile my neighbor's Toyota Tundra used Royal Purple since day one and spun a bearing at 80k. So I don't even know what to tell you. Might just be luck of the draw with how hard you drive it.

karen_roberts41mo ago

Ngl, was he checking his oil regularly or just sending it?

hollyl451mo ago

Wait... spun a bearing at 80k on Royal Purple?? That's wild lol. @amy_coleman21 I feel like I hear people swear by that stuff too but honestly I've seen SuperTech hold up just fine in a bunch of beaters. My cousin runs it in his old Ford F-150 and that truck has 200k on it with zero engine drama. Makes you wonder if some of these fancy oils are just hype and it really comes down to how often you actually change it versus what brand you throw in there.