So, groove mazda put in the PP 5w-30 for me. (I'm using Dealer service to keep the vehicle warranty question-free). They were very nice to also remove a screw from a tire and reseal it at no cost!
I'm pondering if I'll maybe do a used oil analysis in another 3000 miles...
traded in mz3 for ms3
chromal wrote:So, groove mazda put in the PP 5w-30 for me. (I'm using Dealer service to keep the vehicle warranty question-free). They were very nice to also remove a screw from a tire and reseal it at no cost!
I'm pondering if I'll maybe do a used oil analysis in another 3000 miles...
Really? How did that work out, exactly? You brought them the oil and they charged you for labor only? Hmmm...
one and one makes two, together we are free
chromal wrote:Oh totally, I should have worded it more clearly, don't intend to imply I think stage2 tuned wasn't 'more than' stock. Still, I'm pretty astonished at the number differences there from a well-executed stage2 upgrade on Erod's car!
My first 'power mod' will probably be upgrading the tires, but I'll take what miles I can from the OE ones in DD duty.I agree with kingtut that the speed3 is enjoyable stock. One funny observation in all this is that my Mazda3's MZR 2.5l had more available (or at least safe to bottom end) torque from 1500 to 3000, or whatever RPM you consider the safe point to lay on boost in a MS3, as does the SAAB whose stage1 peak torque numbers are similar to the MS3's, but shifted down to lower RPMs and 'safe' to hit hard at 1800. (well, you can ask for boost. It will start to come in around 2200 really, but that OE Garrett GT-2556 probably could use a rebuild with 160K on it.) What I'll tell you is this all leads to differences in driving style that justify owning examples of each.
My first car was a FWD hatchback with 65 bhp. My second is a FWD hatchback with 106 bhp. My third was a FWD hatchback with 167bhp. My forth is a FWD hatchback with 185-200bhp. My fifth is this FWD hatchback with 263bph. I will admit to a sense of "nowhere to turn" if I'm looking down the road several years... I mean, for a "step beyond" the mazdaspeed3 in small hatchback guise, there aren't a lot of obvious places to go. Audi A1 Quattro/S3? Mercades-Benz A45 AMG? BMW M135i? This MS3 may be as good as it gets on US shores, so I'm starting to ponder RWD coupes, like the Z3 M Coupe or Z4 Coupe as 2nd-hand cars down the road. It's either that or go to wagons, maybe there will be a AWD/RWD mazdaspeed6 wagon by then? Hopefully with the MX-5 I now own, I won't be as much a RWD neophyte in terms of experienced driving when it comes time to consider options. Cart way the hell in front of the horse on the above, more open ended pondering than desire. It's hard to image really being bored with the MS3 as a DD, but I can understand how one could grow weary of the package or have their needs/goals change.
ladenver.com/vehicle/4541
Just in case your pondering gets the better of you. You seem to do well with projects.
kingtut wrote:Really? How did that work out, exactly? You brought them the oil and they charged you for labor only? Hmmm...
Yes, that's exactly how it worked out. I paid them for labor and the oil filter, handed over a 5 and 1 quart bottle of PP 5w-30. My invoice says 'CUSTOMER PROVIDED OIL / 5W-30'. I had a coupon, so it was around $23, I think normally it would have run $30 or so for this arrangement. I think that a dealer synthetic change is $65, but have no idea exactly what oil that would be. Probably not one I want for this engine. I wonder if the SkyDrive engines are facing similar crankcase lubrication challenges as the MZR 2.3 DISI and other direct injection engines.
Shadowden, don't tempt me, haha. Fact is, I'm much better at starting projects than finishing them. That's why I was so happy to have that Civic apart and then back together looking like (and running like) the factory build under the hood. Interesting used car dealer, salvage/insurance-totalled/broken cars I take it. I wonder if the water-damaged Nissan Jukes are from NJ/NYC Sandy flooding... In all seriousness, I don't desire or foresee any additional cars for a while, although I guess I shouldn't rule out a part car purchase or something too good to walk away from, like a cheap SAAB 9-3 Viggen. (Would be amusing to own two cars (as my mazdaspeed3 is one of them, the SAAB 9-3 Viggen the other) that Top Gear USA beat up to 150 mph in the latest episode.) Dreams of Z3/Z4s are just that, I like to admire the hardtop versions, but am not really serious now. In a few years, with some more experience (and a garage to work inside would be nice), then maybe... Am pretty happy with what I've got today, though... That said, I'm totally joining ladenver.com's mailing list.
chromal wrote:Shadowden, don't tempt me, haha. Fact is, I'm much better at starting projects than finishing them. That's why I was so happy to have that Civic apart and then back together looking like (and running like) the factory build under the hood. Interesting used car dealer, salvage/insurance-totalled/broken cars I take it. I wonder if the water-damaged Nissan Jukes are from NJ/NYC Sandy flooding... In all seriousness, I don't desire or foresee any additional cars for a while, although I guess I shouldn't rule out a part car purchase or something too good to walk away from, like a cheap SAAB 9-3 Viggen. (Would be amusing to own two cars (as my mazdaspeed3 is one of them, the SAAB 9-3 Viggen the other) that Top Gear USA beat up to 150 mph in the latest episode.) Dreams of Z3/Z4s are just that, I like to admire the hardtop versions, but am not really serious now. In a few years, with some more experience (and a garage to work inside would be nice), then maybe... Am pretty happy with what I've got today, though... That said, I'm totally joining ladenver.com's mailing list.
Wow, do we have similar car tastes...
[color="RoyalBlue"]1992 Miata Project[/color]
When the fire evacuation call came, I guess I determined which car I would save when I started loading stuff in the MS3 instead of the SAAB or Civic. I didn't actually leave because the fire didn't really move my way, but I could see the bucket helicopters operating beyond the ridge a mile distant (in reality, the fire itself was about two miles as the crow flies).
Was surprised that they made the decision to call a level-3 'leave immediately, don't even stop to take stuff' when the fire was visibly being driven by southwesterly winds, blowing it away from me. I stay put and watched it. Two of my three immediate neighbors did the same. Talking with one of them, they had no intention of leaving their homes unless after not being let back for a week in 2003. I prepared by loading my car, and then I watched live footage from 9news' helicopter, and could see exactly where it was and how it was behaving.
As things cooled off and the gusts died, by 5pm I could no longer see smoke rising in the distance. A Clear Creek Sheriff stopped by, we spoke cordially on my front porch. I gave him him some info on who was present and assured him I would be bugging out if things changed for the worse, and was mindful of the escape routes in relation to the fire, etc... He didn't seem too upset that so many of us were watching and waiting.
There's not a thing I can do to save the house, if it looks like it's headed my way, I would grab the cat, jump in the prepped and loaded car, and get out directly. Prevailing winds, geography, and a very wet spring were all on my side, this time. Hopefully that remains the case tomorrow.
Was surprised that they made the decision to call a level-3 'leave immediately, don't even stop to take stuff' when the fire was visibly being driven by southwesterly winds, blowing it away from me. I stay put and watched it. Two of my three immediate neighbors did the same. Talking with one of them, they had no intention of leaving their homes unless after not being let back for a week in 2003. I prepared by loading my car, and then I watched live footage from 9news' helicopter, and could see exactly where it was and how it was behaving.
As things cooled off and the gusts died, by 5pm I could no longer see smoke rising in the distance. A Clear Creek Sheriff stopped by, we spoke cordially on my front porch. I gave him him some info on who was present and assured him I would be bugging out if things changed for the worse, and was mindful of the escape routes in relation to the fire, etc... He didn't seem too upset that so many of us were watching and waiting.
There's not a thing I can do to save the house, if it looks like it's headed my way, I would grab the cat, jump in the prepped and loaded car, and get out directly. Prevailing winds, geography, and a very wet spring were all on my side, this time. Hopefully that remains the case tomorrow.
Yeah, I think our area was lucky this time, with such a wet spring, a cooler calmer wetter Tuesday. Once the sustained rain came Tuesday night, we were all breathing a little easier. I've been up here in Evergreen for nearly seven years, but this was my first experience with a fire close enough to see the smoke from my house...
Yeah, it can really depend on where the wind is blowing, I'm finding. During the fire in Evergreen, I never even so much as smelled smoke. But the smoke from the Black Forest fire followed me up the whole way from Centennial this past Wednesday. It was even pretty smoky in the foothills, the wind blew it all back up there. Here's hoping we're done for the year.. :/
I got an oil change a few weeks ago. I continued with PP 5W-30, dealer change. Drained factory oil at 2616, switched to PP 5w-30, drained sample at 5635. They graciously collected a used oil analysis (UOA) sample, which I sent into Blackstone Labs. (Incorrectly told the labs 5800 miles on odometer on the submission form, ohwell).
Here's the result, if you're curious:
The TBN test was an extra $10. It suggests that at 3000 miles, the PP 5W-30 oil itself still had some serviceable life left, so I don't likely need to sweat it if my oil drain interval edges up a little. My driving style was mixed between highway commuter miles, with a lot of conservative driving (albeit it up and down from Centennial to Conifer) mixed with some intense recreational drives in the mountains. There may have been some traces of whatever normal 5w-30 groove uses in this UOA, left over inside the engine from the oil change at 2616 miles.
Here's the result, if you're curious:
The TBN test was an extra $10. It suggests that at 3000 miles, the PP 5W-30 oil itself still had some serviceable life left, so I don't likely need to sweat it if my oil drain interval edges up a little. My driving style was mixed between highway commuter miles, with a lot of conservative driving (albeit it up and down from Centennial to Conifer) mixed with some intense recreational drives in the mountains. There may have been some traces of whatever normal 5w-30 groove uses in this UOA, left over inside the engine from the oil change at 2616 miles.
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