Zweebee

Hi everyone,

I first must start by saying I love my Protege 5!!!!! I purchased it in March and have only received compliments from everyone who has driven in it with me. Unfortunately, I do not see many in Maryland so no flashing for me. :-)

My boyfriend offered to teach me how to change the oil and air filter in my car. Air filter was a cinch, but the oil filter is a mystery. Where is it located? Can anyone help? Also, the manual is telling me that I need a special tool in order to change the filter. What tool is this and where can I purchase it?

Thanks for taking the time to respond. I look forward to reading about everyone else's experience with the car.

Jodi

protetype

i'm not positive where the filter on the 2.0l's is... but let me be the first to welcome you to the board.

Sir Nuke

Zweebee, Welcome to the family....the fridge is in the corner with lots of cold drinks in it...all kinds....make yourself at home....flop on the couch....have a good time!!

the oil filter...well they (mazda) hid the silly thing! lol if you get on your back under the car...and look STRAIGHT up on the BACK SIDE of the block...there it is. you really have to have the car up on jack stands or on ramps to get at it....

the special tool...no....its not what I would call a special tool anyway....

for starters I am going to tell you, and you will find a lot of others that will agree....stick with and use MAZDA oil filters....they are a little more...but you can't go wrong with them....NOW, after you get one, go down to your local Wal-mart....go to the automotive section, they sell oilfilter sockets...they look like a big cap that fits on the filter and have a 3/8" drive hole in the end....they are pretty handy, work like a champ, and are only about $3. THIS is the special tool that the manual speaks of.

something else...you may find that the filter that came on your car is REALLY tight....tighter than it should be....a lot of people have found theirs that way...I personally didn't...but some people have.

Have fun......hope to see you around the board more. Once again...welcome to the club. :{D

Zweebee

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone! Now only if there was a Mazda dealer near me, this oil change would be easy!

silvP5

be ready to bust your rear trying to get the filter off the first time!

It is a pain!

NoahsMP5

I asked that same exact question about three monthes ago. Even about the " special tool" I got under my car with it on the rhino ramps and it still took me about an hour to find it. I even think sir nuke answered me.

Sir Nuke

did you have sun glasses on? or your eyes closed? LOL just kiddin....if it was shaded or dark where you were I could posibly see that....the stock filter IS black..... :{D

NoahsMP5

it was high noon and not a cloud in the sky. But keep in mind that my greatest automotive acheivment before this was finding the washer fluid.

Sir Nuke

well there ya go!! lol course it would also help, if you didn't now what it looked like....take the NEW one in your hand and look at it real close before crawling under the car...at least you will know what you are looking for... :{D



BTW Noah.....just givin ya a hard time.....its just in fun. :{D

NoahsMP5

if you cannot laugh at yourself you have no right to laugh at others. So go give me your best shot.

randallb

try an autoparts store, and look for a "professional" filter tool, one for small import filters, usually 2 1/2"- 3 and a fraction" capacity. Manufacturers such as Lisle make them, and they cost about $10. They typically use 3/8" drive (socket ratchet wrench). I REALLY wish I had that tool when I had to remove the factory-installed filter, as it was TIGHT!

P.S. - when changing the oil filter, get your car up on the ramp, and then take a break or change the oil before changing the filter. Let the exhaust pipe cool off a bit before wrapping your arms around it!

Brubeck

I'm a little curious about this. I was looking around, and it seems the same thing holds true for the miata's (my wife's new car), which I guess we share the same filter with (the stock numbers for all the aftermarket companies were the same). Anyway, after reading this guys very thorough oil filter study , I decided to just go with the purolator filter. Of course, no store around me had one, so I spend $6 more on the Mobil 1 filter (suposedly pretty close).

From what I gathered from all the discussion on the Miata boards, the most concern was with some anti-drainback valve or something, and then the element clogging up, but these things really won't come into play if you change you oil at a regular interval. I drained the Castrol Syntek that the dealer put in, and put in the Mobil 1, and the Castrol was still the color of new after 5000 miles.

For what it's worth, I *did* notice that the Mazda filter has a lot more holes in the flange (8 as opposed to 5 if I remember correctly). But I haven't noticed any depreciation in performance since the swap.

Just my $.02 anyway...

Sir Nuke

this stuff is kind of like insurance.....and the saying you get what you pay for......

the way I look at it....what is 5 or 6 bucks for a good filter when you are talking about taking care of a 16K to 20K investment....its just a drop in the bucket.... and god forbid if ANYTHING should ever go wrong.....mazda damn sure can't blame it on me not using MAZDA filters... :{D lol

but you are right, there are quality filters out there on the market....in my opinion....its really a matter of personal choice more than anything.