Almost New Mazda2, Need Oil advice

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So the car is a 2013 Mazda2, I bought it second hand with 9800kms on it. It was put on the road In April of 2014, So its barely 7 months old. Factory Fill was changed in July at 6800kms with 0w20 Full Synthetic at the dealer.

Its now at 10500kms and I am going to be changing the oil soon and need some advice.

Owners manual states 0w20 Synthetic recommended, but that was for 2013+. The 2011-2012 with the same engine was 0w30 with no mention of synthetic. European/Australia models just spec 5w30. I am not a fan of using 5w20 and now 0w20 when I have heard of so many cars burning oil these days.. I'm not confident that engines have tighter clearances these days compared to the 90's. 5w30 worked great in the 90's, know of tons of cars that didn't burn any oil, both well maintained and neglected while on a steady diet of 5w30 and 10w30 dino.

My thoughts are to use 5w30 Dino for one interval and then follow it up with 5w30 Synthetic since I would like to extend intervals a bit.

Here are my concerns.

1. The vehicle was babied for the first 10K, I got the impression that the previous owner was a bit of a hyper miler. I am a little worried that the engine wasn't and still isn't really broken in and am thinking a Dino oil could help that out a bit. (or is it already too late)

2. Car isn't as fuel efficient as one would think, Would I see a drop off in MPG with 5w30?

On the Shelf is 5w30 Pennzoil Dino Yellow Bottle, and Pennzoil Platinum 5w30.
Don't really care about the warranty. The warranty won't save me from having a car that I need to constantly feed oil to in between OCI's.
 
You do know its not the 90s any more right? Do you feel you have more data to make a judgment against the engineers who designed the engine?
 
With only 10k km, agree with you that it might not be well broken in, especially if it was driven super easy.

You could certainly run an 8-10k oci with a good 5w30 dino, drive it hard for.that oci, then move to your chosen oil.

Since the identical engine the year before specified a 30 weight, it won't do any harm and the only way to see if it reduces mpg is to try it out.

As new engines loosen up the mpg will generally improve.
 
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Hey now the 90's were a good time...

Engineers may write the owner's manual... Business men edit it.

Never meant for this to be that kind of debate though.

Edit to my original post: the 2011 spec'd 0w20. 2013+ is when Synthetic was added to that. Not to mention Castrol Oil logo on the manual... I'm sure that was the engineer's recommendation.
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First off, very nice little car! If it was mine, I'd have no hesitation running 5w-30. How about two oil changes a yr., one in Nov. and another in April. Use a good quality filter (Fram Ultra/Bosch D+/Mobil 1 etc.) and you could go 2 OC's on the same filter. Conventional oil is so good nowadays and reasonably priced. Doing a 4 Quart + oil change using any quality oil, be it syn/conv/blend is not going to break the bank. Hope you enjoy the car for many, many safe miles.
 
In Australia we don't even have a 0w20 Castrol oil that I'm aware of...Castrol recommends Edge 5w30 for your car, so I'd reckon you're safe to use that in Canada too. Friend has a 2008 Mazda 2 which has used 5w30 all its life, has done 110,000km without issue.

My CX9 says 5w20 on the oil cap, but the owners manual says anything up to 15w40 is ok. It's been said on this site many times the thinner oil recommendations are a purely a CAFE thing. Ultimately though, it's your call, but I'd be 100% happy to run the 2 on 5w30 if it were mine.

Regarding doing a stint on dino, I wouldn't bother. It's already done 4,000km on synthetic, using dino now isn't going to help run it in any further. Babied from new or not, I'd be surprised if it becomes an oil burner. Change the oil to whatever weight synthetic you decide on and just drive it.
 
As we have learned here at bitog today's small little engines are more sensitive to viscosity,and some engines won't go into their super Eco fuel efficiency mode with a thicker oil.
As far as what's specified on different continents I suggest looking at the market the vehicle is dropped into.
In Europe 0w-XX grades are common and easy to find,so the oem specifies what can be found easily. Not to mention that European vehicles require longer oil change intervals,and due to shear or high speed operation a 0w-20 may not cut it for the mandated mile requirement.
The market where it calls for a conventional 5w-30 is very likely tough to get a synthetic and I bet the interval is also shorter,so no need to specify a more difficult to find lubricant.
Engines aren't designed and engineered for 1 specific grade of oil. They can operate on a range of different viscosity lubricants however are these lubricants optimal,because only 1 grade can be that.
I don't get why you'd want to go thicker,unless the operating conditions dictate that requirement.
Oil burning is less the fault of the oil and more an issue with ring seal. Soft easy engine break in will result in poor ring sealing over the life of the vehicle. At 10000kms it's too late to help that.
And why spend more in fuel than you have to. Thinner oil creates less drag and therefore burns less fuel. It's just that simple.
Engines aren't dissolving since 20 grades became more popular. The contrary is true.
And engine clearances are based on metallurgy and how the engine is operated. A racing engine that will maintain high rpm throws massive amounts of heat. That heat causes the engine components such as bearings to expand more thereby closing the clearance up. They require thicker oil because of this heat.
A racing engine using a 50 grade is fine on the track,but daily driven in traffic it would suffer durability issues.
So think about the operating conditions. Ambient is a factor however not a huge deal since engines are thermostatically controlled. Ambient will affect lubricant choice on an air cooled motor moreso than a water cooled one.
So if you feel that you'll be driving at high speed often,and operating the engine towards the upper end of severe than I suggest following the severe schedule using a thicker grade lubricant.
If you'll be driving normally to spirited then use the 20 grade. The benefits outweigh any potential risk associated with using a thinner grade lubricant and let's be serious here,the oem recommends it's use. So unless you are rally car driving it the prescribed 20 grade will keep the engine running far longer than the body will last,so why not save the pennies it saves in fuel. It's better in your pocket than in the gas tank.
 
Originally Posted By: SiRDOHC
Hey now the 90's were a good time...

Engineers may write the owner's manual... Business men edit it.

Never meant for this to be that kind of debate though.

Edit to my original post: the 2011 spec'd 0w20. 2013+ is when Synthetic was added to that. Not to mention Castrol Oil logo on the manual... I'm sure that was the engineer's recommendation.
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Subscribed.

Good luck mentioning owners manuals, and engineers in the same sentence. Funny thing is its almost as if the engineers had no say when it comes to other parts of the world.

I'm just having fun!
 
The way I understand it is in Canada, you get the best deal on TGMO 0W-20. You seem to like 5W-30. That's fine too. Personally, I don't think that is optimal but if it makes you sleep better, go for it.
 
When country differences like this show up with different weights all it means to me is the engine will run fine on anything between x and y in normal use.
Colder climate, low speed operation (eg up to 120 Kmh sustained) use the thinner ones, warmer climate, high speed or driver ed use with someone in front of you blowing oil all over your goggles your probably better of going a little thicker.


Given your location and the engine i would have no problem with 0w20, just buy the cheapest brand name and be done with it.
See how it goes, if the engine is using oil go up a grade. Some engines beat the hades out of their oil quickly and are only spec'd for lighter oils for fuel economy numbers but these are few and far between really.

Nissan VQ V6's and Honda V6's with eco are two that come to mind right away. Both of these show a remarkable change when run a grade heavier.
Some Subaru engines thrive on xw40. You don't hear much about Toyota, Ford and Mazda though.
 
CAFE has, of course, played a part in the trend towards thinner oils but this does not translate to oem's amateurishly thinning a 5w30 to meet spec. To the contrary, this forced their engineering teams to develop/test/apply and produce a product that has been thoroughly engineered and is now a fabulous oil for your dd. Just as the switch from synthetics being purely POA to the acceptance in the U.S of GrpIII. GrpIII synthetics are now on par regarding certifications/approvals/testing. Would this have happened if the industry wasn't forced to because of that famous court case? Maybe not. Stick with the 0w20
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Use 0W-20 from Toyota. The TGMO 1 liters bottles. Available for about $5.70 per liter over the counter. I doubt there is much break-in left in this motor after 10,000 kms. Just run it a bit harder though the gears and allow the engine to slow the car for stop lights (downshift) for the next OCI.
The Mazda full synthetic is made by PetroCan for Mazda and is not as good an oil as TGMO, nor is it in any way the same as the US spec Mazda 0W-20.
I am running the 0W-20 TGMO in our 2008 Pontiac G5, 2010 Toyota Corolla, and 2010 Mazda 3 we have at home for the winter OCI.
My 2 cents.
 
Ha! That's funny.

Originally Posted By: Trav
...or driver ed use with someone in front of you blowing oil all over your goggles your probably better of going a little thicker.
 
Perhaps run the 0w-20 in cold weather and in the summer run a 5w or 0w-30, thats what i'm doing in our elantra.
 
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Thanks for the advice. I think I am just going to use my 5w30 Dino for this time, run it about 6000kms and re-assess in the spring. Did some reading on this Toyota Ow20, Like what everyone is saying about it and at 5.75/L which will be about $4.60 with my shop discount, pretty tough to beat.

The oil I have in there is definitely still fine but I am changing it now to avoid a February -14 degree Celsius oil change, and two of the other cars are due.. Might as well drain the pan once.
 
Originally Posted By: camrydriver111
Do you really need a different summer and winter oil?

I feel like this might be a relic of the past like the 3k oil change.


Probably is, but it won't hurt. In fact in my Hyundai manual it states that lower viscosity oils improve fuel mileage but in hotter climates a heavier viscosity may be necessary. So i'm kind of going with that.
 
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