Long Distance travel E to W Coast, oil life? SkyActiv 2.5

How would a very long distance travel affect oil life and OCI? I'm contempleting a East to West Coast trip, but I am uncertain if I would still need to change the oil at 5k per the Mazda Connect system, or can I go longer? I know the general rule of thumb that stop and go city driving is hardest on the oil, but what about long stretches of consistent highway miles and stable rpm? This is for a 2020 Mazda3 with the 2.5 and SkyActiv AT. I'm almost at the end for the Factory Fill
 
Highway miles are easier on the engine than city miles, and technically you could extend the OCI, probably by a lot. That said, you should never exceed the maximum change interval that's specified in your owner's manual, for the duration of the powertrain warranty. Doing so allows the automaker POSSIBLE grounds to void the warranty. Not saying they would definitely do this, but why create that situation, when it's very easy to avoid it completely.

Change the oil just prior to leaving on the long trip, even it it's not close to being due. And keep close track of the change interval planning for the return trip (if there is one).
 
They used to recommend changing the oil frequently during long hiway trips, almost daily, despite not being polluted from short trip operation, because the hours of high temperatures would damage the oil.

Modern oils are much better.

I would change to a high quality, durable synthetic oil like Mobil 1 ES 5w30 for such a trip and it should be fine.

But if you encounter severe dust conditions, like what they experience in places like Arizona at times, I would change it sooner. Some people might recommend changing just the filter.

I drove a car cross country once. Changed oil, drove 7000 miles, then changed it again. The oil looked plenty dark but I never had any problems even years later.
 
As others have said highway miles are much easier on the car and oil than stop and go city miles. I've heard it may be a 3:1 ratio. With that said I will still adhere to Mazda's oil change recommendations.

I change the oil and filter in our car every 5K miles. With 122K miles on the odometer and it still doesn't burn any oil. My kids 2009 Altima has 196K miles and now uses 1/2 quart every 5K miles. Same oil change schedule.
 
My 2014 3 allows me to select the oil change interval setting to the one that monitors my driving habits and oil temperatures/length of engine running time. I believe that if you set yours this way, your engine change interval will lengthen when the mileage is mostly highway for extended lengths of time/miles. Currently, the monitor tells me to change the oil once per year, which is at about 5000 miles.
 
How would a very long distance travel affect oil life and OCI? I'm almost at the end for the Factory Fill.
If you've never changed the factory oil since new, then I'd definitely change it before starting your trip. Then I'd change it again at the end of the trip, regardless of miles. Just my $.02
 
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