3406E, C-10, C-12, C-15, C-16 Truck Engines Caterpillar

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Hot oil and hot components can cause personal injury. Do not allow hot oil or hot components to contact the skin.

Do not drain the engine oil when the engine is cold. As the engine oil cools, suspended waste particles settle on the bottom of the engine oil pan. The waste particles are not removed with the draining cold engine oil. Drain the crankcase while the engine is stopped. Drain the crankcase while the engine oil is warm. This draining method allows the waste particles that are suspended in the engine oil to be drained properly.

Failure to follow this recommended procedure will cause the waste particles to be recirculated through the engine lubrication system with the new engine oil.

Drain the Engine Oil

After the engine has been run at the normal operating temperature, stop the engine. Use one of the following methods to drain the engine crankcase oil:

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Hot oil and hot components can cause personal injury. Do not allow hot oil or hot components to contact the skin.

• If the engine is equipped with a drain valve, turn the drain valve knob counterclockwise in order to drain the engine oil. After the engine oil has drained, turn the drain valve knob clockwise in order to close the drain valve.

• If the engine is not equipped with a drain valve, remove the oil drain plug in order to allow the engine oil to drain. If the engine is equipped with a shallow sump, remove the bottom oil drain plugs from both ends of the engine oil pan.

After the engine oil has drained, the oil drain plugs should be cleaned and installed. Tighten the oil drain plugs to the proper torque. Refer to the Specifications Module, "Engine Oil Pan" topic for additional information.

Replace the Oil Filter

1. Remove the oil filter with a 2P-8250 Strap Wrench.

2. Cut the oil filter open with a 4C-5084 Oil Filter Cutter. Break apart the pleats and inspect the oil filter for metal debris. An excessive amount of metal debris in the oil filter may indicate early wear or a pending failure.

   Use a magnet to differentiate between the ferrous metals and the nonferrous metals that are found in the oil filter element. Ferrous metals may indicate wear on the steel and cast iron parts of the engine.

   Nonferrous metals may indicate wear on the aluminum parts, brass parts or bronze parts of the engine. Parts that may be affected include the following items: main bearings, rod bearings, turbocharger bearings and cylinder heads.

   Due to normal wear and friction, it is not uncommon to find small amounts of debris in the oil filter. Consult your Caterpillar dealer in order to arrange for a further analysis if an excessive amount of debris is found in the oil filter.

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   Illustration 1	g00103713

3. Clean the sealing surface of the filter mounting base. Ensure that all of the old oil filter gasket is removed.

4. Apply clean engine oil to the new oil filter gasket.
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   NOTICE
   Do not fill the oil filters with oil before installing them. This oil would not be filtered and could be contaminated. Contaminated oil can cause accelerated wear to engine components.

5. Install the new oil filter. Tighten the oil filter until the oil filter gasket contacts the base. Tighten the oil filter by hand according to the instructions that are shown on the oil filter. Do not overtighten the oil filter.

Fill the Engine Crankcase

1. Remove the oil filler cap. Refer to the Operation and Maintenance Manual, "Lubricant Specifications" topic (Maintenance Section) for more information. Fill the crankcase with the proper amount of engine oil. Refer to the Operation and Maintenance Manual, "Refill Capacities" topic (Maintenance Section) for more information.
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   NOTICE
   If equipped with an auxiliary oil filter or system, extra oil must be added when filling the crankcase. Follow the OEM or filter manufacturer's recommendations. If the extra oil is not added, the engine may starve for oil.

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   NOTICE
   To help prevent crankshaft or bearing damage, crank engine to fill all filters before starting. Do not crank engine for more than 30 seconds.

2. Start the engine and run the engine at "LOW IDLE" for two minutes. Perform this procedure in order to ensure that the lubrication system has oil and that the oil filters are filled. Inspect the oil filter for oil leaks.

3. Stop the engine and allow the oil to drain back to the sump for a minimum of ten minutes.

4. Remove the oil level gauge in order to check the oil level. Maintain the oil level between the "ADD" and "FULL" marks on the oil level gauge.

Oil Change Intervals

Many conditions affect the selection of an oil change interval. Some of the conditions that affect the selection of oil are listed: premium API CH-4 multigrade oil, oil analysis at 16,100 km (10,000 miles) and premium oil filters.

Proper oil change intervals are important for maintaining engine service life and engine performance and fully utilizing the lubricant. The engine oil must be able to control the following items: corrosion, oxidation, soot and wear metals. The engine oil must be able to control the conditions during the time between oil changes. In some severe service applications, reducing the oil change interval may be necessary in order to maintain the integrity of the engine lubricant.

Fuel consumption and oil consumption are the most important factors that are used in order to calculate an oil change interval.

The rate of fuel consumption is a direct result of the load factor of the engine. An engine with a high fuel consumption rate is working harder than an identical engine with a lower fuel consumption rate.

Tables for Extended Oil Change Intervals

In order to understand the tables for maximum permissible oil change intervals, use the following procedures.

1. Determine the average fuel consumption of the vehicle.

2. Determine the gross vehicle weight (GVW) of the vehicle.

3. Determine the percent of idle time for the vehicle. A download of the histogram data from the ECM can provide a more accurate "percent idle time" measurement. Contact your nearest Caterpillar dealer for information on obtaining data from the ECM.

4. The intersection of the column and the row lists the maximum number of kilometers or miles between oil change intervals.

For example, a C-12 Engine with an average fuel consumption of 3 km/L (7 mpg) in a light-duty application will have a maximum permissible oil change interval of 40,250 kilometers (25,000 miles).

For more information about optimizing oil change intervals, see your Caterpillar dealer.

Note: Metric units are listed before English units.

The following requirements must be met in order to use Tables 1 and 2:

• Use premium API CH-4 multigrade oil only.

• DEO Caterpillar multigrade oil is recommended.

• S·O·S Oil analysis is taken at 16,100 km (10,000 mile) intervals and all oil change intervals. The oil analysis must evaluate oil condition, wear metals and soot. Caterpillar's Oil Analysis is preferred. Caterpillar's Oil Analysis is the only oil analysis program with wear tables and limits for soot and oxidation, that are approved by Caterpillar.

• Use premium oil filter(s). Caterpillar 1R-0716 Oil Filter or an oil filter with equivalent performance and durability is recommended.

• Use North American low sulfer diesel fuel (0.05% sulfer).

Note: Caterpillar cannot guarantee the performance of lubricants or filters that are not made by Caterpillar. Caterpillar cannot guarantee the performance of lubricants or filters that are not sold by Caterpillar. The performance guarantee of any commercially available lubricant is the responsibility of that oil company. The performance guarantee of any commercially available filter is the responsibility of the filter manufacturer.