I have a 2004 3S and I change the oil every 3,000 mi. I was surprised to find out that I had to add a quart of oil between changes. I've had several new cars (this is the first Mazda) and I've never had to add oil to any of them. I've always thought that when your engine starts to burn oil, it's about due for a rebuild. I told this to the dealer, and he seemed to think it was perfectly normal. I asked him if I was trying to sell him a used car, and I told him it used a quart of oil every 3,000 mi, would he buy it? He said probably not. I can't find any mention of this in the owners manual. Is everyone else adding oil between changes? Is this normal? It's definitely not leaking any oil.

 

Have not seen any oil consumption problems on the 3 except for one that used synthetic oil. Mazda does recommend use of synthetic in any of their engines.

 

huey, do they not recommend it, or they prefer that you do not? what about the rotaries?

 

I have the oil changed at the dealer, not sure what kind they use, but I would imagine it's what's recommended by Mazda. Any suggestions on how to proceed with this? The dealer is trying to say it's normal for this engine to use 1 quart every 3,000 mi. Apparently other's aren't having this problem, so it must not be normal. I certainly don't agree with the dealer. Would it do any good to contact Mazda directly?

 

i would not be happy if my engine was using a quart every 3k...my 1984 dodge truck doesnt use that much oil, and it has over 200k on it.

 

pistons should use synthetic oil, rotarys should use mineral oil.

you probably have worn piston rings. have you ever over filled you oil?

 

Patrick, synthetic is ok in piston engine but regular oil changes/checks still needed. Problem is that people change oil with synthetic and do not change the oil and in some cases do not check level for 10-20k miles. You have probably seen the ads for new oil that is good for 5,10, or 15k miles without change. Hope they have a warranty or disclaimer on the bottle. Currently have an 03 PR5 with 27k miles on my rack with a NASTY #2 rod knock. Oil was changed regular up 17k at which point synthetic was used at quick lube place. Went 10k miles on SYNTHETIC and was brought to our shop with only 1.5 qts left in crackcase, jet black and full of metal debris. Now customer is looking at a decline in warranty coverage mainly due to not checking level and length of change interval. If you are going to use synthetic, don't think its a magic long life lubricant because it is not. Lower mile engines still use oil untill fully broken in and synthetic seems to slip past those rings better than regular old cheaper motor oil. As for rotary engine it is absolutely not recomended!!!!!!!!!! Rotary engines have an oil metering pump that actually injects oil into the engine to provide lubrication for the apex, side, and corner seals of the combustion chambers. There is no external lube for these seals as in the rings of a piston engine. Kind of like mixing oil to your fuel for chainsaw use. Old Rx7 injected oil into the carburetors, new, directly into the engine. Problem with synthetic is that it is not a petroleum product and does not 'burn' well in the combustion chamber. Result is a lot of deposits on the rotors and rotor housings that are by far the biggest killer or rotary engine. Takes only a small piece of carbon or combution byproduct debris to jam in the apex seal grove and suddenly you have a stuck seal and no compression in 2/3 of your engine. Best solution is to just change your oil on a regular 3-4k interval and use a quality motor oil. Oil change is only $20-30. Engines run in the $4000-8000 range. You do the math. As for one quart used per 3k interval. It is considered a normal standard in dealer industry. They have to have some number to go by. But in truth if I had a customer who was normally going thru 1+ quarts between changes I would be concerned. My 91 323 with 280k miles has no noticeable drop on dipstick after 3k miles. Remember also that this is a new engine and may still be breaking in the rings. No report of smoke from tailpipe but CAT converters will take care of that. Would advise watching the oil level over the next few oil changes and see if problem goes away as engine breaks in. If it does not, then you still have 4 years and 50,000 miles or warranty coverage to address the problem.

 

when i bought my current car, i changed my oil every thousand miles, mostly because i got free oil and filters. i did this for the first 40k. i now use synthetic, and i change it every 3k, and I havent had any problem with unusual usage.

 

I will tell you that the dealership did tell me the RX-8 burns oil like crazy! I was looking at one before I bought my 3. The salesman said I would have to keep a bottle of there "special" oil with me at all times cause it burns a quart every 3K! I couldnt belive it until I saw the tail pipe shooting out black smoke when it took off. he wasnt kidding and said if i didnt do a 3K oil change with a special oil they provided me i would void the warranty!. I tolD him "forget that" I wont buy any mechanism that burns oil like that! I cant tell you if sythetic or no will do any diffrence in performance. I always used synthetic. I thought it was a better way to go.

 

Rx8 designed to burn oil because there is an 'oil metering pump' on the engine that injects oil depending on throttle given. Without this pump the apex and side seals would burn up before you could get home from buying it. All rotaries have used this system. The amount of oil used depends upon how you drive. Most 8's that I get in the shop are only low by less than 1/2 qt. during oil change time. It can't be that hard to check the oil every other saturday morning. There is no 'special oil' either as you were led to believe. Simple 5w20 available at Walmart.