Looking for help with an oil & filter recommendation on the following vehicle:

[Note: I'd like to stick w/a somewhat easy-to-find oil from a major automotive or discount chain; no boutiques.]

1) 2012 Mazda5.

2) Manufacturer requires 0W20 (SM/ILSAC); 7.5K/6mth (Schedule 1, namely due to month requirement and not mileage).

3) Location: Inland Pacific Northwest, 4 true seasons, vehicle is parked in unheated garage when not driven.

4) Vehicle is driven conservatively (not hard/fast).

5) Vehicle is used for short trips, mostly within the city; 3-4 times per year vehicle will be used for moderate distance road trips, <300 miles round trip.

6) Vehicle is a 2.5l w/AT; haven't read/heard of any known problems with this drive train.

Appreciate any thoughts and recommendations.

M_C

PS: Does 0W20 come in 5qt jugs? If so, I can't seem to find it.

M1 0W-20 is probably going to be your easiet-to-find option. It comes in multi-quart jugs, one fo the few that does.

IF you have a Toyota dealership nearby, you may want to get a couple of jugs of Toyota 0W-20 - it's another good option, but it's only availiable at dealerships, AFAIK.

Motorcraft 5W-20 will work great for this application. You should be able to find multi-quart jugs at Wal-Mart or its equivalent.

I'd go with Toyota's 0W20. There are dealers on the wet side of the state selling it for under $6.00/qt, but we have multiple dealers and some offer frequent discounts on parts. Otherwise, I think WM has Mobil1 0W20 in 5 qt jugs. The Toyota is a little thinner at start-up than M1 (or pretty much any other 0 or 5W20), so with your driving habits and actual winter temps over there, I think it would be a better option if you can find it reasonably priced.

Nice ride, BTW.

M1 0w20....sold at WM for $24.50 for a 5 quart jug

OR

PP 0w20....much more difficult to find.

Both are excellent oils.

Suggest a Purolator PureOne filter.
__________________________________________
03'Ford Focus (2.3L Duratec PZEV) / 98K
PP 5w20 / Purolator PureOne / OCI: 7500 +/-

+1 or pick your favourite 5w-20 in ILSAC GF-5, You can use the 0w across winter if your not gonna plug 'er in. If you read your OM text there should not be a "requirement" rather a recommendation for the 0w-20. You could assume a different oil may change the OCI though.

I changed out the FF to PYB at 2.5K and have been using PP 5W-20 ever since (5K OCI, Bosch Premium or PureOne filter) in a 2010 Mazda 6 with a very similar if not identical engine. No issues at all and I expect a long trouble free life.

If I were racking up more miles at a rapid pace I might consider the Motorcraft synblend to save a little $$ and offer similar protection. It's really hard to beat at apprx $14 for a 5 qt jug.

Doesn't ford rebrand those same Mazda engines as Duratecs? Does Ford require 0w-20?

I'd use 5w-20. Much cheaper. Then again I suppose it doesn't matter too much when you're changing oil twice a year at the most.

+1


And finding the 0w2o is not fun either....

Thanks to everyone for the input and suggestions.

I went back and reread the oil section from the owner's manual; it indeed does "recommend" 0W20 for the US/Canada, but it doesn't offer alternatives (unlike every other car I've owned, where multi-grade options existed). However, 5W20/30 is specifically mentioned as options for our friends south of the border. Sort of leaves me on the fence...though I am leaning towards Motorcraft now (I've had good results w/the Motorcraft clones in the past).

That said, Synpower 0W20 seems to be as readily available as M1 (Walmart carries both). Being as it's $3-4 cheaper than M1 (jug), it makes it a bit more appealing if I want to stick w/the Mazda recommendation. Any love for this oil?

M_C

Motorcraft is a good choice. I keep hearing very good things about this oil for Mazda engines. I also hear PP is good but would rather spend the money on motorcraft since I only do 5000 mile OCI. At the moment i'm using kendall with i like but will be using motorcraft from now on since kendall is hard to find on my neck of the woods.

Just a follow up to this:

I did an early oil change (<1K), as is my habit w/new cars, and I was really stunned by how thin the factory fill 0W20 was. Perhaps I'm just late to the game w/this type of oil; I know visual appearance doesn't mean much, but still...it was like water.

Anyway, I ended up going w/MC 5W20 after all...especially as this will be a short OCI (<1.5K); after that, it'll be 7.5K/6mths & a UOA (just to gauge how MC is treating me).

Thanks again for everyone's input.

M_C

I have used motorcraft and kendall in my mazda with no issues. If your going for long OCI i would use PP. PP seems to run well with mazda engines for long OCI.

Dunno why you would feel the need to waste a perfectly good 0w20 oil by drain it that early.

Just defies logic...

Any 0w20 will be the best but you be served easily well by a 5w20 in whatever flavor.

I do 7.5k OCI's so I choose a syn since I think a straight dino oil at 7.5k is a bit of a strech.

Many, many people here drain the FF early. It doesn't necessarily defy logic, it's just a choice people make because they're unsure of how long the FF was in the vehicle (mine was on the lot for 112 days & had 33 miles on it). Furthermore, some are concerned about limiting the amount of break-in material in the oil, however miniscule that might be inre modern engines.

In my case, I read a few FF UOA's on various Mazda3 forums and wasn't necessarily impressed w/the initial wear numbers. Thus, for ~$20 and perhaps an hours' time, I put what I feel is a better oil in the engine; it hardly breaks the bank and the FF will go to a recycler. Plus, to be honest, I was itching to put the car up on my new wooden ramps, get the plastic engine cover off and poke around a fair bit.

Illogical? That's for others to speculate...but then they don't make my car payments nor perform my maintenance; as w/so much discussion around here, it's an "elbows & earlobes" situation.

M_C