My dealer here in San Antonio uses Castrol synthetic blend 5W-20 and recommends an oil change every 2500 miles. I asked why they recommended changing more than the owners manual recommendation of 5000 miles. They said it was because of the high temperatures here in San Antonio in the summer. Hmmm...maybe so, but it only gets to 100F here a few times a year. Is the 2500 mile change too frequent for this type of oil? Thanks.
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Oil Change Frequency with Synthetic Blend Oil
- Thread starter sapacif
- Start date
if you go in at 5k and they give you crap about not getting it at 2500 and say anything about killing the warranty ask for that in writing and then contact mazda na about the dealership man....they sound as crooked as the one i bought my car from.....i wish i had done ask for what they told me in writing many times over
I asked my dealer if I could wait the 5000 miles and not hurt the car. They said, "Yes." I asked why the 2500 mile recommendation and they gave me the "hot weather" answer. I don't think they will make any problems with the warranty issue.I think your dealer is a crook.
I do thank everyone for their answer. I wasn't sure if there was something unusual about the oil type. I'm sticking with the 5000 mile change.
BTW, this issue came up when I was using this software to follow my vehicle maintenance on the internet. Maybe the 2500 miles was a default of the "idriveonline" software.
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BTW, The part synthetic oil is like the "beechwood aged" beer......the beer spends 18 days in huge aluminum tanks in a secondary fermentation near the end they toss in some beechwood chips (preboiled and processed to remove all flavor) which fines the beer causing all the yeast to fall out of suspension. Unless the synthetic mix states how much is synthetic it need only be a few drops in a barrel! It is all just marketing.......save your money and buy either regular oil or buy the real thing.
I use full synthetic (Mobil1) and prescribe to the 10K miles or once every year. I plan on doing a used oil analysis just to see how far I can push the oil and stay within the acceptable operating parameters.
Keep us up to date on UOA. I'm currently on the same OCI.
There is no definition of what synthetic or synthetic blend is - it's all a marketing term and tells you nothing about product performance. Don't get hung up on this term. If you look at what they are made with, pretty much any 5W-20 can be called a syn blend if they use the Castrol or ConocoPhillips(Motorcraft) definition as what they are willing to market as a syn blend.
Don't go to this dealer who is trying to get as much money as possible from you. Don't you think Mazda would note in their owners manual if a special requirement was needed for living in a hot area?
If you are concerned about heat, synthetics (Mobil 1) generally perform better at temperature extremes - both cold and hot.
Don't go to this dealer who is trying to get as much money as possible from you. Don't you think Mazda would note in their owners manual if a special requirement was needed for living in a hot area?
If you are concerned about heat, synthetics (Mobil 1) generally perform better at temperature extremes - both cold and hot.
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I've had my 5 in Texas too. Simply put, If your using the Mobil 1, you should be running at least 5W30 or 10W30. with 5,000 mile minimum intervals. You are getting SUPER BS'd by your dealer. Mobil 1 will run up to 10,000 miles, YES EVEN HERE IN TEXAS. Unless your towing a lot or putting the engine under high stress (TRYING to race or quick off the red light's) you can actually go with the 7,500 mile interval. I just make sure that one of my oil changes is in June of each year here. That way I have a fresh start on the summer.
I happen to stick to the 3 month rule out here (for the summer only). I may be doing one extra oil change a year than I need to, but the other 2 are pretty much at about 5000 + miles.
I happen to stick to the 3 month rule out here (for the summer only). I may be doing one extra oil change a year than I need to, but the other 2 are pretty much at about 5000 + miles.
Franzy, your recommendations re: SAE grade and drain interval are both improper. A 20-grade is specified by Mazda (and Ford where they use this engine), and experience and extensive analysis shows that the cam phasing system and the engine in general perform better on a 20-grade. M1 is a poor choice no matter what you're running, and your proposed 10,000 mile drain interval proves to be far, far too long in many applications with these engines. I hope you're using analysis (and not BS labs) to guide you, and I wish you'd make such qualifications before posting this kind of information.
Franzy, your recommendations re: SAE grade and drain interval are both improper. A 20-grade is specified by Mazda (and Ford where they use this engine), and experience and extensive analysis shows that the cam phasing system and the engine in general perform better on a 20-grade. M1 is a poor choice no matter what you're running, and your proposed 10,000 mile drain interval proves to be far, far too long in many applications with these engines. I hope you're using analysis (and not BS labs) to guide you, and I wish you'd make such qualifications before posting this kind of information.
Interesting post, bulwnkl - What's the problem with Mobil 1 full-synthetic oil? The Miata guys I run with all use M1 full-synth oil (have for the past 10 years in Miatas with NO ill effects on 5k oil changes & factory filter) & I've always run M1 in my Miata & 2007 5 Sport, with ZERO issues on cars that I'm not gentle on... interested in hearing your scientifically informed / diagnosed stand on M1... enlighten us, please, with proven evidence, not anecdotal musings.
Bryan
mazdaspeedster3
Member
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- Mazdaspeed3. 2008
I would say have the analysis done at least once a year or every other year. Will help give you a REAL good idea about how far you can go with oil change intervals. I will say however, 5k is my max. Simply put if you do some how think or find that you can go 7500-10k miles and oddly you get a slugde problem or something else you will not be able to prove your maintenance (as you wont have any) and the problem could likely not be covered under warranty. Run synthetic if you can afford it (buy your own oil and filter at walmart, Penzoil Platinum or Mobil1 and have them change it, $15 labor and $30 in supplies. Cheapest Syn change you can get) and have it changed at 5k to be sure!
The Miata guys I run with all use M1 full-synth oil (have for the past 10 years in Miatas with NO ill effects on 5k oil changes & factory filter) & I've always run M1 in my Miata & 2007 5 Sport, with ZERO issues on cars that I'm not gentle on... interested in hearing your scientifically informed / diagnosed stand on M1... enlighten us, please, with proven evidence, not anecdotal musings.
Text redacted
What I have is information from text redacted thousands of engines and used oil analyses over the course of years. And numerous publicly posted UOAs on various free-access websites (such as, but not limited to, BITOG (bobistheoilguy.com) and NASIOC(.com)). And an understanding of what some of the differences between labs' analytical methods and capabilities do to impact results for comparative purposes. And the independent lab testing of M1 which has recently been published for all to see. Check Jobbersworld (IIRC?) for that testing.
M1 doesn't meet the sequence IVA test requirements, and it's not even close. It hasn't for quite a while now (as measured in years and months). Hopefully, XOM has reformulated quite recently and is now compliant again and no longer allowing excessive iron wear. However, even if they have, I will neither give them my business nor my recommendation because of how long and how significantly deficient they were. Even now, there's no acknowledgment of the problem. There's just a renewed ad blitz to try to get people to buy the product.
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Here's a Jobber's World link:
http://www.jobbersworld.com/March 20, 2009.htm
This article is not specifically about the original challenge to Mobil, but it includes a bar graph down a bit from the top. The bar graph's un-labeled oil on the left is M1. Search older issues of Jobber's World for the original article on the M1 deficiency.
http://www.jobbersworld.com/March 20, 2009.htm
This article is not specifically about the original challenge to Mobil, but it includes a bar graph down a bit from the top. The bar graph's un-labeled oil on the left is M1. Search older issues of Jobber's World for the original article on the M1 deficiency.
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the mazda5 comes with an oil cooler, reducing any need for such short oil change intervals... 3000 miles is what you'd probably want to do with conventional oil instead
also, running 5W30 is OK for this engine and will NOT hurt it
the overseas versions come with this as factory fill due to the lack of CAFE requirements... the engine internals are the exact same so there's no argument over any engine differences
5W20 might gain you some gas mileage improvements in exchange for some increased engine wear
also, running 5W30 is OK for this engine and will NOT hurt it
the overseas versions come with this as factory fill due to the lack of CAFE requirements... the engine internals are the exact same so there's no argument over any engine differences
5W20 might gain you some gas mileage improvements in exchange for some increased engine wear
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