Hey everybody, I'm a new mazda owner and new to this computer stuff. The first ? i have is the dealer told me I had to use a Mazda oil filter, he said no other filter would seal very good. True or false? Hate having to sit for 2-3 hours in a dealership.

 

sounds like boohockey to me... we'll see what the others have to say. (i never drove a 3)

 

totally rediculous...even if it was true, you could just purchase the filter there and change your own oil

 

they just want your money, but remember that the mazda 3 needs synthetic oil. i dont know if u have to get a different filter or anything for synthetic oil...

 

oh and another thign the cost of that is like 35 dollars. I had it dont the other day, but i think they do a checkup for ya or something.

 

I hope you're kidding. The Mazda3 definitly doesn't need synthetic oil. It comes with dino oil straight from the factory, and I really doubt you're paying $35 for a synthetic oil change.

Andrew Beard

 

well it might have been 40 but i went there and they changed my oil and they gave me oil that lasted 5000 miles. i never heard of regular oil that lasted that long.

 

Wix filters are also good, and pretty damn easy to find. To seal it properly, just wipe a little oil around the rubber gasket on the filter before installing it.

I use Mobil1 in my Protege(and Miata), but Castrol works great too. Just remember to change it every 3k or so miles, and you'll save some dough over sythetic oil.

 

I'll call BS on that as well. I've gotten my last several filters from Advance Auto and not had a leak since (20k miles). Also you definitely don't have to put synthetic oil in this car. You can use dino or synth. as long as you use the correct oil weight.

Also dino oil can easily last 5k miles. I've always done oil changes every 5k, and infact Mazda recommends an oil/filter change every 5k, not 3k. The 3k is just lube places trying to get your money.

 

Syntetic last longer, but is more expensive, and true mazda factory uses common oil, and you should too, syntetic oil its better for bigger engines or if you have a tweaked engine (turbo) that its under more stress than stock, the warranty plan tune ups are every 10,000 km or (im guessing) 6,250 mill (10.000 / 1.6 ) correct me if im wrong, so you can use you oir for 5,000 milles no prob

 

The Mazda3 owner's manual recommends 7,500 mile oil changes for normal operation, and 5,000 for severe operation. A good dino oil can do that easily without additional engine wear.

Andrew Beard