How to Check Oil Level 2008-13 Mazda 3

Hey, friends, it's Len here at 1A Auto. Today, we're working on our 2011 Mazda 3, and I want to show you something very basic, checking the oil, very easy. You can do it, too.

We're going to come right over here. Let's say that you just took your car for a nice ride. You came back, the engine's nice and warm. It feels nice and warm.

Now, what you want to do is you want to let your vehicle set for maybe 5, 10 minutes. Once you've let it sit for a little while, you're going to want to take your oil dipstick, which is this one right here. Well, of course, I should state that you want to be on a flat, level surface, by the way. You want to make sure that you're on a flat, level surface to do your work. Assuming you are, you're going to take this out. We're just going to wipe it down.

I'll show you what we're looking for here. We've got a dot up here and one down there. The lower dot or the one farthest towards the tip is the minimum line, and the one further up is the maximum line. The distance between the first line and the second line or empty to full would be approximately one quart. So if you notice you're down at that bottom dot, grab yourself a quart of oil. Use the specified type of oil. It's 0W-20 on this particular vehicle, and add about half a quart, and then check it. As long as you're anywhere in between that lower dot and this upper dot, you're doing all right. If you're above the upper dot, then that's not so good. You need to make sure you get a catch pan and drain out some oil. It's actually very bad for you to have your engine oil overfilled. So we'll just go ahead and put it back in here.

I like to leave it in for a second. You really don't have to leave it in for very long. We'll pull it back out. We'll take a peek. So this right here tells me that we're right in between the minimum and the maximum. I'm going to leave that alone. The oil itself does look a little dark. Might be time for a change, but I don't need to add any.

Let's say that we did have to add a little bit of oil. We would come right back here. This is your oil cap. It even specifies what type of oil to use, 0W-20. You don't want to use 5W-30 or 10W-40 or 30 or anything like that. Just go with what the manufacturer specifies. You grab it, turn it to the left counter-clockwise, lift it up, take a peek, make sure your gasket's good. This one looks good. We'll put it right over here so, that way there, we can't forget to put it back on in case you decide you want to forget to put it on. Close the hood. The hood's not going down. You put your little funnel right here. You can get them at 1AAuto.com, and then go ahead and add a little bit of oil. Check it. Once it's good, grab your cap. It's back on. Off we go.

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