No dealer is screwing around by not using the OEM branded oil.
Why should I buy Mazda branded oil when I can get this Idemitsu oil for half the price?
- Thread starter Cheesefactcaketory
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Agreed.
I bet Castrol makes the Mazda-branded oil.
At first I was going to suggest that probably Idemitsu makes it (they make Subaru-branded oil for example), but perhaps not.
LOL Your oil comes out of a drum of the cheapest oil they can buy that meets spec. A tech at a Mazda dealer told me they only carry the Mazda branded oil for people who ask for it for their own DIY oil change. Also said if you do a dealer oil change and ask for the Mazda oil, it'll show it on the receipt, but they pump the bulk oil and pocket the difference. Unless you watch them you would never know the difference between Mazda 0w-20 and bulk 0w-20.
True, but they don't tell you that in this sentence the word "performance" refers to their financials/profits, not the engine.
Use any oil that meet their specification, which is broad enough to cover almost every 0w20, 0w30, 5w20 and 5w30 oil on the shelf at your local auto parts store. It will keep the engine happy and also meet all warranty requirements.
Unlikely the fluid would cause a problem in the short term. Even if so, the dealership will simply file a warranty claim through the manufacture and get paid to fix the problem. It's a win/win for them.
If Mazda found the dealer using incorrect oil for the engine, would they approve the claim? If the engine failed due to oiling issues, Mazda would surely ask for the customer history.
I wish you would tell that to all the people who are obsessed about OEM CVT fluid and the color that it is. These are the same people that will use any oil. Thankfully to this website, I learned a lot that they dye the fluids so they can tell the difference between new and old or brand a and brand B.
So you think that because its the same color, its the same thing?
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why would you?. I wouldn’t even have entertained the thought.
In theory, I agree with you. In practice I'm just not convinced manufactures or dealerships are concerned. As others here said, the dealerships tend to use what they can get the cheapest in bulk.
I would be very surprised if they were required to use any specific oil. My VW dealership is not required to do so.
Sad but completely believable. Mechanic friend said when customers would bring in Mobil 1 or other oils for their cars they would often end up in the oil techs trunk while the customer just got bulk. It's really upsetting to think this stuff happens but it's reality.
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Had two Fusions with the 2.5L (Mazda) engine and they both only got cheapo oil filters and quick lube oil. That workhorse doesn’t care what you feed it.
The engine he's talking about is the Skyactiv-G though not the MZR / L5. Agree with you on the old 2.5.
Oh. Good call.
My Skyactiv 2.5 has made it 70k miles running either NAPA synthetic or (gasp) Harvest King. I did a UOA on the NAPA oil (made by Valvoline) at 6k and it looked great.
My sister-in-law has 215k miles on her 2015 CX-5 with the 2.5 Skyactiv that she bought new. It hasn’t had Mazda brand oil in it since it’s 2nd or 3rd dealer OC…and even those were probably bulk oil. It also often went 7 or 8k OCIs. It’s still running great.
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Might be one of ConocoPhillips brand
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