2006+ Mazda5 Maintenance Tasks: Do It Yourself

dommo_g

Member
:
2004 SRT-4, 2007 MS3
Some people would rather pay the dealer or a quick change place to go through the trouble of getting the dirty stuff out, and clean stuff in. For those that would rather not trust the local Grease Monkeys, here's what you'll need to do:

What you'll need:
  • 17mm socket
  • 10mm socket or nut driver
  • Small flathead screwdriver or panel clip puller
  • 6mm Allen wrench
  • Oil filter wrench, rubber strap wrench, or one of these
  • Jack and stands, or ramps
  • Oil filter kit (Mazda part# L321 14 302 9U)
  • 5 quarts of your favorite 5w20
  • Paper shop towels
  • Rubber gloves to make clean up easier


First thing to do is to get the car off the ground. I prefer ramps, but a jack with stands will do just fine. Use the proper jacking method outlined in the owners manual.


After the car is safely raised, you'll need to remove the plastic engine cover from under the engine. It is held in place by 7 10mm bolts, and 2 plastic expansion panel clips. There is also a tab/slot on each rear corner by the wheels that needs to be removed. The 10mm bolts aren't on very tight, and you may prefer to use a nut driver over the clumsiness of a ratchet on loose bolts.
There are 3 bolts along the front edge of the cover just to the rear of the bottom edge of the bumper, and 2 on the rear sides, near each wheel.



The 2 expansion clips are located on each front corner of the engine cover. They are in two parts. You'll need to pry out the center to release the clip. You can use a small flatblade screwdriver and gently pry the center, moving from side to side, or you can use an interior clip remover if you have one.


OK, now you're ready to drain the oil. I like to remove the oil filler cap just enough to relieve vacuum when the oil is draining, to let it drain easier and more thoroughly.


Use the 17mm socket to remove the oil pan drain plug. The drain plug faces the rear of the car.

Make sure to have a couple shop towels handy here.
Once you loosen it up with the first turn, put your socket down and loosen the rest by hand. You'll need to move it away quickly once it's out of the hole so the oil can stream steady into your drain pan. Make sure to keep an eye on the draining oil so that the stream doesn't move out of the way of your drain pan opening and start to spill on the floor. I usually let the oil drain for a little bit, to get the most out of the engine. It may be a good time for one of these:


Once the oil has stopped draining, clean off the drain plug and replace it. Get it hand tight, and give it another 1/4-1/2 turn.

Use whatever tool you have to loosen the oil filter housing about 1 to 1 1/2 turns. The cartridge filter housing is spring loaded, so the goal here is to loosen it just enough to relieve spring pressure on the filter element so the oil can drain properly. Then take the 6mm Allen wrench and remove the drain plug in the middle of the filter housing. This is where the oil from the filter will drain out, so be prepared with your oil pan. Again, once it starts draining, you can leave it for a little while to drain completely. Once it finishes, there will still be some oil in the housing. Remove it from the engine, and place it upside down on your oil pan.


Remove the old filter from the housing and dispose of properly. Use shop towels to clean the inside of the housing, the drain plug, and the filter cavity on the engine. Take your new filter kit and replace both O-rings, one on the drain plug, and one on the housing. Dip your finger in a bottle of your new oil and coat the O-rings before putting them in place. A small flat head screwdriver makes getting them in place easier, but be careful not to damage them. Place the new filter element onto the housing, and push it firmly in place. Reinstall the housing to the engine, and tighten the drain plug. Torque specs are stamped on the housing.


Use a funnel to add the the 5w20 oil to the engine. Most people are finding that the dipstick will show full after adding between 4 and 4.5 quarts. The manual calls for 4.3 when changing the filter. With most cars, I don't use a funnel, but if you spill oil, you'll have to go through the hassle of removing the top engine cover to clean it up.
Tighten the filler cap, close the hood, and start the engine. Let it run for about a minute then shut it off. Check for leaks under the car. You rock, so there should be none.
Replace the lower cover using the reverse of the removal process. Lower your car from the ramps or jack stands.

Finished! Now just decide whether you ever want to do this again!
 
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Holy crap, how long did it take? I think I'll pay the $29.95 at the dealership for now. Since I charge $80 - $100/hr for my time when I do consulting work that looks like an awfully expensive oil change if I do it myself. Plus I'd probably drop a nut and loose it or tear a gasket.
 
Dommo_g, are you absolutely sure the proper wrench is the 75.6mm (aka 3-inch) one? I saw a post on another board which originally identified it as 74 or 75mm, but later corrected to say the actual diameter was 72mm. I haven't taken my calipers to the housing. If this is definitely the right one, I'll just go to the local auto parts stores with my calipers and get the $2 plastic version of that wrench instead of the $12 Mazda version. Thanks for the great write-up!
 
Nice post Dommo_g! This will be a big help to other DIY'ers. Up until my back injury, I always maintained my cars myself, from oil changes to engine swaps.

However this looks to be a real pain in the you-know-what to do.

Once you factor in the mess, and the old oil and filter disposal, makes the $29.99 dealer change sound like a real bargain! (crazy)

Keep Zooming!
 
Yeah, on second thought, think I'll be taking it to the dealer. Seems way too much hassle. My local dealer with change the oil and wash it for only $19.95.
 
Yeah, it took me longer to write this up than to actually change the oil. I'm using Mobil1, which is $6 per quart. I'm guessing the dealer would charge me close to $50 for a synthetic oil change. Plus, I'm the type of person that prefers to do as much of my own work as I can on my own.

As far as the filter wrench, I haven't actually used one, but all indications are it's the same wrench for all 2.3l motors, which would be the one pictured. I'm going to buy one, and if it's not correct, I'll post up the info and change the write up.
 
I still think I'd have the dealer do it. By the time an oil change is due, you are also ready for a tire rotation and other lubrications and inspections. Just seems like alot of wor Some the dealer should do! Roating my tires is more work than I want to do! besides I don;t have 4 jack stands (yet!)
 
This is going to be fun! I LOVE working on my cars. Something new for me, the filter type. :)
 
I've been taking my 5 to a friend with a shop. I get to use a lift which makes it soooo easy.

I'm also going to fabricate a hole in the bottom cover so I don't have to remove it anymore.

Matt
 
Dommo, thanks a million for the instructions and pics :). One small item though, the manual states 4.5 qts with a filter and oil change, not 5 qts. I have always been told that too much oil is way worse than too little (ughdance)
Opus
 
I will be using a LiquiVac to pump the oil out. Do I still have to remove the bottom engine cover to change the oil filter?
 
Zen - yep you will have to still remove the cover. No one is yet to explain why they put a hole in the cover roughly two inches bigger in diameter than the filter, but put it off to the side and not under the filter. I would love to hear an explination for this one if anyone has come across it.
 
opus said:
Zen - yep you will have to still remove the cover. No one is yet to explain why they put a hole in the cover roughly two inches bigger in diameter than the filter, but put it off to the side and not under the filter. I would love to hear an explination for this one if anyone has come across it.

From M-tips newsletter:

"Some customers may ask why the access hole on the splash shield
does not line up directly under the oil filter for serviceability.

The reason for the hole is for oil leak visual checks by plant
personnel on the plant assembly line, not for oil filter removal."
 
Not to be snide, but wouldn't they be able to check for leaks just as well if the hole was directly under the filter, sounds like a BS excuse for an engineering foul up. Or maybe it is just my naturally pesimistic nature. (glare)
 
Change to spin-on

Great DIY info! Thanks for the terrific detailed pictures. Just bought my 5 and I usually like working on my own car. Not sure if I will on this one! Did you see a post on changing the filter type to a spin-on on a 6 forum? Do you think this would apply to this engine?

I would be interested in your thoughts....
 
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bulwnkl said:
Dommo_g, are you absolutely sure the proper wrench is the 75.6mm (aka 3-inch) one? I saw a post on another board which originally identified it as 74 or 75mm, but later corrected to say the actual diameter was 72mm. I haven't taken my calipers to the housing. If this is definitely the right one, I'll just go to the local auto parts stores with my calipers and get the $2 plastic version of that wrench instead of the $12 Mazda version. Thanks for the great write-up!
Bulwnkl,
Any update on this ? I'm about to do a change and don't really want to pay the Mazda price for the wrench. I'd rather go to the local auto parts store.
thanks
 
2cam16 said:
Bulwnkl,
Any update on this ? I'm about to do a change and don't really want to pay the Mazda price for the wrench. I'd rather go to the local auto parts store.
thanks

The one from the auto parts store will work just fine. I think it is one of the best sham jobs I've seen recently. Yes this "magic" wrench remove the filter without causing it to go up in flames!!!! They even had me feeling a little nervous about doing the job :)
 
Cover hole

Could one not just cut a round hole under the oil filter to save some time ?
make it a little larger than the size of the filter ?
Enought space to tighten/loosen the filter with the tool ?
 
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