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    My 3 is acting fishy

    The wife and I bought this 2006 Mazda 3 with the 2.3 litter engine a year ago on Labor day. Accept for some initial warranty work, it's been a good car, until now.

    The problem started about a week ago when she tried to start the car to go to work. It barely turned over and eventually required a jump start to get going. It was one of the coldest nights yet so I kind of figured the battery was getting ready to give out. Once the car was started it seemed to run and start fine. I put the charger on the battery to top it off but that only lasted a day.

    After I started it that first time with the jump start, it ran really rough for a good 5 seconds. I was concerned but was not able to correlate the poor battery performance with the rough idle so just left it as a hanging question. I replaced the battery with a new one that supplied 700 cold cranking amps which should have fixed the problem. It still started rough though. Hmm?

    Last night my wife told me that on her drive home from work, she was on this one stretch of down hill leading to a stop sign and the car died. It's never done this before so now I'm concerned.

    I would be suspect that the block had frozen but I checked the antifreeze in the fall and it's good to well below zero. I haven't checked the oil recently but I changed it in the fall with Mobil 1. This car has only had M1 in it since I've owned it.

    Now if the battery is still good, then the motor is just turning over hard for some reason. A drag on the RPM would also explain the stall when coasting. I'm going to take it to Auto Zone and see if there are any codes but there is no CEL coming on and not other symptoms I can see. I have to admit that I'm worried this could be something serious.

    Any suggestions?
    1991 Protege LX with GTX swap, DD
    1990 4WD Protege with GTX swap, Project/garage decoration
    2006 Mazda 3 with 2.3, Her car
    1980 Ford F100 Short bed with 300ci 6 cylinder, work truck/home for moss

    #2
    i have heard of this with some ac compressors causing drag. i could be wrong though.
    91 protege gt. dropzone mx3 springs, mx3 crossmember, ractive front and rear strut braces, rear lower mx3 brace, 4 wheel disc brakes, corksport ss brake and clutch lines,kvr front pads, ractive cai,ram air hood scoop, modified front bumper, shaved ant and rear trunk lock, fubu ant, short shifter, corksport bronzeoil shifter bushings,92 glass sunroof and tail lights, mx3 center console, autometer gauges (volt and oil pressure) cluster needles painted to match, sound system, 17 inch eagle alloy 193 with 205 40 17 rubber. klze is ALIVE BABY!! . http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2394656http://www.toprotege.com/forums/show...hlight=project[url]

    Comment


      #3
      Jon, check the fuel pump.


      Merry Motoring!
      02 DX Millenium Red - The Penultimate Driving Machine
      MP3 Strut Tower Bar kit; Cusco Front Lower Arm Tie Bar
      MSP Springs, Struts, Stabilizer Bars, Trailing Links, #3 Engine Mount
      Kartboy Stabilizer Bar Bushings; Nyloil Shifter Bushings; Red Line MT-90 Gear Oil
      MP3 Shifter, Knob and Aluminum Pedal Set
      Suvlights HD Wiring Harness; Osram Night Breaker H4 Bulbs; Exide Edge AGM Battery
      Summer: 5Zigen FN01R-C 16 x 7" Wheels; Yoko S.drive 205/45-16s
      Winter: Enkei OR52 16 x 7" Wheels; Falken Ziex ZE-912 205/45-16s
      Modified OEM Air Intake; Racing Beat Exhaust System; Techna-Fit SS Clutch Line
      Denso SKJ16CR-L11 Extended Tip Spark Plugs; Magnecor Wires
      Power Slot Front Brake Rotors; Techna-Fit SS Brake Lines; Hawk HPS Pads
      Red Line Synthetic Engine Oil; C/S Aluminum Oil Cap
      Cyberdyne Digital Gauges: Tach; Ambient Air Temp; Voltmeter

      Comment


        #4
        Throwing any codes? Could be a crank/cam sensor.

        Comment


          #5
          I just recently replaced my purge valve which was causing some pretty rough idling after a fill-up... but I threw a code for that. Hope you sort this out!
          '12 Ford Focus SEL

          Comment


            #6
            I've been pretty busy and since the car is still running, I just haven't messed with it. I'll post back when I have more. Thanks for the riding along with me on this problem. I won't leave anyone hanging.
            1991 Protege LX with GTX swap, DD
            1990 4WD Protege with GTX swap, Project/garage decoration
            2006 Mazda 3 with 2.3, Her car
            1980 Ford F100 Short bed with 300ci 6 cylinder, work truck/home for moss

            Comment


              #7
              With modern cars it will throw a CEL after the problem occurs enough times. It could be a number of things but it sounds control system related. A dirty MAF can cause this issue alone. If you get a code let me know as I have the FSM for the car.

              Take a look at some of the Mazda3 forums: http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=130469.0

              Comment


                #8
                Dead battery, not holding a charge, dying while in motion.... could it be the altenator not charging the battery properly? weak charged battery may not allow the car to have enough power for a strong spark. I dont know to much about these newer cars though
                "See that car, in the 80's that car was deadly." Random man to his son while passing the GTX in a parking lot

                Originally posted by neuspeedescort
                the proper spelling would be "Launchabilitiness" i do believe.
                -88' Mazda 323 GTX, 1.8t, Modified Magazine May 2012
                -88' Mazda 323 GTX, caged and ready for dirt
                -93' Mazda Miata, half caged
                -09' Mercedes C63 AMG
                -87' Toyota Land Cruiser, 33's with slight lift, safari style!

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Lex View Post
                  With modern cars it will throw a CEL after the problem occurs enough times. It could be a number of things but it sounds control system related. A dirty MAF can cause this issue alone. If you get a code let me know as I have the FSM for the car.

                  Take a look at some of the Mazda3 forums: http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=130469.0

                  In both cases of fuel pump failure in my wife's 3 as referenced above, which in the second case took place over an appreciable period of time, the MIL never illuminated. If it had, I would have had the code read and looked it up in my own FSM for the car.

                  Happy Motoring!
                  02 DX Millenium Red - The Penultimate Driving Machine
                  MP3 Strut Tower Bar kit; Cusco Front Lower Arm Tie Bar
                  MSP Springs, Struts, Stabilizer Bars, Trailing Links, #3 Engine Mount
                  Kartboy Stabilizer Bar Bushings; Nyloil Shifter Bushings; Red Line MT-90 Gear Oil
                  MP3 Shifter, Knob and Aluminum Pedal Set
                  Suvlights HD Wiring Harness; Osram Night Breaker H4 Bulbs; Exide Edge AGM Battery
                  Summer: 5Zigen FN01R-C 16 x 7" Wheels; Yoko S.drive 205/45-16s
                  Winter: Enkei OR52 16 x 7" Wheels; Falken Ziex ZE-912 205/45-16s
                  Modified OEM Air Intake; Racing Beat Exhaust System; Techna-Fit SS Clutch Line
                  Denso SKJ16CR-L11 Extended Tip Spark Plugs; Magnecor Wires
                  Power Slot Front Brake Rotors; Techna-Fit SS Brake Lines; Hawk HPS Pads
                  Red Line Synthetic Engine Oil; C/S Aluminum Oil Cap
                  Cyberdyne Digital Gauges: Tach; Ambient Air Temp; Voltmeter

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Since my car has been down with a flat tire, I've been driving the 3 to work. In all cases, the car has started and performed to expectations. Even on the coldest days of the year, no problem were detected. I guess the problem is solved. At least for now, I have no more interest in this car, at least until more symptoms develop.
                    Thanks for all the input. I'm sure I will refer back to this thread in the future as this car ages.
                    1991 Protege LX with GTX swap, DD
                    1990 4WD Protege with GTX swap, Project/garage decoration
                    2006 Mazda 3 with 2.3, Her car
                    1980 Ford F100 Short bed with 300ci 6 cylinder, work truck/home for moss

                    Comment

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