Mazda makes the worst cars EVAR.

[AtomicLabMonkey]

I swear to god... don't ever buy a Mazda unless, maybe, it has a rotary engine. Their other standard engines are pieces of shit. Laura was driving the 626 yesterday over in Dublin and she got out at the mall... got back in it later and it was dead as a rock, the engine wouldn't even turn over. So I go over there, get in it, turn the key and it starts up fine... I shut it off and started it back up 2 or 3 times to make sure it wasn't a fluke. Tested the battery with my DVOM and it's fine, plenty of voltage. So not really knowing what is wrong with it, we go to get dinner since we're both hungry and right there by a bunch of restaurants. Come out 30 minutes later, and the fucking car won't start again. When the key is turned to the start position I can hear a single click under the hood like a relay is activating, and that's it. Not even a cough or gasp from the engine. Battery is still fine. I think the starter motor or the starter solenoid must be shot, cause it's not even trying to crank the engine.

So, the goddamn car is still sitting over in a parking lot in Dublin. We went back over there at lunch on the off chance that maybe fairies had sprinkled magic pixie dust over it again and it would start... but, unfortunately Never-Never Land must have the day off. So I think we're gonna have to have that DEAD PIECE OF SHIT towed over to Livermore so I can try to trace down whether it's the starter, or what. I fucking hate that car with an unrivaled passion. I just got the Cherokee's steering column all tight and put back together, and THE VERY NEXT DAY that festering pus-ball of a car that is "The Mazda 626" breaks down stone dead. Un-Fucking-Believable.

[ArthurS]

I am not a fan of Mazda much anymore. Especially with their slip-up on the horsepower of the RX-8.

The only Mazda I would buy at this point would be the Mazda 6 or Mazdaspeed Protege.

[AtomicLabMonkey]

Here's a tip: Don't buy one at all. Ever.

Any manufacturer that likes controlling the valve timing of their engines with a rubber belt (which has to be replaced "every 60,000 miles, or serious engine damage/failure can result"), I don't care for on general principle.

[ArthurS]

I will only buy subaru!

Nah, I don't think I would buy one unless I needed a second car. Even then I would probably get the Spec-V.

[sperry]

Austin: your problem is that it's an older Mazda. My cousin in MA was a Mazda mechanic... and he shares your sentaments exactly. Except for the RX-7, old Mazdas suck. And even the RX-7 is known for terrible reliability... that's why you never see rotary powered race cars... the apex seals tend to go too easily.

However for the last 2 or 3 years, Mazdas have been pretty decent cars, on par with other major manufacturers. The MP3's and MP5's are decent cars. The new RX-8 is pretty sweet too. The Mazda 6 is a dope sedan!

FYI: The Ford Probe is a Mazda... it's not that bad a car. Hell the original Probe Turbo from like '87 or whenever is pretty sweet!

[AtomicLabMonkey]

I don't care how "pretty decent" they've gotten, I wouldn't trust one as far as I could sawzall off its hood and throw it down the street. And I know the Probe was a Mazda collaboration.. I wouldn't buy one of those pieces of shit either. The RX-8 may be fast, but I'll wait until I see how they hold up at 100,000 miles before giving them even a mild thumbs-up. I've been permanently and (probably) irrevocably jaded against all Mazdas. Those things are like a blight upon the land.



Do I sound just a little pissed off today...?

[sperry]

Originally Posted by AtomicLabMonkey

I don't care how "pretty decent" they've gotten, I wouldn't trust one as far as I could sawzall off its hood and throw it down the street. And I know the Probe was a Mazda collaboration.. I wouldn't buy one of those pieces of shit either. The RX-8 may be fast, but I'll wait until I see how they hold up at 100,000 miles before giving them even a mild thumbs-up. I've been permanently and (probably) irrevocably jaded against all Mazdas. Those things are like a blight upon the land.



Do I sound just a little pissed off today...?

Well,

1) The RX-8's aren't fast... they're cool.
2) I need a sawzall.
3) Just buy a $3 relay and fix the goddam car and drive it home.
4) No more pissed off than usual.
5) As an engineer, and a reasonably intelligent person, I'm surprised you'd generalize one POS car as representative of all Mazdas. Don't forget that car was owned by a woman, and everyone knows all women don't know how to take care of cars, right. (please recoginze the irony of that statement before sending Laura to come kick my ass )

[sybir]

Sounds like you're having the same problem I was with my Scoob.

In the starter solenoid assembly, there's a plunger with a copper disc on the end. When you activate the solenoid, it's driven down ~1/2 inch, where it hits 2 copper contacts. One contact should be attached through the starter case to the power wire, and the other one makes a connection to the starter motor.

I
Looks like __I __, where the I's are the plunger.

The 2 contacts are joined by the copper disc on the plunger. When the contacts/plunger wear down, it no longer always makes contact, and it happens all of the sudden, because the power arcs, arcs, arcs as it wears down, then each arc wears and corrodes it more. So you turn the key and get the solenoid click, but it doesn't connect the power to the starter, so you get nothing. You try it 8 times, nothing, then try it a 9th time, and it fires right up. The temp fix is to turn on all the accessories in your car, and leave it in the On position for 15-30 seconds before you start it; the juice circulating slightly warms the contact, making it more likely to complete the circuit.



As for how to fix it, pull the starter. It's probably going to be a nippondenso, but even if not, pull off the solenoid cover, the plunger slides out and you'll see the 2 contacts. Replacements cost me $5 at a starter/alternator shop, and I just cleaned up the surface on the plunger, and wala, no more problems, and it only cost me $5


Drove me nuts too, but that's where I'd start if power is going to the starter but it's not turning over.

Hope that helps.

[sybir]

More extensive writeup, as well as parts if you can't find 'em locally.
http://4crawler.cruiserpages.com/4x4...OnlineOrdering

[sperry]

I believe he fixed the problem... it was the Parking lockout on the shifter... you know that switch that has to be triggered by the car being in Park before it'll start. They can get it to start by putting it in Neutral for the time being.

[AtomicLabMonkey]

Yeah, it was the shifter interlock - it'll only start in "Park" about half the time, the other half you have to shift it to neutral. I've been so busy with our other two cars I haven't had a chance to deal with it yet... I need too soon though before it completely craps out and won't even start in neutral. I think I'm just gonna find that wire harness under the hood and bypass the interlock, I really don't feel like taking apart the center console and monkeying around with the shifter mechanism.

[sperry]

Originally Posted by AtomicLabMonkey

Yeah, it was the shifter interlock - it'll only start in "Park" about half the time, the other half you have to shift it to neutral. I've been so busy with our other two cars I haven't had a chance to deal with it yet... I need too soon though before it completely craps out and won't even start in neutral. I think I'm just gonna find that wire harness under the hood and bypass the interlock, I really don't feel like taking apart the center console and monkeying around with the shifter mechanism.

How much you wanna bet the wiring for that system is entirely inside the cabin of tha car. I'll bet it's between the ignition key and the shifter. The interlock switch prolly just interrupts the "Start" position signal between the key and the starter relay. You'll either need to cut the start wire from the key switch and wire a new lead directly to the starter relay, or you'll need to open up the shifter area and wire a jumper over the interlock switch (in which case it might be easier just to replace the switch itself). Either way you're gonna be under the dash. Git yer monkey on.

[AtomicLabMonkey]

Originally Posted by sperry

How much you wanna bet the wiring for that system is entirely inside the cabin of tha car. I'll bet it's between the ignition key and the shifter. The interlock switch prolly just interrupts the "Start" position signal between the key and the starter relay. You'll either need to cut the start wire from the key switch and wire a new lead directly to the starter relay, or you'll need to open up the shifter area and wire a jumper over the interlock switch (in which case it might be easier just to replace the switch itself). Either way you're gonna be under the dash. Git yer monkey on.

Well, from what I saw in the Chilton manual the wiring harness for the safety switch should be on top of the transaxle... here's hoping. *fingers crossed*