Hi,

I was just told today on my 20,000 service by official Mazada service center that they noticed oil in the coolant reservoir. As I asked them to check the level of the coolant as the bottle is dark for me to see the level myself. I was told that they don’t know the reason for that mixing and have contacted Mazda for that. As it is still under warranty so if it is not an accidental damage it will be covered within the warranty.

I asked them will be cause any damage as engine might heat up as coolant will be now contaminated and it will not do the job properly. I was told it is safe to drive and no issue.

1. is it safe to drive in this situation? Is Mazda service center so casual in such things or I am overthinking?
3. Has anyone else faced such issue with 2019 Mazda CX5 and what was the outcome, how was your experience?
4. If they say it is accidental damage what options would I have and what is the cost to fix this kind of issue.

Thanks,
Madiha

 

Unless someone put oil in your coolant reservoir it's not likely an "accident".
There are several things it could be, none of them good.
Bad head gasket
Bad oil/coolant heat exchanger
Crack in the cylinder head or block
Less likely faulty transmission fluid cooler/heat exchanger
On the positive side it could be minor and an easy fix, on the negative side the damage could already be severe.
I would not drive it until the cause of the oil has been determined and repaired.

 

They let you go without the normal testing???????

To answer
#1 that depends, so yes and NO!! And I repeat why they let you go after finding it without doing a few simple tests?
And exactly what did the Non coolant in your reservoir look like. Seems like some assumptions on their part without any established facts??
#2 is missing from your question??? lol
#3 Issues and what members on the internet experience can vary and may and in most cases are different when you include all aspects of what they think are the same.
#4 This cannot be answered by anyone until the what's and why are first established.

ASE

 

and

Welcome to the forum

 

They did the initial testing but they said we couldn’t find the reason and hence took all data from your car to send to Mazda. Once they will hear back from Mazda they will let me know about the next steps.

Mazda service center clearly said me it is safe for you to drive. That’s why when I read more details about this then got surprised that they were so casual and told me it’s ok to drive.

i got a brand new car only for this reason so i will have a peace of mind but this issue came exactly after 4 years of driving this car and only with 20,000 km.

seems like only option now is to get after Mazda service center to follow-up with Mazda on this.

Thanks for your reply.

 

IMHO and that fact that I am an ASE Master Technician that the dealership service department based on seeing any contaminants in the cooling system as you described, should have suggested to do a comprehensive and complete cooling system flushing cleaning and coolant replacement.

I am amazed why they would let you go on your way knowing what they found and not knowing what exactly it was and the possible cause!