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Adan
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PGP
My 2001 4cyl mazda 626 intermittently fails to start. The problem is far more prevalent when the temperature outside is high, and when the car has been run recently [less than 30minutes]. However the problem does seem to occur on fewer occassions when the vehicle is cool [2+hours turned off]. When the vehicle fails to start it usually seems like on my first try I get a couple of firings from the spark plugs, and that's it [doesn't seem like enough to be flooding the engine]. Then repeated attempts lead to nothing more than the starter turning the engine with no ignition whatsoever. In most situations if I let the car cool for an hour or two after having problems starting it, it starts. Once the car is running, it runs fine almost always, except once when I had the A/C running with the car going for an hour straight, it almost died while idling.
The starter turns fine in all situations, so I've ruled out battery or starter. I have replaced the plugs, wires, and fuel filter but to no avail; the problem is exactly the same after doing so.
I have also brought the car to a couple of shops, including a mazda dealership. None found any issue while the vehicle was at their shop (no bad test codes, unable to reproduce the problem etc.) During this winter the car seemed to perform almost flawlessly [ambient temps ranging from -10 to 30 degrees fahrenheit], but now that it is 50 degrees fahrenheit out again, the problem has returned.
thank you!
'96 626 4-cylinder Auto 101K miles
thanks again!
One thing to consider is replacement of axle seals in the trnasaxle when you change the axles. It is not difficult to do and can save you a lot of aggravation. To replace the seals, you need to pull the axles.
After you pull the axles and replace them, and bolt the steering knuckle to the front struts, have an alignment done on the car. The original geometry will be altered.
As far as water pump replacement goes, $ 1000 is steep. Yes, you must remove and reinstall the timing belt to replace the pump and on my V6 engine you also need to support the the engine and remove the front engine mount. However, it should be about $ 500 job including the pump, which is new about $ 110 from Mazda. It is much easier to replace the pump on a 4 cylinder model than on the V6 due to more complicated timing belt routing on the V6 engine.
Also, I think the power lock actuator is going out. It makes a high-pitched noise when I lock the car, but it still works. Any ideas on the cost to repair it, when it eventually fails?
Thanks.
Have someone sit in the back seat when you go over a bump and maybe you can isolate it better.
Good Luck
PGP
it's not often they start tomfoolery! Our mechanic says that it sounds like a loose body panel.
Did you buy the manual for your car or join ALLDATA? Those are 2 other places to start if you intend on getting to know your car.
Good Luck! I have done all three of them, and it took me over 2 years to find the gremlins in my 94 Mazda. ALCAN was a tremendous help.
PGP
This is a short-term "bridge" car for me and I will not do the maintenance on it myself (I no longer have time for that, unfortunately, nor the aptitude to do anything but basic maintenance) so I will forgo the manuals and ALLDATA.
I on the other hand have my wifes Mazda In Greece which is a problem to diagnose because they only have European version specifications, and my 93 400 SEL Benz in NYC.
The only work I actually do on my cars, is help diagnose the problems, and buy parts for both of them, and make sure the mechanics install them correctly.
I intend to keep these cars for a few more years therefore it was worth the time to become a Quasi Mechanic. My wifes MAZDA has 55K and My Benz has 70K pampered miles on it
Good Luck
PGP
I cannot get the car started again, so I had it towed home. It's a 1990 Mazda 626. It was on it's last legs anyway, but I need to get it running again til I can get a new car.
Water got in to about 5 inches. Within an hour my boyfriend and some others got it pushed up into a driveway so it could drain. That was probably deep enough for water to come in the exhaust. And as people drove by me, there were waves. I checked the dipsticks for the oil and tranny and did not see any signs of water. It's time for an oil change anyway, so I will get that done.
The electrical seems fine. The power windows, door locks, and sun roof work, the lights and radio come on, and the passive alarm works. The starter cranks once (a nice dull thud) and I get no ignition. I was on E when this happened, so I'm wondering if part of the problem is not enough fuel/pressure. I have no clue what if any computer components there are, where they are located, and if they got wet.
I removed the floor mats to dry, and I bleached the carpet. I also plan on renting a shop vac to clean the carpet. It is finally sunny here, so can I just wait for things to dry out? Any suggestions? I need this car to last a few more months, and it's not worth me spending hundreds of dollars on.
At least I live on a bus line and can get to work ok.
Thanks!
No proven remedy...just a heads up for mechanics I guess. One of the problems was the malady was intermittent.The shop could never replicate the noise to address a solution. Ours sounds like a loose body panel and IS periodic!?!
I also replaced half axles on my 94 626 and bought OEM remanufactured from mazda. They were reman by ARI and you could prolly get them $30-40 cheaper online or somewhere else. I would suggest you try to find ARI because thats who MAZDA uses to reman theirs.
Good Luck
PGP
Your bushings could be bad again too, the first set on my car failed after probably 2 years, then the second set within another year.
The car has about 99,000 miles. About 10,000 miles ago, the spark plugs and wires, PCV valve and fuel filter were replaced. And around 6,000 miles ago I had the idler pulley and belts replaced.
today i replaced mine and drived about 10km and error code did not show up yet.
the code means: bank A lean.
Just make sure the picture fits within the borders of the posting area if you want to display it within your post. If it does not, all you need to do is provide a link to it instead.
Thanks.
P.S. I declined their none-too-generous offer.
the INTERMITTENT noise from trunk sounds more like a
loose body panel. The only way they'll be able to inspect
will be a disasemble.How much was that"n-t-g" offer?
Our DoubleOught
The n-t-g offer was $4000. I've already had one firm private party offer for $6400 (if I wanted to sell it, which I don't since my son has glommed onto it now), so no way I would take $4000. It just had the full 60k service at 84k and is in nearly like-new condition inside and out. So it's worth it to me to put a little money into fixing the rattle and see if it can get my son through college.
Questions:
Any clue what this might be? And more important -- how serious / expensive this might be to fix?
I am considering trading it in on a 2005 Mazda Tribute, 31,000 miles. Anyone have any experience with Tributes?
Many Thanks!
Did you finally get that noise resolved? Was it what we thought?
PGP