[StatingROBIN]

My 2014 Hatchback is coming up on 100K miles. What maintenance things should I be looking to do at that time? My guess would be replace all fluids, spark plugs and air filter. Anything else that im not thinking of??

 

[gregersonke]

Spark plugs are a 60k item so yeah you should do them. Literally a 20 min job. The coolant, is pretty easy.

BTW I have 165k on mine.

 

[zero_gravity]

Maybe consider auto trans fluid flush (or gear oil if manual) and flush brake lines? Provided you haven't done this already of course.

 

[gregersonke]

Auto tranny is lifetime fluid. But maybe. Mine still shifts smooth.

 

[Gary_L]

Auto tranny is lifetime fluid. But maybe. Mine still shifts smooth.

The idea that any vehicle fluid is good for the lifetime of a vehicle is marketing BS. Any engineer and transmission builder will explain how friction and particulates will reduce the viscosity of transmission fluid and oil. The idea of "lifetime" fluids is considered the average span of ownership and not the entire lifetime of the vehicle. I think a lot of it stems from the fact that people are sold another myth wherein if an automatic transmission has never been serviced that the fluid should not be changed, or else bad things will happen.

For the OP: You should get a copy of the service schedule and follow it regularly. Mazda is good about breaking up service intervals at 15K and 30K mile increments. One often overlooked item is the O2 sensors, which should be replaced anywhere from 60K - 75K miles.

 

[gregersonke]

The idea that any vehicle fluid is good for the lifetime of a vehicle is marketing BS. Any engineer and transmission builder will explain how friction and particulates will reduce the viscosity of transmission fluid and oil. The idea of "lifetime" fluids is considered the average span of ownership and not the entire lifetime of the vehicle. I think a lot of it stems from the fact that people are sold another myth wherein if an automatic transmission has never been serviced that the fluid should not be changed, or else bad things will happen.

For the OP: You should get a copy of the service schedule and follow it regularly. Mazda is good about breaking up service intervals at 15K and 30K mile increments. One often overlooked item is the O2 sensors, which should be replaced anywhere from 60K - 75K miles.

167k on my 2014 says otherwise. I do my oil every 15-20k, I did my plugs at 80k, coolant at 130k, my second set of rear brakes will be this weekend after 139k when the originals died at 27k. Nearly everything else original other than the tires, and the infotainment screen. Oh yea, the start stop battery started getting weak around 150k. Rather than face winter with it, someone bought it an x2 battery as an early christmas present.

Not to say I'm not looking at swapping my fluid finally. But it probably won't be until 180k. I just don't have the budget for it. Food on the table, and wife's medical comes first.

 

[MrBen]

167k on my 2014 says otherwise. I do my oil every 15-20k, I did my plugs at 80k, coolant at 130k, my second set of rear brakes will be this weekend after 139k when the originals died at 27k. Nearly everything else original other than the tires, and the infotainment screen. Oh yea, the start stop battery started getting weak around 150k. Rather than face winter with it, someone bought it an x2 battery as an early christmas present.

Not to say I'm not looking at swapping my fluid finally. But it probably won't be until 180k. I just don't have the budget for it. Food on the table, and wife's medical comes first.

I think the transmission filter needs to be replaced every 2 years or 30k miles

 

[gregersonke]

I think the transmission filter needs to be replaced every 2 years or 30k miles

Transmission filter isn't accessible. It's inside the pan which is sealed with RTV.

 

[Mike C]

Transmission filter isn't accessible. It's inside the pan which is sealed with RTV.

Changing a transmission filter (screen) is one of the messiest jobs you can do on a car. You generally get covered in spilt transmission oil with it's characteristic burnt caramel smell - don't wear good clothes.

 

[gregersonke]

Changing a transmission filter (screen) is one of the messiest jobs you can do on a car. You generally get covered in spilt transmission oil with it's characteristic burnt caramel smell - don't wear good clothes.

If I drain the fluid, and it's not gritty, I'm not changing the filter.

 

[MrBen]

If I drain the fluid, and it's not gritty, I'm not changing the filter.

New tranny oil is bright cherry red, degrades to a nutty brown and brownish black.
50k Miles is the upper limit on fluid life, which get a sticky texture and the slimy metallic internal magnet.
You'll need sturdy plastic pry tools to remove the pan, gasket remover spray and gasket maker. The strainer filter is about $35 and a new tranny pan $45 (optional). YouTube has good videos of transmission pan removals.

 

[gregersonke]

New tranny oil is bright cherry red, degrades to a nutty brown and brownish black.
50k Miles is the upper limit on fluid life, which get a sticky texture and the slimy metallic internal magnet.
You'll need sturdy plastic pry tools to remove the pan, gasket remover spray and gasket maker. The strainer filter is about $35 and a new tranny pan $45 (optional). YouTube has good videos of transmission pan removals.

Synthetic transmission fluid, I've found doesn't seem to breakdown like you describe. Just gets darker red.

 

[zero_gravity]

Changing a transmission filter (screen) is one of the messiest jobs you can do on a car. You generally get covered in spilt transmission oil with it's characteristic burnt caramel smell - don't wear good clothes.

I'd say changing the trans fluid is the messiest job you can do on a car bar none. I drive it onto a tarp, learned the hard way in the past.

If you're going to change the trans oil, remember that drain and fill the pan gets half the fluid at best. Better to drain and fill and then flush through the cooler lines. This is also probably why ii make a mess lol.

If you're careful, you should never need a new trans pan...I can't imagine what kind of abuse it would take to need that. You can also cut in between the pan and housing with a razor to cut the silicon. That will give you somewhere to start with a pry tool.

Finally, fluid colour is an indicator of age but not fluid condition. That fluid is dyed red so that it doesn't get confused with engine oil. Light brown is its natural colour. The dye breaks down sooner than the oil. I'm not advising to ignore a fluid change. Just saying it'll go much longer than most would expect without issue. Around 120k kms has been my normal interval.

 

[Gary_L]

Transmission filter isn't accessible. It's inside the pan which is sealed with RTV.

You just described every transmission filter for an automatic transmission. Mazda uses RTV instead of a gasket, but that doesn't mean the filter can't be serviced.

If I drain the fluid, and it's not gritty, I'm not changing the filter.

You're just asking for trouble with that approach. Fine particulates do just as much damage as larger.

 

[Mike C]

You just described every transmission filter for an automatic transmission. Mazda uses RTV instead of a gasket, but that doesn't mean the filter can't be serviced.



You're just asking for trouble with that approach. Fine particulates do just as much damage as larger.

Most transmission filters are more of a 50-100 micron screen than a traditional , say oil filter. I used to change them, but since they didn't trap much except rocks , I just change the fluid these days

 

[zero_gravity]

Most transmission filters are more of a 50-100 micron screen than a traditional , say oil filter. I used to change them, but since they didn't trap much except rocks , I just change the fluid these days

There's nothing wrong with this. They don't accumulate near the garbage they did in the past unless there's something seriously wrong. At that point you need a rebuild anyway.

I usually change the filter also and every time there's almost nothing in there.

 

[Gary_L]

Most transmission filters are more of a 50-100 micron screen than a traditional , say oil filter. I used to change them, but since they didn't trap much except rocks , I just change the fluid these days

Good grief. If you're that deep into the job, change the filter! The pan has to be removed anyway. I want to say that I can't believe someone is so cheap (no, not frugal or smart) not to replace a filter in a piece of equipment that costs thousands of dollars to repair or replace.

 

[Mike C]

Good grief. If you're that deep into the job, change the filter! The pan has to be removed anyway. I want to say that I can't believe someone is so cheap (no, not frugal or smart) not to replace a filter in a piece of equipment that costs thousands of dollars to repair or replace.

I change the fluid but I don't drop the pan- there are several ways of doing this. Don't see any point in changing a screen in a closed system, especially given the huge amount of mess associated with the filter change.

 

[MrBen]

The transmission won't filter the grey metallic sludge, but the magnet is doing it's job.

 

[zero_gravity]

Good grief. If you're that deep into the job, change the filter! The pan has to be removed anyway. I want to say that I can't believe someone is so cheap (no, not frugal or smart) not to replace a filter in a piece of equipment that costs thousands of dollars to repair or replace.

Wait a tick....is this one of those transmissions without a drain plug? I'm driving the manual so I honestly don't know.

If it is yeah replace the damn filter. Cheap part and you have to pull tthe pan off anyway.