Oil change drama

To be fair, the owner's manuals don't specify synthetic oil. They don't even recommend it. All that's necessary for the warranty to be honoured is that the specs of the oil used match with what is specified in the manual. The OCIs identified in the Maintenance Schedule are based on the recommended oil specs, after all.

All that said, synthetic oil is a much better option for a turbocharged engine, and the added cost of synthetic is well worth the long term benefits the engine gets from it. If you have access to and can afford synthetic, you should use it.

Here is the excerpt from the manual:
▼ Recommended Oil U.S.A., Canada SKYACTIV-G 2.0, SKYACTIV-G 2.5 Use SAE 0W-20 engine oil. Mazda Genuine Oil is used in your Mazda vehicle. Mazda Genuine 0W-20 Oil is required to achieve optimum fuel economy

SKYACTIV-G 2.5T Use SAE 5W-30 engine oil. Mazda Genuine Oil is used in your Mazda vehicle. Mazda Genuine 5W-30 Oil is required to achieve optimum fuel economy

Outside US, Canada the recommendation in the manual is to use SAW 5W-30. That's all it says.
 
I doubt Honda specs an o-ring that can't stand the heat. I have used and re-used them and they don't crack or leak.

The package had 5 of them for $3-4 or so.

I like Mazda but sometimes I wonder.
Why spec a conventional oil for a turbo?
Why not specify regular brake fluid change?
Mazda didnt spec a conv oil. 5w30 can be had in synthetic.. I use it. In fact a 5qt jug of the shell 5w30 full syn I use costs ~$23usd. Walmart brand (which is dexos licensed) is like 15. Also 5w30 is in the name owners manual as well. 0w20 is only reccomended for the marginal fuel economy increase which lowers mazda fleet mpg in test stands. Some cars say 0w16 (and 0w20 as a sub), and soon there will be 0w8 for mpg gains measured in the 2% on a test engine
The super premium seems to be the conventional nd.the ultra apparently is the full synthetic.
 

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Honestly with the price of 5qt of full synthetic oil as low at $15, there is no reason to be running dino oil in a modern engine. Especially a GDI or turbod one (asking for coking). you can change your own oil for $20-25 in parts, the difference in price at a lube shop/dealer is literally a sucker upcharge. The price diffference in dino/synthetic oil at walmart is like $3 for 5 qts. You can always ask for a labour only price and supply your own oil if it come out cheaper
 
If it is dino oil change it at 3K miles or 3 months, which ever comes first.
Consumer Reports did an extensive test of taxi cab engines and the effects of oil change intervals, many years ago. They found that:
a) No engine oil needed to be changed at 3000 miles.
b) The non-synthetic oil in the taxis lasted about 7500 miles before losing the protective compounds.

I use full synthetic oil and change it every 12 months (5000 to 7500 miles). For those with older vehicles (no direct injection), add some Chevron Techron injector cleaner to your full gas tank at every oil change.
 
There is oem synthetic 5w30.
 

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What's the difference btwn drum and bulk? Maybe bulk is like a case of single qts/lts?
Anyway, no moly version of 5W30. I'll stick with LiquiMoly.
 
I bet some dealers only have one kind of oil in the drum.

I know the Mazda brand oil has moly which is good, but I have also read that titanium is really good and Castrol has titanium.

They say synthetic is really good in low temperatures plus less boils off in the heat.
 
MAZDA states 5,000 for severe service and lists what they consider severe. Ed
I would think that Mazda's algorithm that determines oil change intervals determines whether your driving is in the severe category in some ways but would not know if you're driving in dusty environments, for example. Perhaps oil pressure on the upstream side of the filter would indicate a faster particulate entrapment rate and result in shorter oil change intervals?
 
I guess I'm a sucker for the algorithm and for the reason that I believe that even standard oil is good for 5K.
Do you think driving in a dusty environment has any impact on oil life? My thought: You just may need to change the air filter more often.
 
What's the difference btwn drum and bulk? Maybe bulk is like a case of single qts/lts?
Anyway, no moly version of 5W30. I'll stick with LiquiMoly.
Doesn't mean it has moly. You'd have to perform or find a VOA. Rotella has moly in it and it's not listed anywhere on the carton. Liqui moly says "moly" and doesn't even have moly in all of it's oils (mis leading). Look up liqui moly VOAs some of them have impurities which means lower quality base oil. They (LM) actually sell a moly additive that you add to oil. Also it basically lost to amazon basic oil in a test lol.
 

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I bet some dealers only have one kind of oil in the drum.

I know the Mazda brand oil has moly which is good, but I have also read that titanium is really good and Castrol has titanium.

They say synthetic is really good in low temperatures plus less boils off in the heat.
Castrol titanium has moly and titanium (although not a lot but more than most since many oils dont use it). I used it before switching to shell. I wanted shel for the emphasis on engineering for stressed engines
 
I guess I'm a sucker for the algorithm and for the reason that I believe that even standard oil is good for 5K.
Do you think driving in a dusty environment has any impact on oil life? My thought: You just may need to change the air filter more often.

It is possible for air to get around the filter at times. In that case your engine could be pulling in dirty air while you are oblivious to it happening.
 
I'm in awe that synthetic is being questioned on not being better... bizarro world where dino has better lubricating properties and costs less. Again.... reaffirms my need to do my own maintenance.
 
I'm in awe that synthetic is being questioned on not being better... bizarro world where dino has better lubricating properties and costs less. Again.... reaffirms my need to do my own maintenance.

My theory regarding Mazda's stance on Turbo Skyactiv engines:

They don't want people using long service intervals that lots of Synthetic oil makers tout and advertise....instead opting for more frequent changes with OEM spec'd oil. Essentially playing it safe in terms of minimizing engine failure claims. They could not afford such drama with NA skyactiv engines..let alone turbo ones.
 
If it is dino oil change it at 3K miles or 3 months, which ever comes first.
Change my oil every three months, regardless of how much or how little I drive? Ah, no.
What if I go away for a few months (which I do), and the car never gets driven?
Also, we are retired and don't drive much to begin with.
On average we probably put 300 miles on the car every month, sometimes less.
By your standards, that means I have to change the oil every 900 miles or so. Not happening.
Like dunhillmc said, this isn't the 80's (or earlier) anymore.
 
I'd like to throw this gentlemen's oil testing blog out here as I don't believe it's ever been referenced (no, it's not Bob the Oil Guy):

540ratblog

WARNING: There's hours of valuable reading there, and the blog itself is just one very long webpage! Here's a hint for reading: search for "0W20".

FWIW, I've been running Quaker State Ultimate Durability 0W20 since my 2017 GT's first oil change @ 5k, and every 5k since then (I'm about to hit the 35k mile marker soon). No engine problems whatsoever, engine runs smooth and quiet. Based on the information on this blog, I'm planning on switching to QSUD 5W30 when my warranty is up. After all the testing he's done, QSUD is pretty much the best oil for wear protection.
 
I'm planning on switching to QSUD 5W30 when my warranty is up. After all the testing he's done, QSUD is pretty much the best oil for wear protection.
Not necessary the Quaker State, if the oil consumption is getting worse on my SkyActiv-G 2.5L with 0W-20 oil, I’d switch to 5W-30 too. After all Mazda recommends 5W-30 oil worldwide for its SkyActiv-G 2.5L.
 
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