HOW TO: Change your own oil

Mazda doesnt recommend undoing the drain screw in the filter cap. It strips easy.
 
Seriously? What do you do then? Just remove the whole cartridge and get a load of oil in the face?
 
nice write up.

still cussing that damn shroud...last nut snapped off the tab or whatever holds it in place. all the others came out fine, i had to spin the whole damn shroud out of the way like it was hinged on that nut.

grumble grumble
 
Great write-up!

Before next oil change I'm going to take the sawzall to that engine cover so I can access the filter without removing it everytime!

$24.01 6Qt Pennzoil Platinum (5.6Qts used)
$6.25 Mazda Oil Filter (5-pack price)
FREE 20 minutes of my time
--------------------------------
$30.26 Total

Knowing it was done properly...........PRICELESS
 
Has anybody changed the oil and filter in a new 2010 Mazda 3 2.5L yet? Just curious to see if there are any major changes (I have read that the oil filters are now the screw on type). Seems like the older versions of the 3 or mazdaspeed 3 are a little time consuming and have delicate procedures in some situations when it comes to changing oil. Can anyone else confirm? Sorry if this is in the wrong place.
 
Thanks for trying...I have looked through there and didn't find anything (or I am just blind) and that is why I tried here.
 
I just did my third oil change, first time I've done it myself on this car. 9500 miles. I had some free time today. Supplies cost me $35 at the parts store. I used the MotorCraft Synth Blend 5W30. Purolator Filter. Picked up a 75mm/14 flute filter wrench for $5, which worked flawlessly even if it kind of got stuck on the filter. I figured that's close to what they use at the dealership and I'm doing every 3K or so. No great reason to go top shelf. With the coupon, it's less than $30 at the dealership. And they wash it.

I could see doing my summer changes at home, but I'm not doing this s*** in the winter. For less money...I'll go read magazines, look at cars and yuck it up at the dealer. Build relationships for if/when I take it in for a warantee claim.

The only step I would add is:

1. Walk down alley looking in dumpsters for something to use as a drain pan.

I forgot to buy the drain pain when I went to the auto store. My old one went bye-bye during a recent move. But I found a plastic bucket and ripped the top off and all was well with the universe. I saved said bucket from the landfill and I hope that it will serve me well.

My drain plug was really on tight. I had to go get the breaker bar. So I put it back on tight. With the same washer. I figured if anything comes out of there, it isn't going to be much.

The filter is a freakin mess, out there in the hot sun smearing o-rings with oil and burning your hands on an allen wrench that sat in the sun. Crawling around on the ground. Greating various people who walk by. Mind you, I'm doing this in an alley in Central Denver outside my apt building. If I saw myself doing lots of my own oil changes, I'd get the spin on conversion. I'd get a garage too. Cartridge just seems generally more messy than spin on. Garage just seems generally more conducive to DIY oil changes than alley.

So after the change and a short test drive/check for leaks, the wind reports were looking good. I grabbed a RC glider from my quiver and headed out of Denver to the west. 2 Miles City, then 12 highway, then a glorious run up the mountain. I'm lovinf the car now with the summer rubber and a few other mods. I flew the glider for about 1/2 hour, huge pumps, aerobatics, standing at the edge of a 2000ft plus cliff wind in my hair, blah, blah, blah. Amazing view through a canyon at the start of the Rocky Mountains. Landed. Checked the oil and it was showing on the full side, but not all the way. I put about another 1/4 quart in and then I flew more and eventually drove back to the city for dinner with friends. Smeared with oil, sweat and mountain. Glad we decided on a casual pub popular with the bohemian crowd. I couldn't have been the most smelly guy in that place.

Anyway, that's my story.

-G
 

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Wtf>>>>>>

Hey
Got my mz3 on leave from iraq for my wife. I love the car (08 GT) Now we have a garage so why not work on the car???
Well a year or so later I have been using it for work commute and decided that $ 50 for shiytt OIL is crap. The car was changed every 3K at Jiffy Lube.
Well It seems they changed 5q every time and they stripped the drain on the filter drain. It also looks as if the crush washer of the drain plug has never been replaced. Finally the push pins on the splash guard were DEAD!

Basically I will never take anything there again. I took the 2500HD there as well. The 5.7 tahoe takes 5qts so I hope that was done right. They charged me $$$ for an extra qt of oil on it but for the MZ3 which I found to take over 5.5 qt.
Death to Jiffy Lube.
 
i used to use jizzy lube when i had no tools, no knowledge, and no place to do oil changes myself. they left the oil fill cap off once, stripped my oil pan threads for the drain bolt once, left out the dipstick once, and offered me new windhsield wipers when i didn't need them 100,000 times

thank god i got the knowledge before i got this car
 
thats really alarming.. i guess if u want something done the right way u gotta do it urslef..id make "jizzy lube" (lol2) pay for the damages that they caused.. ive never went back to the dealership after i bought the car, even though the speed tech their knew what hes was talking about, his "helpers" were garbage..
 
Re-greetings Mazda People,

I just wanted to say thanks for the guide on the oil change. Up to now, I've been lazy, and just letting the dealer do it. Two oil changes ago, they left the filler cap off, and at some indeterminate time failed to reinstall the three front bolts to secure the plastic undertray. I just discovered that tonight when I crawled under the car to investigate the process. Before I saw this, I was a little on the fence about doing it myself, but the undertray was the kicker.

I finally got my garage organized and spiffed to the point where I can start doing my own maintenance, but before I do the oil, I'm going to the dealer to b**** them out and get my undertray bolts.

Besides the job, the divorce, the remarriage, and the typical daily BS, this is the reason, I haven't check in here much over the last couple of years (well this really accounts for about the last 10 months).
p1000533w.jpg

Guess I should change my last sig line. Off to find out about the cabin air filter.
 
FYI: Walmart is running a special on Pennzoil Platinum:

In addition to costing only $20 for 5qts they will send you a $15 Walmart card in the mail!

DSC02361.jpg


Limit two per household

I'm headed there right now.
 
Re-greetings Mazda People,

I just wanted to say thanks for the guide on the oil change. Up to now, I've been lazy, and just letting the dealer do it. Two oil changes ago, they left the filler cap off, and at some indeterminate time failed to reinstall the three front bolts to secure the plastic undertray. I just discovered that tonight when I crawled under the car to investigate the process. Before I saw this, I was a little on the fence about doing it myself, but the undertray was the kicker.

I finally got my garage organized and spiffed to the point where I can start doing my own maintenance, but before I do the oil, I'm going to the dealer to b**** them out and get my undertray bolts.

Besides the job, the divorce, the remarriage, and the typical daily BS, this is the reason, I haven't check in here much over the last couple of years (well this really accounts for about the last 10 months).
p1000533w.jpg

Guess I should change my last sig line. Off to find out about the cabin air filter.

Wow the lube techs are lazy everywhere. My last oil change was done by Mazda where I am living at for school and they lost a bunch of my undertray bolts as well. Luckily I have a friend who is a technician and he replaced them for me. But still how hard is it to keep track of 6 bolts lol. I'm just glad none of the other things haven't happened. The same goes for any of the 3rd rate oil change places, heard enough stories about them to just avoid them and do it myself.

I went to Walmart the two days ago for that Pennzoil oil and that offer isnt' good in Canada :(. Oh well i'm coming back home in a week so I'll pick it up when I'm back in OR.
 
Changed the oil today. Yesterday was a mini-bonanza buying new jackstands and a floorjack to replace the ones that somehow went missing between leaving California in 2000 and then moving to Virginia in 2006.

When I got under the car, I found that in addition to the 2 push pins holding the under cowling (?) where just 2, count em, 2 bolts. One of which was rusted so badly, I couldn't get it out. None of the 5 other mounting locations had the either the bolt or the clip/nut. Tomorrow is going to be fun at the dealer.
 
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FYI: Walmart is running a special on Pennzoil Platinum:

In addition to costing only $20 for 5qts they will send you a $15 Walmart card in the mail!

DSC02361.jpg


Limit two per household

I'm headed there right now.

Just picked up two myself!
 

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