How comfortable are you RX 8 OWNERS with the standard that is set ...changing Oil and Filter at 10,000 miles ? I used to change at 3K when I had my other cars including the RX 7 (87) except the Audi TT and A4...I can see it with a leased car but do you think , ultimately it is bad fo the life of the engine to wait as long as Mazda recommends?

 

I've heard Mazda recommended 7,500 miles and 5,000 miles from different sources. I still do mine every 3,000 miles. But 10,000 is just re-****-ulous!

 

My car is getting its first oil change tommorow morning at 3250 miles. I am going to the dealership, just because I hear the first filter can be a bitch to get off and I want to watch it done the first time. And I want to hang around and see the oil when it comes out. I'm wondering if I should just go ahead and rotate the tires while its there..

 

My brother and his mates are rotary fanatics, they recommend

Oil every 5,000kms (3,100 miles)
Filter every 10,000kms (6,200 miles)

 

First @ 1000 miles. Again at 3000 and every 3000 there after.

 

how often do you ADD oil, ive looked after fueling up a couple times and my oil is still above the line? When should I start adding and whats the best oil ?

 

same path i followed. Considering how some of the oil actually stays in the engine, you're not even getting all the break-in oil out on the first change...hence the shortened 2K period for the 2nd change.

Reguardless of Mazdas almost fictional 10K recommendations, i'll stick to the easy 15 minute oil changes every 3K. Grab a fumoto oil valve and discover exactly how easy and quickly you can get an oil change underway. After so, i see no reason NOT to change every 3K.

 

Every 3K miles dino oil.

 

Every 600 to 1200 miles (or so) I need to add a half a quart. Funny that I've become obsessed enough to go in half quart increments, since the conventional deal is to add a quart when a car is a quart down. 1 1/2 quarts between full and add, so there's a reasonable margin for normal people.

But I'm fully assimilated. I even did the half quart top-off a week before my last scheduled oil change!

The best oil...lots of opinions...how many members here? As a minimum, API SL. Name brand. 5w20.

Then...5w30 if you're old school (i.e., believe thicker is better) and live in a hot climate. Synthetic if you're new school and don't mind paying extra for long-life stuff that you're going to use short-life. Brand of synthetic? I'm not sticking my neck out!

Personally, I use name brand dino: Castrol GTX 5w20. Why that brand? Well, "Castrol" sounds a bit like "Castor oil," which is what they used in the early rotaries like Gnome and Le Rhone. I figured if "Castor" was good for those rotaries "Castrol" must be good for modern rotaries like the Renesis.

Ken

 

I'm going with a 5K mi interval. I think 3K is old school and for the oil company's benefit, and 7.5K is just not as easy to remember as 5K. How's THAT for a rigorous, scientific justification!

So far, it works for me.

 

I'm going with a max 8000km change interval per Mazda manual.
I check oil every other fill-up and add as necessary.
Always Castrol GTX-5W20

 

Is it 10K? Sh!et, main, I figure by adding a qwatter liter of oil a month I'm changing the oil all the time, no? Nawh, I don't care much for what the manual says...I change it ever 3k--call me old school but it can't hurt and what's $20-$30 for some peace of mind and keeping in my routine?

All-in-all, I don't know about 10k main...sounds near abusive to me...

2 cents.

 

I am going to guess that this is a good thing.


10kmiles is the first oil change for bimmers (or at least the x3) But I got to say, this makes me nervous.

3-4.5 kmiles is long enough.

 

In the US manual, the interval for change is 5000 miles or 7500 miles depending on the service schedule (due to driving habits/conditions). I don't know where that 10,000 MILES came from, I have not seen it in the owner's manual or the service manual.

I'm about to change at 5000 Miles, and I'll probably change at or around 5000 from here on out (oil & filter). I use Pennzoil 5W-20 and the K&N HP-1008 filter.

 

every 5K with K&N + Idemitsu

 

How can I tell if im down a quart? Lets say its at the top line, how much further down would it be if it was a quart less?

 

Search

or

Read your Manual

 

Look at your dipstick. The markings are noted in the manual.

 

Where did you get 10k miles from?
I change it every 3-4k miles with only Dino only(Castrol-GTX 5w20) and K&N filter.
Funny, I will find myself adding about 1/4 of a quart at times! Just get into that routine. Usually check it about every other fill up, or when I'm just out there doing something else.

 

LoL. some of the OIL stays in the engine...sorry.

just as the manual states, there are 3 hash markings on the dip stick. Between each hash is a 1/2 qt. So adding a full quart would e warranted when you would only have have a 1/3 of oil on the dipstick.

 

I add a quart of oil every two weeks

 

Older RX-8s didn't have the intermediate marks. The dipstick was improved during the '05 model year:

http://www.finishlineperformance.com...7-04-1438b.pdf

Note that the spacing isn't linear.

People with the older dipstick can upgrade by buying a new one (I think it's less than $10), putting a scriber to their original, or memorizing the drawing in the TSB.

Ken

 

My 10k figure was a mistake...That was what the A4 was and since I've only had this car for a little time I forgot. My first change was 5k and I think it's a good policy to do every 5k with a filter even if it costs more...Dealer said bring it back at 15K for sceduled visit...It's worse than a doctor's appointment .I would like to hear more about that "Valve " That makes an easier change if anyone knows. The problems are many here back east...No garage to work in that's big enough, no lift...the right tools and time.....winter is too damn cold to do it outside...getting the oil out is one thing , getting rid of it is another...it's just easier to let the dealer do it....20 minutes and i'm out....

 

Are those K&N oil filters worth it? Never used one, though I've used the air filters.

 

+1

I started at every 10000 km oil & filter . As I got to like the motor more I now do it as above . Seeing as there is usually one track day per change I figure the more frequent changes are well justified .
Also - when I first got the car I got the dealer to do everything , which is contrary to all the other cars I've owned (all 2nd hand no warranty) .

Now I've decided working on it is fun & I don't want anyone else to F up my baby .........