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Mazda 323

1457910

Comments

  • girlcarbuildergirlcarbuilder Member Posts: 225
    That is correct for the 86-89 models and I suspect also for your 91. Not a big deal, just pay attention to the big hose to the AFM and disconnecting the wire harnass and coil wires and you should be okay.

    Also, 120K is a major maintenace point. Read some of my earlier posts that cover this critical service time. This serice point will decide if you get to 180K miles or not.

    150K or so is also serivce point for front wheel bearings! Surprise for those who thought they were not serviceable! Pay closer attention to your suspension components and steering rack. Problems begin to occur there as well. Still cheaper to keep her than replace with new car notes.
  • needwheels2needwheels2 Member Posts: 31
    Well it's possible he used the wrong terminology, remember he's not a pro-mechanic (but apparently his dad was and was supervising his work over the weekend). The pin/key apparently attaches to the way bottom of where the timing belt was and attached some kind of pulley to the crankshaft? Apparently it sheered down to the point where it didn't do it's function of holding the cog/pulley/whatever in place and just let it spin.

    I don't think he is trying to trick me or anything like that (I meant we are neighbors, not like he can hide anything from me, he shows me all the parts, etc).

    I need to get ahold of a camera somehow to take some pictures to show you.

    His dad actually did suggest they could just weld the pin/key/whatever back on and it would be a $2 part. They didn't hide that from me at all. They just told me the consequences of that part failing could be bad and make the engine seize? You think I should just insist they should just rig it anyway?

    He wants to buy the car because he knows he can work on it easily since it has no computers controlling all the timing etc.

    I really don't like the engine swap idea. He's so gung-ho, young kid and trying to impress his young wife-to-be with all his knowledge and skills and I easily suspect he's being way, way too optimistic about everything going smoothly.
  • ahab_2001ahab_2001 Member Posts: 4
    Thanks, GCB -- much appreciated!

    Stewart
  • 323gtxrfreak323gtxrfreak Member Posts: 1
    These crankshafts have a known design flaw being a short crank snout. Mazda later redesigned it. When the timing belt is changed if one is not paying attention the woodruff key can be put in backwards if this is done it will wallow the keyway out along with destroying the key. yes they can be welded in but then you risk burning up the front seal which will leak and i mean bad not to mention if you use the old timing gear and it is not properly lined up it will rub a hole in the oil pump.

    There is abetter fix that works without replacing the crank. You will need a good woodruff key and a good timing gear. I got mine from an old engine at the salvage yard. Then you need a new front seal and a tube of octite pressfit along with atube of loctite blue. Then go to http://www.miata.net/garage/hsue/LoctiteCrank1.html. Matter of fact just go there first. The timing belts on these can be changed without taking the crank bolt loose just a bit more work but worth it to not have to worry about this problem. THese cars are worth the repair they are known to get 300,000 miles when cared for properly. I have done it all welding and the loctite repair. The welding of the pully to the crank works for awhile but the loctite repair worked even better. THe weld will torch the seal and even when I used abottle of water onit the weld wound up breakiking after wearing a hole in the oil pump. I cut the weld out and done the miata repair just as described and got all the mileage still left in the engine.
    Hope Iam not to late I just saw your post.">
  • needwheels2needwheels2 Member Posts: 31
    I appreciate the time you took to post that! Not too late, I've parked it for the summer as even if I could fix it for a couple hundred I wouldn't have the money for insurance+registration+gas anyway.

    I figure it sat this long, I'll wait for the fall when it's cooler.
    Meanwhile I've turned my bike into an e-bike to get through the heat.

    This guy has resisted any kind of other fix than an engine replacement, so I am going to be curious how he reacts when I show him your information. Your way HAS to be easier.
  • girlcarbuildergirlcarbuilder Member Posts: 225
    Personally I am not familiar with this design problem, but I am aware of a history of the 89 having the snout of the crankshaft break off. That happened on the original engine in ours. When I found that out, we dropped a crate engine in it from the dealer for 2 grand. When the first timing belt change came up, the crate engine uses a larger seal from a Miata on the crank. It was a ah ha moment that something was corrected.

    Further research on the different years of 323's at Advance Auto's website revealed that there were several different snout sizes used from year to year. Somewhat different topic about the crank, but may give you a bit more insight into what you are dealing with.

    Taking a break from the car during the summer is not a bad idea. It can give you time to go to the library and try to find some Mitchell manuals and read up on it. See if you can find any service bulletins about it as well. It also pays to try to pick the brains of a dealer parts person about it as well. They are more than happy to give info when they make sales also. On the other hand, they would like to see us bury our 323 and buy new!

    As for GTX's idea, I am not crazy about it, but I would be game to try it before pulling a motor for a overhaul. The worse that can happen is still the piston and the valve dance. Then at that point you could address a proper repair to the crankshaft again during a overhaul. Still cheaper than buying new. Couple it with a 5 speed, that car should pulll better than 40 mpg after an overhaul..
  • sschofield69sschofield69 Member Posts: 1
    My girlfriends dad just gave us his mazda which needed the crankshaft bolt. I went out and bought the $10 bolt then went to install it. Guess what i come across, Not only did the bolt snap but so did the end of the shaft. So now i am in quite the jam. How hard is it to pull the crankshaft out of the motor while it is still in the car? If anyone can help me solve this problem or even give me some pointers as to what i should do, please feel free to reply here or even email me at schofield469@yahoo.ca
    Every ones help is welcome. I really wanna get this car going by august the latest.
    Thanks everyone.

    Sean
  • eagle0199eagle0199 Member Posts: 1
    I've been following with interest all of the postings on engine troubleshooting. My 88 323 with the 1.6 liter engine would run perfectly when cold, but warmed up and started stalling out, cutting out, no power, etc. With 230K miles, I thought it might be the catalytic converter, but after changing it, no difference. I also changed out the coil, one spark plug wire, distributor cap and roter, new plugs, timing checked, but only finally fixed the problem by changing out the distributor. It cost $28 at the local U-Pull-It, and by playing around with the old distributer I found that one of the problems was the vaccuum advance. It's easy to check - just take the distributor cap off, connect a short hose to the vaccuum advance, and suck on it while watching the plate under the roter. The plate inside the distributor will rotate. There are two vaccuum lines to the vacuum advance - check them both. I also saw mention in this forum of the capacitor on the side of the distributor being a problem. My new distributor had the capacitor wire broken off (and the mounting screw frozen in place so it couldn't be changed) but the distributor worked anyway. So far I haven't seen any difference with or without the capacitor
  • thevinethevine Member Posts: 12
    Seems to be a hesitance when auto trans shifts, also a little clunk between gears. A mechanic told me I should do a whole list of stuff which added to excess $$ & much was blah, blah and costly.
    Unfortunatly attention should have paid to individual items, one being brown trans fluid said to be burnt & need changing.

    The problem has become more obvious and my question is: have I done damage to the tranny? or will a new filter/fluid change turn back the clock to smooth shifting of the past?

    Also posting for others to pay attention to trans fluid condition if I indeed greatly reduced future life of trans, still under 100,000 =)

    I have had 1 problem with car stalling, no spark and oil in distributor.
    Changed cap & rotor only to have the problem resurface in another 20 miles.

    Ignitor was the problem.

    Thanks in advance for any feedback on the tranny,

    ~Art
  • kujhackujhac Member Posts: 14
    I would think it will ultimately wind up as to the condition of the clutches. I would first do a standard fluid change and filter change and put in some Lucas transmission treatment. If that doesn't work, then it'd be a tranny rebuild.

    I have a project 1980 Grand Marquis that wouldn't shift out of first gear until 45 MPH.
    Drained the tranny pan fluid and put in a new filter and it shifts perfectly. Of course, it's not electronically controlled like newer models.

    I don't take a garage's diagnosis on face value without researching and knowing what's the real situation. Many garages will take advantage of you if you let them.
  • girlcarbuildergirlcarbuilder Member Posts: 225
    Been out of the loop a lot. Okay, smell the fluid. If it smells burned, bad news. Dirty/Brown is also not good news. That means a lot of clutch material has been used up. In an automatic transmission, the clutches hold drums from turning while certain gears rotate. Sometimes as someone else earlier stated, you can get by with a fluid change. You will be rebuilding sometime soon. Cheap compared to car notes.

    I recommend when you rebuild to have a good cooler installed and also an inline filter installed. Transmission supply houses carry them, not the regular parts houses. Many fleets use in line transmission filters and change them every 10K miles to keep from having to do trannny rebuilds. Lots of discussion as to whether you install before or after your coolers. Always still use the cooler in the radiator in addition to the heavy duty cooler you add on. Same story, discussion on the pros and cons on how to hook it up. Find a good transmission man by word of mouth and the BBB.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Tuesday means Mazda chat night! Mazda ownership is not a requirement! :) Just bring yourself and your love of cars and the desire to discuss anything and everything automotive and you're good to go!

    The chat opens at 8:45 pm ET and runs until 10 pm ET. I hope you're able to join us tonight to meet and greet with your fellow CarSpace members!
    See you there!
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    oh no left my message in the wrong forum anyway i started a project mazda 323 astina it was a single and transplanted a dohc most of the parasitics are interchangeable such as injector kit dissy eng mounts (1) the temperature pressure switch was not performing and governing my rev rate at about 4 grand when i connected up so i hot wired the fuel regulator terminal and open my air intake thru the throttle body screw which gave me full rev but hesitant off idle and a road test is reluctant to deliver any performance which lead me to think back to the dissy as i may have my system 180 out in the dissy its just the 91 dissy shaft nodes are different to 97 dissy shaft nodes which governs where i can position it should i exchange the nodes from each system or buy a new fuel regulator to get my tps working appropiately or do both has anyone had these troubles i love my da da da da and i would love to finish what i have started thats just who i am 91323 vic
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    yeah thats not a big job its just intense to be thinking of your motor positioning a 17 14 12 10 mm long sockets& ring spanners and 10mm pipe spanner undo your battery holder and electrics undo gear levers hoses starter motor release the e mount underneath bat tray take clutch line& plunger off undo the front and back e mount from sub structure but keep them on the box then jack body of vehicle up moderately in height undo your wheel and seperate from the shocky posts this will help in release of cv joint at this stage you will go in under your injector system with a crow bar just simply use the weight to pry it away this cv becomes a real hassle when removing the box so its got to go next is a design complexity you can now see that the e mount on the back is definitely not going to release the bolts this is where we jack the actual motor up to see the top bolt exposed over sub framing now drop the whole thing back down and start on the front e mount undoing removing using the jack under the gearbox undo gearbox substructure and remove now lower everything down with jack to expose the bottom e mount bolt at the back and remove it now your ready to unbolt the gearbox split the box from underneath near the sump section an get up above it and jiggle out the box is really light in weight underleft side of car is exit point for inspection plastic guard should be removed first as i said you jack becomes a favorable tool in getting your job started and finished and as always how youremove it is how you replace it and because of torque settings on all bolts i used a handy 600mm extention on my breaker bar incidently the driveshaft alignment can be set by a socket arm and veiwing it thru the left side for centralizing clutch plate installation purposes it really isnt a big job just get in and get it done 4 cups of tea and a sandwich or two and your boy will be empowered to do anything that comes along now theres your tool list get inspired with him and build your bonds together 91323vic
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    i want to know what time i would be able to hook up with the chat as i live in australia so what time would i need to be on board over here any idea ijust not sure how long the time difference is 91323vic
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Since your profile says you live in Queensland, you're 14 hours ahead of me, so 9PM ET on Tuesday would be 11AM Wednesday mornings for you.
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    thank you so very much pf -flyer i will love to talk to people to anyone who i can help or help my self project and enthusiastic with mazda s and the time shift i tried too find the time difference but America has such a large area they requested a area vicinity which shot me in the foot so i needed to rely on someone there with a location thanks i ll be there heres one for everyone interested ( you tube ) astina f 323 mazda see what the English do with the 323 some hot projects to see just take a quick look you will be there for hours have a great day and thanks again 91323vic
  • geoshannageoshanna Member Posts: 1
    My son's 1.6 non-turbo refuses to start after it was power washed. I have no visible spark from the new coil and with the new cap and rotor off I can see that the distributer is truning, but the contact points do not open and close. Am I looking for a new distributer of does the ignition module have anything to do with that? Is the a method for testing the module?
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    okay first i would look at the points turn on ignition and with a insulated screwdriver open the points look for pitting or dags at the points surface second check off the dissy shaft for wore conponents third check off the advanced plate could be water damaged and stuck in advance fourth capacitor or modular may be damaged buy only mazda part module fifth check white and red striped main current wire with a light tester if it lights up current is to dissy if not the centre consol on the passenger side undo cover and the ecu is there and the fuel regulator the black box pull this out in the terminal you can hot wire it to the dissy be carefull as this is also a part of the ignition system and you can start the car from this terminal you can crank it from here in other words so dont let anyone under your bonnet until you find this out anyway if you find your hotwiring start the engine the electric loom needs attention the man in the can wd and emery disconnect the connection junctions and emery the male side and reconnect i would never recomend using the hotwire on a daily basis only for check offs becarefull buying modules that are aftermarket the sequencing is not compatable happy motoring 91323vic
  • thevinethevine Member Posts: 12
    A few messages back I mentioned same problem, what I did not note was the rainstorm which coincided.

    Replaced distributor, worked for a short time. Ignitor was then replaced and still running strong.

    I'm no pro, just throwing it out there.

    ~A
  • glowplugzglowplugz Member Posts: 5
    My old Michelin Plus 80 tires finally gave out (They still had tread, but the sidewalls were severely cracked). I recently had a set of Kumho Solus KR21 tires installed.

    Much of the freeway system here in Southern California is constructed of concrete, with lots of parallel grooves cut into the surface. My car is very unstable now when driving on this, and I feel dangerously close to losing control when traveling over about 60 mph. Low speed driving is OK, but on emergency maneuvers the car has pretty scary over steer - possibly due to the soft sidewalls on the Kumhos.

    I never experienced any of this with the Michelins, and now I'm looking for something to replace the Kumhos with - they are just too dangerous. Although there are only a handful of other tires made in the right size, I'm not sure what to get.

    After my experience with the Kumhos, I'm not interested in Hankook or any other tire made in China. I'm not sure about Toyo or Uniroyal, but the reviews I've seen seem to suggest that handling on these Japanese made tires is similar to the Chinese ones. If so, I want nothing to do with them, either. Before you say "why not just buy Michelins again?" Well ...I can't - they only make snow & ice versions in a 13" tire - useless for So Cal driving.

    Here are the choices that I could find in my tire size (155 80 13):

    * BFGoodrich Control Plus (discontinued, but some stores have them)
    * Dayton Quadra SE
    * BF Goodrich Revelation Touring (discontinued, but some stores have them)

    Please help me choose. If you have another recommendation, I'd love to hear it.

    Thanks!
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    hi glow plug if your being challenged by purchasing tyres in 13 inch my suggestion would be to maybe look at a rim change along with tyres to give you a greater variety of choices as for your highways you travell on, concrete gets very hot so it possibly heats your tyres to their optimun and being front wheel drive governs steering performance here`s my suggestion measure distance between centres of studs to determine stud positions for instances my are 72mms my rims are a later addition of a98 model and are 15inch if you dont know how to do this go to your local wrecker with a rim of yours and run down the mazda isle and find later to lastest models that have the same stud pattern to get a evaluation on what rim suit yours im not sure how far you want to go with this otherwise you could really upgrade by taking shocky struts and hubs and replacing yours because it may be worn conponents like shocky struts wheelbearings steering rack conponents anyway i hope this will resolve a tyre choice for you and give you some food for thought anyway check wheel bearings while car standinghold at 9 to 3 pull inout rapidly check all wheels check shocky struts push down above each strut and watch for excessive bounce of vehicle check all of them to much to list on steering just got to say checkassist link rubbers back axle :) and stabilizer bar rubbers 91323vic
  • 91323vic91323vic Member Posts: 18
    my tyres are nankans at 15 x 205s they seem to be good wearing on standard black rim sorry about not address the tyre issue in 13s it seems you had done your research my biggest thing is looking in the used piles to assertain whats good and bad and that`s usually at the wreckers 91323vic :)
  • buckeyeboy74buckeyeboy74 Member Posts: 2
    Please HELP
    I have 12 Volts on the Coil with the key ON. I also have the 12V at the Rotor cap with the key ON.
    I have replaced the Coil, cap, rotor, wires, plugs. I don't know what to check next.
    Also maybe no GAS????

    Any help would be great
    Thanks
  • girlcarbuildergirlcarbuilder Member Posts: 225
    Spark starts with a very expensive electronic pick up unit in the distributor. If it gets too much oil on it, it will not sense the pick up on the shaft. These cars are notorious for this problem. Use some Dawn dishwashing liquid to clean out the cap, rotor if oil containamated and partially disassemble the distributor and do the same. Dry it out well before putting back in service. Refer to my earlier posts on this problem. I have written a lot about it.

    Any way, the pick up gets the signal when it works, sends it to the computer which amplifies, times and then sends it to the coil. I have yet to have a computer problem on ours with almost 300K on it. Knock on wood.

    Note again to everyone who is reading. The older these cars get, the more common this problem will become as the engines wear out. I have also written a modification for this distributor as well. Only for those well versed in mechanics.
  • glowplugzglowplugz Member Posts: 5
    Thanks 91323vic... On the advice of a tire dealer, I had new Uniroyal Tiger Paw Freedom 175 70 13 tires installed. High speed handling is a little better but now there is a surprising amount of steering resistance - it kinda feels like I'm driving a truck. I don't want to change rims, so I might have to go back to 155 80 13 tires (the stock rims are 13 x 4.5").
  • yeclekyeclek Member Posts: 2
    Hey all!

    I just bought an 89 323 for $150 . . . shockingly, aside from some surface rust, she appears road worthy!

    I was planning to give the car to a friend who has two small kids and needs some simple transportation, so there is one issue I need to address before I give it to her:

    When accelerating between 40 mph and 50 mph (auto trans), the car begins to jerk and stutter, lose power, feels almost as though she might stall out. This problem can usually be solved by flooring the pedal for a minute in overdrive, and then backing back down to speed . . . obviously not a perfect solution . . . She also seems to down shift kind of violently when slowing to about 50 mph.

    Also when idling in drive, there is a "clunk" noise and a slight jerk every 30 seconds or so . . .

    I've tested all speeds over the past week, and these seem to be the only windows where there is difficulty.

    I've never in my life had a car with an auto trans, so maybe this is a generic thing that is easy to fix and I just don't recognize it. . . .

    Any ideas as to what to try? I'm not a mechanic or anything, but I'm not completely afraid of opening the hood, or at least making an informed request of the mechanic rather than just dropping off the car . . .

    Car has 120,000 miles, and I have service records if you want me to check for anything in particular.

    I'm not looking to put a ton of money into it, but it seems a shame to scrap a car for what might be a simple fix. Zippy little thing, I am kind of enjoying it.
  • yeclekyeclek Member Posts: 2
    Hey all!

    I just bought an 89 323 for $150 . . . shockingly, aside from some surface rust, she appears road worthy!

    I was planning to give the car to a friend who has two small kids and needs some simple transportation, so there is one issue I need to address before I give it to her:

    When accelerating between 40 mph and 50 mph (auto trans), the car begins to jerk and stutter, lose power, feels almost as though she might stall out. This problem can usually be solved by flooring the pedal for a minute in overdrive, and then backing back down to speed . . . obviously not a perfect solution . . . She also seems to down shift kind of violently when slowing to about 50 mph.

    Also when idling in drive, there is a "clunk" noise and a slight jerk every 30 seconds or so . . .

    I've tested all speeds over the past week, and these seem to be the only windows where there is difficulty.

    I've never in my life had a car with an auto trans, so maybe this is a generic thing that is easy to fix and I just don't recognize it. . . .

    Any ideas as to what to try? I'm not a mechanic or anything, but I'm not completely afraid of opening the hood, or at least making an informed request of the mechanic rather than just dropping off the car . . .

    Car has 120,000 miles, and I have service records if you want me to check for anything in particular.

    I'm not looking to put a ton of money into it, but it seems a shame to scrap a car for what might be a simple fix. Zippy little thing, I am kind of enjoying it.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Tuesday means Mazda chat night! Mazda ownership is not a requirement! :) Just bring yourself and your love of cars and the desire to discuss anything and everything automotive and you're good to go!

    The chat opens at 8:45 pm ET and runs until 10 pm ET. I hope you're able to join us tonight to meet and greet with your fellow CarSpace members!
    See you there!
  • buckeyeboy74buckeyeboy74 Member Posts: 2
    I got it. It was a bad igniter (located inside the Distributer). I just got a used dist from the junk yard $35. All is good now. So replace the whole dist not just the CAP.
  • happycamper62happycamper62 Member Posts: 2
    Just picked up a 86 mazda 323 for free. they could not get to start.pulled engine relay from under dash and it runs? question is i might be going crazy need to smog it here in calif. But i do not see a smog pump on this thong any where.there is a big opening on the side by the alt, I think i might go there but can not find one on line. dang thing runs really good for sitting allmost a year.once smoged and a little soap and water it will be a good car.

    please help.. thank you . :confuse:
  • girlcarbuildergirlcarbuilder Member Posts: 225
    Send that car my way, been thinking about fixing another up for the fleet here.....Sorry to disappoint you, but the 323 does not have a smog pump on it. That is the same story for many smaller engines. Smaller engines do not produce enough emissions to require one since they are less than half the size of a large 8 cylinders.

    Relay? Main relay is located behind the over flow container on drivers side fender for the cooling system. I have a dealer service manual for 88. Not sure what you bypassed. Give me a better description of location to determine what it is. What other parts is it near, like above heater core, steering column or whatever. Or you can get a hold of a professional Mitchel manual for professional grade, complete wiring diagrams. Be careful not to defeat such systems, I have seen many attempted during the years for someone to get into more trouble and have to junk it out because the new problem became too much for them to resolve.

    News for everyone else, our 88 has reached 275K. Just pulled the round of new struts, brakes and front/rear wheel bearings again. Short of overhauling the engine, it should be good for 400K miles! Little car has guts if well maintained! Sure beats new car notes. And oh, the after market a/c is still working. Have website to buy one if you need one.
  • sschmidsschmid Member Posts: 28
    my son's 92 323 runs great and with 143 K I hope we have many more miles to get out of it. The problem is finding replacement parts. We are in need of the driver side windshield molding (runs along side of windshield between driver door and ws). Also need a gas tank sending unit. Have not been able to come up with these on-line or in junk yards here in NY. If anyone knows of a yard or person with a scrap 92 in it please let me know. For now he just keeps track of mileage and fills every 300 miles and has no molding.
  • kujhackujhac Member Posts: 14
    What is that website GCB for the after market AC. I have an '88 with 40K original miles on it. The AC compressor is still good but leaks freon over time I guess around some O-rings. It needs another CV Joint and transmission mount too.
  • happycamper62happycamper62 Member Posts: 2
    Thank you for the info. That relay was in the fuse box topright side
    dc 12v 20 a fuse cover says ig relay. once i pulled it out the beast started right up. dang thing runs good. but between the smog pump and haveing to put a new alt, and temp sensor in it for the fans.I mean it was free will it be worth it to put that much money into it. It has 120 thousand miles on it.extiror is good
    the in side looks ugly but it does run pretty dang good.sorry to ramble i thought it should have a smog pump on the side by the alt, but there is not any thing that looks like it would hook up to it.some crazy kid had it and then let sit for 2 years.
  • chknlouchknlou Member Posts: 1
    Hi there, I was just wondering if anybody knows if there was a problem with Automatic Transmissions on 1990-91 Mazda 323's.
    Our son's 1990 mazda 323 has 120,000 Km on it and the Transmission went on it.
    So we were wondering if this was a persistent problem with this year.
    Would it be better to rebuild the Tranny on this car or just get a used one from the auto wrecker.
    Any input would be appreciated.
  • kujhackujhac Member Posts: 14
    Finding a good used transmission for this year and model car may be like finding a needle in a haystack. If you do find one, you won't really know the condition of it to start with. If the original transmission wasn't serviced properly and coupled with most likely hard driving habits, automatic transmissions of any make will go out at 120,000 km. I would say shop around for the best place and price for rebuilding the transmission. It may cost double of what finding a used transmission and installing it would but then again, you run the risk of a used one going out and you'd be left with having to find another used one and paying again, the cost of installing it. Of course, if the wrecking yard will install it for you and be able to calibrate it correctly linkage-wise, and they knew and verified it is a solid used transmission, then I'd consider that route. Good luck.
  • girlcarbuildergirlcarbuilder Member Posts: 225
    Given what new cars cost now a days. A rebuilt tranny would be worth considering if the other maintenance on the car has been kept up. Many of these transmissions were 3 speeds. A 4 speed unit would be more desirable if gas goes back up. The only way to tell is whether or not yours has an overdrive on it.

    A four speed tranny will also increase the life of the engine because on the road, the engine does not turn over as much as a 3 speed unit does. Typical of what I have seen in junk yards for a 3 speed ayto has been 95K -150K. The same for a 4 speed standard. Many of these same auto's were poorly kept up. Not uncommon to see a 5 speed standard pull well over 200K miles. We did recently run into an auto unit in the yard with 268K miles on it. It all comes down to how well you have kept the maintenance up. Also. If you do rebuild it, I can not over recommend an additional oil cooler to be installed. It increases the life of the tranny that much more. As for troubles, I have heard little during the years, but we run more standard units than auto's. Ours is well past 275K and we recently pulled maintenance that will soon push it well past 350K. Sure beats new car notes. You may have difficulty finding someone willing to work on it. Stay with lifetime warranty shops for a good job.

    Son needs to understand that these units do not take kindly to being abused as well.
  • clipse1130clipse1130 Member Posts: 7
    My motor gave out at 3k miles.. (wow) and i swapped out the motor and everything else from the old motor to the new one. the new motor has anywere from 40-50k miles. I get electricity everywere on the car/motor, but the ignition distributor is not creating a spark.. Im guessing faulty ign. distr... If anyone ones of anything on this please help me out!! Thanx :sick:
  • smatts40smatts40 Member Posts: 2
    I just sold my 323 to the third owner. I bought it in 1999 for $ 1000 from the origanial owner. The car runs great and passed emmisions when I sold it.
    I never once took it to a shop, did all the repairs and maintence myself. Let me know if you have any ?'s with your 323. Would be glad to help.
  • clipse1130clipse1130 Member Posts: 7
    as i mentioned earlier my motor was at 300k miles and worked just fine till it died.. i changed it and with the newer motor i am not getting a sprak from the distributor.. i read that it is a common problem with these cars.. wuts wrong with my distributor, or if its dead as well and need to replace it..
  • clipse1130clipse1130 Member Posts: 7
    your car could be off by a couple or teeth.. check you ignition distributor timing.. if it off timing since your already there re-check the water seal and itself for any cracks or so..
  • clipse1130clipse1130 Member Posts: 7
    do u want to install a rpm gauge.. thats wut i did and its just fine.. umm more or less get use to how your motor sounds and feels like at speeds to get an idea to shift.. (i can send you pics on the rpm installation and ideas where to put it..) lol
  • clipse1130clipse1130 Member Posts: 7
    if its the gtx model(awd :) ) then you can go with a rotary motor or the awd turbo dohc motor.. If its the sohc motor you have the 1.6L engine or you can swap it out to put in the dohc fwd motor..
  • ped2ped2 Member Posts: 1
    does anyone know were the pollen filters are on the Mazda 323 because i havn't a clue.
  • mitchicoimitchicoi Member Posts: 4
    Hi,
    Im just new here.Got 94' 323..Exterior is very good and well maintained but aleady have made some renovations over the enigine,i have my clutch change(together w/ all the necessary parts)Now its running good.I only got some problems though,,Whenever i start the car its shaky..Ive tried having the Rpm adjusted but it stil does.And also whenever i tried to step on the clutch it the car shakes,so i have to add some gas,,i dont know what could be the problem.same thing happens everytime i switch on my lights.Car get shaky.It is maybe on the electrical wirings or something?Can you please help me figure out this one :confuse:
  • kujhackujhac Member Posts: 14
    Bad coil maybe? Obviously you're not getting a strong enough spark at one of the plugs for some reason. Maybe a bad injector?

    Might check your transmission mount too. The one on my '88 went bad and it shakes like crazy at idle.
  • mitchicoimitchicoi Member Posts: 4
    hello there,
    Im having problems with my gauges light at the moment,they are so dark seems it has no light bulb at all!already have changed the bulb but theres no improvement...it is about the wirings or maybe i just have to tear the gauges part out into pieces to clean it :P
  • kujhackujhac Member Posts: 14
    What does it do when you turn the knob to change the lightness/darkness intensity of the dash lights?
  • mitchicoimitchicoi Member Posts: 4
    nothing happens!adjusted it to the brightest level.still the same
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