Months before oil change?

Hi...My car has been sitting most of the past year since I've been working from home. Changed my oil 14 months ago and have 3,000 miles on it. I used Mazda moly oil. The oil still looks like honey. Many of my drives are 10-20 minutes long. Should I dump the oil even though it looks good because of the time and short drives? CX-5 has 50k miles on it.
 
I would say yes. Recommended is 12 months. Oil cannot be judged by looks. Of course it can probably stay longer time but is it worth it for 45usd per year?
 
I'd take it for a drive on a highway for 30 + minutes and keep the oil for another 1,000 miles then change it.
 
Hi...My car has been sitting most of the past year since I've been working from home. Changed my oil 14 months ago and have 3,000 miles on it. I used Mazda moly oil. The oil still looks like honey. Many of my drives are 10-20 minutes long. Should I dump the oil even though it looks good because of the time and short drives? CX-5 has 50k miles on it.
Recommendation by Mazda is 7,500 miles or 12 months whichever comes first. You should change the oil at 14 months and 3,000 miles although it’s not ASAP. I changed my oil when the wrench indicator and “Oil change due” message were displayed last December by Flexible Oil Life Monitor when the Mazda moly oil serviced for 12 months and 2,728 miles. The oil drained out was dark if you believe the oil color should be an indication of oil life remaining.

IMO, the reason why you want to change the oil for time duration of 12 months is because the oil can be contaminated easily in the engine by moisture and gasoline with frequent short trips.

For your 2015 CX-5 with 50K miles, powertrain warranty concern is no longer an issue.
 
I doubt anything untoward will happen if you don't change it, but you're the occasional short trip usage pattern that the annual oil change is designed to address. This sort of usage tends to result in a buildup of contaminants in the oil. I wouldn't worry if you stretch another month or three, but I wouldn't let it go until you reach the 7.5K mileage which might be 6+ months from now.

- Mark
 
I doubt anything untoward will happen if you don't change it, but you're the occasional short trip usage pattern that the annual oil change is designed to address. This sort of usage tends to result in a buildup of contaminants in the oil. I wouldn't worry if you stretch another month or three, but I wouldn't let it go until you reach the 7.5K mileage which might be 6+ months from now.

- Mark
Yes, I agree. I changed the oil last December on my 2000 BMW 528i along with my Mazda CX-5, and the oil had been there for more than 2 years. The BMW had been driven for only 37 miles in 12 months based on the record when I took it in for annual state inspection yesterday.

But one thing OP needs to consider is the warranty issue. In highly unlikely event if OP’s CX-5 would develop some oil related engine problem within powertrain warranty 5-year / 60K-mile period, Mazda could use this, OP didn’t change the oil in 12 months, as an excuse to void the warranty.
 
I've always thought that spring is the best time to change the oil because then you can drain contamination from the cold winter operation.

It seems a shame to drain a quality oil like Mazda moly 0w20 with such low mileage, so I normally use a readily available name brand synthetic like Pennzoil, Quaker State, Valvoline, Mobil or Castrol for about half the price.
 
...IMO, the reason why you want to change the oil for time duration of 12 months is because the oil can be contaminated easily in the engine by moisture and gasoline with frequent short trips....
While I agree that the OP is probably due for an oil change, moisture in the oil is less of a concern with modern engines. Unlike 20 years ago, most modern engines run the oil temp much higher, 210*F+ is common. Why? To evaporate any condensation in the oil. If the OP only drives his CX few miles each day and the oil doesn't get up to temperature, then condensation could be a concern. If he drives long enough for the oil to boil off any water, then “moisture” by itself shouldn’t be a concern.
 
moisture may be not but sludge is still a problem.
yes, 210 F for oil only if you drive long enough or live in a hot climate.
 
I've always thought that spring is the best time to change the oil because then you can drain contamination from the cold winter operation.

It seems a shame to drain a quality oil like Mazda moly 0w20 with such low mileage, so I normally use a readily available name brand synthetic like Pennzoil, Quaker State, Valvoline, Mobil or Castrol for about half the price.

The best time to change the oil is when it's recommended by the manufacturer, either mileage based or time based.

A lot of folks who store their cars over the winter months think that it's best to change the oil in the spring but that's not true. If the car is going to be stored over the winter months it's best to change the oil before storage. There's no reason to keep that, relatively, dirty oil in the car only to change it when the weather warms up.

YMMV
 
A lot of folks who store their cars over the winter months think that it's best to change the oil in the spring but that's not true. If the car is going to be stored over the winter months it's best to change the oil before storage.
I would agree if the car is going into storage. In that case it would be better to change it. I was referring to those who drive mostly short trips in sub freezing weather.

Winter is probably worse for the car than any other season and can often be considered severe service.
 
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