New P5 break-in questions.

2k2s4

Member
:
2002 Audi S4 :: 2003 MP5
I've been reading the archives for the past few hours and there seems to be A LOT of conflicting information there regarding break-in, oil changes, etc... Our new P5 didn't come with a manual (on order) so I was hoping that someone could answer a few questions out of the manual for an '03.5 P5.

What is the recommended break-in period? 600 miles seems to be the common answer. I'm not terribly concerned about this, the P5 seems to be a reasonably reliable car anyway, and it really only needs to get my gf through two years of grad school and it's got the four year warranty. I'm not going to beat on it right away, but it's already got 300 miles on it because it was a dealer exchange from two states away. Any damage that could have been done in the break-in period has already been done.

Has anyone confirmed that Mazda uses a break-in oil from the factory? There seems to be a lot of opinion and suggestion, but no hard facts. Has anyone performed an oil analysis on the factory fill? I know that Audi used synthetic from day one in my S4, and I'd like to get some Mobil 1 5W-30 in the P5 pretty soon.

Speaking of oil weight, what does the manual recommend? I haven't checked the oil filler cap, so maybe the recommended weight is printed there too, I'm just curious. I've seen 5W-30 and 10W-30 recommended on the forum, so I'm hoping that 5W-30 is factory recommended because I have a few cases lying around.

Finally, what's the factory recommended fill interval? I've seen a lot of guys advocating the 3,000 mile oil change, but unless this car sees a lot of track time (it won't), I don't see that happening. Is 5,000 what Mazda recommends?

I know this is a lot of questions, but I'm a n00b here, so please be patient. The archives contain a ton of good info, but there's a good deal of conflicting info as well. Thanks guys.
 
I would change the clutch fluid to synthetic right away on your first oil change. It will help some minor issues with the transmission. It is smooth now, this will just make it like butter.
In the summer please run 10W30. I burnt Mobil-1 Synthetic 5W30 before I installed my turbo. I am running Royal Purple 30W now. The car is never winter driven and it is an extra layer of safety for my engine. All that other s*** will be in your service manual when you get it. Its every 6000Km here between oil changes.

I would drive the car easy for 1000 Km, no matter what the other guys say. It's your car not theirs!!
:)
 
I used Mobil 1 Synth 10w-30 but it is too thick for winter here, so i switched to 5w-30 last oil change. Ill probably switch back to 10w-30 for summer.
 
Brian MP5T said:
I would change the clutch fluid to synthetic right away on your first oil change.

Thanks, it's an automatic though, so one thing i won't have to worry about. :) Tried to talk the gf into the stick, but it wasn't happening.
 
2k2s4 said:

What is the recommended break-in period? 600 miles seems to be the common answer.


Yes, the break in period is 600mi, straight from the owner's manual. It doesn't mention any specifics about break-in except to avoid heavy braking and acceleration, and to drive at varying engine and road speeds.


Finally, what's the factory recommended fill interval? I've seen a lot of guys advocating the 3,000 mile oil change, but unless this car sees a lot of track time (it won't), I don't see that happening. Is 5,000 what Mazda recommends?


The factory recommended interval is first change at 5000mi for normal driving, then every 3500mi afterwards( I think, I'll have to check the manual). From what I've read here many switch to synthetic after the first oil change, and synthetic is good for 5000mi.
 
pickupjason said:
clutch fliud? u mean transmission oil?


pls let me know..thanks

If I had said Transmission Oil and he had an automatic ( As He does ) he might have tried to get synthetic Dextron III. :eek:

Whatever
 
2k2s4 said:
Thanks, it's an automatic though, so one thing i won't have to worry about. :) Tried to talk the gf into the stick, but it wasn't happening.

Cool, It's still a great car. MT or AT...
 
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