Small oil spot in driveway

[matt2112]

Well I did the unthinkable and had my oil changed at Mr. Lube yesterday as opposed to the dealership. I still feel guilty for doing so, but I was in a pinch and they were the closest option. (Will not be doing this again.)

Anyway, things seem to be running fine, however I noticed a small 'donut-sized' spot of oil in my driveway this morning.

Is this sort of thing normal or should I be concerned?

[Ogata]

Well I did the unthinkable and had my oil changed at Mr. Lube yesterday as opposed to the dealership. I still feel guilty for doing so, but I was in a pinch and they were the closest option. (Will not be doing this again.)

Anyway, things seem to be running fine, however I noticed a small 'donut-sized' spot of oil in my driveway this morning.

Is this sort of thing normal or should I be concerned?

I would get it checked for one of our reputable shops. Have you tried Jimmy at Street Performance?

[Soyabean]

the doughnuts i eat are fairly huge lol. But joking aside, get it checked. Might be the fact that they did not tighten the filter properly. That happened to my old car one time when i did it. I dunno how it works with the mazdas 3s and their plastic filter things

[mazda lover]

if you have the 2.3 they might have not tightin it properly or they over torched and cracked the plastic housing that holds the filter. Oil droppings is not normal like bird droppings...

[ShortBus]

could be just the old oil dripping off but i would just keep an eye on the oil levels and do a quick look underneath if you can see any oil drips/leaks.

[Gizzmo_jr]

You've only seen one spot? If you see more I'm calling it the machanic over torqued the plastic housing (easily done, it's like 15ft/lbs by spec if I recall). Not only that but crush/pinch style oil filter wrenches would crack the cap.

There's not alot plastic to grip and not only that Mazda used an odd flute count.

[matt2112]

Yeah there seems to be just one centralized location for the oil drip. I took it out for a drive today, parked it and about 10 minutes later I saw a new spot starting to form.

What do you suggest I do? Does the whole job need to be redone if it is a cracked plastic housing?

[Gizzmo_jr]

Well obviously you haven't blown the motor but I'd be double checking the fluid level almost daily. If it's the cap, it's a quick fix from a new part from Mazda. But this should be outta pocket from them. Go back and tell the
your car has a slow leak since they changed it.

The whole housing won't need replacing (unless you can't buy the cap seperate). The rest is aluminum

[matt2112]

Thanks, appreciate the help!

[mazda lover]

do the conversion to a spin on filter, search here for more info

[Zoom Zoom Boy]

do the conversion to a spin on filter, search here for more info

That, or find someone who knows what the hell they are doing to work on your car from here on in. Consider it a "lessons learned".