I have 04 MT GT with 77K on the original engine. Just had the MSP16 flash done out of warranty. Had to pay for the decarb ($89.95), no big deal.

Here's the good news, they did the vacuum test and said the results were perfect, my engine is 100% healthy and I shouldn't have anything to worry about.

I have never pre-mixed and I have been using 5w-20 with changes every 3K. Driven year-round since 11/03 in the Boston area. Cat was replaced at 25K, but my car has never flooded (still have original starter too), or left me stranded in any way.

Very reliable car and I love it. Just thought I'd share. Oh, I also had the fuel injection cleaning/decarb done 2 years ago at 35K, which I thought was a waste of money at the time, although my mpg went up and it seemed to run better. Now I'm glad I did it.

 

Congrats on the healthy bill of sale!

 

Congrats. Good news for us all.

 

yes very good to hear! andover mass huh not too far away from the lowell area! nice to see more people from this side of mass joining the forum

 

Cool. I like Lowell a lot. I lived there for many years as a renter and a home owner. The first house I bought was in Lowell, but when the real estate market went way up in '01 I bailed out and moved here for the schools and quieter setting.

 

yea, Im at 66K and the same. Healthy as new in an 04. Congrats man. I retired mine to a weekend toy and drive a beater to work though. Keep the miles down.

 

yeah! really good news

 

No pre-mix? No 5W-30? No problems? How is that possible?

 

same here, only 5w20 and no premix. Just drivin it like it should be driven has kept it healty.

 

I'm taking my '04 in on Friday for the flash and pranging. It has almost exactly 70K on it with the same oil change regimen. I hope that I have the same good result!

 

Driving your 8 with out pre-mix is like driving with no car insurance. Sooner or later your going to get hit lol

As for the 5-W20 well keep in mind the rest of the world is using that and 5-W30. Its your call. But when its 120F (I'm in Las Vegas) out I'm using 5-W30 and pre-mixing all year lol

 

congrats! I pray for that mileage

 

do we really have to get into why Mazda recommends 5w30+ for the rotary EVERYWHERE else in the world EXCEPT the US..? hint hint: economy+emissions

 

I don't think it matters as much as some people here think it does. Maybe you'd get 188K out of the engine instead of 185K. Or maybe not. So far so good for me.