Trig

Just want to say HI on my first post

I have a 2001 Mazda Familia (Japanese Import) Auto transmission, which should be similar to Protege or 323! It's fine but I am disappointed with the followings:

1- 3rd gear acceleration is bad up hills! Always kicks down to 2nd gear

2- Fuel (Petrol, Gasoline!) consumption is too much... I had a 4x4 Mitsubishi Pajero (Montero!) before and even that was more economic!

Apart from the above... I like the Familia.

Question: has anyone tried adjusting the fuel/air mixture screw?

If so, could you please post a dummy's guide on how to do it

There are TWO screws that I suspect need adjustment, one is the mix, the other is the idle speed! Which one is which?

Cheers

macdaddyslomo

don't mess with either.... ECU controls idle, and has final say so on Fuel-Air mixture...check plugs,air filter,fuel filter,etc...what mileage are you getting??

juddz

And, which engine do you have? US market wagons only came with 2.0L engines. But if you have a 1.6L engine, it would be nice to know so we can point you in the right direction...

Is the check engine light on? How is the idle quality/ vibration in the cabin? Does it start easily? Is there noticeable hesitation? Does it stall? These are all important details to consider, if you suspect the car is consuming a lot of fuel due to a possible mechanical fault....

Phantom Cruiser

...and welcome to the club!

Trig

Hi guys,... thanks for your welcome and advice

At best I get about 30 mpg (combined urban and motorway driving)... My wife's Honda Civic (V-tec 1.5 petrol engine) does 42 mpg !!

I added to my signature some details on my Mazda (a practice we have on the Pajero Owners Club - UK) It's a 1.5 petrol engine (Japanese market prefers 1.5 to 1.6 engines... to do with lower road tax I guess!)

@macdaddyslomo, I am curious about why there are 2 adjustment screws which can be easily reached and tuned when the ECU controls all! It may be the ECU requires "reset"... any idea how to RESET the ECU :?

@juddz, The engine check light is not ON, no vibration, starts first time in the morning (here I must say, it goes to 1500 rpm and in few seconds DROPS to about 600 rpm and then up again!!) ... On the motorway (highway!) it pulls nicely, it dies going up hills!

QUESTION: Can we post photos here? As they say "a picture is worth a thousand word", I will get some photos of the engine parts and post. It may be interesting to see the difference between the US & Jap markets.

Cheers m8s

RipperSnapper

To reset the ECU, Just take the Negative cable off the battery, depress your brake pedal for about 15 seconds. Then re-attach the cable and start the car. Let it run for like 10 minutes or so.

As for posting pics: When you "Reply to Thread" In the message box you will have a B for bold I for italic and a U for underline. If you keep looking you will see a little picture of mountains and a sun, thats the image tab. Click that and enter the link of the pic you want to show. You may have to upload (your car) pics from your computer to a site like imagestation before you do this though. Welcome to the board.

macdaddyslomo

You aren't shy on mileage by much,maybe 3-5 miles..I have a 1.6L and I get 30-35 mpg...do you drive hard ?? Lot's of "jackrabbit" driving?? As far as those adjustment screws,I didnt say they don't do anything, but you wont get the result you desire by changing them...by twisting them you change values that the ECU sees...not a good idea

DaleK

Macdaddy - don't forget that Trig is probably calculating using Imperial gallons (4.55L per gallon vs. 3.85L per US gallon).

Trig, is this the case? I don't have any immediate suggestions, but would like more detail on the not enough power going up hills. I can't tell if that's the normal result of the power the car has, or if you are low on power (which would likely result in the less than spectacular gas mileage).

Have you checked that the spark plugs are in good confidtion and gapped propoerly, and that the air filter is clean? I assume that you have already, but what the heck!

Dale.

Trig

I do ... It may have to do with the bad mpg... mind you I drive the wife's Honda similarly but the Honda's V-tec engine seems to pull better and return a better mpg :?

@DaleK, spot on m8 ... by miles I meant 4.55L The Mazda is serviced every 5000km (where airfilter is cleaned, new sparks, new oil filter, new engine oil...etc.)

@ RipperSnapper, many thanks ... I'll try the ECUreset over the weekend, here comes the first photos NOW...

macdaddyslomo

your 1.5 looks EXACTLY like my 1.6L...you have an automatic...I didnt notice that either...your mileage still isnt really THAT bad...I think released MPG in the US on the 1.6L auto was 25 city 32 Highway

Trig

So what would my Mazda be in the US? I see on the forums many types... MP 3/5... Protege...etc. ?? It's a 2001!

macdaddyslomo

It wouldn't be...the body is a P5 but the engine is 1.6L from the 99-01 DX/LX Sedans

RipperSnapper

Nice car. Heres a link to my 2002 P5 page so you can see the what they are in the US. I have a 2.0 engine
http://www.cardomain.com/id/rippersnapper

Trig

RipperSnapper (RS)... nice car and my favourite colour (Blue) The front spoilers and spots are different and also the right/left indicators are nearer to the bumper in the US.

juddz

And that released MPG was likely the result of running the EPA city cycle, which is usually off from the real world mileage numbers we can expect. In the real world, we have to deal with heavy stop and go traffic, freeway speeds that are in most cases greater than 55mph in the US, and lugging around several hundred additional pounds worth of passengers when we go places. I believe that the EPA city cycle doesn't account for these things very well. In my opinion, there doesn't seem to be a mileage problem here.