Mobil 1 0w20, 3366 miles, 2012 Mazda 3 Sky-G 2.0L

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I changed the oil in my 2012 Mazda 3 i GT Hatch last Saturday and sent a sample off to Blackstone for a UOA. My car is still very new (I've had it almost 11 months now) with only 6901 miles on the ODO at the time of the oil change. I changed out the factory fill at 3535 miles on June 5, 2012 and put in Mobil 1 0w20 AFE then. Last Saturday I put Pennzoil Platinum 0w20 in. I know it's kind of pointless to get a UOA on such a new car but I was mostly curious about the TBN since it's been over 5 months since I changed it. I drive mostly city/short frequent trips (mostly to work and school) so I don't put many miles on it. Mazda says to change the oil every 4 months or 5000 miles for severe driving (which I consider myself due to the short frequent trips). Here is my UOA result:

Comments:
DEREK: Some excess wear, silicon, and fuel dilution showed up in this sample. Most of the excess wear is
from normal wear-in since this engine is still so new, while silicon is likely from sealers used during
assembly and both should drop nicely next time. Universal averages show what normal wear looks like from
this type of engine after ~5,000 miles use on the oil. Your TBN was strong at 3.5, so lots of active additive
was left. The city driving you mentioned may or may not have caused the high fuel we found. We'll keep a
close eye on it next time. Check back in 5,000 miles again.

Code:


MI/HR on Oil 3,366

MI/HR on Unit 6,901

Sample Date 11/10/12

Make Up Oil Added 0 qts



ALUMINUM 7

CHROMIUM 1

IRON 12

COPPER 10

LEAD 0

TIN 6

MOLYBDENUM 180

NICKEL 0

MANGANESE 1

SILVER 0

TITANIUM 0

POTASSIUM 0

BORON 72

SILICON 20

SODIUM 0

CALCIUM 1121

MAGNESIUM 678

PHOSPHORUS 591

ZINC 733

BARIUM 2



SUS VIS @ 210° F 45.2

cSt VIS @ 100° C 5.80

Flashpoint °F 335

Fuel % 2.5

Antifreeze % 0.0

Water % 0.0

Insolubles % 0.3

TBN 3.5
 
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Interesting UOA. I guess the higher moly levels are from the OEM Mazda 0w20? Viscosity is way low, but surprisingly everything else looks really good. lol
 
Originally Posted By: spasm3
Is it direct injection? the viscosity is low due to fuel dilution.

Yeah, direct injection.
 
[censored], this makes me wanna go get some M1 0w30 AFE to thicken it up a little bit. My gf also drives mostly short trips in our new Mazda 3 as well. Thank you for the info , must appreciated! Out of curiosity what oil filters do/have you used in that vehicle yet ?
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I think a 30 grade is a better oil for a DI engine.


My first change will be at 3k with 3.5qts of M1 AFE 0w20 + 1 Qt of M1 AFE 0w30 for 3k miles or 4 months ( whichever comes first ). Will UOA the second round of the same mix to minimize cross contamination with the FF. That mix gives me the following values :

Vis @40C : 48.23
Vis @100C : 9.14
VI : 175

Im sure fuel dilution will lower those values and thin the oil out. Should be interesting to see how it holds up against fuel dilution.
 
Originally Posted By: bourne
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I think a 30 grade is a better oil for a DI engine.


My first change will be at 3k with 3.5qts of M1 AFE 0w20 + 1 Qt of M1 AFE 0w30 for 3k miles or 4 months ( whichever comes first ). Will UOA the second round of the same mix to minimize cross contamination with the FF. That mix gives me the following values :

Vis @40C : 48.23
Vis @100C : 9.14
VI : 175

Im sure fuel dilution will lower those values and thin the oil out. Should be interesting to see how it holds up against fuel dilution.


You can always work more 0W30 into the mix if you don't like the results.
 
Could the lower viscosity also be caused by my engine still being new and still wearing in? I wonder if I should go with Mazda's recommendation and change it after 4 months or wait 5000 miles like Blackstone said. I've been changing it like every 5 months haha.
 
Your OCI looks fine considering the car is still new and breaking in... Maybe go out to 5K. I also suspect that the the possible fuel dilution could be from so many short trips. Try to do a couple 15-20 mile plus runs during the week.

I would continue what you are doing and check the oil after a few more OCI's.
 
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Originally Posted By: derekivey
Could the lower viscosity also be caused by my engine still being new and still wearing in?


Higher metals would be a sign of breaking in, not fuel dilution. Your fuel dilution is 2.5. If you are always going to do short trip driving i think a heavier oil is necessary especially with a 100c viscosity of 5.8 cst.

It would be interesting to see Mazdas response to your uoa and oil recommendations.
 
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Originally Posted By: Boss302fan
Your OCI looks fine considering the car is still new and breaking in... Maybe go out to 5K. I also suspect that the the possible fuel dilution could be from so many short trips. Try to do a couple 15-20 mile plus runs during the week.

I would continue what you are doing and check the oil after a few more OCI's.

I typically put around 26 miles a day on it, but the break down is as follows:

home to work: 6 miles
work to college: 7 miles
college to work: 7 miles
work to home: 6 miles

mostly city/suburban/frequent traffic lights

Originally Posted By: spasm3
Originally Posted By: derekivey
Could the lower viscosity also be caused by my engine still being new and still wearing in?


Higher metals would be a sign of breaking in, not fuel dilution. Your fuel dilution is 2.5. If you are always going to do short trip driving i think a heavier oil is necessary especially with a 100c viscosity of 5.8 cst.

It would be interesting to see Mazdas response to your uoa and oil recommendations.


Maybe I'll contact them and see what they have to say.

Thanks,
Derek
 
This is such a double edged sword, if you go too thick it will never get upto temps with those short trips unless its 100F outside. Yet if you go thin, you risk not enough protection. Especially with that much fuel dilution.

Im waiting for Maxlife 0w20 syn blend to come out. Historically, Ashland oils have resisted fuel dilution quite well, especially in DI engines. Should be interesting to see how that holds up.
 
Originally Posted By: bourne
This is such a double edged sword, if you go too thick it will never get upto temps with those short trips unless its 100F outside. Yet if you go thin, you risk not enough protection. Especially with that much fuel dilution.

Im waiting for Maxlife 0w20 syn blend to come out. Historically, Ashland oils have resisted fuel dilution quite well, especially in DI engines. Should be interesting to see how that holds up.


+1
 
The owner's manual for this car states that, in Mexico, 5W-20 is an option. Also stated, is that 5W-30 is an option. I even saw the 5W-30 option mentioned in service bulletin E006/12 straight from Japan. So, if one really wants to stray from the 0W-20 recommendation it should not be an issue.

I am not changing my factory fill until 7,500 miles because I feel anything less is a waste of money and resources. I bought enough Mazda 0W-20 GF-5 oil at my dealership to do my next three OC's. ($6.56/qt)
 
Originally Posted By: bourne
This is such a double edged sword, if you go too thick it will never get upto temps with those short trips unless its 100F outside. Yet if you go thin, you risk not enough protection. Especially with that much fuel dilution.

Im waiting for Maxlife 0w20 syn blend to come out. Historically, Ashland oils have resisted fuel dilution quite well, especially in DI engines. Should be interesting to see how that holds up.

Thicker oil doesn't inhibit the rise in oil temp's during warm-up.
It is the short commute that's the problem in not getting the oil up to temperature to boil off the gas. The lower viscosity of the diluted oil is not a problem because the oil's not getting up to temperature anyway. No oil made can stop fuel dilution, including expensive ester based oils although their polar chemistry does tend to reduce somewhat the higher wear associated with cylinder washing.

The OP should stick with the spec' grade but be aware of the problems associated with short commutes especially in the cooler months. If possible extend the commute especially on the way home by running errands etc if possible.
If one is really concerned about it, install an oil temp' and pressure gauge. This way you'll know exactly how hot you're getting your oil and the OP gauge will tell you when your oil is being diluted and if the viscosity loss is a issue or not.
 
Originally Posted By: DBMaster
The owner's manual for this car states that, in Mexico, 5W-20 is an option. Also stated, is that 5W-30 is an option. I even saw the 5W-30 option mentioned in service bulletin E006/12 straight from Japan. So, if one really wants to stray from the 0W-20 recommendation it should not be an issue.

I am not changing my factory fill until 7,500 miles because I feel anything less is a waste of money and resources. I bought enough Mazda 0W-20 GF-5 oil at my dealership to do my next three OC's. ($6.56/qt)


I was just reading about Mazda's new oil just now. I'll have to pick some up next time. I think I will stick with 0W-20 for now, unless Mazda says otherwise. I think I will change it after 4 months rather than 5 months next time. That's what Mazda recommends for their severe schedule so I will follow that and do another UOA.
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I think a 30 grade is a better oil for a DI engine.


Based on what we see here it is hard to disagree!
 
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