Mazda Millenia

steevo2 · March 2003

Is it more complicated (expensive) to replace the valve cover gaskets on the 2.3 supercharged than the 2.5? Seems like there would be more stuff to remove on the S. Also, if I have it down that far, should I have them replace the timing belt too? Mine is a '97 S with 73,XXX miles. I will probably sell it before 100k miles. What would you do?

maltb · March 2003

Interesting. I checked Mazda's warranty times for the 2.3(3.5 hrs) and 2.5 (2.4 hrs). I find it odd that the Motor estimating guide would have it so low and Mazda's so high. What's even more interesting is that Mazda has a cam gear bulletin on the S which involves removing both covers and then some, yet they say it takes 2.1 hrs. So I think some efficiencies were realized after the initial Mazda times were established. Do you know what your actual times are for that job?

heybrady · March 2003

Hey all,

I just picked up my 99 Premium a few days ago. Love the car but have one small concern. When I have the climate control fan running it makes a knocking noise, like something is stuck inside the vents. Not sure what it is. I have the 30 day warranty from the dealer, but was hoping any readers could share some insight before I take it there.

BTW, I got 22.4 mpg on my first full tank of mixed driving, I know that comes up alot in postings.

fwatson · March 2003

Unless there is something you can see and reach through the vents, I'd get right back to the dealer and let them take care of it if the warranty covers it. It could be anything from debris to a bad bearing in the blower motor.

For your information, the blower in my '01 P is the quietest of any car I have ever owned. So that is not a normal sound by any means.

tomekk · March 2003

I had mine replaced under warranty - it was making clicking noise and they said it was bad fan bearing.

rotarykid · March 2003

The labor on the 2.3 is more. Replacing valve cover gaskets is unrelated to the timing belt and does not make the job any easier. (no overlap) Therefore it will not make a difference $$ wise to do the t-belt during the gasket replacement. Any guide that calls for less than two hours to replace vcg's on either engine is either a misprint or just a mistake. There are no shortcuts during that operation so the time should not have been lowered.

maltb · March 2003

I never mentioned the timing belt. I was talking about the the friction spring bulletin that requires removal of the valve covers and one cam on each bank to replace the gear lock nut. I believe one shortcut was to unbolt the intake and tilt it out of the way rather than complete removal. anyway, I was curious what your actual times were for that job.

steevo2 · March 2003

Hey maltb, I believe rotarykid was referring to my earler post (#2356) about potential $$ savings from replacing the timing belt at the same time as valve cover gaskets. Looks like two different procedures with no savings to be had ... oh well.

maltb · March 2003

yes, I'll agree.

steevo2 · March 2003

Got estimate today from respected independent mechanic to replace VCG's on my 97 MilS. $400-$450 and a couple of days. One look at the Miller Cycle and he said, "...never seen an engine quite like that one". Hmmm ... I'm thinking $540 for the dealer repair looks like the way to go. Thanks for the input.

maltb · March 2003

"...never seen an engine quite like that one".

Yeah, I don't think I'd let him hold my keys for more than 5 seconds.

jaydoll · March 2003

Found a 99 S model at dealer with 28.8K miles. It had leather/rrof/climate/traction, etc. Here are my concerns:

1. Check engine light was on and it had a rough idle.

2. Chrome wheels have some curb rash and the inside of the rim is rusty. Curb rash never looked so bad as is does on a chrome wheel.

3. Dealer is asking $13999. I am going to offer $13500.

Does this sound like a good deal? IF I get the car what should I have checked out within the 30 day warranty?

Thanks for any info I get before I take the plunge.

Jay

amathew · March 2003

The check engine light has been a problem for me from the first time I jumped another car with my millenia. I have driven the car over the last 2 years and 50K miles with the light on at various intervals. I refuse to go to the stealer. There labor rates are rediculous.

The timing belt replacement issue that has been discussed is funny. I paid 20K for my 98 millenia, and with 75 K miles on it, I will not be replacing the timing belt anytime soon. Many cars nowadays have a timing belt that will just cause the engine to continue moving even if the belt breaks. (My BMW has a timing chain that does not require replacement, and it basically has a very strong water pump that will only require replacement in extreme situations. So yes the engineering and quality exists for these parts to last a long time.) I have noticed that the least time a mechanic spends on my cars the better. Do the minimum maintenance annualy (My first car was a honda accord, and after the timing belt fix, the car was never the same.), and make sure the tires are inflated properly, and your breaks are adjusted to reduce premature wear.

I change the oil with blended synthetic from mobil. It seems to work the best for me. Pure synthetic was just too much protections without the same performance over time. (I change it every 7500 miles in CT)

Tires have been a pain. I have coopers on my 17' rims, and they are ok in the spring summer and fall, but they are not as good in the winter (we use sand in CT instead of salt in the winter so it is hard to grip the road reguardless of how good a tire you have). If you plan on cruisin over 100 mph invest in some good tires, and slow down during those turns.

Once you get all that done, kick on your bose system, open up the sunroof, and enjoy the ride.

tomekk · March 2003

I'd pass - somebody probably traded it in after checking with service on those problems and finding out that they'd cost a fortune to fix. Probably got $8K for trade in :-)
If it doesn't run perfectly, the asking price should be either 10K or the should fix it all and give you 6 months bumper to bumper warranty.
Just my $0.02
Tomek

phild_mason · March 2003

I would be really shy about a car with the problems you list. The prices of Mill's have dropped like a rock. They get no respect in the marketplace. Which is great if you want to pick one up on the cheap. I think you can get something cleaner and newer for just a couple $K more.

Heck the prices you listed are higher than what Edmunds lists...red flag...

millenia96 · April 2003

Does anybody know what OEM manufacturer is the best for replacement brake pads for a 1996 Millenia 2.5? The pads are rather expensive from Mazda and some online searching uncovered other manufacturers such as Nippon, Japan, and PBR. Are they standard semi-metallic pads?

Any assistance would be appreciated.
Many thanks.

jerseytjs · April 2003

I was having a problem with the engine light coming on in my 1999 base model. My dealer says it is a knock sensor and it will cost about $650.00 to replace. Does this price seem high?

phild_mason · April 2003

I have a Mill, but have not had to replace pads. My experience with Hondas/Acuras is that it is worth it to pay more for OEM. Less noise and longer life.

Any Mazda service people out there that can confirm who makes OE parts??

maltb · April 2003

Are most likely made by Akebono or Nippon. Manufacturers tend to change around on suppliers depending on availability and price.

millenia96 · April 2003

Thanks for the feedback concerning OEM brake pads. I will probably try the Nippon.

On another note, what was the general consensus opinion on what to do with the timing belt - change at 60K or let it go further? I bookmarked this board late in the game and it doesn't have good search capabilities.

dominick33 · April 2003

I just had the knock sensor replaced in my 01 P under warranty. Tt took about 4-5 hours add parts and I can imagine it would run $650 at the dealer at $80 an hour.

Also had a problem with blower noise in my car and I was able to get rid of it by removing the cabin filters located under the dash passenger side (un screw a 10 or 13mm nut). Un plug motor connector next to the filters (it is the circular thing to the right). Then removing the fan motor and blower by unscrewing three phillips screws at the bottom of the motor . The motor just slides down and out. There was a built up collection of leaf particles and pine needles in the blower fan blades. After cleaning the fan and blowing out the filters with compressed air all was as quiet as new.

un_yz · April 2003

I heard that the front grill of 2001/2 Millenia S Special Edition is different from other Millenia models of the same year. Is it true ?

fwatson · April 2003

I have not seen any '01 or '02 with a grill different than the one on my '01 P. It may be true, but if so the difference must be subtle. Maybe someone else knows something I don't on the subject.

maltb · April 2003

I think the Special Edition had a body color grille and the Std Millenia has a chrome grille. The fit is the same but the chrome part is much cheaper from Mazda. Go figure...

un_yz · April 2003

Thanks fwatson and maltb. I think all the mill s special ed comes only in black and they have chrome colored grill.

tig2002 · April 2003

I purchased a used pearl white 2002 Millenia P about a month ago and am absolutely happy with it. I paid $15,750 with a little over 15K miles on it and think this is a good deal. I checked the CarFax before I made my final decision and the records showed that the car was first registered as a rental car with no accidents or any damages at all. However, the "too good" purchase price made me a little suspicious and I decided to check if the car had any painting jobs done in the past and found out that the front and rear bumpers have been re-painted (some paint below the head lights and tail lights). I also noticed that there is a little sign of white paint above the rear wheels on the body (inside the quarter panels) on both sides. However, after looking closely I cannot find any sign of replaced body parts. I do not see any difference in painting jobs on edges of the body parts, i.e. quarter panels, doors, etc. The only other thing that also made me suspicious was that I found small stickers covering holes on both fenders (under the hood) that are painted with the fenders. Do you think this is an original factory painting? Is the white paint inside the quarter panels from the factory painting? One guy after looking at the painted bumpers told me that this is normal for the rental cars and that the car rental companies usually re-paint the bumpers just to cover some minor scratches before selling the vehicles. Do you think this is the case? I don't think that even after finding out that there was some painting job done to the car I will stop loving it, but I hate to find out that the car was involved in major car accident and the CarFax did not show the accident. Your response would be greatly appreciated.

fwatson · April 2003

" Do you think this is an original factory painting? "

No way. The factory paint work on a Millenia is is immaculate as is the fit of all body panels. Anything short of perfect does not seem to get past the factory inspection. Your car has obviously been partially repainted.

tig2002 · April 2003

Thanks, fwatson! Do you think the fenders are repainted too? If you have a Millenia, does your car have stickers as I described in my original message? If my fenders are repainted even under the hood, that probably means that they have replaced, but I do not see any sign of replaced body parts and any signs of damages under the hood. If the paint above the real wheels is not original, is that possible that it is just because of the rear bumper painting? And finally, the signs of paint below the head lights means that the head lights are original, and most likely, even the bumper is the original one. Don't you agree? Any comments from others would be appreciated.

P.S. I purchased the car from Budget Car Rental Auto Sales, from the original rental company. However, dealer did not know anything about painting jobs (of course he would not tell me even if he would know...)

fwatson · April 2003

There is one hole on each front fender under the hood that has a painted over piece of masking tape. I don't know why, but that is factory original.

My car is Platinum silver, but the exterior paint is used only on the outside surfaces of the car. All underhood, inside door edges and underhood are in a different gray paint. My guess on that is that the exterior paint is very expensive and so is limited in it's use.

It sounds to me that your car was simply repainted in places to get rid of either rock chips, bumper nurfing in parking lots etc. You have apparently given it a pretty good going over, so I think you would know if there was any panel replacement. My guess is that the paint under the fender wells is due to a lazy painter not doing a decent job of masking those areas off before repainting the bumpers, because the bumper wraps right up to the rear fender wells.

If the overspray under the wheelwells bothers you, you can get a can of flat black exterior paint and paint over it. Just don't let it overspray onto the pearl exterior or you'll be worse off than you are now. I took flat black, high temperature barbeque grill paint and painted the muffler and tailpipe so they don't show from the rear. It doesn't sound like much, but it basically hid the muffler from view.

Good luck with your new car.

tig2002 · April 2003

Thank you, fwatson! I hope I will be enjoing my Millenia for long time with no major problems. I posted a positive review on Edmunds, but for some reason it takes long time for them to really post it.

un_yz · April 2003

To continue with the discussion regarding the front grill difference between 2001/2 Mill S Special Ed and other Mill models of same year, it seems that the horizontal elements of the grill are slightly slanted downward for other Mill models. The horizontal elements are more parallel to the ground for the Mill S Special Ed. Hence the front view of the models look slightly different, for other models the front seems more tapered downwards.

mazfan1 · April 2003

Un Yz- I went to mazdausa.com and regarding the gille it is different. The special edition model has a titanium-finish to it and on the console inside the car.that what set it apart from the regular chrome grille on the P and S model.

I Love The Millenia!!!!

mazfan1 · April 2003

1.I got a question did mazda offer a new full range traction control system on the S model starting in the 97 model. I read at cars.com that the base and the L model comes with a optional regular traction control feature the S comes with a full range traction control is that true are is both traction controls the same in all three models?

2.The new built-in glass antenna for 97 does it really provides better radio performance than the 95 and the 96 model automatic antenna on the side of the trunk?

P.S: Please let me know if you have a answer!

tig2002 · April 2003

Does anybody know what is the disadvantage when using regular unleaded gasoline versus recommended Premium one, except the decreased performance? I usually use Chevron and consider it as the best. Tried to use Costco gasoline once - my Altima (sold long time ago) was choking, and the car even stalled on me - the worst gasoline I've ever used. Any other brand suggestions except Chevron?

fwatson · April 2003

For almost 10000 miles I have run regular unleaded 87 octane exclusively in my '01 P. It has run flawlessly with no power loss compared to the 93 octane fuel supplied by the dealer as the first fillup. I have always bought at whichever station has the lowest price, all the way from Hess and Racetrack to Shell and Chevron. Absolutely no difference in performance from different brands.

Perhaps that Costco had some water in their tank. ALL gasoline is the same regardless of brand, with small differences in additive package. But ALL are required to meet federal standards. The only advantage to a higher octane fuel is it's antiknock properties. If your car does not knock on 87 octane, there is no advantage to paying more for 89, 91, or 93 octane fuel. Any performance difference due to the ECM changing timing etc is totally un-noticable in the Mazda 2.5 V-6 in normal use.

tig2002 · April 2003

Fwatson, thanks for your response. I noticed a little engine vibration at idle speed and thought that this is due to a lower octane rating of the gasoline (87) that I use.

sda · April 2003

About the question about the rear electric mast antenna and rear glass antenna here's your answer. Those cars with the electric antenna 95-97 (I believe)the signal switches automatically between the mast antenna and the rear glass antenna depending on which is receiving the stronger signal. For those that only have the antenna in the rear glass, the diversity system switches between the left and right antenna grids embedded in the rear glass. Again, the stronger signal determines which side is the receptor. My 96 Millenia had much better radio reception (it had both the mast antenna and rear window antenna) than did my 98 Millenia. Both had the BOSE audio system. The 98 only had the grid antenna in the rear glass. Both were wonderful cars. Of the two, my 96 (black, 2.5, Bose, tan leather, heated seats, trac control) was my favorite.

mazfan1 · April 2003

THANK YOU!!!!!! SDA!

heybrady · May 2003

I have had my 99 P for about 6 weeks and absolutely love it. All my new coworkers kept praising it and claiming how they must be paying the new hires a ton of money. Just another testament to the beauty of this car.

Anyways, my moonroof window is not tinted at all, just regular glass. Are all Millenias made this way or do some come with tinted moonroofs from the factory?

I am contemplating tinting the roof myself to reduce the sun's baking effects when the roof is closed but the fabric shade is pulled back. Anyone have any advice on doing this?

Thanks.

phild_mason · May 2003

heybrady, I also noticed this when I got my Mil '01 last spring. I think it is tinted some, but not like it should be. I haven't done anything but wish it was darker and think about doing it at this point.

ronco59_1 · May 2003

I have a 2001 Millennia I bought last year and have notice a lot of Road Noise. It is very distracting and almost embarrassing when carrying passengers. Does anyone know if this is a tire related issue or just a common characteristic of the Millennia? Any information would be appreciated. Thanks!

fwatson · May 2003

There is no doubt it is tire noise, but could it be filtered out?

I also own an '01 P which has Michelins as original equipment. While it is quieter than any other car I have ever owned, those V rated tires do make a goodly amount of noise on some of the coarse pavements. Not needing to drive 150 MPH on a regular basis, I plan to replace them with an S or T rated tire when they wear out. That will be quite awhile though because they show no appreciable wear after almost 10000 miles, and I put less than 7000 a year on the car.

Can the noise be filtered out? Maybe, but I have never ridden in any car with performance tires that did not have tire noise. And even my American floating barges with soft tires had the same problem.

If you try a tire change to a quieter design, how about letting us know how it turns out.

rmck46 · May 2003

I have 00 P 2.5 engine,23000mi.Have ringing -whinning noise from trans 40-59 mph.Took into dealer service they say trans needs to be replaced.Replacement will be a"remanufactured" not new ,warranteed for 12 mos/12000mi.Huh?
   There is a tsb for this type noise that mentions shift cable tansferring trans sounds to cabin.
    Has anyone had this problem?Did you have it corrected?
   Trans shifts fine 98 % of the time.Warranty expires next month.Any suggestions?

dominick33 · May 2003

If I were you I would get the trans replaced as quickly as possible. My 2001 P had problems shifting and a blinking HOLD lamp in the dash at 3K miles. I had the trans replaced with the "remanufactured" part and it has been great ever since. The rebuilt trans is all that is offered by Mazda so you might as well go for it now while you have the chance. If you wait, it will cost you ~$3500 to have the job done at the dealer.

ronco59_1 · May 2003

Thanks for the information/confirmation of it being tire noise. I, like you, would be looking to change my tires but I only have 29K miles at this time. I will look into different tires after that, to substitute for the V rated. One other thought on the tires, I used to own a 1989 Corvette with the low profile high performance tire and they never had this much noise. Of course it didn't have the ride of the Millennia either!!!

Other than the tire noise, I truly like the car style, performance, ride, the way it drives, etc. It's probably the nicest car I have owned.

Thanks again for the information fwatson!

phild_mason · June 2003

I have a 2001 Mill without the CD changer. Can a straight swap be done with an OEM changer? The owners manual talks about them like they interchange.

Does anyone know the part number of the changer? I thought I might look around for a salvaged one.

Also how do you open up the dash to get at it. One thing about the Mill the dash is pretty buttoned up in terms of exposed screws, etc...

phatpat · June 2003

About a 2 months ago my hold light began blinking followed by the check engine light coming on. I immediately thought of transmission problems in my future. After turning the car on and off the blinking stopped, after disconnecting the battery cables and replacing them the check engine light cleared. I have had no problems with the car ever since. Has anyone experienced this with an S model? Again, this happened once and I've had no problems since. Any info is appreciated in advance. Thanks. Also, I have about 85,000 miles on the car so far and haven't had too many problems otherwise.

fairwood · June 2003

Just signed up a few days ago, glad I found this site. I have a 2000 Mill S with 37,500 miles on the clock. I have only put about 150 miles on it in the 8 days I have had it. I notice that the temperature readout for both inside and outside temp seems to be full of BS, reading higher than reality. Is this common? Also I would like to change the digital readout from C (celsius) to F. There is no mention of this switchover in manual nor is there a button to push etc. Surely they wouldn't have two different pc boards, one for cars destined for metric countries and a different one for Imperial measurement countries.
Any problem with adding injector cleaner in next full tank of premium? Also the driver's power seat still feels a little low at full up position (I am not that short but would like it a little higher). I raised the passenger seat up to its upper limit and it feels much better. Has anyone dug into this "problem"? Yes, I know the dealer is the one to see but I thought I would pick the brains of all smart Mazda owners. !! Thanks in advance folks.

fairwood · June 2003

I am disappointed that no one has taken the time or effort to respond to my questions above. Surely someone out there must have some thoughts!fairwood.

fwatson · June 2003

I do check in here as do a few others. Problem is that I don't have an answer to most of your questions. There aren't that many Millenia owners as compared to Camrys etc. Only about 20000 were sold in a year, which puts us in a pretty small class of model owners. Mine is an '01P.

I have my auto-air set at 77 most of the time and it seems fine. I am 5-10 and have no complaint about the height of the drivers seat. It would be nice if it was a couple of inches longer in the thigh support though.

A mechanic is going to have to answer the rest of your questions. Good luck.

Mazda Millenia

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