Mazda 3 sport 2.2D 185 Hatchback
Discussion
Hello ladies and gents. 
Firstly I'd like to apologise in advance for the wall of text but I'm hoping i can tap into the wealth of knowledge shared by many of you fine members regarding my little Mazda if you'll all be so kind to assist the uneducated.
Bought a 2010 model 3 in April 2017 with a full service history and 69k on the clock and it has served me well so far, but due to a relocation of my workplace which is much nearer my home (less than a mile), it's hardly getting a run out anymore and has led me to become frustrated with increasing oil levels which I can only assume are due to several incomplete DPF regens.
I had it fully serviced in August and oil levels were fine but when I checked the dipstick today it was past the "X" Mark leading me to believe I have interrupted it's regen cycle on numerous occasions and have seriously contaminated my oil. Luckily I have yet to experience any DPF warning lights as most of the time I assumed I could tell when a regen was happening so I would take it for a good jaunt to clear the filter, but it appears I'm not as proficient at spotting it as I thought.
Which brings me to my question..
I have been pointed in the direction of a local company who specialise in ECU remaps and other performance related modifications that I have been informed will help solve my issue, but rather unsure what to do on the matter due to certain MOT legalities. Getting rid of the car isn't an option at this time (plus I really like it), so other than walking/cycling to work midweek and using it for weekend travel only, I cant think of another solution.
Booked it in for an oil change tomorrow but I'd rather not have this unnecessary expense to deal with every few months. Was thinking about buying a pela pump and trying to keep on top of it that way as I'm not the most savvy cat when it comes to cars and changing oils but any advice would be graciously received.
Firstly I'd like to apologise in advance for the wall of text but I'm hoping i can tap into the wealth of knowledge shared by many of you fine members regarding my little Mazda if you'll all be so kind to assist the uneducated.
Bought a 2010 model 3 in April 2017 with a full service history and 69k on the clock and it has served me well so far, but due to a relocation of my workplace which is much nearer my home (less than a mile), it's hardly getting a run out anymore and has led me to become frustrated with increasing oil levels which I can only assume are due to several incomplete DPF regens.
I had it fully serviced in August and oil levels were fine but when I checked the dipstick today it was past the "X" Mark leading me to believe I have interrupted it's regen cycle on numerous occasions and have seriously contaminated my oil. Luckily I have yet to experience any DPF warning lights as most of the time I assumed I could tell when a regen was happening so I would take it for a good jaunt to clear the filter, but it appears I'm not as proficient at spotting it as I thought.
Which brings me to my question..
I have been pointed in the direction of a local company who specialise in ECU remaps and other performance related modifications that I have been informed will help solve my issue, but rather unsure what to do on the matter due to certain MOT legalities. Getting rid of the car isn't an option at this time (plus I really like it), so other than walking/cycling to work midweek and using it for weekend travel only, I cant think of another solution.
Booked it in for an oil change tomorrow but I'd rather not have this unnecessary expense to deal with every few months. Was thinking about buying a pela pump and trying to keep on top of it that way as I'm not the most savvy cat when it comes to cars and changing oils but any advice would be graciously received.
Firsty, the issue with fuel in the oil is it dilutes the oil, reducing it's lubricating properties (as well as the other things it does - cooling and cleaning away bi-products of combustion etc). So if you were to siphon out "excess oil", you may actually, over time, be diluting the engine oil more and more. Clearly, this won't be good for your engine.
You may want to start planning in once a week / once a fortnight a longer drive. Go somewhere an hour away, using the motorway / fast A-roads. Let it get up to temperature, let it go through the regen and also, give it a bit of welly.
In the future, you may want to consider changing for a petrol car, but as you said you can't afford this at the moment. The current "new" cars with turbocharging have all the enjoyable low end shove of a diesel (maybe not as much, but it's still better than the non-turbo engines of some years ago).
Otherwise, you might want to reduce your oil change intervals to half what the manufacturer recommends (I'm not sure what Mazda state for that particular engine, but let's say they state 16,000 miles..well, do it every 8,000 / 12 months). With regards to the MoT test, there is a smog test which - if you were to have certain elements of the emissions control system modified (and that could also include improving the gas flow through particular parts of the exhaust system..wink wink) - you may find you fail.
But, if it were me, I'd use it as an excuse to get out and about and exploring the country a bit.
You may want to start planning in once a week / once a fortnight a longer drive. Go somewhere an hour away, using the motorway / fast A-roads. Let it get up to temperature, let it go through the regen and also, give it a bit of welly.
In the future, you may want to consider changing for a petrol car, but as you said you can't afford this at the moment. The current "new" cars with turbocharging have all the enjoyable low end shove of a diesel (maybe not as much, but it's still better than the non-turbo engines of some years ago).
Otherwise, you might want to reduce your oil change intervals to half what the manufacturer recommends (I'm not sure what Mazda state for that particular engine, but let's say they state 16,000 miles..well, do it every 8,000 / 12 months). With regards to the MoT test, there is a smog test which - if you were to have certain elements of the emissions control system modified (and that could also include improving the gas flow through particular parts of the exhaust system..wink wink) - you may find you fail.
But, if it were me, I'd use it as an excuse to get out and about and exploring the country a bit.
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