Petrus

Ok, so I know the rotarys use a bit more oil than piston engines, but today when I was driving the "check oil lamp" came on. So I checked the oil level, and vary correctly - it was very low.
I havn´t refilled any oil yet, cause I´m still waiting for a call from Mazda telling me what oil to use, but should I really need to add oil? I mean, the car has ran 3000km...

expo1

I will play along that this is a real post.

Why do you need to wait for Mazda to tell you what oil to use? It should be printed right on the oil fill cap. Mine says to use 5W-20 grade oil. You can also look in the owners manual.

Petrus

Basically I´m not sure that Mazda here in sweden uses what is intended to be used. Also I have some other questions for them... But most of all: I find it hard to belive that my car needs oil after just 3000km.

khtm

Sigh. You'd be amazed at how helpful the "Search" function can be.

Yes, you are driving a rotary. Yes, they use oil as a natural part of the engine process. Yes, you have to check the oil level every 2nd time you fill up with gas (as per the USER MANUAL). Yes, filling up oil at 3000KM is normal. And yes, the USER MANUAL clearly states what type of oil to use.

expo1

Do you think the dipstick is lying? Did you check it the day you picked it up? How do you know it was filled to capacity from the start? Basing your adding of extra oil on your mileage can be VERY costly. Check your oil level every other fill up, how much time can that take? In the amount of time you took to post twice you could have put in a half liter of oil and been on your way. Go to the store and buy 2 liters of 5W-20 and go enjoy your car.

JonsToy

Yes. You need to add oil. The Renesis uses oil in the combustion chamber to lubricate the apex seals, and some of the oil is consumed there. Your engine will probably use 1 qt. every 3000 miles (you'll have to make the conversion to km). Just make sure you check your oil level every few weeks, and keep it topped off.

Petrus

Thanks guys, and by the way - Yes I did check the owners manual and found all the info there. Just thought it seemed like too early to be adding more oil...that´s what I phoned Mazda about. He as well thought it should last longer before I needed to fill up, but then again he couldn´t guarantee that it was filled when I bought it. Hmmm...
And one more thing - Here in sweden we don´t have the same service from Mazda as you guys do over there... Here we have to really argue our way to get the latest ECU-flash. No recalls due to TSBs or anything.
Anyhow, I added 5W-30 and it´s ok now....lets see for how long. =)

khtm

Um...it's supposed to be 5W-20

Go48

That's for US cars. European cars call for 5W30.

khtm

Oh ok whew!

mzdoggmann

How does your RX-8 handle in the winter/snow?? Do the RX-8's out there come stock w/ snow-winter tires??

Petrus

I´m not driving it during the winter... =) But the little taste of snow it got last autumn was not a pleasant suprise. I was away from home when the first snow came (about 1/4 - 1/2 inch). When I (tried) to drive home I realised that this is NO car that EVER should be driven during the winter. I took me about 20 minutes to drive the 2km home. Anything above 30km/h and anything below 4th gear made the car impossible to handle... The summertires are horrible on snow! =) It doesn´t come with any winter tires as stock... but for some extra $$$ they will, just like any other brand or car.