Seeking advice for keeping aging CX-5

[Moonlighter]

Yes, probably true. But if you DO have a big issue, the dealer is more likely to go to bat for you if you are a regular customer.

Again, the scheduled services include more than just changing the oil, as you will see if you read the service schedule.

I understand your comment, but for the record, changing your own oil won't compromise the warranty, you just need to keep your receipts.

I am aware that doing oil changes yourself may not compromise warranty.

But having evidence that all the other things on the list in the service schedule were done by a suitably competent person such as a qualified mechanic is not as easy to prove, and that can bring you undone from a warranty perspective. Plus, every service, my Mazda dealers mechanics connect my car up to their diagnostic equipment and that can pick up unseen problems. I cant do that. On two occasions I picked up my previous CX5 from a service to find that they changed a sensor (at no charge) that was out of spec, but there was no fault showing in the dash.

Add to that - warranty laws are not the same all over the world. Warranty claims that might get approved in your country despite a lack of documented service may not be in my country,

I have seen first hand how having a good established relationship with the dealer pays off with “above and beyond” support both during and after the warranty period.

For us, its a once a year “done as per the logbook” dealer service that is recorded in both the vehicle’s logbook and in Mazdas national database, and done at what I think is a reasonable price. This works for me.

Anyway, you do you. I will do me.