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Mazda MPV Starting/Stalling Problems

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Comments

  • shopdog97shopdog97 Member Posts: 160
    Why is it that these coils seem to go out all the time? I've read here on these blogs and postings on the electrical forum and I see that a lot of you folks have had a lot of problems with them. I posted a story on the electrical issue blog regarding a friend from church who has an 04' MPV and she said she has had to replace them frequently and sometimes the SAME ONES! This is insanity to me! What do the powers that be at Mazda have to say about this? This lady went to her mom's home in NC for the Thanksgiving holiday, and on the way there had a problem where the thing felt like it was going to shut down any minute. The 3 hour trip took her nearly 5 hours and she took it to a local garage there for $400 bucks worth of work, but she also said that she spent nearly that much here locally just a few months ago. She called me this morning and told me that the van was acting up again and had very little power when she hit the gas and the check engine light came on again. Are these things possessed?? Now I read on here and in the other blog that these coils are prone to fail when water gets on them, is that correct? I've offered to help this wonderful Godly lady, and I'd sure appreciate any advice you can give me on this. I'm gonna go to her home soon and scan her computer with my OBD2 within the next few days. Thanks and I hope you all have a wonder Holiday season!
  • buzzkbuzzk Member Posts: 15
    you might look at some of my other posts.. the coils that came from the factory on the 2004 MPV we love to drive, have a design that is simply idiotic; they have a built-in VENT that allows water/steam/etc, to get into the plug well & short out the spark; it is high voltage [like all spark systems] & is easily shorted. I got aftermarket, cheap, much plainer looking, black rubber coils from ebay BUT.. fit perfectly and NO VENT! - sealed the tops of the spark plug wells to keep out moisture & have had NO PROBLEMS w/coils since. BTW sealing moisture out of spark plug wells has been standard practice for DECADES. It does cost a lot to replace them due have to remove the intake manifold to get at the back 3. quite possibly garages are getting the old-style OEM vented coils but I easily got the better design from a regular ebay supplier. Abt 3 or 4 yrs ago they were abt $120.00 for a set of 6. Also I have removed, cleaned, dried & replaced the original coils [til I could get the new ones] & they worked for a while - so, did they REALLY replace your friends' coils?
    Good luck, BK
  • shopdog97shopdog97 Member Posts: 160
    Thanks, Buzz, for the response. I appreciate the info on the aftermarket coils too, perhaps you could share with me exactly where you got them, and I can tell my friend about this. I haven't been able to look at her van yet, my back's been acting up, the weather here in Pa stinks, and so on! I have a lot of things I'd like to look at on this thing and these blogs are great in that they steer me in a good direction to look for trouble. You mention that the coils have a vent hole that lets water in and shorts out the plug. If my friend has vents in the coils, can I use RTV silicone to seal up those holes, at least temporarily? Is that what you use to seal these things, black RTV sealant perhaps? Thanks again for your answers! P.S.- I see that to access the rear coils, you have to remove the intake manifold, is this correct? And when this is done, do gaskets, if any, need to be replaced too?
  • buzzkbuzzk Member Posts: 15
    I just got on e-bay & searched for 2004 MPV coils & [as I recall] did a "buy it now" at quite a reasobnable price,. this was abt 50 or so K miles - now have >100K on it, so probably abt 2 to 3 yrs ago, +/- a bit. Yes you gotta take off the manifold for back coils; I bought gaskets just in case [not real costly from o'reilly or autozone, I recall], but w/care {& silicone rtv form-a-gasket] the originals may be re-usable. and, yes, like any ex-Navy ET-1, I cleaned up the [wet, very dirty] original coils & sealed the small vent w/silicone & it seeeeeemed to work fine, but.... I was untrusting so got the new ones any-way [& kept the modified originals for spares] - apparently they are just about identical to the coils for many fords that have the same engine. In response to other problems I replaced the throttle position sensor due itstalled at times of slowing down, [but NO codes..!] & that seemed to fix that issue... new water pump recently & have a verrrry small coolant leak to trace down now.. I think it's one of the overly-complex hose connections to the water pump...

    good luck
  • aa0526aa0526 Member Posts: 29
    I have a 2002 MPV ... about 130K miles.
    Last night - the van would crank - lights would be on full - but the engine would not fully start. I verified my batteries were OK by starting with all lights on ... thru a process of elimination - and this board - I was able to diagnose that I have a dirty IAC valve.

    I knew I had strong batteries since mine were only 2-3 years old - and my EGR valve was fairly new (once replaced as part of a recall, the other - on my own dime).
    I also have a new MAF sensor and new coolant PCU assembly. These were all replaced over the last two years - some as recent as 6 months ago.

    I took out the IAC valve - a simple 5-10 minute process with the right tools - and cleaned it with acetone (or better yet - use carb cleaner). It was sooty and had significant carbon buildup.
    Once clean and dry - I put it back on - and now, the van starts normally now.

    Thanks for all the previous tips!
  • magnum166magnum166 Member Posts: 1
    My 2000 MPV is experiencing intermittent starting problems and I suspect that the immobilizer circuit is immediately cutting the ignition once the car starts or is not letting the van start at all. The dash light will either fail to come on for the self-test prior to start, or will come on and stay on; either case will not allow the van to run. Most of the time it runs fine, however, occaisionally I will get stuck somewhere and it can take up to 30 minutes to get started again. Normally the dash lights clear but there are times when the immobilizer light will remain illuminated (and the van runs normally).
    I would like any recommendations on troubleshooting. Both keys have been checked and work, so I suspect the van. I've made sure the steering wheel is properly seated, door locks are not stuck, gearshift is seated, etc. I do not know what fuses need to be checked for corrosion, etc. All appear to be good, just don't know which fuses work the immobilizer circuit. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks, Rick
  • painterrickpainterrick Member Posts: 1
    I think I am having the same problem with my MPV. After yours sat for a while would it start ok, then if you turned it off and tried to restart it would it not fully start. Also, there seems to be a gassy smell.
  • sramamur1sramamur1 Member Posts: 21
    Hello;

    We have noticed engine vibration when our 2003 MPV (158k kms or ~ 100k miles) is idling at traffic lights or at the parking lot. Vibration would get stronger with longer idling time and the whole van will be shaking.

    Took it to the local Canadian Tire store (we are from London, Ontario, Canada) and the techs could not read any codes from the van's computer. Either the van's computer is not working properly or the sensors are not sending out any fault codes.

    They replaced the spark plugs and did the engine flush, but the vibration is still there and the tech can feel it while driving. Now they think that the pulley (where timing belt is) is cracked and is going to replace the pulley and the sensor behind the pulley. They are not sure whether this will solve the problem.

    Because they cannot read the codes, they are guessing and changing parts they think causing the vibration problem. I did the engine tune up only last month and hence not sure what is the real cause of the vibration issue.

    Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

    Thanks so much,

    Sridhar.
  • subearusubearu Member Posts: 3,613
    I answered over at MPVClub and in another thread here on Edmunds.

    -Brian
  • lreyeslreyes Member Posts: 3
    My 2000 mazda MPV is having intermittent starting problem. it would not crank once i while, but sometimes If I hold the ignition key a little bit longer, it would start right away. I just replaced the starter,electronic ignition switch and also cleaned the spade female connector coming from harness assembly and still having intermittent starting problem. I also had my battery checked and they did not find any problem..
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    I've had a faulty battery check out okay once. May be worth another look.
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • buzzkbuzzk Member Posts: 15
    In my experience what you describe is usually in the circuitry that energizes the starter relay rather than the other things you replaced [except the ignition switch] - at, I am sure, significant expense. There are typically limit switches on the shifter that require an automatic to be in park or neutral or a manual to be in neutral & a manual will also have a clutch switch, requiring it to be depressed [held in]. These are often hard to find & a bother [or costly] to replace. It's usually an 'OEM' part. This is not at all unique to MPV's; my Subaru has been like that since it was nearly new. I just wired a 12 volt relay to energize the starter relay and I control that relay w/a spring-loaded normally off ["momentary on"] switch you can buy from Radio Shack. If it wont start w/the key I just push the switch [w/the ignition 'on'] & it fires right up. Been woking fine for abt 11 years. I've done the same w/many cars over the years. Good luck.

    BK
  • wovenspiritwovenspirit Member Posts: 1
    ?, My 2002 MPV was driving fine and all of the sudden the battery light would come on then the oil light and then my van would quietly coast to a stop. The thing would quietly lose power. It would start up again fine but do the same thing again. I was running the tank low. I put more gas and it continued to do the same thing. We changed out the fuel relay thinking maybe it is a fuel problem but I'm not sure anymore. Any suggestion would be helpful.
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    May try cleaning or replacing the idle air control valve. Our 2004 had similar symptoms.
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • lreyeslreyes Member Posts: 3
  • lreyeslreyes Member Posts: 3
    Have someone check your engine mount. this couold be the cause of the vibration...
  • fm82fm82 Member Posts: 1
    Same thing just happened to my sister in law, trying to find the solution for it maybe you can explain to me what you had to do to fix your problem.
  • stuartstu2bstuartstu2b Member Posts: 1
    hi there where do we find the iac valve many thanks stuart
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    Sits right on top, silver, held in by 2 bolts. Easiest do it yourself there is on the MPV.
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • buzzkbuzzk Member Posts: 15
    I just bought one tonight [been following this on another blog] tho years ago I readjusted the throttle stop to largely obviate the problem. AutoZone had it for $46.99 + tax. The sleepy-sounding guy at Oreilly said they don't carry the part. Buy it & look at it's appearance & you'll see the original near the top of the engine, held on by 2 small bolts & plugged into a fairly simple electrical connector. Remember it's bolted into aluminum so be careful unbolting & rebolting. make sure you use a good quality METRIC socket the correct size; not an almost-right SAE size, NOR an open-end wrench & DON'T over-tighten.. Should be pretty easy. Good Luck, BK
  • ngnbldrngnbldr Member Posts: 1
    One in about every 5 times when I start the engine on my 2003 MPV the engine revs up real high. I am not pushing down on the accelator pedal at all. I also never push on it prior to starting the engine. I am thinking it might be the position switch but dont know why this happens intermittenly. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
    Thanks,
    Nick
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    Just a guess, but your idle air control valve could be sticking. They can get carbon build up on the inside. Easy repair, sits right on top with 2 screws holding it in. You could either clean it or replace it ($60)

    If you've never replaced, may be worth giving it a try. It has been a bit of sore spot with MPV owners. I replaced mine a couple years ago.
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • raymond26raymond26 Member Posts: 1
    yes my van just started doing that every time I try to drive it turn off u got to put your feet on the gas to start it what you think it is.
  • dsaunders2dsaunders2 Member Posts: 4
    1996 mp4 4wd just bought 170000mi.,how to bleed cooling system ? changed radator 4 a leak now almost no heat?HELP
    or something else i can check?
  • afernadotechafernadotech Member Posts: 1
    Mazda mpv model2000 just went off as a result there is no current on the spark plungs and nozzel.what do i do
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