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Mazda MPV: Problems & Solutions - READ ONLY

4469 messages,  Last post on Oct 27, 2006 at 9:04 PM

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What is this discussion about? Mazda MPV, Van

Messages Page 418 of 447

#4171 of 4469 Re: 2002 Mazda MPV Problems [mom2bckj] by tccmn1

Aug 01, 2005 (9:52 pm)

Replying to: mom2bckj (Jul 29, 2005 6:59 pm)
So, you had that creeking sound in your steering too! I've had it in my 2003 and seen it from several people on this thread too! Very disturbing and my MN. dealer stated the same thing; Mazda corporate has no fix = NORMAL! $30K for a piece of junk that has more problems with no fixes than my 1995 Dodge Caravan had!!! At least they had fixes for their problems...Mazda has no answers! Dah!
I tremble to think of what this vehicle will be like IF it makes it to 150K miles on it. My old DC had 185K miles on it when I sold it and it was still running fine...darn!

#4172 of 4469 Re: Very Poor Mileage on 2003 MPV LX [bigdadi118] by criledo

Aug 02, 2005 (7:18 am)

Replying to: bigdadi118 (Jul 29, 2005 7:59 am)
Thanks for your suggestions, I will follow them all. I do have a follow-up though: The van was taken to service because of the transmission acting up. The software was "updated" and really the car now shifts much better. We are through our first tank of gas and again, we got a mere 190 miles out of a full one........ the service rep though says it'll take a couple more tanks to notice the difference. Anyway, I'll post an update when that happens and I have followed your recomms. (By the way, the van was thoroughly checked and emissions are normal).

#4173 of 4469 Re: Very Poor Mileage on 2003 MPV LX [criledo] by user777

Aug 07, 2005 (5:03 am)

Replying to: criledo (Aug 02, 2005 7:18 am)
criledo - is there any chance you are judging "full one" based on your gas gauge in the instrumentation cluster, rather than the capacity of the tank and how many gallons are actually pumped?

#4174 of 4469 Cranks but won't start by oaktrimmer

Aug 07, 2005 (1:19 pm)

My 2001 Mazda MPV LX has close to 90,000 miles and has been very dependable. Last night, with no warning, it wouldn't start. Actually, it started a couple of times but quickly died. Now it just sits there and cranks but won't even attempt to start. Behaves like it's either not getting a spark or not getting any gas. I'm not really anxious to have it towed to a garage if there's something simple that I can check. Any suggestions on how to check the fuel pump or the distributor or thoughts on what else may be wrong?

#4175 of 4469 Re: Very Poor Mileage on 2003 MPV LX [user777] by criledo

Aug 08, 2005 (6:33 am)

Replying to: user777 (Aug 07, 2005 5:03 am)
Your question is a good one - I have noticed how tricky it is with the gauges. I measure by pumped gallons. Whatever is on the trip odometer gets divided by the gallonage pumped in. It might not be very accurate, but over a few refills one can approximate fuel usage. Here's my baseline: other users and even the Mazda distributor will tell you one should be getting around 300+ miles to a tank. Well, in our case it is not unusual to not even reach 200 miles on a full tank........ if I have pumped say 16 gallons, well, that is not 15 mpg. The frustrating part about this is that Mazda says the van is running "within normal parameters".

#4176 of 4469 Re: Cranks but won't start [oaktrimmer] by criledo

Aug 08, 2005 (6:42 am)

Replying to: oaktrimmer (Aug 07, 2005 1:19 pm)
I had this happen to me last week on a Ford truck. What happened was that the fuel pump (inside the gas tank got stuck). The way this Ford works, there is a primary signal that runs the pump for three seconds giving the engine sufficient gas pressure to start. Once the engine is actually running the secondary signal keeps the pump running. But during cranking no fuel is pumped into the system unless you shut down the ignition switch and re start it again. Just like you say, our engine tried to start and then just cranks and cranks. I am not sure about Mazda,s but generally speaking to reach the pump you have to be able to get into the porthole on the tank. Some cars have portholes in the floors for this purpose but most likely the tank will have to come down. Rule of thumb: a lack of fuel cranking will be monotone with no sputters. If the problem is electrical or time-chain related, usually the cranking speed will vary and maybe sputters will be present. Also, the fuel pump not working will not cause the check engine light to come on. Electrical problems and misfires will make it come on. Although I don't have THE answer for you, this info might help some.

#4177 of 4469 Re: Air conditioning in MPV [jipster] by criledo

Aug 08, 2005 (6:45 am)

Replying to: jipster (Jul 25, 2005 12:01 pm)
We live in Houston, and both our AC's (front and rear) usually have to be run at full. After a while the rear can be turned down to 2 or 1, but the front will rarely make it to 2, forget 1, it usually will stay on 3. I have also noticed on three previous Mazda's I have owned that they tend to loose blowing power with the years.

#4178 of 4469 Re: Very Poor Mileage on 2003 MPV LX [criledo] by user777

Aug 08, 2005 (9:30 am)

Replying to: criledo (Aug 08, 2005 6:33 am)
well, you are calculating the MPG the proper way then. you shouldn't trust a gauge for this purpose. if you say you're getting 1/3rd less the mileage you should be, i can't see how that is within expected / normal parameters.
 
have you verified your air intake filter is clean and also your tires are not under-inflated? possibly the vehicle is running excessively rich due to a bad sensor, stuck injectors, or the catalytic convertor is messed up.
 
i guess i'd be asking an independant shop what you might try next in terms of a resonably priced diagnostic approach to the problem.

#4179 of 4469 Fuel or Electrical mystery? by argrdi

Aug 08, 2005 (10:12 pm)

I have an older 6cyl MPV ('96). About 2 weeks ago I had to jump start the battery 3 times because something in the switch was faulty and the headlights would randomly come on while the car was parked (jiggling the switch would fix that issue). Then last week, we had a hard time starting the car after I filled up the tank. I did notice a strong smell (kind of like burning brakes) but that went away after a mile or so (don't even know if it was my car - we were in heavy traffic). That night I did notice that (with headlights and AC on) the "fuel" & "check engine" lights would come on (though very, very dim) at every stop light . Reving the engine seemed to turn these lights out. The following morning the battery was dead (not due to the headlights coming on). After jumping the battery I drove about 10 miles to a store, came back and again nothing (not even the slightest click. About 3 minutes later, I pumped the pedal about 15 times and eventually the car turned over. After another 5 mile drive to get something to eat I stopped and immediately tried starting the car - again, not even a click - as if there was no battery. Half an hour later we went back to the car, pumped the pedal about 5 times and it started right up. The day after the battery was totally dead. I replaced the battery tonight, car starts just fine - no pumping - just turn the key. However, if I turn the headlights and AC on, I can see the faint lights of the "fuel" & check engine" coming on. They do go off at about 1100rpm. Can anyone offer some advise on what might be going on?

#4180 of 4469 Re: Fuel or Electrical mystery? [argrdi] by criledo

Aug 09, 2005 (9:07 am)

Replying to: argrdi (Aug 08, 2005 10:12 pm)
I am not sure about the pumping the gas pedal (don't know if engine is fuel injected or carbureted), but I would strongly suggest you check alternator first. Dimming lights usually point in that direction. Since revving the engine takes care of the problem, I would be almost certain that the rectifier has gone out, but no sense in trying to fix the alternator, just get a new one. Also, if the light switch has problems, change it, a lot of amps flow through the headlight switches and they do wear out. If your alternator is not working 100%, the battery will eventually loose more and more of it's power. Now that you have a new battery you don't notice the problem that much.

Messages Page 418 of 447

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