I never had any problems with oil splash on the exhaust. And there are actually 2 rubber ring gaskets which come with the factory filter. The smaller goes on the torx plug in the center of the cap. You can remove the plug to drain oil from the cap before removing the cap so it's less messy.

 

On my V6, I wrap the exhaust downpipe in tinfoil before removing the oil filter.That keepsthe oil splashoff of the pipe itself,saving you a week of that lovelyburning-oil smell! (If I really NEEDthe burning oil smell, I drive my Alfa Romeo!)Then remove the tinfoil and all is clean. Cheers,

David

 

Also, FYI: The "end cap" oil filter wrench that NAPA sells, 93mm w/ 15 flutes, is the one that fits the oil filter on the V6 engine.

David

 

I have the tool its the same as the VW Audi one, makes things a lot easier.

 

I blew my engine because the filter gasket - or whatever it is - failed. I had the dealer change my oil because of the "special tool." After asking around and talking to engine and parts people - it is not uncommon for these filters to give out and the engines to fail. The dealer wanted $7,000 to replace the engine. I complained to Mazda and they brought the price down to $4,000 - $1,000 more than what a local mechanic quoted me with a used engine ($59k mileage). I'm still working on Mazda to kick in more - but fair warning to all Mazda owners - the 2.3 is known to fail and it is usually due to this filtration system and Mazda will not fill it.