Mikekat

Day 14 and still Mazda has not shipped my transmission to the local dealership. Wouldn't they want to fix this as soon as possible? They are paying Hertz for my loaner car every day. And don't they want me to not get upset over this!? I am really trying not to but come on..

M3

hey just upgrade your loan is not going to cause you much and you could rally get a sweet ride i enjoy my blowed transmission

Tippy

Hi all;

I've had my 3S 5 speed for almost 3 months and 4k kms. It's my 3rd Mazda ('83 RX7 with RR&R ported 13B sitting in the carport needing some work and '88 323 5 door - sold in '94).

I haven't really decided wether I'm satisfied with my 3 yet. Positives include a nimble feel, good driving position, strong feeling brakes, a (mostly) smooth engine and good power. Negatives include lousy visibility out back, WAY too much tire and road noise, rattling headliner and cargo cover in cool weather, what looks to be chip-prone paint, goofy (at times) auto wipers, that annoying off-idle flat spot/stumble I see others have noticed and of course the cold brake squeak. I’ve reported the flat spot and brake squeak to the dealer who assured me all is ok since ‘they all do that sir’. I could just see a service manager at Ford say that about exploding Pintos ( ).

One problem I’ve encountered but haven’t seen discussed yet is a gawdawful chatter/vibration through the drivetrain I get if I break traction on wet pavement. It’s a bit hard to describe but seems like jumping a gear tooth, or wheel hop - neither which is happening I’m sure. I’m not talking about a real heavy throttle situation here, but rather just breaking traction from a stop on slick pavement, say on an up hill using just a bit too much throttle, like to get past that annoying flat spot. It seems the ‘chatter’ happens not so much as the tires break loose, but rather as they regain traction. I reported this to the dealer who told me they checked everything up front and found no problems.

It seems like a stretch, but I’m wondering whether it might have anything to do with those POS (IMO anyway) Goodyear Eagle RS-A’s the car comes with. I say this because I’ve felt a bit of chatter from the tires if plowing them a bit in a turn on wet pavement as well. BTW I’ve owned other 3 other FWDs including a GTI VR6 with noticeably more power than the 3 but never encountered anything like this. Also it doesn't seem to happen in snow and I haven’t spun the tires on dry pavement.

Anyone else run into this? Anyone know the cause?

bob teatow

Are we talking about ABS chatter when we brake on slippery stuff.
Or about some chatter when we are turning and accelerating on slippery stuff.

I've noticed both - and I think both are normal with ABS and with most front wheel drive systems.

Tippy

Thanks for the respsonse Bob.

It doesn't happen under braking at all, only acceleration (either straight or turning) with the tires definitely having broken loose and, like I said before, as they are regaining grip. It is also much lower in frequency and greater in amplitude than what happens when the ABS kicks in under breaking. I did demo it to a friend of mine who asked me if I had traction control though (3's, at least north american ones, don't have traction control - right?). At one point I wondered if it might be a wheel speed differential issue, but I spun up one side in snow while keeping the other tire on pavement with no symptoms.

My mentionning the chatter when plowing the front in turns (with fairly steady throttle and no braking at all) that was much higher frequency, like rolling on the tread edge blocks.

It's really hard to describe accurately - maybe I should get a mechanic to come out with me some time when the conditions are right....

bob teatow

Try replacing the Eagle tires. I changed over the fronts to a different/better/grippier pair of all seasons. I think it helped with both wet and snowy roads.

Tippy

I'm thinking new tires might be a plan even though I've hardly used these ones. For whatever reason, I've never been a fan of Goodyears. I swapped out the Eagles (GA's I think?) on my GTI VR6 for Dunlop SP Sport 5000 asymmetricals which I found way better in wet and dry, passable in snow (which I don't get much here of here anyway), smoother, quieter and wore well. The W rating is a bit overboard given the speeds I drive at (not to mention the speed limiter on the 3), but what the heck. Problem is, they don't make that tire in 205/50/17 and I'm not interested in changing wheels - yet.

What tires did you go with?

BTW I had a look at the reviews for the RS-A's on TireRack's web site. Quite a few negative reviews including a bunch from 3 owners. I was also suprised at the relatively poor treadwear rating and price compared to much higher rated tires.

TreetopFlyer

I just got my 3 back from the repair shop. Problems were: 1. Car not starting on first or second attempt. Problem? Fuel pump was toast. 2. Airbag sensor recall. Sensor replaced. 3. Brakes making horrible screetching noise in reverse and grinding noise in forward. Problem? Rotors were all glazed and pads were screwed up somehow. They tried to say I drove like Mario Andretti, but honestly it couldn't be FURTHER from the truth. But he never seemed suprised by any of the comments I had and they did the work very willingly which leads me to suspect that I wasn't the first one with these problems. Also, if it makes anyone feel better, my tires suck as well. They are just godawful.
Mine also makes these terrible "craking" noises inside when it is cold outside. Once the interior warms up good and toasty it goes away. My headliner squeeks and drives my crazy. Funny, this is my fifth Mazda (and to a certain degree my favorite) but for whatever reason there are a whole lot of little things that just drive me nuts.

Desiwoman

I took my Mazda 3 in for its first service today. The only problem that I have had with it so far is that it makes a sort of grinding noise as I am inclining and turning left into the parking garage (sharp left). I inquired as to whether this was because the wheel was hitting the wheel well (felt some sort of vibration) or whether it was something else. He advised me that the noise was created by the power steering (???) O.k. so my previous vehicles have not had power steering and so I am not sure if he is totally being on the up and up. Has anyone else experienced this problem?

vtohthree

Your fuel pump was toast, even when under normal driving conditions? Thats sketchy, I'm wondering if its a design flaw and that part goes bad for everyone in such an early stage. Or if the one that was installed in your car happened to be a factory defect. I think I've read other people having that problem as well, not being able to start on the first try or the engine cutting off while idling at a stoplight. hmm...

bbp2004

I went to the shop with mine this week cause I was having a problem with my 6-disc changer. The only way I could eject a cd was to flip on my headlights (so if it was at night I would have to turn off my lights and turn them back on to get the cds to come out). That problem was also very annoying because every time I would turn on my lights my cds would eject. The guys at the shop, who were very helpful, spoke with mazda and tried a few things. At the end they had to order a new stereo. The next day, before the new stereo was in, the problem stopped. Don't understand why it started but since it stopped I'm very happy. About 8k on my 3s 5-door, abs package, 6-disk package, winning blue car.

Hitman Hart

I had a problem with the car cranking for too long before starting. They replaced the fuel pump, but the problem is actually the fuel pump check valve, which was defective (had a slow leak in it). That's probably what you had as well. What they would do in a case like that is replace the pump instead of just the valve - in any case, it's to yours and their advantage: you get a brand new pump, and they get to charge a couple of hundred to mazda instead of 10 bucks for the valve.

Other than that, I haven't had any problems.

Hitman Hart

Oh, and btw, the way to check if it's the check valve is doing the pressure test. You could ask them if that what they did.

CarbonFiber

Did you get those problems fixed yet? If you did how long did the drive shaft replacement took? I am going to the dealer tomorrow for the clunking noise. They couldn't figure out what the problem was (now I can tell them).

benq

Besides the problem with my window, the shocks and transmission... as of this morning when I turned the car on of course the engine turns and its starting, a probably about a second or 2 later I hear this high pitch sound like something else is starting. My heater, defroster, radio.. basically EVERYTHING is off except the engine. When I'm stopped at a stop light, I can hear the engine rumbling and that high pitch sound... any thoughts?

not really in the mood to bring it BACK to the dealership AGAIN.

other than that... I LOVE the car...