Dealer won't use synthetic oil - 2022 CX-5 Turbo

[sm1ke]

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Most car dealerships are privately owned entities, not owned by the car manufacturers themselves. That means that they (dealerships) can do whatever they want, as long as it doesn't breach whatever agreement they have with the manufacturer, and as long as it doesn't hurt or misrepresent the brand. So, the dealership can recommend a better oil, in order to offer a "premium" oil change that they can charge a bit more for. However, Mazda, as a brand, still does not require full synthetic oil for the 2.5T engine, and Mazda as a brand, has not released any TSBs or special service campaigns to advise owners to use full synthetic.

IMO, everyone should be using full synthetic if it's available to them. The cost difference between conventional and full synthetic is negligible, but the benefits are clear. Regardless of Mazda choosing not to recommend full synthetic for the 2.5T, I'll still use it for every oil change.

 

[RobertJT]

You are correct. I emailed my contact in Irvine Ca Mazda America. Mazda does not take a position on synthetic or non synthetic. They only specify SAE and API certified oil. I also use only full synthetic.

 

[SparkYellow]

Just want to add that my very old Mazda uses conventional oil 20w50 or 10w40. Castrol GTX is most popular. I have also ordered Amazon Basics 20w50 in the past. For my application, I add Lucas oil stabilizer to make it even thicker. Have you seen oil that comes out of the bottle like honey?

The Castrol website shows 5w20 and 5w30 in their GTX conventional oil lineup.

 

[leeharvey418]

I like to run hypoid gear lube in my crankcase, just to be safe.

 

[7eregrine]

These small displacement 4 cyl turbo engines, putting out over 200 HP, need fresh oil more often than you think. The tolerances are much tighter to begin with, so any kind of contaminants or sludge can destroy them. Then there's the turbo of course, which needs good clean oil. Lastly is the matter of the direct injection technology that's used now. It is a known problem that these engines all suffer from oil dilution to some degree.

My 330 hp supercharged, turbo charged engine does not suffer oil dilution to any noticeable degree.

 

[murky]

So far I've been kind of amazed at my dealer's behavior with regard to oil changes. I have the NA engine in my '23 CX-5 and when it came time for the first (free) service they agreed to use Mazda hi-moly synthetic oil, which I have always used in all my Mazdas with SkyActiv engines (3 to date). I told them to put the empties in the boot to verify they had complied, which they did. A couple of weeks ago the same dealer's service department called with an $99 service offer, which the car is just about in need of. I asked if that included the hi-moly oil and she said that their records showed that they had used it for the first service, so they would continue that at the promo price. She even stated that, in writing, in a confirming email. Considering I pay $87 from an online vendor for 5 qts of this oil and a Mazda filter for my Mazda 3 (which I service myself), I figured that was a pretty sweet deal!

One of the 4 or 5 times I visited the Mazda dealer with my 2018 CX-5, I can't remember what the visit was for but not an oil service, they told me that the oil level was too high and they removed some.

Days later I got an oil light on my dash. I checked the oil level and it was low. I filled it the correct level and never had another issue. They probably measured the level immediately after shutting off the engine or somethign.

Moral of the story is, I don't trust the dealer to do the oil change properly. Its much less expensive, takes less time, and is more convenient for me to change it myself. Plus I can use better materials and know the condition it was left in and if there was anything unusual to take note of.

 

[RobertJT]

I have three cars. I use 5W30 in all three.