Ok some may find this a stupid question, but i currently have just ove 1600 miles on my 8. Should i be checking my oil level....The needle is currently a couple of nothces on the high side, but I do know that you can't always go by that....Im not having any problems, Im just wondering if I should check it and how often. I know the manual says every other gas stop, but that seems a bit much to me. Any help would be appreciated

 

First off, the needle is not an oil level gauge, it's (sort of) an oil pressure gauge. In reality, it's not much of a gauge at all, since it will always sit at that point on the scale as long as the oil pressure exceeds some threshold value that Mazda decided on.

Second, there is a separate warning light for oil level, although it's not really a great idea to rely on the light, unless you always carry a quart of oil in your trunk.

The thing about the rotary engine is that it injects some oil pretty much directly into the combustion chamber of the engine, and therefore consumes more oil than a piston engine would, and that oil consuption is part of the normal operation of the engine.

I think most owners on this board have found that if you fill the oil when changing it, it ususally won't hit the "add" line until around the time of the next oil change (although this depends on how you drive the car). I'm finding this to be the case now, however my 8 went through a quart about every 1500 miles in the beginning.

Checking the oil every other fill may be a bit on the cautious side, but you should at least check every 4th fill (or maybe go halfway and check every 3rd), and always have an extra quart in the trunk just in case, as 5W-20 can be tricky to find in some parts.

P.S. the dipstick has a pretty long "stopper" on it. Be sure to check the oil with the stopper just sitting on the tube, rather than pushed in, as the height difference is about half the distance between the marks on the stick.

 

Please tell me you're not serious.
Um, the reason the owner's manual says you need to check the oil is because your engine is designed to consume some oil. The oil pressure gauge will not tell you if you are low on oil, but only when you have none left.

Buy a funnel and some oil.
Check your level like the manual instructs you to.
Add oil as needed.
Flog your 8 on some back roads.
Repeat.

 

bgreen beat me to it. You should check this out - https://www.rx8club.com/australia-new-zealand-forum-37/10-things-new-rx-8-owners-should-know-day-1-a-35405/