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Mazda MPV: Problems & Solutions

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    once_for_allonce_for_all Member Posts: 1,640
    Nothing exactly like your situation, but I have noticed that the shifter is very sensitive (like a fine swiss watch lol). A couple times I thought I had it all the way in park, but couldn't remove key. I eventually figured out that the shifter wasn't sending the right signal somewhere. (Fortunately the dw hasn't run into this so must be me with my tractor shifts again).

    If you scroll back 1000 messages or so, you can find a couple dozen messages related to shifter issues.
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    mikecomikeco Member Posts: 17
    Quite a few times, I thought I put the shifter to "P", but still couldn't pull out the key. Then I had to pull out the shifter to other position and put it back to "P" again before I could remove the key. Mine is a 2-month new 2002 MPV.
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    bnallebnalle Member Posts: 1
    The bottom of the rear storage space on my 2000 ex (where the rear seat flips down into) gets soaked after a rain. Does anyone have any ideas where the water is coming from?
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    I have a three-day old MPV ES 2002 with an overdrive light that flashes on occasion, a steering wheel that vibrates more than my 1987 Volvo 740 at 70 mph and a mild case of misalignment to the left. I am particularly concerned about the light. Anybody out there have this problem? Is it normal? Manual says it could be a bad thing.
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    maltbmaltb Member Posts: 3,572
    sounds like a good reason to take it back to the dealer. It seems that there have been a couple others with transmission module concerns.
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    beachnutbeachnut Member Posts: 291
    There is a TSB regarding this. You can find further info at the MPVClub.com. Here's a link to the TSB:

    http://www.mpvclub.com/index.php?action=showtsb;TsbNo=23
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    bob57bob57 Member Posts: 302
    Check your tire pressures - make sure they are ALL @ the stated pressure. At 60mph I can always tell if I have a low tire on the MPV - it handles totally different.
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    prlamzprlamz Member Posts: 78
    When the overdrive light flashes, check your shifter position. It could simply be that you're not exactly on the spot.
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    Thanks for all your responses. I will check all those things and I am taking it in just in case.
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    jmatssrjmatssr Member Posts: 2
    to suhx0009. My new 2002 has similar vibration problems. Some of it is in the tires I'm sure, but then there is that virbration that starts after it gets warmed up. But I don't have it at idle, just while driving. Noticeable from 35mph up. Let me know if you find out anything. For a better description read my reply to a post about vibration in the early MPV section at mpvclub.com
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    docablasdocablas Member Posts: 9
    regrarding that shifter. after reading the posts (including previous ones) and toying around with the shifter, i think it had more to do with me rather than the van. members of this board were polite enough not to have suggested that it the first place.
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    jolly2jolly2 Member Posts: 17
    I'm back. We've had our MPV 5 months now and the sulfur smell is as bad as ever. I can't use the fresh air feature at all, or have the windows down, because the smell overwhelms the van - I have to run the A/C if I don't want to be hot. Like I said in a previous msg. Mazda Compliance refused to buy it back, they basically said tough luck. My only option would be to hire a lawyer and sue using the lemon law. We're just average people - no way we could afford that. We're stuck with a lemon - still regret buying the van. Not so Jolly.
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    steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Maybe small claims court for a "diminution in value" claim? Limits in most places are around $5,000. Lot of hassle, but you could win some damages, especially if you drive the judge around the block.

    One of these days I'm gonna sue a local telemarketer and explore small claims court myself (just as soon as my wife lets me file the paperwork, LOL).

    Steve
    Host
    SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
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    evaddaveevaddave Member Posts: 156
    Forgive the rant here, but I'm wondering if anyone else has the same issue.

    Today I took our MPV into the dealer to get the power window fixed (ref: post 2179). I got the call stating that the van was done, but they had to order the parts and I'd get another call in about a week when the parts came in. So after I wasted the time to drive to the dealer, drop off the van, pick up the loaner car and get to work (and then the reverse of that in the afternoon), they basically tell me the exact thing I told them.

    Does this happen to anyone else? I'm shocked that the dealer doesn't keep some parts on hand, and I'm even more shocked that it takes a week to get the parts in. And I know that once the parts come in, I'll have to wait another week to get a service appointment. It seems the dealer is pretty busy with service. Maybe it's because they have customers bring their cars in twice as often as they need.

    And then, just to ice the cake, nobody in the service department had the foresight to disconnect the power window motor from power. We'll get to drive around for 2 weeks or so hoping that we don't take leave of our senses and put the window down. No drive-thru windows until this thing is fixed. (Fortunately if there's someone in the 2nd row, we can still use that power window *G*)



    -Dave
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    bob57bob57 Member Posts: 302
    Similar thing with my wife's Sienna. I waited three days for a seat belt sensor to be ordered. It arrived and they installed it in 30 minutes. It was a minor part (nothing near your inconvience) but I think possibly parts departments don't carry a large stock when they can order from a central warehouse. Probably keeps down inventory and costs.
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    once_for_allonce_for_all Member Posts: 1,640
    I get the feeling that modern dealerships are more and more like doctor offices... they just stack them in and make them wait....perhaps we need an HMO to control the dealers :-)?

    Now that I have offended all the dealers and doctors out there, let me move on to firmer ground.

    My dealership (which seems all and all to be very competent) has a lifetime service plan for the MPV which costs about $350---it includes oil changes, oil filter and the usually 17 point checks up to 4 times a year for ever. All fluids get topped off and general safety of vehicle gets checked, a report generated, and a car wash to boot. Seems too good to be true, I guess the statistics show it works, but I am the kinda guy that just might keep the MPV for 20 years because of the service plan lol. Anyone have similar offers from their dealers?
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    maltbmaltb Member Posts: 3,572
    Just make sure that the plan they are selling changes your oil at the intervals that you want. My guess is that they only do it per the schedule in the owners manual wich is a little long, IMO.
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    once_for_allonce_for_all Member Posts: 1,640
    actually, they have it listed as 3,000 miles or up to 4 times per year. So a guy could come in every 2,000 if he wanted and did less miles than the target. The problem is that it is about a 2 hr wait to get it done, it isn't a jiffy lube lol. There is a Target next door, am trying to convince the dw that she could do it while shopping but I think she suspects that I am getting tired of crawling under 2 vehicles and a tractor several times a year lol.
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    bob57bob57 Member Posts: 302
    I take my MPV to my Toyota dealer with a filter. He changes the oil/filter and I'm out in 30 minutes (he stays open till 11:00pm) all for $18.00. Mid day is about 45 minutes.
    I don't know if this is just my dealership (my wife's Sienna) but sure beats the Jiffy boys (and girls). Plus, I don't have to drive miles upon miles to a Mazda dealership from where I'm located.

    I used to change all oil myself but age and "gut" prevents me from "gliding" under the cars now. (I'm still carving 10 year old grease from under my nails)
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    tbonertboner Member Posts: 402
    Either you have short arms or you are going too far under the MPV :D

    You just need to get your head under there. The filter is in the front and you can reach the drain plug at the back of the pan with a 15mm combination wrench.

    TB
    I'm not fat and bald, I'm too short for my hair and weight
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    jmatssrjmatssr Member Posts: 2
    Anyone else experiencing vibrations in new '02 MPVs?
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    prlamzprlamz Member Posts: 78
    Not at all, but would you care to elaborate?
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    bob57bob57 Member Posts: 302
    I agree - but you missed my "age" factor comment... or was that a lazy comment I meant..
    :))
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    pieracpierac Member Posts: 43
    No vibrations noted on the Van. I have a 2002 with 2500 miles. I will however keep my mouth firmly shut on any off color comments about vibrations. Thank you very much.
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    otherthanthatotherthanthat Member Posts: 4
    How do I keep that flimsy plastic license-plate frame from rattling against the sheet metal on the back of my '02 MPV? I hear it every time I hit a pothole, and it really bangs when I close the liftgate. It has 2 holes w/bolts at the top. At the bottom the frame has two holes, but there are none in the door. Right now I'm still using the cardboard 30-day tag, but I want to fix it right when I put the permanent tag on.
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    maltbmaltb Member Posts: 3,572
    Right now I'm still using the cardboard 30-day tag, but I want to fix it right when I put the permanent tag on.

    When you receive your permanent plate, make sure you slide it into the two tabs on the plastic frame. The plate and the frame will work together just fine and be noise free. I see a few people complain about this and they end up putting foam tape on unnecessarily.
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    bean3422bean3422 Member Posts: 183
    Pretty funny story...you want to set off you alarm, just do like I did. When I drive the van by myself, I tend to roll all the windows down and blare the 9 speakers (ha). So I stopped by the market for a quick run in, and hit the key fob by habit. Well, when I get back out, I just reach in the door and hit the unlock power button. The van goes crazy, beeping and honking and flashing. It takes me a second to figure out what happened while everybody stares. I just unlock with the fob and it goes off. Pretty funny huh...

    As far as the tag, I hate dealer advertisements, so I don't have a tag cover. I just took the temporary paper tag and flipped it around and screwed the metal tag over the top. No rattles, and nothing sticking to my van. Cheap too...
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    beachnutbeachnut Member Posts: 291
    I dunno, I put the the foam on my tag and it works great! I happened to have some thin 1/2" wide weather stripping just laying around in my garage, so I put it good use. Don't put the foam on the van, put it right on the back of the plate. Took me like 2 minutes and it saves the paint from getting scratched too.
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    owr084owr084 Member Posts: 46
    I just put a set of new plates on my 2002 MPV. the old metal plates were in a plastic frame and were on the vehicle for 3.5 months. The plastic frame started to wear into the paint. I put the new plates into the frame and then put black electrical tape on the hatch and on the frame to prevent rubbing. I don't think it is going to work. I will probably go with the foam tape route.

    Mazda should have gone with four holes, each with a lip to make sure the plate sits off the hatch.

    RBB

    "Right now I'm still using the cardboard 30-day tag, but I want to fix it right when I put the permanent tag on.

    When you receive your permanent plate, make sure you slide it into the two tabs on the plastic frame. The plate and the frame will work together just fine and be noise free. I see a few people complain about this and they end up putting foam tape on unnecessarily. "
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    One of you ( I forget who) was right. The computer module in the tranny was bad and it has to be replaced. Of course, the part is in California and I am in Maryland so my car has been in the shop since Friday and the part is not expected until Wednesday. Sorry to rant, but if they know this module is causing problems, why don't the check them before the car leaves the lot?
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    Does anybody have it? Does it cover just the bottom of the hole or does it cover the sides, too? Is it literally just mat or is there plastic involved? I want to buy something before the cargo hole gets filthy.
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    Maybe I need to look at my checking account. lol
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    javadocjavadoc Member Posts: 1,167
    I imagine that it would be incredibly expensive, and an overreaction, to issue a recall on the tranny module since a very small percentage of them are actually affected. Almost all manufacturers do the same thing, actually. If a customer arrives at the service counter with a symptom or complaint, they can know how to fix it, but they don't issue an APB out because a few PCMs have given problems, or if a small number of customers have a strange vibration, when 99.9% of them do not.

    The O/D light should not be lit unless you've disengaged the O/D. So, no O/D light means you're going to be in O/D on the freeway. :)
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    javadocjavadoc Member Posts: 1,167
    I noticed that Mochavan had a vibration last night, when I was pacing a guy in a Mustang. I noticed the vibration at 80mph and it only got worse up to, uh, a bit more than 80mph.

    I had the tire guy check the balance of the tires this morning, and he said that the front left tire was out of balance by 35grams (1.25 oz), so he balanced it better. Test drive revealed no vibration all the way to terminal velocity. :)
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    otherthanthatotherthanthat Member Posts: 4
    We bought the cargo mat for the rear-seat well. I think a mat is a necessity, as long as grocery stores have baggers who think you can lay a jug of milk on its side without leakage!:) The mat looks similar to our other floor mats. The edges of the carpet are bound a little differently. And it doesn't have the little rubber spikes on the underside; it doesn't need them since it's the size and shape of the bottom of the well and has nowhere to slide. It does not protect the sides of the well. The underside of the mat is plastic.
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    evaddaveevaddave Member Posts: 156
    I took the plastic frame off the plate when I got the permanent plate, but that didn't fix the rattle--it just changed it from a plastic-on-metal rattle to metal-on-metal rattle.

    So I got a couple adhesive rubber feet (or maybe I had them laying around the house somewhere) and stuck them to the hatch behind the license plate. No more rattle.

    -Dave
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    I am not saying a recall is in order, but if the van is still sitting in the dealer's lot why not check the module before it leaves in the hands of a new customer. Many of us, me included, have never owned a car with overdrive (always had a manual) and might not realize there was a problem when the light blinked. If i had kept driving it I would have blown a brand new tranny.
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    rlorrlor Member Posts: 12
    When my dealer replaced the tranny module they also balanced and aligned my van. While that helped, I still feel more of a vibration after 70 mph than I have felt in any other new car I have owned. Granted, it wasn't a van, but my '99 Jetta could do 90 mph without any vibrations in the steering wheel. Anybody else feeling this? Is this normal or should I go back in?
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    audia8qaudia8q Member Posts: 3,138
    Was the light blinking from day one or did it start blinking after you took delivery?

    Regretfully modules either work or they don't...There is no way to determin that it might fail or when it might fail....so unless the trouble light was blinking from the get-go there would have been nothing to fix or check.
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    altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    Not to be difficult, since I don't own a MPV but am considering one in the very near future, but doesn't the owner's manual say anything about what this (flashing O/D light) means? I would think that any light that flashes on the instrument cluster as a warning would be described in the manual.

    Any flashing light gets my attention, I start reading the manual yet again to tell what's up.
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    bean3422bean3422 Member Posts: 183
    You gentlemen or ladies with the vibration happen to have the 17" wheels? I had the same problem, and it really was balance. I had to take it to two different places (not the dealer) before I got them balanced right. The last place I sat right next to him and watched (to make sure he did it right, and to make sure my wheels did not get scratched). After that, vibration free...a little too vibration free, since I was doing 90 the other day not even realizing it. Fortunately, the brakes were vibration free too...
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    javadocjavadoc Member Posts: 1,167
    You beat me to it. The computer modules in cars are either good or they ain't. This is normal for almost any car these days.
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    hpark21hpark21 Member Posts: 7
    Hi!

    I recently (about 2 days ago) picked up a new MPV. Yesterday, my wife was getting out of the parking lot when the OD light started to blink. Then it hit me that there was complaint of transmission module and did notice that my van fell in between the VIN number of the affected cars.

    However, to my relief, I found out that most likely my wife did not put the car into "D" correctly (slightly over to 3 side or slightly not enough to "D" side) and when she did put it into "D" flashing dissappeared. When OD started to flash, did your gear selector display had box around "D" showing? When this happened to my wife, there was no box around any of the gear selector display. There was no mention of this may happen in the manual except dire warning about the transmission.

    By the way, I did check under the hood and my van does have "Rework" sticker that some people mentioned in MPVclub board.
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    bean3422bean3422 Member Posts: 183
    I prefer manuals, so I have not had to deal with an automatic in a long time...the last one was a stick on the floor automatic, so this is my first column shifter.

    It appears that the gear selections are not very precise...I have had it in between 3 and D and it still ran fine, I just happened to hit the shifter and heard it click into place.

    The first couple of days I owned the van I noticed the same thing...the O/D light flashing. I had it in between neutral and D, I just clicked it into place, and the light went off.

    Be careful shifting your automatics out there...if I had a manual, I wouldn't be worrying about it!
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    bean3422bean3422 Member Posts: 183
    I just happened to go to the UK Mazda website, and checked out their MPV. It has quite a different interior (and the steering wheel is on the wrong side...lol...(-:)

    It has 3 seats in the middle row, and two in the rear...seems a bit silly to me (actually I would love 3 in the middle, if they left 3 in the rear...then all of my friends with 2 kids could ride with me instead of taking 2 vans!!)

    I digress...the most interesting thing is that there was a manual transmission shifter sticking up between the two front seats...hey the Mazda 6 5-speed V6 uses the same engine...why can't I have a 5-speed? Mazda needs to make a MazdaSpeed MPV with the Duratec 3.0 from Jaguar and the 5-speed from the 6. I would actually consider selling my beloved 2002 for that!
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    javadocjavadoc Member Posts: 1,167
    Bean: 'hey the Mazda 6 5-speed V6 uses the same engine...why can't I have a 5-speed?'

    Bean, two words: Perceived Market Demand

    Okay, it was three words. "Everyone" in the US wants automatic transmissions. Well, except you and me that is. ;) Besides, a manual transmission would hurt the MPV's resale value. ;P
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    beachnutbeachnut Member Posts: 291
    ... think about it, most of the MPV drivers, at least on this forum and others, happen to be our wives. Now I'm in no way implying that a woman can't drive a manual, but I know my wife refuses to even learn. I can't really blame her either - it's just one more thing to deal with in heavy city traffic with a van full of rugrats! Besides, if it was your car and you wanted a manual that bad, you'd be driving a 6 or an RX8 right?! You bet! Unfortunately, I can never have a manual b/c sometimes my wife must drive my car, so I hope the manufacturers will continue to improve the sport-auto slushboxes - there's some pretty good ones out there already.
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    jhaujhau Member Posts: 1
    I bought my MPV ES on 8/25/02 and I found the OD OFF light flashed shortly after I left my garage on 8/26/02 morning (just above 700 miles). After I drove a while, I stopped and shifted to P and then to D again. The flash gone. I took it to the Dealer. They found nothing wrong but reinstalled my factory alarm.
    On 28/9/02 morning (Saturday), the OD OFF light flashed again and I drove it the the Dealer direct. In the afternoon, the Dealer called me and said they found a 'code' (problem?) but they didn't know the exact problem. They kept my van there and would check it thoroughly tomorrow (9/30/02, Monday.) Are there a lot of MPV had the same problems?
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    subearusubearu Member Posts: 3,613
    What may have happened is that you didn't have the gear selector exactly in D. Make sure the box lights up around the selected gear.

    I'm guessing this is what happened on the 1st event (8/26) since after you shifted to Park and back to Drive, the blinking went off.

    However, I'm not sure this is the case with the 2nd event (9/28) since the dealer found a code.

    -Brian
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    owr084owr084 Member Posts: 46
    The DW was not paying attention at a stoplight thiyesterday and as a result, ran our 2002 MPV ES into a Mazda Miata

    DW says she was barely moving and the damage seems to bear out her story. The Miata suffered some trunk lid damage while our MPV. "Zippie" received some scratches on the bumper.

    What concerns me is that I cannot easily inspect the internal bumper without pulling the cowling off. What I could see, surprised me - the bumper is either totally encased in 2 half pieces of a thick plastic material or is composed totally of a plastic material I have never seen anything like it. I don't want the repairshop to needlessly run up the bill by unnecessarily replacing good parts, so how do I know if the bumper is "good?" The other thing I noted about the bumper is that it has several pieces of cloth tape wrapped around it. Could they indicate damage - i.e., if the bummper had been compressed in that spot, the cloth tape would go slack?

    RBB
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