Brake Fluid Change Interval 2018 CX-5 FWD

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Mazda
Just came back from the dealership today after an oil change and tire rotation. During the time I was there, the salesman tried to upsell me on the 30K service with premium oil conditioner, fuel additive cleaner, crankcase cleaning service, battery cleaning service, brake fluid exchange service and A/C odor treatment service which costs close to $1000. I declined all those services but the guy did mention my brake fluid is a little dirty, The vehicle is 27 months old and has 22,200 miles. I checked the owner's manual and it says to inspect the fluid. I guess my question is, when is it recommended to change it. Should I receive a second opinion? I have no intention of returning back to the dealership.

Thanks.
 
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Just came back from the dealership today after an oil change and tire rotation. During the time I was there, the salesman tried to upsell me on the 30K service with premium oil conditioner, fuel additive cleaner, crankcase cleaning service, battery cleaning service, brake fluid exchange service and A/C odor treatment service which costs close to $1000. I declined all those services but the guy did mention my brake fluid is a little dirty, The vehicle is 27 months old and has 22,200 miles. I checked the owner's manual and it says to inspect the fluid. I guess my question is, when is it recommended to change it. Should I receive a second opinion? I have no intention of returning back to the dealership...
Just came back from the dealership today after an oil change and tire rotation. During the time I was there, the salesman tried to upsell me on the 30K service with premium oil conditioner, fuel additive cleaner, crankcase cleaning service, battery cleaning service, brake fluid exchange service and A/C odor treatment service which costs close to $1000. I declined all those services but the guy did mention my brake fluid is a little dirty, The vehicle is 27 months old and has 22,200 miles. I checked the owner's manual and it says to inspect the fluid. I guess my question is, when is it recommended to change it. Should I receive a second opinion? I have no intention of returning back to the dealership.

Thanks.
Your Mazda dealer came up the most unnecessary service items for 30K-mile service I’ve ever seen. Good for their profit but bad to our pocket. If you follow Mazda’s recommended maintenance schedule for your 2018 CX-5, changing the brake fluid is not necessary. Since brake fluid does absorb moisture, many other car manufactures, including certain newer Mazda models, recommend changing the brake fluid every 2 or 3 years. You can get the brake fluid tester to check the percentage of moisture. If the moisture is over 2%, change the brake fluid.

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Just for what it's worth, I changed the brake fluid in my 2017 just short of 3 years (29k miles) before trading it in for a GT-R. I had to get new pads, and the fluid did look a little dirty, so I just told the dealership to go ahead and change it. I would say change it every 3 years just to be safe.
 
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Every 2-3 years is a common brake fluid change frequency on many, many cars and well proven. I always assumed that any “lifetime” recommendation implied a non-hydroscopic fluid chemistry.

This interval works well for coolant too.

- Mark
 
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every 3 years is good.

btw, for the newest Mazda 3/CX-30s (2019-2021), the service schedule says to change the brake fluid every other oil change
 
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every 3 years is good.

btw, for the newest Mazda 3/CX-30s (2019-2021), the service schedule says to change the brake fluid every other oil change
That’d be too much IMO because this could mean changing the brake fluid as frequent as once every year! And degrading of the brake fluid has nothing to do with mileage, but time.

I’d just use a good brake fluid tester checking the moisture content, and change it when the moisture is over 2%.
 
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That’d be too much IMO because this could mean changing the brake fluid as frequent as once every year! And degrading of the brake fluid has nothing to do with mileage, but time.

I’d just use a good brake fluid tester checking the moisture content, and change it when the moisture is over 2%.
and the new max mileage interval is 10k miles (with the same 2.5/2.5T engines that say 7500 mi on the CX5, M6, etc)
 
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and the new max mileage interval is 10k miles (with the same 2.5/2.5T engines that say 7500 mi on the CX5, M6, etc)
Inconsistency? Or approximation like those fluid capacities stated in the owner’s manual?
 
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near 30k recommended by my dealer as well
 
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Just came back from the dealership today ... salesman tried to upsell me on the 30K service with premium oil conditioner, fuel additive cleaner, crankcase cleaning service, battery cleaning service, brake fluid exchange service and A/C odor treatment service which costs close to $1000.
You should stop visiting this dealership immediately.
They are sleazy con men trying to rip you off.
Why would you even consider going back after they insulted your intelligence like this?
 
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You should stop visiting this dealership immediately.
They are sleazy con men trying to rip you off.
Why would you even consider going back after they insulted your intelligence like this?

To be fair, I went to them when Mazda was offering free oil changes for healthcare workers and received excellent service. The process was really straightforward without any upsell of services and that was the main reason I wanted to return. However, I won't consider going back. You guys are gonna laugh but I drove 26 miles to wait 3 hours for an oil change/tire rotation even with an appointment due to short staffed on Black Friday. Hahaha.
 
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No amount of "free" oil changes are worth everything you must put up with to get them.
After reading countless threads like this, I'm amazed so many people use the dealer for service.
I can do an oil change/tire rotation, in the comfort of my own garage, in less than 30 minutes, for about $20.

Well worth it to me. You avoid...
- Spending half a day of your precious time off waiting around for the vehicle.
- Burning gallons of fuel driving back/forth from the dealership.
- Being insulted by the service adviser trying to scam you for $1000 in useless services.
- Having a minimum-wage worker rushing through the work.
 
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No amount of "free" oil changes are worth everything you must put up with to get them.
After reading countless threads like this, I'm amazed so many people use the dealer for service.
I can do an oil change/tire rotation, in the comfort of my own garage, in less than 30 minutes, for about $20.

Well worth it to me. You avoid...
- Spending half a day of your precious time off waiting around for the vehicle.
- Burning gallons of fuel driving back/forth from the dealership.
- Being insulted by the service adviser trying to scam you for $1000 in useless services.
- Having a minimum-wage worker rushing through the work.

Some people don't have the time, tools, or technical knowledge to do this type of work themselves. Others simply prefer not to.
 
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Some people don't have the time, tools, or technical knowledge to do this type of work themselves. Others simply prefer not to.
But you should be able to find an independent mechanic, which would still eliminate most of the negative issues I noted above.
 
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An independent mechanic would certainly be better in most regards, but still some people like the idea of having Mazda techs work on their Mazdas. For example, there are a few members here who would prefer to have the dealership perform brake work to avoid potential screwups regarding the EPB Maintenance Mode. Others like the idea of not having to maintain service records themselves.
 
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I am not very hands-on when it comes to maintaining my vehicle. The most I've done are replacing the filters in engine and cabin and topping off fluids haha.
 
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Aside from the enormous markup, I simply don't trust the dealer to do what they say they do and/or are supposed to do. I'll have lingering doubts.

The main benefit of having work done at the dealer, is if the car needs warranty-covered repairs.

I plan on replacing all my brake pads and rotors because the rear pads are getting low. I'll also replace the brake fluid prior. If I discover a caliper is bad, it could be difficult or inconvenient to try and get the dealer to cover it. But at least I'll know what's going on in there.

If the dealer showed pictures and video of doing the checks, condition of old parts, and new parts installed, I'd feel much better about it - although still balk at their prices.
 
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