Maintenance Schedule Questions

[Mazdiod2]

You should change the oil approximately every 5k miles, or once a year. Making sure all of the important fluids are present, including air in the tires, can take you quite a ways.

Do you know much about the history of the car, how it was used and maintained?

There was a period when Mazda was shipping cars with diluted coolant, and there was a tech bulletin about that. If the coolant was replaced according to the tech bulletin it wouldn't be necessary to change it again.

If you think the car has been abused or driven hard and not maintained you might take that into consideration. I'm a little surprised that you have over $1000 of work prescribed at this time when the schedule doesn't really call for it.

 

[ADS-B]

You go by the manual. It shouldn’t matter what she said, he said. Go by the manual.

 

[sm1ke]

By default, all owners should follow the maintenance schedule and recommended services in the Owner's Manual. That should be everyone's starting point. Following the schedule issued by the Manufacturer ensures that your factory warranty isn't voided. Preventative maintenance that goes above and beyond the Manufacturer's schedule doesn't hurt anything, especially if it's documented properly and/or performed by a qualified shop or the dealership.

In the real world, drivers have different driving styles and different use cases. Some are forced to climb hills and mountains while others travel along flat plains. Some are city commuters while others are on the highway 90% of the time. This is why the additional preventative maintenance can make sense to some drivers.

For example, ATF and differential fluids do not have service or fluid change intervals, but you cannot assume that you'll never need to service these components. Some drivers will tow trailers or load heavy payloads into the trunk often, while others will never accelerate past 2.5k RPM. Those who tow regularly are taxing their transmissions more heavily, so they should be servicing their transmissions more often than those who don't. It's a good idea to perform that preventative maintenance to reduce the chances of developing an issue when you're outside of the powertrain warranty period.

There isn't really a "right" answer, but there is a "better" way to approach things like this instead of thinking it's either "Yes" or "No". For example, if you're a mostly highway driver who doesn't really push the car hard often, you probably won't need to change your ATF every 30k mi. Still, it's good preventative maintenance to, at the very least, inspect your ATF at regular intervals so you're aware of the condition, rather than never inspect it just because it "seems like" it's running fine and Johnny CX-5 on the forums has 350k mi with zero issues.

 

[Lazy2.5]

Let's keep this simple for OP.

Yes, follow the maintenance schedule, but don't forget about your transmission fluid.

Dont go to the dealer. They are overpriced, and often Incompetent.

Call local mechanics and see who gives you the best price on the drain and fill. Read reviews to find someone who you can trust. Try to build a relationship with a mechanic for the future and if you don't know about cars , don't make it obvious to any mechanic.

Your mileage is still low, don't worry or get in over your head with all this.

 

[Lazy2.5]

If now or in the future you would like a list of maintenance items or simply want to know what to expect based on the experiences of higher mileage Mazda owners, me and others on this forum would be happy to help.