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Mazda Millenia

1484951535476

Comments

  • sdasda Member Posts: 6,937
    My check engine light only came on once in my '98 2.5 V6. While having my oil change the tech convinced me to clean the fuel system. It was running perfectly, but I told him to do it. Left the shop and engine light was glowing. Drove it a couple of days and it reset and never came on again. Now in my Cadillac Catera, I couldn't keep the check engine light off. I can't tell you how many times it went to the dealer for this. I finally gave up, and while the light was off, sold the car at a tremendous loss. I think Check Engine lights are a real problem (and pain) across all makes and models.

    2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech, 2006 Acura TL w/nav

  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    87 octane won't "gunk up" anything. But the computer would change the timing to compensate for the octane. 87 octane is actually cleaner than higher numbers, because it lacks the additives that increase the octane rating. It has probably just triggered the O2 sensors.

    I would just go back to 91 or 93 octane and see what happens. Premium is REQUIRED on the supercharged engines. However there is a TSB concerning Premium causing carbon deposits on the valves in the non-supercharged engine. According to that TSB all P models should now be run on Regular 87.
  • steevo2steevo2 Member Posts: 33
    Thanks for the info fwatson. Assuming the sensors are actually OK, will the check engine light go out ... or will I have to reset it in some way. I plan to run a bottle of Techron through the next tank of 93 octane. We'll see what happens if anything.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    fwatson is correct in that Mazda now advises to use regular (87 octane) in the P models. Stay with 91 or higher for the supercharged 2.3L engines.
    steevo2: yes the Check Engine Light should go out after 6 or 7 starts/stops. This seems to be the normal run of events after a "minor" problem has triggered the light. Minor in my case was a tumble when the engine started and perhaps a bit of extra unburned fuel entered the exhaust system. That seems to be enough to trigger the O2 sensor(s) and if the situation was temporary or a one-time event then the computer will reset itself eventually. In my recent case it took 6 or 7 starts over a period of 2 or 3 days to clear itself, (permanently I hope). I don't know for sure but I don't think 6 or 7 starts/stops over a period of several minutes will do the trick. I think the time element is part of the equation.
    Other Mazda sites also mention a similar time element etc. If the light stays on or worse, if it continues to blink or flash then you have a more serious problem and you should have a dealer check it out. First stop would be to AutoZone or some other outlet that will read the code(s) for free. Take it from there whether you see your dealer. As far as resetting the light on your own, it is possible to do so by removing the negative battery cable from the battery for one minute and reconnecting. This will lead to all programmed features being lost such as radio station presets, the clock(s) and I assume the keyless remote program settings. Not a good way to do it. fairwood
  • skspghskspgh Member Posts: 28
    Thanks all. I called the dealer and indicated that a TSB for my corroding chrome wheels was available. He checked up on it - called the local rep and got approval to change all 4 rims! Yes! My car will finally be back to working normally again.
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    Don't miss the newest addition to our live chat events here in Town Hall. Join us every Tuesday from 6-7pm PT/9-10pm ET for our Mazda Mania Chat!

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    See you there!!
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Quote: "Yes! My car will finally be back to working normally again. "

    Great, sometimes a little knowledge pays off when addressing service departments. Also when buying.
  • tomekktomekk Member Posts: 310
    Well, my MM S is in service today, got a loaner - Mazda 6. Fire it up - guess what... check engine light! 4K miles on that Mazda 6. Unbelievable.
  • milleniamanmilleniaman Member Posts: 2
    The check engine light came on about 3 months ago on my '02 P - 25,585 miles. I immediately took it in to have it checked. I was told that there would be an $80 charge if it turned out that the gas cap wasn't turned tight enough. I told them I would take the car and return in a few days before I'd commit to a possible $80 charge for not having my gas cap on tight enough. They ended up waving the possible fee and an hour later told me it was the gas cap. I was relieved I put up a fuss. 2 days later the check engine light came on again, and it hasn't gone off since. I've been reading the boards and assumed it must be the O2 sensor and didn't do anything about it. I took the car in today and again was told I would be charged $80 if it was the gas cap. This time I didn't put up a fuss knowing that wasn't a possibility. Turns out it was a knock sensor and a leaking manifold intake gasket. All under warranty.

    I'd be interested in other's experience of issues with the car. At this rate I only have another 16 months before I expire my 50,000 warranty and would like to know what potential problems might arise. My car, like others, has wind noise from the door seal. It seems that this problem is prevelant and apparently there's no service bulliten relating to this other than on the '01 S. How do problems like this get recognized by Mazda and a TSB issued to correct the problem?
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Alldata 2002 MMP

    ---------------------------------------------

    S01898--APR 03--Body - Wind Noise Around Doors

    http://alldata.com/TSB/33/02333664.html

    ---------------------------------------------

    As for reliability of Millenia, it has been outstanding for all years. That does not mean it will never have a problem.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    Quote: "#2672 of 2675 check engine light by tomekk Oct 08, 2003 (9:35 pm)

    Well, my MM S is in service today, got a loaner - Mazda 6. Fire it up - guess what... check engine light! 4K miles on that Mazda 6. Unbelievable."

    ---------------------------------------------

    Maybe you should do as an independent mechanic once told me concerning Ck Engine Lights in general. He had black electrical tape over the one on his personal car, and suggested that cure for all of them. He was of course joking, but it shows how perturbed mechanics get with those lights constantly going on for no good reason.

    I posted to the Maintenance thread "Check Engine Light" and found that about all that gets posted there is questions about those lights on various cars. There were very few posts to answer the questions about them.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I also posted to BAT Auto, which is professional mechanics answering questions, and all you can get there is to have the codes read out and see what is causing the light. Sometimes though, if you can give them the code they have suggestions.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I had the code read at AutoZone. They got PO325-Knock Sensor.

    His suggestion was to go to a slightly higher octane gasoline or have the computer reprogramed. I have no ping or knock even under hard acceleration, so I am going to put a couple of feelers out to see what online mechanics suggest.
  • milleniamanmilleniaman Member Posts: 2
    One of the best tips I picked up from purusing these boards over the past 15 months was the lifetime four wheel alignment deal that Firestone has. Regular price for this lifetime service is $149. Thought it was worth mentioning again for those people new to the boards. Money well spent if you plan on keeping your car for 100,000+ miles like I do with my vehicles.
  • steevo2steevo2 Member Posts: 33
    With so many discussions of error codes and having them read at AutoZone etc, this device caught my attention. Check it out at:

    http://www.davisnet.com/drive/products/carchip_products.asp

    You plug it into your diagnostic port and it logs the info for each trip. Then you can download info to your computer for viewing. Kind of interesting...
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I agree the idea sounds good, and maybe that reader is OK. But I have a Davis weather station and it is not very accurate. I would make sure that device could be returned for a refund before trying it.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    The seat warmer switch in my '02 S is in the back of the seat. You have to remove the back of the seat to find it, and it should be near the bottom on the side. The workshop manual says to check to make sure that the thermoswitch is working properly with a hair dryer and checking with an ohmmeter. You have to disconnect the warmer connection first. THIS IS FOR THE SEAT BACK WARMER.
    For the seat cushion warmer you have to disconnect connector and check for continuity between terminals A and B with an ohmmeter.

    FWATSON if I remember correctly you had the KL engine. The workshop manual says that it is a knock sensor 1 circuit malfunction. It says that "if the voltage at the PCM terminal 3S is below 1.25V or above 3.75V, the PCM determines that the knock sensor circuit has malfunction."
    The possible causes are as follows:
    1. Knock sensor malfunction.
    2. Connector or terminal malfunction.
    3. Open circuit between knock sensor terminal and PCM terminal 3S.
    4. Short to ground circuit between knock sensor terminal and PCM terminal 3S.
    5. Short to power circuit between knock sensor terminal and PCM terminal 3S.
    6. PCM malfunction.

    I hope this information helps you guys.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    WOW!! Thanks kcm8419 (can we call you k?). That seat warmer data is of considerable value. I worked in electronics all my adult life and have no qualms about testing and interpreting the results. What does slow me down is pulling the back off the seat and replacing so it looks like it did before. Might be easier to just buy a pair of long johns - red of course. Leather is not the greatest thing to sit on first thing on a cold morning. Not too sure about that instruction to use a hair dryer to check the thermoswitch. When it is hot or warm out then the switch in the back of seat and/or the seat bottom would normally be open. Only when it gets below a factory preset temperature (35F for example) would the thermoswitch close. No heating would take place even then until the driver completed the circuit by pressing one or both dash switches. Blowing hot air would only make sure that the switch did NOT open. JC
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    I have no problems with using "K". Let me back track a little. The manual says to use a "hot air blower", so take that for what ever it is worth. It also says that you should have continuity between terminal A and B if it is less then 34 degrees C or 94 degrees F. If it is above no continuity. When I first looked at these instructions I too wondered about pulling off the back of the seat.
    The instructions to pull off the seat back cover are as follows:
    1. "Pull the edges of the seat back cover to disengage the clips from the seat back frame." There appears to be a total of 4 clips, 2 on each side.
    2. "Pull up the seat back cover upward to disengage the clips from the seat back cover." There appears to be 3 clips at the top of the seat back cover.

    Every little bit helps. Good luck if you try this.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Thanks for the information. The car will be under warranty for another 14 months, so if the light persists I will take it to the dealer and let them worry about it.

    Not only Mazda, but the manufacturers in general really need to get the "Check Engine" light under control. It is too vague a warning to be of much use to a consumer.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    Thanks K for update. Will wait for colder weather before I give seat heater(s) a workout to confirm whether they work or not. And fwatson, I mentioned before that the Check Engine Light seemed to go on at the drop of a hat and you sort of berated me for that comment. Of course there is a reason for the light coming on and as you point out it is too vague to be of immediate value to most drivers. Take it to a dealer for a readout (often $70 or $80 to do so) or to AutoZone and get the numbers which are meaningless to 99% of drivers. The manual states that a blown fuse in the "cabin" can cause the light to go on. That is an overkill function of the light if you ask me. My recent case of the light coming on because of an engine tumble at startup likely caused raw fuel to contaminate one or more of the O2 sensors (a valid use of warning light). No further contamination over the next several days and 6 or 7 cold starts caused the computer to turn the light off. Drivers on other Mazda help sites have said the light has been on in their Millenias for over a year with no change in gas mileage, no change in acceleration, no noticeable difference in operation in general. "Go figger" as they say. fairwood
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Don't miss the newest addition to our live chat events here in Town Hall. Join us every Tuesday from 6-7pm PT/9-10pm ET for our Mazda Mania Chat!

    Whether you own a Mazda, would like to own a Mazda, or just like going ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM... be sure to stop by and meet and greet your fellow Town Hall users! (We may even pull out some Mazda triva questions)

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  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Quote "you sort of berated me for that".

    Sorry you took it that way. I took your previous statement to mean that Mazda had a serious problem with that light as opposed to other manufacturers. I don't think that is true from what I have read on other forums and the Check Engine Light forum of Edmunds. It seems this is a problem all the way from Kia up through BMW and Mercedes, not especially to Mazda.

    Anyway, my wife said the one in her Oldsmobile is back on, as well as the chime "bonging", and I will check it this evening. Any bets it isn't the brake fluid level again? I'll gladly make that 2 to 1 odds. Now that is a silly function for a Check ENGINE light, let alone the chime which won't even let you have the door open with the radio running even in the auxiliary switch position. Enough talk about the Oldsmobile, but just pointing out it isn't only a Mazda problem.
  • supercargersupercarger Member Posts: 1
    Hey, I have an interesting probelm. I have a 96 2.3l and my TCS, TCS off, and ABS lights are all on. This problem started last winter when it would come on when i intialy began to drive but when I turned it off and restarted it would go away. But now it seems to be on full time. And I've noticed a loss of power as well.

    The dealer says i need to repalce the ECU, and the abs sensor. I am utterly tired of the Mazda dealerships. It seems that waht they do best is reaplce parts.

    I checked the TSB list and there is a TSb for this problem.

    Any help would be great.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    It appears that all of these are tied together. You might want to check for a short in your wiring harness or from the harness to the TCS switch. Also check the fuse to make sure that it is good.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    Since everybody is so talkative I thought I might toss this general information out about timing belts. This is according to the 2002 workshop manual.

    It says for normal driving conditions for US cars:
    2.5L (KL) engine to replace every 105,000 miles or 168,000 km.
    For the 2.3L (KJ) engine replace every 60,000 miles or 96,000 km.

    Now for Canada, Puerto Rico, and unique driving conditions in the US it states the same thing with one exception for the KL engine (2.5L). It says that "if the vehicle is operated in cold districts (below -18 degrees C {0 degrees F}), replace the timing belt at 96,000 km (60,000 miles)."

    Since the timing belt item keeps coming up I thought I would put this out there.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    Aughh!! No problems all spring and summer until a few weeks ago when the engine tumbled on startup. I posted about that at the time and the light went out after several days and about 6 or 7 cold starts over that time period. It happened again yesterday, started up a warm engine at the grocery store and it didn't tumble per se, it ran rough for a few seconds then cleaned itself up so to speak. Light flashed for a few seconds to get my attention I guess, then stayed on. I expect I will have to live with it for next few days. As before, car ran beautifully afterwards, responding to the gas pedal instantaneously, zipping in and out amongst the little old blue haired ladies in their Civics, etc. While I'm here, has anyone checked into the Tuesday night free-for-all? I checked in the first night (two weeks ago) and thought I had fallen into a childish, immature ranting of 12 year olds. Maybe it was just the timing, maybe it was and is just me. Maybe I'm just too old for that sort of thing in general. Somebody needs a nap!! Hey, that would be me.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    If you can get a code number on your engine light problem I would try and look it up for you in the workshop manual.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    When AutoZone read my code, there was nothing to look up. It gave the code number as the main display, but was also spelled out across the bottom of the display in plain English.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    I had assumed by your post on your check engine light that it gives you what is causing the problem. I was talking about a possible solution to the problem. This would be like what I listed for you. This does not mean you can fix it yourself, but it may give you some knowledge if you decide to take it in to get it fixed. As opposed to letting the dealer or anybody else jerk you around and replace everything under the sun and still not fix it. All while they are bleeding you dry.

    Since a number of people are having this problem with the check engine light going on I was wondering about how many miles everybody has on their cars when this starts happening? It appears that it is not just a problem with the S but also the P model. Yes I know that it happens with all cars but I am just talking about the Mills here.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    I am 99% sure that the cause of the light coming on is that raw fuel is getting to the O2 sensor(s) and that is one reason the CEL comes on. If no further incidents occur then the computer turns itself off after a number of cold starts. I believe that time is a factor here also. Seven or eight starts within a period of 5 minutes or so will not do the trick. From what I have read there are as many as four O2 sensors in the 2.3L vehicles. There is an upstream and a downstream sensor in the exhaust sytem and where the other two are heaven only knows. I am not at all worried that something serious has gone wrong, at least not at this point. These computerized and "sensorized" cars from all makers around the world seem to be a work in progress. Those public school dropouts at work again? I now have a legitimate excuse to drive my MM S every day without my wife snickering at me as I don my Indy gear!
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    My light started coming on intermittently at about 12000 miles. I have an appointment at 8:00 Friday morning at Lakeland Mazda to check and repair the problem. Mine is still under warranty, so there will be no charges involved. They show 4 1/2 hours to replace the knock sensor, and it lists for $168.

    The woman I talked to on the phone said a loner car is not available unless my car is kept overnight. But I have a paper called "Mazda Driver's Assurance Plan" that came with the car stating:

    "Take your car in for warranty work at a participating Mazda dealership, and you can get a loaner car at no charge. Just ask. You won't have to arrange your day around a repair schedule, ask friends for a ride or catch up on your magazine reading while you wait."

    I decided to take that discussion up with them Friday when I can talk to the manager if necessary to determine if they consider themselves a "participating Mazda dealership". Trying to do it on the phone anymore is about impossible unless you are willing to sit and listen to their telephone advertising for a few hours. The blarb on that automatic telephone system says they have the best service anywhere, but I'm going to determine that for myself Friday.

    They will certainly be taken off my list or people to deal with if they won't live up to their advertising.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I do appreciate what you are doing and didn't mean for it to appear otherwise.

    Again, thanks for your information.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    I understood what you were saying so I did not mean to come off in a bad light. Quite honestly I would never have bought this manual if I was not going to keep the car until it drops dead. I figure since I have it and I can be of some help to other people then why not. By the way I was told the same thing when I bought my car about the loaner car. Let us know how it turns out. Again sorry if it came off bad sounding.

    Fairwood, I looked in on the Mazda chat last night for about a minute, literally. It was about 20 minutes after it started and know one was talking. The few people that came in after me were asking what the discussion was about and know one knew.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    Just as I said, the CEL went out this afternoon after 2+ days and 9 starts, at least 3 of which were warm starts. Sounds like that chat room is dead in the water. fwatson: wish I were within a two hour drive of Lakeland now. First time in 9 or 10 years that we have not been in our condo in FL by this time. A fellow musician from the early '60's is the food or restaurant critic for the Lakeland Times Ledger or whatever the paper is. (Trent Rowe).
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I would think it is still quite nice up there. We are having glorious weather right now. As you know it is one of the two nicest times in Florida. Were you with a band down here?

    The cycling period on my CE light has been shorter than yours. It has always lasted less than two days with probably about 5 startups. If all goes well Friday I should be rid of the annoyance, but it is something I could live with if I had to.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    or words to that effect. Olde Englishe was never my strong suit. It is 33F outside our patio doors as I write this and we have had glorious fall weather all along except for a few days when winter practised its thing. Another fellow and myself started a 4-piece group up here around 1959 or '60 and Trent Rowe was our drummer, introduced to us by our piano player. That lasted about 2 years (weekend gigs as they say) then I was invited to join a 10 piece dance band that was the top band in the surrounding area. We played on CBC radio on Saturday nights and we used to get letters from as far away as California since CBC radio stations were 50,000 watts and covered much of North America after the sun went down. Haven't touched a trumpet in 31 years. Sorry madam moderator for this off-topic post.
  • mmerchantmmerchant Member Posts: 18
    What are the symptoms if there is something wrong with the knock sensor? Does a faulty knock sensor always result in the engine light coming on? I am simply trying to determine if the roughness and a low rumble/pinging noise could be as a result of the knock sensor. I use premium fuel. I have a 2001 Millenia S with appx. 56,000 kms.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    What engine do you have? If it is a 2.3L supercharged then premium is the right gas to use. If it is a 2.5P then use 87 octane. On two recent occasions I have had a rough engine for several seconds immediately after starting. Engine clears itself but I live with the Check Engine Light on for a few days and several starts.
    My main reason for this post is to let everyone know that you can see what the tilt steering wheel motor package looks like. Go to eBay, do a search on Mazda Millenia and go to item # 2439023613. As has been discussed here in recent past postings, this is overkill to the nth degree. A simple mechanical system with only a few moving parts would do a much better job and likely never fail in a hundred years. And cost the maker and the buyer a lot less money.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Quote "What are the symptoms if there is something wrong with the knock sensor?"

    --------------------

    With my 2.5 P unsupercharged engine, there has been no symptom of any kind except for that annoying CEL. I have intentionally gone full throttle acceleration numerous times when the engine light is on to see if there is any sign of a ping or knock, and there is none.

    Your 2.3 S depends on conditions not seen in the 2.5, so I can't give you any help there. I am having mine repaired just to get rid of the light.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    That is the entire steering column from a '97. And it sure is an overcomplicated looking thing.

    You can access it by just using the number you gave in the first search box when ebay opens. I just copy/pasted it. I have the auto-tilt turned off, but you can still manually adjust it by using the button on the left side of the steering column.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I think I have a symptom for my Knock Sensor CEL. This time, after driving about three miles into town, I stopped at a traffic light. Just as I saw the CEL come on, I also felt the normally undetectable idle become slightly rough. The roughness disappeared as suddenly as it appeared, and is now gone, but the light is still on. Hopefully it will still be on when I get to the repair shop in the morning, although I don't think it needs to be for them to read the OBDII code. That's the first time it has come on under idling conditions, so I had not felt it before.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    I wish I could be helpful here but the manual goes by symptoms and then lists the possible causes. So for mmerchant a knocking/pinging during acceleration/cruising could be a bad knock sensor. It could also be improper fuel pressure, improper engine compression, or engine overheats due to a cooling system malfunction. It comes down to a process of elimination and also testing the items.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Lakeland Mazda changed the knock sensor on my MM this morning. They were very courteous, and DID give me that loner car after I showed them the paper that came with my car. I took it in at 8:30 and they had it ready when I went back at 12:15.

    The car seems no different, which is good. I'll let you know if I get that light again.

    And if you really want to appreciate your MM, drive a Hyundai Accent for about three hours. That was the loner car from Enterprise. Very noisy engine, transmission shifted well, and the car seemed solid. Getting back into my MM-P was a real pleasure after that.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    Was the CEL still on when you brought it in? If not then how did they figure out that it was the knock sensor? Or did you tell them that you had it read and that the knock sensor was bad?

    Glad to hear that you did not have a problem getting a rental. Though to bad it was an Accent and not something a little closer to what you normally drive.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    I had told them when I called for an appointment that AutoZone had read it out as P0325-Knock Sensor. But they also put a reader on it while it was in the shop (I saw them do that). I didn't talk to the mechanic, but as I understand OBDII, it retains codes as opposed to OBDI which required the light be on.

    My light had gone off one stop short of the repair shop when I had to wait about 20 minutes for a freight train to get out of the way and shut down after waiting about 5 minutes. When I restarted the light didn't come back on. That is the way it has always acted.

    I'll know within a week if it is fixed, because it had gotten that frequent. I am sure though that they would not change a part based on a rumor I had given them concerning a third party test ie AutoZone. They show the Sensor at $126, and there was at least 3 hours labor involved. Too much to spend on a whim I think.

    The Accent was OK for temporary transportation as opposed to being stranded. But except for those looking for basic transportation for city commuting, I wouldn't recommend one unless you just are not sensitive at all to noise and vibration. I am very sensitive to those, and have never ridden in any car I couldn't find fault with some noise intrusion. Guess I need a majic carpet. Except for some tire noise on pebbly or coarse surfaces, My MM is very good in those departments. I don't know if there is a quieter alternative to the Michelin Energy MXV4's, but if I can find one I will use them when it is time for new tires. That is actually my biggest complaint about noise with all cars I have driven.
  • steevo2steevo2 Member Posts: 33
    Hey fwatson ... a little off topic here, but if you are REALLY serious about reducing noise, check out www.dynamat.com. This stuff is supposed to be amazing...

    Back on topic. I ran two tanks of Techron enhanced 93 octane through my 97MM-S and CEL is still on. Today I will reset it by disconnecting the battery and see what happens. I'm really hoping that the O2 sensors are OK since I'm considering selling the car.
  • kcm8419kcm8419 Member Posts: 121
    What they call this information on the OBDII is Freeze Frame Data. It is "technical data which indicates the engine condition at the time of the first malfunction". It is supposed to stay in the memory even if there is another emission-related trouble code stored. I would assume this is what they looked at, and apparently it works.

    Good luck on the fix.

    By the way you might want to keep an eye on your anti-freeze level because they have to drain the radiator to get to the knock sensor. This is just in case it starts sucking water out of your over flow container, even though you don't need to really worry about a freeze in FL.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    You don't want to go that route. I had one for a long weekend and the wind noise in the ears was something else, not to mention the bugs in the eyes and mouth. Buffeting from passing jets was worse than potholed roads.
  • fwatsonfwatson Member Posts: 639
    Quote "By the way you might want to keep an eye on your anti-freeze level because they have to drain the radiator to get to the knock sensor. This is just in case it starts sucking water out of your over flow container, even though you don't need to really worry about a freeze in FL."

    ---------------------------------------

    I wasn't aware they had drained the radiator, but I did look carefully under the hood while still at the dealer. It all looked to be in order, but thanks for the tip. I'll check the water level again to be sure it is up. I didn't see any charge for coolant on the repair ticket, but they may have saved the coolant they drained out. I also didn't look at it that critically because I didn't have to pay it.

    fairwood, it can't be any worse than riding a motorcycle in Florida during Lovebug season. Yukkkkkkkkk!!!!!

    I just went out and checked the car over thoroughly. They left it clean except for some smearing on the upper edge of the chrome grillwork. All fluids look fine and no mess under the hood. You couldn't tell they had worked on it if not for the smudges on the grill.
  • fairwoodfairwood Member Posts: 91
    Our first encounter with lovebugs was back in 1991 I think. We had a VW van converted to a wheelchair lift for my wife. We were at an Elderhostel on Jeckel Island off coast of Georgia. We were headed south the following week and someone said "watch out for the lovebugs". I thought he was making a joke about Freddy the Lovebug (VW car in Disney movie). We soon found out. They fly united in the true sense of the word, they have no redeeming social value, birds won't eat them, they smell because of the protein that remains on the windshield, the smears eat thru the paint they tell us and almost impossible to wash off. Don't dare turn the wipers on!!! Story is they came over from Africa on a strong wind storm or somesuch. 'It's an ill wind that doesn't blow someone some good' doesn't apply in this case. Worse thing is that I have seen them up here in southern Ontario past two or three summers. Mother Nature is a slut.
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