Fluid changes

[greybeard]

Just bought a new 25. Reading the manual I see they claim Trans fluid “periodic replacement unnecessary”? Transfer case and rear differential changed only if submerged?!! Crazy
And the diff and transfer case hold tiny amounts .37 qts and .48qts. No way Im not changing.
Planning on drain and fill the trans at 30k, and drain and replace the diff and transfer then as well, and every 30k afterwards.
Good enough?
Also why do they call it a transfer case? seems like 4x4 terminology.

 

[wlong01]

Sounds like a good strategy. Mazda says those fluids are lifetime but they don't say how they define lifetime. My guess lifetime to them is till the warranty ends.

I guess by transfer case they're talking about transferring power to all the wheels that need it when slipping is detected.

 

[zjwffff]

Sounds like a good strategy. Mazda says those fluids are lifetime but they don't say how they define lifetime. My guess lifetime to them is till the warranty ends.

I guess by transfer case they're talking about transferring power to all the wheels that need it when slipping is detected.

Absolutely right - lifetime means the period under warranty

 

[greybeard]

Sounds like a good strategy. Mazda says those fluids are lifetime but they don't say how they define lifetime. My guess lifetime to them is till the warranty ends.

I guess by transfer case they're talking about transferring power to all the wheels that need it when slipping is detected.

Thanks. Just ordered a qt of mazda sg1 for either my first change or to top off if low from factory. Need to get 15 years out of this suv.

 

[wlong01]

Thanks. Just ordered a qt of mazda sg1 for either my first change or to top off if low from factory. Need to get 15 years out of this suv.

You shouldn't have a problem getting 15 yrs. I'm hitting 11 yrs (Purchased Apr 2015) on my 16 Touring and it still runs/feels new. Zero problems.
Our two Mazda's have been the most reliable, least expensive vehicles we've ever owned and we've owned a lot.

 

[greybeard]

You shouldn't have a problem getting 15 yrs. I'm hitting 11 yrs (Purchased Apr 2015) on my 16 Touring and it still runs/feels new. Zero problems.
Our two Mazda's have been the most reliable, least expensive vehicles we've ever owned and we've owned a lot.

Good to hear. The 2.5 was a big motivator. Have a 2014 5 speed focus, its 2.0 gdi has a lot in common with this engine, and its been trouble free at 105k. And the 2.5 is laid out pretty much the same. Same gdi noisy idle! And our 2006 2.0 focus still runs like new at 170k, also never a issue. Great motors

 

[ColoradoDriver]

Just bought a new 25. Reading the manual I see they claim Trans fluid “periodic replacement unnecessary”? Transfer case and rear differential changed only if submerged?!! Crazy
And the diff and transfer case hold tiny amounts .37 qts and .48qts. No way Im not changing.
Planning on drain and fill the trans at 30k, and drain and replace the diff and transfer then as well, and every 30k afterwards.
Good enough?
Also why do they call it a transfer case? seems like 4x4 terminology.

Good plan. I just hit 150k on my 2014 and servicing the transmission, rear differential, and transfer case are all on the list. Did the spark plugs today.

There is a transfer case if its an AWD model.

Need to get 15 years out of this suv.

April of this year will mark year 13 for mine since owning it (purchased April 20, 2013), but with a door sticker of 01/2013, the car itself hit 13 last month. The vehicle has been fantastic. Aside from some early model issues with lock actuators, a shifter switch (that was revised in later models), and a leaking belt tensioner, everything else on the vehicle has been maintenance really. The front suspension work I did a couple years ago (struts, lower control arms, end links) was a bit pricey but to be expected at that age / mileage. I need to do the rear shocks this year.

Honestly I want it to be a 20+ year vehicle..

 

[zx10guy]

Good to hear. The 2.5 was a big motivator. Have a 2014 5 speed focus, its 2.0 gdi has a lot in common with this engine, and its been trouble free at 105k. And the 2.5 is laid out pretty much the same. Same gdi noisy idle! And our 2006 2.0 focus still runs like new at 170k, also never a issue. Great motors

I had a 2006 Focus ZX-3 with a 5 speed manual. Loved the car. It got done in by a deer. When the car was totaled in 2013, I had 176,000 miles on it. The car was bought new. The engine in those cars are Mazda powerplants. I had one major issue with it that was covered under the Ford extended warranty. It took the dealer over a month and two attempts to fix the problem. I forget at what mileage this happened but I think it was under 50k miles. The fist mechanic misdiagnosed the problem even though I told them it's a valve tick. So he did repairs that didn't fix the problem. Got the car back and the valve tick was still there. To confirm I wasn't crazy, I took my car to a friend who is an ASE Master Tech. He also confirmed it was a valve tick. I took the car back to the dealer. The service writer came out with the mechanic and I demonstrated the problem. The mechanic huffed and said he can't do anything to fix it as he said the followers are mechanical and can't be adjusted. Then he stormed off. My service writer and I just stared at each other in shock. The service writer then said, I'm putting a different mechanic onto this job.

So what ended up happening was the car was at the dealer for over a month. The mechanic had to consult with Ford Tech Support for the course of action. The repairs ended up being replacing the exhaust cam along with the followers. After that repair, the car was solid till the deer incident.