As a Mazda tech of 23 years and MPS owner that's done nearly 300,000klms on the original engine (series 1 BK MPS), the only two issues I've seen are due to failed VVT actuators resulting in a timing chain rattle on start up, and issues due to people not using SN grade fully synthetic oil or simply not changing the oil at all. Usually the chain doesn't stretch, the lock pin in the VVT actuator fails creating the illusion of stretch when the inner stator shifts due to the fact that it's no longer locked in place. The chain is actually stronger than the chain used in the L5 engines, it has to be as GDI engines contain more particulate matter in the oil, absolutely no different to a diesel. Hence why most issues are a result of incorrect oil usage and poor maintenance. I will say Mazda used an odd oil ring spacer, it's a fine one piece spring and tends to carbon up due to the previously mentioned particulate matter in the oil resulting in oil consumption and spun bearings as the oil level gets too low. However, once again it's due to the use of incorrect oil (GDI engines must run SN or SN+ grade oil) and/or poor maintenance. The balancer cassette is not a poor design as balance shafts have to be heavy due to the fact that they offset secondary harmonics in an undersquare engine. The oil pickup also has an internal strainer. The L3-VDT craps all over the Ecoboost 2.3 with its open deck block. The 2.3 L3-VDT windows blocks due to the fact people wind the boost and timing through the roof resulting in cylinder pressures higher than that of an average diesel, that's hardly any fault of the engine itself. You are not supposed to use the 8x1.0mm bolt through the harmonic balancer into the timing case to lock the crank in place while torquing and angle torquing the crank stretch bolt, that's made pretty clear in the workshop manual and it's obvious that bolt won't handle such loads and was never intended to.
2 things I will say. 1st, changing the oil and watching the level inbetween, is critical on this series of engine. Even with the bests oils available, I still recommend changing it at about 3500 miles, because these mills run dirty and hot. 2nd. Buy the correct timing tool kits and use only factory parts, as they have been updated several times.
@@reneerogers3646 The VVT solenoid, no. However the issue regarding slack in the chain with the engine off is related to the VVT actuator, when replacing the VVT actuator you need to retime the engine.
The ford 2.0 and 2.3 ecoboost use the L3-vdt block one of the few things shared ford plans on continuing use of the L3-vdt for a long time to come I bought a 13 mkz 2.0 turbo awd with 37 k on it and now have 168k on it I run motorcraft filters and mobil 1 5w30 I did a compression test 2 weeks ago I had 190 compression across all 4 cylinders during a wet test I change everything as the manual suggest anyway I just wanted to let you know ford uses the same block however the head vvt and fuel injection system are different
@@stevennunez6013 the Ecoboost 2.0 uses a similar block, the Ecoboost 2.3 uses a totally different open deck block with major structural issues. The L3-VDT is a closed deck design good for at least 800BHP without sleeves.
Still daily mine bolt ons and tuned by freek. Drive it like a race car frequently and never have a problem.....at all. Close to 300whp, 28mpg, and been reliable for me since 2013.
My mps have 247 000km on clock.still using oem vvt gear stock internals.neva been opened.not using any oil.and still hold compression.the golden secret.keep maintanance.do oil change earlier then what they suggest.and do basic maintanance.clean ur egr valve and massflow sensor regular.replace airfilter regular and use the correct oil grade.and do oil change every 5000km.thats my secret.and never drive car hard when engine is still cold.and let turbo run for min or 2 after hard runs
As the owner of a trouble free albeit, never ever touched by anyone but me with 105,000 miles in my 07 Mazdaspeed3 I knew this video was gonna hurt. It did! Time to start going to 3k instead of 5 between changes. I really hope my oil pan does not look like that. I’ll think of this every time I’m on full boost now! I got a non turbo Mazda 5 with same motor with same Miles parked right next to it. Toyota, please bring the Yaris Turbo here! I can’t afford it but Toyota needs a hot hatch!
@@weekileaks23 Don't worry mate, just don't put chocolate on your oil between maintainences...😉 And if you have beated to hard your speed 3 engine for that mileage on it .. better think about puting an OEM timming kit not too far from today inside... You don't wanna mess with a blown or straigtened chain.
The amount of things I learn from these is impressive. As a starter mechanic these things are always helpful. And even to people who don’t work on cars or know anything about them, makes you aware of what might happen with some cars people try and sell you
I’ve got a 96 Ford Probe . Just changed the oil yesterday. Got it as a demo with about 3k miles. Always used a synthetic oil. Still runs , just can’t prevent it from rusting.
Didn't wait for the conclusion to comment, so I edit it. And, yes I'm that guy : That was my engine for about 200K kilometers and 15 years without an issue. I mean NO ISSUE AT ALL. Frequent oil changes with superior oil grade and quality than requested helped a lot. Then I rebuild it completly new and upgraded. That was my first engine teardown and rebuild and that wasn't that difficult with the correct informations and knowledge. Definitly won't be an easy engine compared to NA V6 or V8, or even vtec L4 engine. Because it also features a lot of "modern" things these engines do not have, like high pressure direct injection on a 2006 engine. And don't forget the selling price when you criticize engineering, in this case, you get what you paid for and in fact you get a lot for what you paid at this time. And, yes there is a screen on the inside of the oil pickup. For sure this engine is really sensitive to maintenance, but is there any 250+hp turbo L4 that is not sensitive ?
Its all about the owner. After 220k kms i decided to do a timing chain job so i took the motor out and it was torn down. Inside looked like it was new (Still have stock size sleeves). Bearings were okay but cyl 3 had a bit of brass showing. Motor was built to handle more power and the crank shaft went out to get keyed. Balance shaft was deleted (makes the car obnoxious on idle). I have those marks on my valve cover i think its just from when the car starts up. As an owner i dont think they're hard to work on at all. Thats my opinion.
@@mrdumbfellow927 Which was probably inevitable given the scope and design of propulsion systems now, but good old Blue was up to those tricks fifty years ago. Not all of it was that way, but I remember having to fabricate a lot of "special tools" on the fly to keep a Ford running in the seventies, which was the worst era.
Plus this engine served as a precursor that marked the blueprint for the current day ecoboost engines from ford. So it was just what mazda was dealt with since they were under ford
I confess I get a perverse pleasure from seeing other people’s misery from bad engineering. I have owned some of the worst cars ever made. And, I have repeatedly repaired those nightmares. About the only piece of junk I haven’t owned is a Yugo. Thank you Jesus. Love your channel and that there’s no AWFUL music. Peace
On the gen 2 speed engine, they revises the vvt actuator, timing chain tensioner and the chain itself. They're a fantastic motor and very reliable, the same can't be said for the gen 1, cx7 and 6 motors. They're an impressive mottoes for what they are and with proper maintenance they will last longer than most other 4 bangers making the same power.
That is a gen 2 engine. You can tell by the cam cover with upgraded breather as well as the completely revised piston crowns. The timing chain was identical between all engines and the VVT actuator was identical compared to later gen 1 engines.
My 2.0 liter Mazda Protege 5 engine was absolutely was a great engine. What a fun car to drive. Bought it new in 02 and was scrapped 2017. My 2017 CX-5 2.5 liter is good too. Turbo cars today need very frequent oil changes. I also had a Mazda 626 turbo and that car was scary quick, it pulled like a train. Great video again.
My wife has an 08 MPS here in New Zealand, it’s about to tick over 300,000kms (186,000 miles), had a timing chain at 175k and carbon clean at 250k, serviced every 5k
Alot of poeple make this cars bad.but the big thing is maintanace.i also service my mps every 5000km and my motor is healthy.have 246k on clock now no issues.
In NZ as well, my Speed has hit 201,000 kms, makes 201 kw atw and 425 nm atw, on stock bottom end and stock clutch driven everyday, no issues at all. All down to servicing and getting a reputable tuner. I bought it at 101,000 kms 4 years ago. Currently saving up to do rods and pistons and bigger turbo and chase more power.
I had a 2004 Mazda 6 with the ford duratec engine. It took care of me for 300,000 miles. She took care of me more than I took care of her. The most annoying thing with her was the crappy shift linkage that I had to get replaced 3 times. The part where it connects to the transmission was plastic. Because that small piece of plastic broke, I had to get the whole shift linkage cable assembly that connects the stick shift to the transmission replaced.
I guess these were the common issues associated with adding a turbo and GDI onto 4 cylinder engines that weren’t completely designed to handle the extra pressure and stress. I recently bought a 2010 Mazda 3 with the naturally aspirated 2.5L MZR and it runs smoothly at 94k miles. Also heard these engines are very reliable with regular maintenance. Wish me luck guys as I hope to reach 200k miles with it!
I think the only good 2.3 engines FoMoCo made was in the 1970's Ford Pinto 2300cc, they were bulletproof. With regular maintenance like changing the timing belt every 40,000 miles, it was a Good Little Engine. You could change a timing belt in 30 minutes, and that's taking a coffee break halfway. The bottom pully would come right off just like you did, take the plastic cover off, line up TDC, the distributor gear, and cam timing marks, back together, piece of cake! Why the demand for oil pans, is it from bottoming out or throwing rods out through it?? To keep from chasing the engine stand around I would use shop towels wrapped around the wheels, that idea came to me after getting stuck under a car while on a creeper and running over a shop towel, help I'm stuck. lol
I have a mazdaspeed3 full bolts on with a cts4 turbo. I bought it stock with 28k miles. It has 200k now and I have never had issues with it. But I have always keep up with the service and oil change
Former owner of a MazdaSpeed 6 GT here. The MZR 2.3 had its issues but for being essentially an experimental DI engine for Mazda it was pretty damn reliable for me, unlike the power window switches and motors ($300 a door). The major engine uh, quirk, mine (really, all) had was the turbo oil issue where after driving at running temps for a bit the exhaust would turn to dark bluish black smoke for a few minutes and eventually clear up. Not being a mechanic I was always surprised that CX-7s with the same engine detuned were such maintenance nightmares But the car was pretty great even if many interior plastic parts just did not hold up to years of desert summers and had ever-widening panel gaps. The dashboard was always tight and I liked how clean and simple it was. The car pulled with authority once you turned the turbo on with the gas peddle, and you could definitely feel when it engaged the rears. Being a manual though, the car really was not the friendliest when sitting in rush hour traffic. It was a car that was always best in open-road driving, and my kids got a kick out of how well it handled.
Thanks for your insight, opinions, and sharing of experiences. After watching this and reading a few comments, it bothers me that a Mazda tech told me that I have the oil changed too often in my naturally aspirated 2.3 MZR - 2009 Mazda3 sedan. Because I generally put few miles on the car - it’s at 143000km, I tend to change the oil every six to eight months (the car’s almost 15 years old) as opposed to the 8000km interval - often with as few as 2000km, using Mobil 1 5W-20. Sure the used oil may ‘look’ new, but at $40/jug, $10/filter, and the labour (the car’s too low to do at home) I’m okay with that $200/year outlay. The engine burns no oil, turns over immediately, idles smoothly, and pulls as well as any 150hp four cylinder. Yes, I always take it to the dealership for oil changes (snicker all you want), as I’ve found it beneficial in the long run to have a relationship with this particular dealer. I own a 2004 MSM and a 2016 CX-3 both of which I maintain myself, along with two other Mazda’s owned by family members. Having a good relationship with the dealership has secured me discounts on winter tires, rims, batteries, filters, etc. Oh, and they’ve never charged me more than $40 labour for the oil change.
Really appreciate your tear down video of this engine. I previously owned an ‘86 RX-7 base model & a ‘91 Miata. I really enjoyed both cars. When I saw the HP output of the Mazdaspeed3, I was intrigued...until now. I likely wouldn’t have bought one, but know better now - thanks to you! Love your channel and the good information you pass along as you work! Thank you!
I had a Spped6 and I loved it. When I bought it, I bought the extended warranty and hit the limit when the engine seized. I sold it right after it was fixed. I was told the turbo leaked oil but since I used synthetic it didn't smoke. It ran dry & warped the block.
This engine was a joint venture between them, based off the Ford 2.0 Ecotec. Ford is still using it in new vehicles while Mazda gave up on it a decade ago.
You are right, no one believed Ford's "brilliant" EcoTec was based on the old Mazdaspeed 3 motor. Ford got a lot of praise when they put it in Mustang while Mazda has walked away and got themself Skyactiv.
I had a non direct injected 2004 2.3l mazda 3 that was bullet proof and was killed when I hit a deer. That Generation 2.3 was a great engine. My step-dad had a Ford focus same year with the same engine and got 280,000 before body rusted out despite running it out of oil 3 times due to not changing it. Still ran like a top. What parts failed on yours?
I had a 2011 msp3 big turbo, e85, 65k miles, never had any issues. That being said, I cleaned the valves regularly myself, I changed the oil all the time (ran it hard) and constantly did preventative maint on it. Car made 385 WHP on stock block and never had any failues. I owned it since 11k miles stock.
I was thinking of getting an older CX-7. I thought well they’re all cheap and break turbos but they’re surely fine if well taken care of. Thanks for your video I will rethink it.
I have a Μazda CX-7 the last 13 years. There is absolutely 0 damage /issues until now, except a small battery drain, that happens the 2020 and over. (i have to start the car for 5 mins once a week)
these engines are incredibly reliable if you do maintenance on it.. just like anything else. at my dealer the engines that are changed are all lack of maintenance or abuse. the chain stretching is common for lack of oil chances. either way its only $39 plus the friction washers.
In 2012 Mazda forgot to harden the exhaust cam shafts on the 2.2D Skyactive engines for NINE MONTHS of production. The metal particles would blow turbos and vacuum pumps, no recall, not covered after warranty. My 2015 reg was came with one of these engines, so >60% diesel Mazda 3 and CX5 you see on the road are running on 4 exhaust valves.
I watched your Honda Civic video yesterday and did not comment. All the experience you have and you didn't know it was a thrown rod? I remember when Toyota started using aluminum blocks, I saw one where it looked like someone took a hatchet and went around the outside (not completely) and smashed through it in a ring. It was a 1999 Corolloa with 20k miles. The new alloy block is no match for a steel crank and hardened rods. This is my first comment, and might be my last here. Keep up the good work, the channel is formatted well from editing and commentary. And it is accurate from a technical perspective.
I had a 2008 Speed3 that I bought new and put 275k miles on it with no issues at all. I wrecked it all the way and now it's gone. I thought the Speed3&6 had forged internals with Manley rods. CX7 was different. It was a very expensive car to maintain though.
I have a 2011 Mazdaspeed 3 with 145,000 before it started ticking. Had the top rebuilt and 30 days later the new timing chain snapped. Bye motor. I have a couple of friends who had rebuilt motors from this guy and no issues. I had nothing but issues. Last June I found a JDM Motor and Trans. Had a reputable shop do the installation and so far so good. Since last June, I put 6K miles on the motor after getting the Corksport HPFP and Access Port. Kept it simple. I don't drive it hard out of fear.
I just traded a 08 Mazdaspeed 3. It had 189,000 miles on it. For the last 140,000 miles, I have been running a Cobb Stage 1 plus tune on it. It has been drag raced and I have had street fun with it. It was my daily driver, including Michigan winters for 12 years. The only thing I had to do was change shocks, suspension bushings, tires and brakes. I had ball joints fail at 180,000 miles so I replaced those, along with the whole front control arms this spring. Ended up replacing the front K member as well, since I mangled it getting bolts out. The car still had the original clutch that was still holding. The car had it's original turbo. The motor mounts were all still good. The car never even turned on a check engine light it's entire life. The car had synthetic oil in it it's entire life. Best car I have owned up to this point. Be religious with your oil and spark plug changes people, it matters. The PCV system on these does blow, but there are fixes for that.
I am guessing that Ford owns Mazda? The block says FOMOCO. My Mitsubishi PU had a 2.6 Mazda engine. I replaced it with a 5.7 Chevy and a 4l60e. I now have reliability, power and the same mpg. I really engine your videos. Have a great day everyone.
I'm not a mechanic but I am a lover of cars and do basic DIY stuff myself. Your videos are oddly entertaining for some reason. Whatever it is you are doing, well, keep doing it!
I wish I had seen your channel so much sooner!!!! I like the way you show what's to be expected with different engines. Our professor in auto tech could only tell us what to stay away from but you actually show and tell which is really 😎 cool. Looking to some more of your awesomeness. Keep up the gear ⚙️ werk!!!
Stretched chains on a CX-7 engine is usually always from abuse. The Mazda 3 and Mazda 6 is usually from lack of maintenance. And maybe some abuse. But the CX-7 owners are pissed they have to drive an SUV and want to drive the 3 or the 6 and hammer them but the CX7 weighs way more and that strains that engine so bad
Yeah my old friend's mom had the same vehicle and was abused so engine went ka-put pretty early. You really had to push it to get it going but it "feels" fast when it's being pushed hard.
That is so odd. I shit drove mine but made sure it was well maintained…..it wouldn’t quit. I even filled it with water once in a huge pothole….pulled the plugs, gave it the dry start, worked like a charm. The thing was a beast. I don’t understand
There is a special timing tool for the cam that locks both the intake and exhaust cam but it requires the removal of the high pressure fuel pump. That's why its also slotted like the exhaust cam. Also the main cause for the chain slap isn't chain stretch ita vvt failure which is usually verified when you see the plunger on the vvt is missing.
Exactly. I'm so tired of hearing it's timing chain stretch. There is a pin that locks the inner stator on the VVT actuator on startup until oil pressure builds up in the actuator, this pin wears or fails completely resulting in a rattle in start up for a second or two until oil pressure has built up. If there's any slack in the chain with the engine off its usually as a result of the inner stator moving when the engine is off due to a failed locking pin.
Some of the issues started with the extended oil change intervals, from 3k to 5k, 7k, or 10k miles. And people using the cheapest oil they can find and doing one oil change a year. I bought a Toyota Tacoma with the 2.7 4 cyl, and previous owner eas doing oil change once a year, almost 15k miles between oil changes...😳
Totally agree, why would anyone leave the oil in for that long. The oil breaks down and then starts gumming up the works. It's a massive false economy, being a cheapskate on servicing.
I still have mine a 07 CX7 AWD. It had almost 180,000km on it. It is a fun and quick car. I replaced the turbo three years ago. It was an absolute nightmare. Most screws you can’t see them and you can only remove and install them by touch. I won’t blame Mazda Engineers though, this is one of Ford’s Duratec Engines. I owned about a dozen Mazda in 30 years. This one was the worst. In a normal car, replacing the PCV is a couple minutes job. On the Duratec, it’s a 5 hour struggle because you have to remove the Intake Manifold.
I had a 2006 Mazdaspeed 6. I spent the most money fixing it out of all the cars that I've ever own. Mostly engine problems. With that being said, I do miss it though.
Holy crap - I went to see a CX7 yesterday... it was dripping oil all over the place... once I realized it only drives on Premium fuel I can opted out... after watching this, even more glad I did not pull the trigger!
Morale of the story. Check your oil dipstick on a regular basis such as every other fill up, and change your oil at least once in a while. The owner of this car may have never changed the oil, and especially had no idea to check the oil.
@@alextran8188 Almost like they used mazda as their guinea pigs from the getgo to mark the blueprint that became the ecoboost engine going forth (minus the head gasket nightmare in the early production Focus RS) but if mazda were to ever do a third gen run of mazdaspeed (mazda just please give it already!) Then it's going to be interesting to see their skyactiv tech for a beefy hatch, or even a return of the speed6
@@alextran8188 mazda has the 2.5 which was like the duratech fusion 2.5 turnocharged now. Looks good. I remember seeing a beefy chain too. Was that oil pump deleted on the gen 2 speed?
@@mikeschiavoni5973 the L3-VDT is the stronger engine compared to the L5. The L3-VDT has bigger, fully floating wrist pins, hypereutectic pistons, sinter forged conrods and a forged steel crank with bigger big ends than the L5. The L5 timing chain is no good in a GDI engine like the L3-VDT due to higher particulate matter in the oil, hence the reason the L3-VDT runs a roller chain. The L3-VDT also has a block made using a better casting process for more strength, it's a vastly superior block than the open deck design used in the Ecoboost 2.3 by Ford. No Ford ran the L3-VDT.
i think good oil and change evry 5000miles the oil, also change coolant water.. the engine would not look like this.. the oem oil its trash. Sorry for my bad englsih ( I use 5w-50 from Mobil 1, much people use 5w-40) and also the new mazdaspeed Facelift dont have this chain problems more.. or not so much.
Please teardown Nissan VQ engines either 3.5 or the 3.7. And explain from your experience what are the weakpoints and things you like and dislike about them. Enjoying the content!!
The later VQ35de, and more so VQ35hr and VQ35vhr have oil gallery gasket issues. From what I've read, replacement is quite pricey, usually higher than the value of the car the motor is in. G35s and 350Zs that have those motors are pretty much throw away cars at this point.
Don't forget those engines were built and designed in the "Ford" erra. Those engines were also put into Ford's. Those engines were designed by Ford engineers not Mazda engineers. Now the new Skyactiv-G and Skyactiv-X engines are designed and built by Japanese engineers and are very very reliable.
My Speed has hit 201,000 kms, makes 201 kw atw and 425 nm atw, on stock bottom end and stock clutch driven everyday, no issues at all. All down to servicing and getting a reputable tuner. I bought it at 101,000 kms 4 years ago. Currently saving up to do rods and pistons and bigger turbo and chase more power.
Aren’t these designed by Mazda with Ford parts. I think I remember hearing they had an agreement that Mazda would design the smaller engines and Ford the big ones when they were together
@@InksJC that is true. Just like the duratec 3.0 V6 was designed and built by Mazda/Suzuki in the early 90s. So technically the Aston Martin DB9 was powered by Mazda, as that 6.0 V12 was two duratec V6s on a common crank.
@@InksJC I do not know 100% for sure so it is very possible you are correct. But you can still have a good design with bad parts. All I am saying the new Skyactiv technology is really good and reliable.
As a Mazda fan that owns a 2006 Mazda 3 with the 2 liter MZR, I can agree with you on all the points you made about the engine. I also hate the engine for the exact same reasons you stated. After having the engine that came in the cars timing chain replaced I fried the bearings in it, then replaced the engine with one from a 2009, after starting the engine, I found this replacement needed the damn chain replaced as well.......$2k later and I have a running engine. I hate that the damper isn't keyed, if you blow the head gasket or have to remove the oil pan you may as well just get a replacement engine as it is cheaper then having the labor to get done. I also have a 94 Miata with the BP engine, and a 2020 CX5 with the turbocharged skyactive engine. At least the skyactive engines have a keyed crank again, so there is hope. Just wanted to agree with you on all the points you made, great video.
Also forgot the rear main seal is not hard to replace but if you don't do it just right it will leak again soon. It is because instead of a hard formed rubber it is some type of compressed felt and it is really easy to fuck up.
If I had to guess, someone was in the bottom end and did the bearings at some point. But never torqued the rod caps to proper spec, didn't replace the caps to their original orientation, and didn't reinstall the balancer properly. Causing more stress on numbers 2 and 3. Hence "cooking" the rods as well as the bearings.
I had to work on an L3-VE which had lost intake cam timing which we couldn't get fixed in a shop because the service guy was adamant it was an electronics issue (every warning light on the gauge cluster lit up and the enigne sputtered at ever decreasing RPM threshold) and wouldn't accept that the camshaft timing is held with *nothing* but straight bolt tension and will inevitably spin and told us we have no idea how engines are put together saying such things. Oh, and you can't just pull the cover and adjust the thing, because the intake bolt (which is the one that gives) is obscured by the chain cover. These engines make decent power and run nice and smooth, but their best use would be to drop from great height on whoever approved the design. It seems to be optimized to maximize the misery on the service guy.
Reminds me of the timing on the old Ford 4.0L. Some habits die hard. Somewhere in the world, there is a bean counter and an engineer having a beer together, congratulating themselves on the dirt cheapest way to time an engine. “Key ways cost money. Slot the cams and pin the crank, works just as good and is much cheaper.” Before everyone goes hating on Ford, Cummins did a similar thing with the 12v 5.9L with the P7100 pump. Line the marks up on the crank and cam gear, pin the cam, pin the injection pump, then bolt the pump gear on. The crazy part about Cummins doing it, key way slots were already cut, but they wouldn’t work to time the injection pump.
If you think the MZR is a bad motor I would love to see you tear down a Prince EP6 engine or N18 Mini engine. BTW the mazda in my profile still runs with original engine with original bearings at 250,000km (155,000miles), all from care and love.
Man I'm so thankful I never bought the upper trim of the cx7. Stuck with the i-sport so I could have the Bluetooth and backup cam. 11 years later that shitbox is still kicking with no issues with the transmission or engine. Can't say that about anything else though.
My mps have 246000km on clock.still going strong.no issues.i do oil change every 5000km.use the correct oil 5w30 fully synthetic.i clean egr valve every 20000km.
My dad bought an 07 cx7 years ago the sales guy didnt tell him was turboed. My dad bought it within a few months of him owning it he blew the turbo. He got it replaced then he had the smart idea a few years later to try towing with the car. Im pretty sure the engine was going to blow, i could hear knocking but he got ride of it a few months later.
MZR is a good engine . Never had any problems with mine except minor maintenance and valve cleanings. Any engine will do that if not maintained. I just think you have done alot of these with terrible owners . Got to run full synthetic . I run pennzoil platinum full synthetic and change it every 3000 miles. Runs like a charm. My CX-7 is a rocket 🚀
My fiance drives a CX-7 with this engine. They have incredibly short oil change intervals (3k miles). Has 100k miles on it currently, still runs great. I always change the oil at the correct interval, and always use valvoline or castrol full synthetic. Given that, cost of oil/filter maintenance is very high given the value of the car. Also, I always make sure she runs quality premium fuel (even though the owners manual says you don't have to). I ran a tank of budget station 89oct in it once, just to see how it would like it. Ran fine under normal driving conditions, but WOT in the higher rpms I could tell it was pulling a bunch of timing and/or boost. Might have been compensating for knock, I'm not sure. Just seat of the pants observation. Haven't had any issues with it yet. Still runs like a top. Probably should do some walnut blasting on the intake valves soon though.
@@myousic4564 Ya, its not ideal. The non grand touring trim, with the 2.5L has longer oil change intervals. I'm doing oil changes on it about every 8-10 weeks. Only takes me about 20-30 minutes to do. You could probably run 5-7k mile intervals, but 3.5k is what is recommended, and I need this thing to last so I'm being anal about it. For what we paid for it, I could do that for 10+ years before I would even come close to breaking even on the price difference between the CX and something like a RAV-4 or CR-V. CX was also better equipped. So, it's really to each their own. I don't mind doing my own oil changes. But if it would be a big annoyance, just look elsewhere, or buy one with the 2.5L.
To clarify for people that don't know. Chains don't stretch as in the metal doesn't get lengthened. The holes in the links get worn and it causes the chain to elongate.
Had My 6 for 4 years , on 152k running 500 bhp to crank I beat smoke out of it regularly, the designs are poor like mounts, crank, seals , and shafts mainly and yes they are a pain the ass to work on, just like my misses I suppose 🤣 also both high maintenance 😂 but I still love them both though ❤
@@MrUGA2010 ohh my 08 Mazda 6 needs another engine is it a common issue for the 2.3 L to burn oil. That’s how I destroy the engine in my car because I don’t know the car Burned oil:(
Oh damn. My oil change has just come due in my speed 3. Better get it done. I'm gonna be even more careful with mine now. It has 200,000km on it and I was thinking of upping the oil change interval so I will after seeing this video. With it being a Ford block and so much Ford input to the design, I knew it wouldn't be as good as a pure Mazda but now I know the issues thanks to you. I always use synthetic and change my filter so I hope it will stay reliable. Gonna check my oil level today. I really appreciate your work. Thanks
@@FusionBoost2.0 I've read that they designed the block at least, so many of those issues such as the oil pan mating, cam chain routing etc would be influenced by the block design I'd imagine. I'm not holding Ford totally responsible, for sure, but I just worry about ford having their input into any design (especially Euro Ford - which I assume it is, since it's a small engine). I'm just crossing my fingers that regular maintenance is the key to longevity with this engine
I love watching theses videos! Thanks for taking the time to make them. It might just be me, but I kind of get the since you are not a big fan of the MZR ENGINE...🤔😂😂😂
I have a 2.5L Naturally Aspirated engine on my 2011 Mazda CX-7 it has 281k miles and I never had any major issues with it I know because I'm the original owner of this car. Extremely reliable long lasting SUV from Mazda.
Own a Mazdaspeed3, first gen. I bring oil in my trunk everywhere. I change my oil way before the recommended few thousand miles. Its the only way to keep up with these engines. I noticed that if I even allow the car to run on oil over a couple thousand miles old, I overheat at idle speed. Had a normal mazda3 before that with no issues, and I beat on that car WAY harder than I do with my speed. I did buy used so maybe that's part of the problem, but I guess I'll never know.
All I got from this was the need for regular oil changes and his reluctance for engine development. Who takes oil pans off insitu east-west engines? Space is tight on the cars and easier to pull the motor. Diamond impregnated friction washer or keyed shafts, both work.
I am all for new tech, so long as it’s not at the expense of reliability and serviceability. Pinned cams and crank, a normal oil pan, and a thicker chain and this engine would be 10x better than it is. Pins aren’t one time use. You can’t time them wrong (easily) and it would simplify the timing procedure. Mazda’s later engines are pinned. So clearly they knew what direction to go.
got a cx-7 sitting out back of our shop that sounds like a bag of hammers. some poor lady bought it on an auction as a basket case, intercooler, valve cover and everything in the backseat. she payed us to reassemble it and get it too run. someone had blown the megafuse, and tossed the coils. anyway... after it 'ran' we dropped the... oil? i think it was oil... once.. looked like a really neat gun metal grey paint color, oil filter cartridge was crumpled into a wad. after we started looking for engines, and the prices were sky high.. we had to tell her it really wasn't worth anything. and thats too bad, its a texas car. around here in the rustbelt that's usually worth gold. we are pretty sure the auction disabled it, and tore it down specifically too sell it to some poor sucker. they knew what they had, or at least whoever owned it originally did.
I bought a 2006 3 with the nearly identical, nameless 2.0 variant of the 2.3 MZR shown in the video. It had been overheated and I was expecting to replace the head gasket and a few other things. I will start by saying that This is the worst engine I have ever had to work on by a significant margin. It seems like they engineered this thing to fail in every way possible outside of the block. If you own a 2.0/2.3 Mazda I would strongly suggest you go and replace every single coolant pipe bolted to the head and block before they inevitably fail within the next few years. They are all made out of plastic, do not age well (extremely brittle after 10 years), and cost way more than they should. This is still cheaper than overheating and blowing this engineering nightmare up. I had to replace all but one of these because they were all broken and leaking. The reassembly of one of these made me want to never work on another vehicle again. Do not think of doing anything important to one of these engines unless you have lots of prior knowledge and a full understanding of how timing is supposed to work. You will have to throw most of your knowledge away while you wait for 2 specialty timing sets and a few other tools to come in for the project. On that note, I hope you own lots of specialty tool sets, and even if you do, I am thrilled to tell you that you will have to buy several more if you plan to do anything outside of basic maintenance on this engine. To give it some credit, the car is decently quick after replacing the head (perfect valve lash on the tight side), cams+gears, VVT actuator, entire timing and tensioning assembly, every crush washer (enjoy paying >$100 for these stupid things every time you take it apart, upgraded head gasket, and most of the electronics. The variable valve timing for these cars is frighteningly bad. The actuators will fail regularly within 25-100k if you don’t do near perfect maintenance, the VVT solenoid will get clogged and either make it stick or completely starve the actuator of all oil. (The quality and weight of the oil is incredibly important for this engine to not sound like the top end is going to explode. I thought Chrysler engineering was terrible, but these things have redefined my lowest low for a somewhat modern engine. Here I am left with a car that cost me $200 with around $3000 (everything but machining done by me) to replace the top end and timing assembly but is worth $1000. I wanted to turn this into a nice little sporty daily, but have completely changed my mind after seeing how it was engineered. I love reading the stories of people with high mileage on these engines, but I can only say it’s a combination of extreme luck and a spotless maintenance record. I genuinely hope all of your engines go a million miles. Though I can promise you it won’t if you beat on this engine marginally (high revs and poor maintenance specifically) because it is designed to fail disastrously with small amounts of either. Best of luck to all FoMoCo 2.0/2.3 owners!
There is a company that keys the crank as well as the camshafts on these. If you plan on building a higher HP build, it's a great idea to get that done. And to be honest, if you use the cam and crank lock tool, doing the timing chain is really simple.
As a Mazda tech of 23 years and MPS owner that's done nearly 300,000klms on the original engine (series 1 BK MPS), the only two issues I've seen are due to failed VVT actuators resulting in a timing chain rattle on start up, and issues due to people not using SN grade fully synthetic oil or simply not changing the oil at all. Usually the chain doesn't stretch, the lock pin in the VVT actuator fails creating the illusion of stretch when the inner stator shifts due to the fact that it's no longer locked in place. The chain is actually stronger than the chain used in the L5 engines, it has to be as GDI engines contain more particulate matter in the oil, absolutely no different to a diesel. Hence why most issues are a result of incorrect oil usage and poor maintenance.
I will say Mazda used an odd oil ring spacer, it's a fine one piece spring and tends to carbon up due to the previously mentioned particulate matter in the oil resulting in oil consumption and spun bearings as the oil level gets too low. However, once again it's due to the use of incorrect oil (GDI engines must run SN or SN+ grade oil) and/or poor maintenance. The balancer cassette is not a poor design as balance shafts have to be heavy due to the fact that they offset secondary harmonics in an undersquare engine. The oil pickup also has an internal strainer.
The L3-VDT craps all over the Ecoboost 2.3 with its open deck block. The 2.3 L3-VDT windows blocks due to the fact people wind the boost and timing through the roof resulting in cylinder pressures higher than that of an average diesel, that's hardly any fault of the engine itself.
You are not supposed to use the 8x1.0mm bolt through the harmonic balancer into the timing case to lock the crank in place while torquing and angle torquing the crank stretch bolt, that's made pretty clear in the workshop manual and it's obvious that bolt won't handle such loads and was never intended to.
2 things I will say. 1st, changing the oil and watching the level inbetween, is critical on this series of engine. Even with the bests oils available, I still recommend changing it at about 3500 miles, because these mills run dirty and hot. 2nd. Buy the correct timing tool kits and use only factory parts, as they have been updated several times.
Do you have to re-time the engine when changing the vvt solenoid on the regular Mazda 3 then? I plan to change my vvt solenoid soon
@@reneerogers3646 The VVT solenoid, no. However the issue regarding slack in the chain with the engine off is related to the VVT actuator, when replacing the VVT actuator you need to retime the engine.
The ford 2.0 and 2.3 ecoboost use the L3-vdt block one of the few things shared ford plans on continuing use of the L3-vdt for a long time to come I bought a 13 mkz 2.0 turbo awd with 37 k on it and now have 168k on it I run motorcraft filters and mobil 1 5w30 I did a compression test 2 weeks ago I had 190 compression across all 4 cylinders during a wet test I change everything as the manual suggest anyway I just wanted to let you know ford uses the same block however the head vvt and fuel injection system are different
@@stevennunez6013 the Ecoboost 2.0 uses a similar block, the Ecoboost 2.3 uses a totally different open deck block with major structural issues. The L3-VDT is a closed deck design good for at least 800BHP without sleeves.
I loved my mazdaspeed3, sooo much power, so fun to drive, never had a problem with mine but I also took care of it.
Did you buy it new?
Just came back from 850km road trip and its healthy like new.
Still daily mine bolt ons and tuned by freek.
Drive it like a race car frequently and never have a problem.....at all.
Close to 300whp, 28mpg, and been reliable for me since 2013.
I have a mazda 6mps ( speed6) 107k miles on the clock and runs like new
My mps have 247 000km on clock.still using oem vvt gear stock internals.neva been opened.not using any oil.and still hold compression.the golden secret.keep maintanance.do oil change earlier then what they suggest.and do basic maintanance.clean ur egr valve and massflow sensor regular.replace airfilter regular and use the correct oil grade.and do oil change every 5000km.thats my secret.and never drive car hard when engine is still cold.and let turbo run for min or 2 after hard runs
Arguably some of the best content on UA-cam.
As the owner of a trouble free albeit, never ever touched by anyone but me with 105,000 miles in my 07 Mazdaspeed3 I knew this video was gonna hurt. It did! Time to start going to 3k instead of 5 between changes. I really hope my oil pan does not look like that. I’ll think of this every time I’m on full boost now! I got a non turbo Mazda 5 with same motor with same Miles parked right next to it. Toyota, please bring the Yaris Turbo here! I can’t afford it but Toyota needs a hot hatch!
Agree!
@@weekileaks23 Don't worry mate, just don't put chocolate on your oil between maintainences...😉 And if you have beated to hard your speed 3 engine for that mileage on it .. better think about puting an OEM timming kit not too far from today inside... You don't wanna mess with a blown or straigtened chain.
Up
I am not sure but I don't think he likes these engines
The amount of things I learn from these is impressive. As a starter mechanic these things are always helpful. And even to people who don’t work on cars or know anything about them, makes you aware of what might happen with some cars people try and sell you
I had a 2010 CX-7 and put 150k on it. Normal maintenance and changed the oil regularly. It was a perfect car. Had it for 9 yrs.
I’ve got a 96 Ford Probe . Just changed the oil yesterday. Got it as a demo with about 3k miles. Always used a synthetic oil. Still runs , just can’t prevent it from rusting.
@@joeshmoe629 wow a probe, don't see many of them!
@@willg125 if the rust keeps flaking off , there won’t be much more of it left to see
have a 2011 CX-7 GT 170k on it. use synthetic oil runs good
@@joeshmoe629 if u put it through the carwash , that would be the reason for rust. I have 2007 mazda 6, it never seen a carwash. Zero rust issues
This channel has made me hyper aware about everything oil in my cars.
My grandfather told me many many years ago "oil and grease are cheaper than wear boy".
Didn't wait for the conclusion to comment, so I edit it. And, yes I'm that guy : That was my engine for about 200K kilometers and 15 years without an issue. I mean NO ISSUE AT ALL. Frequent oil changes with superior oil grade and quality than requested helped a lot. Then I rebuild it completly new and upgraded. That was my first engine teardown and rebuild and that wasn't that difficult with the correct informations and knowledge. Definitly won't be an easy engine compared to NA V6 or V8, or even vtec L4 engine. Because it also features a lot of "modern" things these engines do not have, like high pressure direct injection on a 2006 engine. And don't forget the selling price when you criticize engineering, in this case, you get what you paid for and in fact you get a lot for what you paid at this time. And, yes there is a screen on the inside of the oil pickup. For sure this engine is really sensitive to maintenance, but is there any 250+hp turbo L4 that is not sensitive ?
Its all about the owner. After 220k kms i decided to do a timing chain job so i took the motor out and it was torn down. Inside looked like it was new (Still have stock size sleeves). Bearings were okay but cyl 3 had a bit of brass showing. Motor was built to handle more power and the crank shaft went out to get keyed. Balance shaft was deleted (makes the car obnoxious on idle). I have those marks on my valve cover i think its just from when the car starts up. As an owner i dont think they're hard to work on at all. Thats my opinion.
6:10 oh look, they even stamped the problem right into the side of the block. How kind.
It's a FoMoCo - OF COURSE it requires special tools and rules. The mark on the block explains everything.
Aside from ls and lt series engines, isn't that sort of an industry- wide thing nowadays?
@@mrdumbfellow927 Which was probably inevitable given the scope and design of propulsion systems now, but good old Blue was up to those tricks fifty years ago. Not all of it was that way, but I remember having to fabricate a lot of "special tools" on the fly to keep a Ford running in the seventies, which was the worst era.
Plus this engine served as a precursor that marked the blueprint for the current day ecoboost engines from ford. So it was just what mazda was dealt with since they were under ford
@@Sn0w_Official the originating designer was Mazda.
Ford just owned Mazda at this time
Idk why people hate these they are super simple and easy to work on cheap engines I love them, do regular oil changes not a single issue
I confess I get a perverse pleasure from seeing other people’s misery from bad engineering. I have owned some of the worst cars ever made. And, I have repeatedly repaired those nightmares. About the only piece of junk I haven’t owned is a Yugo. Thank you Jesus. Love your channel and that there’s no AWFUL music. Peace
If you have not owned a Chevette you dont know what misery is. The worst car ever made.
Don't worry - you will be on the receiving end at some point.
On the gen 2 speed engine, they revises the vvt actuator, timing chain tensioner and the chain itself. They're a fantastic motor and very reliable, the same can't be said for the gen 1, cx7 and 6 motors. They're an impressive mottoes for what they are and with proper maintenance they will last longer than most other 4 bangers making the same power.
That is a gen 2 engine. You can tell by the cam cover with upgraded breather as well as the completely revised piston crowns. The timing chain was identical between all engines and the VVT actuator was identical compared to later gen 1 engines.
loved my 13' speed3 - never had any issues with it. came to speed3 from a NA mazda3 - loved it as well.
if only the 2nd gens looked as good as the first gens
@@joem3115 the 1st gens are ugly imo.
@@RandyAugustus Hey i get it man, not everyone has good taste.
My 2.0 liter Mazda Protege 5 engine was absolutely was a great engine. What a fun car to drive. Bought it new in 02 and was scrapped 2017. My 2017 CX-5 2.5 liter is good too. Turbo cars today need very frequent oil changes. I also had a Mazda 626 turbo and that car was scary quick, it pulled like a train. Great video again.
My wife has an 08 MPS here in New Zealand, it’s about to tick over 300,000kms (186,000 miles), had a timing chain at 175k and carbon clean at 250k, serviced every 5k
Alot of poeple make this cars bad.but the big thing is maintanace.i also service my mps every 5000km and my motor is healthy.have 246k on clock now no issues.
In NZ as well, my Speed has hit 201,000 kms, makes 201 kw atw and 425 nm atw, on stock bottom end and stock clutch driven everyday, no issues at all. All down to servicing and getting a reputable tuner. I bought it at 101,000 kms 4 years ago. Currently saving up to do rods and pistons and bigger turbo and chase more power.
the difference between a bad car and a good car is the same as between a bad owner and a good owner, it all starts with changing the oil on time.
very true. sold my 13' speed3 a few months ago with 72K miles - never had a single issue in 7.5 years i have owned it...
Mazda MPS 6. 120k miles, lots of launches and top speed runs... Still pulls great. Oil - 5w40 LM Molygen
Same. Race mine every summer. I use rotella though.
I had a 2004 Mazda 6 with the ford duratec engine. It took care of me for 300,000 miles. She took care of me more than I took care of her. The most annoying thing with her was the crappy shift linkage that I had to get replaced 3 times. The part where it connects to the transmission was plastic. Because that small piece of plastic broke, I had to get the whole shift linkage cable assembly that connects the stick shift to the transmission replaced.
I guess these were the common issues associated with adding a turbo and GDI onto 4 cylinder engines that weren’t completely designed to handle the extra pressure and stress. I recently bought a 2010 Mazda 3 with the naturally aspirated 2.5L MZR and it runs smoothly at 94k miles. Also heard these engines are very reliable with regular maintenance. Wish me luck guys as I hope to reach 200k miles with it!
The naturally aspirated engines are pretty reliable in my experience
@@I_Do_Cars have a 2006 Mazda5 with the 2.5 and it’s running great.
I just change the oil every 5000 miles.
I think the only good 2.3 engines FoMoCo made was in the 1970's Ford Pinto 2300cc, they were bulletproof. With regular maintenance like changing the timing belt every 40,000 miles, it was a Good Little Engine. You could change a timing belt in 30 minutes, and that's taking a coffee break halfway. The bottom pully would come right off just like you did, take the plastic cover off, line up TDC, the distributor gear, and cam timing marks, back together, piece of cake!
Why the demand for oil pans, is it from bottoming out or throwing rods out through it??
To keep from chasing the engine stand around I would use shop towels wrapped around the wheels, that idea came to me after getting stuck under a car while on a creeper and running over a shop towel, help I'm stuck. lol
Engine - Failed Under Continuous Testing (FUCT)
Ha! Also RUD - Rapid Unintended Disassembly.
I have a mazdaspeed3 full bolts on with a cts4 turbo. I bought it stock with 28k miles. It has 200k now and I have never had issues with it. But I have always keep up with the service and oil change
Former owner of a MazdaSpeed 6 GT here. The MZR 2.3 had its issues but for being essentially an experimental DI engine for Mazda it was pretty damn reliable for me, unlike the power window switches and motors ($300 a door). The major engine uh, quirk, mine (really, all) had was the turbo oil issue where after driving at running temps for a bit the exhaust would turn to dark bluish black smoke for a few minutes and eventually clear up. Not being a mechanic I was always surprised that CX-7s with the same engine detuned were such maintenance nightmares
But the car was pretty great even if many interior plastic parts just did not hold up to years of desert summers and had ever-widening panel gaps. The dashboard was always tight and I liked how clean and simple it was. The car pulled with authority once you turned the turbo on with the gas peddle, and you could definitely feel when it engaged the rears. Being a manual though, the car really was not the friendliest when sitting in rush hour traffic. It was a car that was always best in open-road driving, and my kids got a kick out of how well it handled.
Thanks for your insight, opinions, and sharing of experiences.
After watching this and reading a few comments, it bothers me that a Mazda tech told me that I have the oil changed too often in my naturally aspirated 2.3 MZR - 2009 Mazda3 sedan.
Because I generally put few miles on the car - it’s at 143000km, I tend to change the oil every six to eight months (the car’s almost 15 years old) as opposed to the 8000km interval - often with as few as 2000km, using Mobil 1 5W-20.
Sure the used oil may ‘look’ new, but at $40/jug, $10/filter, and the labour (the car’s too low to do at home) I’m okay with that $200/year outlay.
The engine burns no oil, turns over immediately, idles smoothly, and pulls as well as any 150hp four cylinder.
Yes, I always take it to the dealership for oil changes (snicker all you want), as I’ve found it beneficial in the long run to have a relationship with this particular dealer. I own a 2004 MSM and a 2016 CX-3 both of which I maintain myself, along with two other Mazda’s owned by family members. Having a good relationship with the dealership has secured me discounts on winter tires, rims, batteries, filters, etc. Oh, and they’ve never charged me more than $40 labour for the oil change.
Absolutely one of the best UA-cam sights going. Great content and presentation. Thank you
Really appreciate your tear down video of this engine. I previously owned an ‘86 RX-7 base model & a ‘91 Miata. I really enjoyed both cars. When I saw the HP output of the Mazdaspeed3, I was intrigued...until now. I likely wouldn’t have bought one, but know better now - thanks to you!
Love your channel and the good information you pass along as you work! Thank you!
I had a Spped6 and I loved it. When I bought it, I bought the extended warranty and hit the limit when the engine seized. I sold it right after it was fixed. I was told the turbo leaked oil but since I used synthetic it didn't smoke. It ran dry & warped the block.
FoMoCo... Everything I hated about my gen1 Mazda 3 had that stamped on it...
This engine was a joint venture between them, based off the Ford 2.0 Ecotec. Ford is still using it in new vehicles while Mazda gave up on it a decade ago.
You are right, no one believed Ford's "brilliant" EcoTec was based on the old Mazdaspeed 3 motor. Ford got a lot of praise when they put it in Mustang while Mazda has walked away and got themself Skyactiv.
FYI, no Ford hater here. I own two of them.
Ford ran Mazda into the ground, they took everything that was good about Mazda and then sold them off, just like most American corps do.
I had a non direct injected 2004 2.3l mazda 3 that was bullet proof and was killed when I hit a deer. That Generation 2.3 was a great engine. My step-dad had a Ford focus same year with the same engine and got 280,000 before body rusted out despite running it out of oil 3 times due to not changing it. Still ran like a top.
What parts failed on yours?
I had a 2011 msp3 big turbo, e85, 65k miles, never had any issues. That being said, I cleaned the valves regularly myself, I changed the oil all the time (ran it hard) and constantly did preventative maint on it. Car made 385 WHP on stock block and never had any failues. I owned it since 11k miles stock.
You can tell from his tone, he absolute LOVES these engines!
I was thinking of getting an older CX-7. I thought well they’re all cheap and break turbos but they’re surely fine if well taken care of. Thanks for your video I will rethink it.
I have a Μazda CX-7 the last 13 years. There is absolutely 0 damage /issues until now, except a small battery drain, that happens the 2020 and over. (i have to start the car for 5 mins once a week)
I love your sarcasm and honesty. Another well explained teardown.
Thanks!!
I got a Mazdaspeed6 2007 model with 300,000 km on it! poor thing was abused by 10 owners but never let me down! very reliable cars
these engines are incredibly reliable if you do maintenance on it.. just like anything else. at my dealer the engines that are changed are all lack of maintenance or abuse. the chain stretching is common for lack of oil chances. either way its only $39 plus the friction washers.
In 2012 Mazda forgot to harden the exhaust cam shafts on the 2.2D Skyactive engines for NINE MONTHS of production. The metal particles would blow turbos and vacuum pumps, no recall, not covered after warranty. My 2015 reg was came with one of these engines, so >60% diesel Mazda 3 and CX5 you see on the road are running on 4 exhaust valves.
Those 2.2 diesels are an absolute nightmare.
I watched your Honda Civic video yesterday and did not comment. All the experience you have and you didn't know it was a thrown rod? I remember when Toyota started using aluminum blocks, I saw one where it looked like someone took a hatchet and went around the outside (not completely) and smashed through it in a ring. It was a 1999 Corolloa with 20k miles. The new alloy block is no match for a steel crank and hardened rods. This is my first comment, and might be my last here. Keep up the good work, the channel is formatted well from editing and commentary. And it is accurate from a technical perspective.
I had a 2008 Speed3 that I bought new and put 275k miles on it with no issues at all. I wrecked it all the way and now it's gone. I thought the Speed3&6 had forged internals with Manley rods. CX7 was different. It was a very expensive car to maintain though.
I have a 2011 Mazdaspeed 3 with 145,000 before it started ticking. Had the top rebuilt and 30 days later the new timing chain snapped. Bye motor. I have a couple of friends who had rebuilt motors from this guy and no issues. I had nothing but issues. Last June I found a JDM Motor and Trans. Had a reputable shop do the installation and so far so good. Since last June, I put 6K miles on the motor after getting the Corksport HPFP and Access Port. Kept it simple. I don't drive it hard out of fear.
I just traded a 08 Mazdaspeed 3. It had 189,000 miles on it. For the last 140,000 miles, I have been running a Cobb Stage 1 plus tune on it. It has been drag raced and I have had street fun with it. It was my daily driver, including Michigan winters for 12 years. The only thing I had to do was change shocks, suspension bushings, tires and brakes. I had ball joints fail at 180,000 miles so I replaced those, along with the whole front control arms this spring. Ended up replacing the front K member as well, since I mangled it getting bolts out. The car still had the original clutch that was still holding. The car had it's original turbo. The motor mounts were all still good. The car never even turned on a check engine light it's entire life. The car had synthetic oil in it it's entire life. Best car I have owned up to this point. Be religious with your oil and spark plug changes people, it matters. The PCV system on these does blow, but there are fixes for that.
I am guessing that Ford owns Mazda? The block says FOMOCO. My Mitsubishi PU had a 2.6 Mazda engine. I replaced it with a 5.7 Chevy and a 4l60e. I now have reliability, power and the same mpg. I really engine your videos. Have a great day everyone.
Probably my favorite channel now on UA-cam!
Just found this channel and love it! Binged all the teardowns and look forward to more. Great insight and delivery! Keep it up man!
I'm not a mechanic but I am a lover of cars and do basic DIY stuff myself. Your videos are oddly entertaining for some reason. Whatever it is you are doing, well, keep doing it!
This is pure automotive engineering candy -- love it. Thanks for doing all the work and for your competence. Your dad must be proud.
I wish I had seen your channel so much sooner!!!! I like the way you show what's to be expected with different engines. Our professor in auto tech could only tell us what to stay away from but you actually show and tell which is really 😎 cool. Looking to some more of your awesomeness. Keep up the gear ⚙️ werk!!!
Stretched chains on a CX-7 engine is usually always from abuse. The Mazda 3 and Mazda 6 is usually from lack of maintenance. And maybe some abuse. But the CX-7 owners are pissed they have to drive an SUV and want to drive the 3 or the 6 and hammer them but the CX7 weighs way more and that strains that engine so bad
Yeah my old friend's mom had the same vehicle and was abused so engine went ka-put pretty early. You really had to push it to get it going but it "feels" fast when it's being pushed hard.
That is so odd. I shit drove mine but made sure it was well maintained…..it wouldn’t quit. I even filled it with water once in a huge pothole….pulled the plugs, gave it the dry start, worked like a charm. The thing was a beast. I don’t understand
LOL at the "crickets" while you were describing "all of the things" you like about the engine! Fred
@6:25, The FoMoCo stamp on the block says it all.
There is a special timing tool for the cam that locks both the intake and exhaust cam but it requires the removal of the high pressure fuel pump. That's why its also slotted like the exhaust cam. Also the main cause for the chain slap isn't chain stretch ita vvt failure which is usually verified when you see the plunger on the vvt is missing.
Exactly. I'm so tired of hearing it's timing chain stretch. There is a pin that locks the inner stator on the VVT actuator on startup until oil pressure builds up in the actuator, this pin wears or fails completely resulting in a rattle in start up for a second or two until oil pressure has built up. If there's any slack in the chain with the engine off its usually as a result of the inner stator moving when the engine is off due to a failed locking pin.
Some of the issues started with the extended oil change intervals, from 3k to 5k, 7k, or 10k miles. And people using the cheapest oil they can find and doing one oil change a year. I bought a Toyota Tacoma with the 2.7 4 cyl, and previous owner eas doing oil change once a year, almost 15k miles between oil changes...😳
Totally agree, why would anyone leave the oil in for that long. The oil breaks down and then starts gumming up the works. It's a massive false economy, being a cheapskate on servicing.
I still have mine a 07 CX7 AWD. It had almost 180,000km on it. It is a fun and quick car. I replaced the turbo three years ago. It was an absolute nightmare. Most screws you can’t see them and you can only remove and install them by touch. I won’t blame Mazda Engineers though, this is one of Ford’s Duratec Engines. I owned about a dozen Mazda in 30 years. This one was the worst. In a normal car, replacing the PCV is a couple minutes job. On the Duratec, it’s a 5 hour struggle because you have to remove the Intake Manifold.
I had a 2006 Mazdaspeed 6. I spent the most money fixing it out of all the cars that I've ever own. Mostly engine problems. With that being said, I do miss it though.
A while back you advised against me getting a car with this engine. I am glad I followed your advice
keep up the engine teardowns!! Love it
I enjoy watching your tear down vids. Wether am in the toilet porch bed couch i watch your tear downs👍💪
I can definitely smell that oil pan through the internet 😂
I could watch tear downs all day. Keep up the great vids
Holy crap - I went to see a CX7 yesterday... it was dripping oil all over the place... once I realized it only drives on Premium fuel I can opted out... after watching this, even more glad I did not pull the trigger!
Morale of the story. Check your oil dipstick on a regular basis such as every other fill up, and change your oil at least once in a while. The owner of this car may have never changed the oil, and especially had no idea to check the oil.
i always wondered if just some rods were afraid of the dark and really wanted to see the light..
The engine psychologist prescribes 4.2qt of 5w-20 for this kind of engine anxiety
Mazda and Ford creating engineers wet dreams and a mechanical nightmares!
Ford still makes this engine and has actually improved it tremendously since the last time it was in a Mazda lol
@@alextran8188 Almost like they used mazda as their guinea pigs from the getgo to mark the blueprint that became the ecoboost engine going forth (minus the head gasket nightmare in the early production Focus RS) but if mazda were to ever do a third gen run of mazdaspeed (mazda just please give it already!) Then it's going to be interesting to see their skyactiv tech for a beefy hatch, or even a return of the speed6
@@alextran8188 the 2.5 MZR is the last one they came out with and is a major improvement. I'd argue that it's even better than the ecoboost.
@@alextran8188 mazda has the 2.5 which was like the duratech fusion 2.5 turnocharged now. Looks good. I remember seeing a beefy chain too. Was that oil pump deleted on the gen 2 speed?
@@mikeschiavoni5973 the L3-VDT is the stronger engine compared to the L5. The L3-VDT has bigger, fully floating wrist pins, hypereutectic pistons, sinter forged conrods and a forged steel crank with bigger big ends than the L5. The L5 timing chain is no good in a GDI engine like the L3-VDT due to higher particulate matter in the oil, hence the reason the L3-VDT runs a roller chain. The L3-VDT also has a block made using a better casting process for more strength, it's a vastly superior block than the open deck design used in the Ecoboost 2.3 by Ford. No Ford ran the L3-VDT.
I've had 2 of these well over 130k with big turbos.. no issues.
i think good oil and change evry 5000miles the oil, also change coolant water.. the engine would not look like this.. the oem oil its trash. Sorry for my bad englsih ( I use 5w-50 from Mobil 1, much people use 5w-40) and also the new mazdaspeed Facelift dont have this chain problems more.. or not so much.
Please teardown Nissan VQ engines either 3.5 or the 3.7. And explain from your experience what are the weakpoints and things you like and dislike about them. Enjoying the content!!
The later VQ35de, and more so VQ35hr and VQ35vhr have oil gallery gasket issues. From what I've read, replacement is quite pricey, usually higher than the value of the car the motor is in. G35s and 350Zs that have those motors are pretty much throw away cars at this point.
Don't forget those engines were built and designed in the "Ford" erra. Those engines were also put into Ford's. Those engines were designed by Ford engineers not Mazda engineers. Now the new Skyactiv-G and Skyactiv-X engines are designed and built by Japanese engineers and are very very reliable.
so that is why its shit.
I have not heard anything bad about actual Mazda Engines.
My Speed has hit 201,000 kms, makes 201 kw atw and 425 nm atw, on stock bottom end and stock clutch driven everyday, no issues at all. All down to servicing and getting a reputable tuner. I bought it at 101,000 kms 4 years ago. Currently saving up to do rods and pistons and bigger turbo and chase more power.
Aren’t these designed by Mazda with Ford parts. I think I remember hearing they had an agreement that Mazda would design the smaller engines and Ford the big ones when they were together
@@InksJC that is true. Just like the duratec 3.0 V6 was designed and built by Mazda/Suzuki in the early 90s. So technically the Aston Martin DB9 was powered by Mazda, as that 6.0 V12 was two duratec V6s on a common crank.
@@InksJC
I do not know 100% for sure so it is very possible you are correct. But you can still have a good design with bad parts. All I am saying the new Skyactiv technology is really good and reliable.
As a Mazda fan that owns a 2006 Mazda 3 with the 2 liter MZR, I can agree with you on all the points you made about the engine. I also hate the engine for the exact same reasons you stated. After having the engine that came in the cars timing chain replaced I fried the bearings in it, then replaced the engine with one from a 2009, after starting the engine, I found this replacement needed the damn chain replaced as well.......$2k later and I have a running engine. I hate that the damper isn't keyed, if you blow the head gasket or have to remove the oil pan you may as well just get a replacement engine as it is cheaper then having the labor to get done. I also have a 94 Miata with the BP engine, and a 2020 CX5 with the turbocharged skyactive engine. At least the skyactive engines have a keyed crank again, so there is hope. Just wanted to agree with you on all the points you made, great video.
Also forgot the rear main seal is not hard to replace but if you don't do it just right it will leak again soon. It is because instead of a hard formed rubber it is some type of compressed felt and it is really easy to fuck up.
If I had to guess, someone was in the bottom end and did the bearings at some point. But never torqued the rod caps to proper spec, didn't replace the caps to their original orientation, and didn't reinstall the balancer properly. Causing more stress on numbers 2 and 3. Hence "cooking" the rods as well as the bearings.
I had to work on an L3-VE which had lost intake cam timing which we couldn't get fixed in a shop because the service guy was adamant it was an electronics issue (every warning light on the gauge cluster lit up and the enigne sputtered at ever decreasing RPM threshold) and wouldn't accept that the camshaft timing is held with *nothing* but straight bolt tension and will inevitably spin and told us we have no idea how engines are put together saying such things. Oh, and you can't just pull the cover and adjust the thing, because the intake bolt (which is the one that gives) is obscured by the chain cover. These engines make decent power and run nice and smooth, but their best use would be to drop from great height on whoever approved the design. It seems to be optimized to maximize the misery on the service guy.
Love these motors had my speed 3 for 13 years has a big turbo and run it daily. It’s been a fun car . Motor is still in its stock form.
Reminds me of the timing on the old Ford 4.0L. Some habits die hard. Somewhere in the world, there is a bean counter and an engineer having a beer together, congratulating themselves on the dirt cheapest way to time an engine. “Key ways cost money. Slot the cams and pin the crank, works just as good and is much cheaper.”
Before everyone goes hating on Ford, Cummins did a similar thing with the 12v 5.9L with the P7100 pump. Line the marks up on the crank and cam gear, pin the cam, pin the injection pump, then bolt the pump gear on. The crazy part about Cummins doing it, key way slots were already cut, but they wouldn’t work to time the injection pump.
If you think the MZR is a bad motor I would love to see you tear down a Prince EP6 engine or N18 Mini engine. BTW the mazda in my profile still runs with original engine with original bearings at 250,000km (155,000miles), all from care and love.
Man I'm so thankful I never bought the upper trim of the cx7. Stuck with the i-sport so I could have the Bluetooth and backup cam. 11 years later that shitbox is still kicking with no issues with the transmission or engine. Can't say that about anything else though.
Your dad was a smart man being a Mazda technician. Job Security at its finest!
"Either you eat your broccoli, or I'm taking you to the shop to help me work on engines!" (Quickly eats broccoli.)
My mps have 246000km on clock.still going strong.no issues.i do oil change every 5000km.use the correct oil 5w30 fully synthetic.i clean egr valve every 20000km.
My dad bought an 07 cx7 years ago the sales guy didnt tell him was turboed. My dad bought it within a few months of him owning it he blew the turbo. He got it replaced then he had the smart idea a few years later to try towing with the car. Im pretty sure the engine was going to blow, i could hear knocking but he got ride of it a few months later.
MZR is a good engine . Never had any problems with mine except minor maintenance and valve cleanings. Any engine will do that if not maintained. I just think you have done alot of these with terrible owners . Got to run full synthetic . I run pennzoil platinum full synthetic and change it every 3000 miles. Runs like a charm. My CX-7 is a rocket 🚀
My fiance drives a CX-7 with this engine. They have incredibly short oil change intervals (3k miles). Has 100k miles on it currently, still runs great. I always change the oil at the correct interval, and always use valvoline or castrol full synthetic. Given that, cost of oil/filter maintenance is very high given the value of the car.
Also, I always make sure she runs quality premium fuel (even though the owners manual says you don't have to). I ran a tank of budget station 89oct in it once, just to see how it would like it. Ran fine under normal driving conditions, but WOT in the higher rpms I could tell it was pulling a bunch of timing and/or boost. Might have been compensating for knock, I'm not sure. Just seat of the pants observation.
Haven't had any issues with it yet. Still runs like a top. Probably should do some walnut blasting on the intake valves soon though.
3k miles? Jesus, I would change the oil every 2 months... That's just crazy. What a waste of time to drive this thing.
@@myousic4564 Ya, its not ideal. The non grand touring trim, with the 2.5L has longer oil change intervals. I'm doing oil changes on it about every 8-10 weeks. Only takes me about 20-30 minutes to do. You could probably run 5-7k mile intervals, but 3.5k is what is recommended, and I need this thing to last so I'm being anal about it. For what we paid for it, I could do that for 10+ years before I would even come close to breaking even on the price difference between the CX and something like a RAV-4 or CR-V. CX was also better equipped. So, it's really to each their own. I don't mind doing my own oil changes. But if it would be a big annoyance, just look elsewhere, or buy one with the 2.5L.
Great detailed teardown! Thank you for you doing this!
To clarify for people that don't know. Chains don't stretch as in the metal doesn't get lengthened. The holes in the links get worn and it causes the chain to elongate.
I can see you doing your best to be nice. I'm sure it's appreciated somewhere, but I get your idea. :)
Had My 6 for 4 years , on 152k running 500 bhp to crank I beat smoke out of it regularly, the designs are poor like mounts, crank, seals , and shafts mainly and yes they are a pain the ass to work on, just like my misses I suppose 🤣 also both high maintenance 😂 but I still love them both though ❤
I have 08Mazda6i 2.3l NA engine and I put 250K miles on it; still works like clock, a real contender for 300K miles; no issues, great car
How often did you changed your oil
@@davidbillingslea2720 3-5K max miles
@@MrUGA2010 ohh my 08 Mazda 6 needs another engine is it a common issue for the 2.3 L to burn oil. That’s how I destroy the engine in my car because I don’t know the car Burned oil:(
whats the mileage at now? u make it to 300K
@@brucewayne99999 yes it’s still running, currently @265k miles
Oh damn. My oil change has just come due in my speed 3. Better get it done. I'm gonna be even more careful with mine now. It has 200,000km on it and I was thinking of upping the oil change interval so I will after seeing this video. With it being a Ford block and so much Ford input to the design, I knew it wouldn't be as good as a pure Mazda but now I know the issues thanks to you. I always use synthetic and change my filter so I hope it will stay reliable. Gonna check my oil level today. I really appreciate your work. Thanks
Ford had little design say in this engine
@@FusionBoost2.0 I've read that they designed the block at least, so many of those issues such as the oil pan mating, cam chain routing etc would be influenced by the block design I'd imagine. I'm not holding Ford totally responsible, for sure, but I just worry about ford having their input into any design (especially Euro Ford - which I assume it is, since it's a small engine). I'm just crossing my fingers that regular maintenance is the key to longevity with this engine
This was probably your best vid.
I love watching theses videos! Thanks for taking the time to make them. It might just be me, but I kind of get the since you are not a big fan of the MZR ENGINE...🤔😂😂😂
Now I have anxiety driving my mazdaspeed 3
I have a 2.5L Naturally Aspirated engine on my 2011 Mazda CX-7 it has 281k miles and I never had any major issues with it I know because I'm the original owner of this car. Extremely reliable long lasting SUV from Mazda.
That engine must've screamed for pity before it locked up and died. Who the hell would do that?
Folks like the party who answered my ad for a car I was selling with, "I do not care how it runs, it has to look nice!".
People that care more how the car is shiny and clean, but never spend any money on maintenance...
Refreshing to see some other engines! Would love to see a Toyota 1ZZ (have a soft spot for the "Yoda")
Own a Mazdaspeed3, first gen. I bring oil in my trunk everywhere. I change my oil way before the recommended few thousand miles. Its the only way to keep up with these engines. I noticed that if I even allow the car to run on oil over a couple thousand miles old, I overheat at idle speed. Had a normal mazda3 before that with no issues, and I beat on that car WAY harder than I do with my speed. I did buy used so maybe that's part of the problem, but I guess I'll never know.
All I got from this was the need for regular oil changes and his reluctance for engine development. Who takes oil pans off insitu east-west engines? Space is tight on the cars and easier to pull the motor. Diamond impregnated friction washer or keyed shafts, both work.
I am all for new tech, so long as it’s not at the expense of reliability and serviceability. Pinned cams and crank, a normal oil pan, and a thicker chain and this engine would be 10x better than it is.
Pins aren’t one time use. You can’t time them wrong (easily) and it would simplify the timing procedure.
Mazda’s later engines are pinned. So clearly they knew what direction to go.
These videos are as addictive as the rufford ford fails.
got a cx-7 sitting out back of our shop that sounds like a bag of hammers. some poor lady bought it on an auction as a basket case, intercooler, valve cover and everything in the backseat. she payed us to reassemble it and get it too run. someone had blown the megafuse, and tossed the coils. anyway...
after it 'ran' we dropped the... oil? i think it was oil... once.. looked like a really neat gun metal grey paint color, oil filter cartridge was crumpled into a wad.
after we started looking for engines, and the prices were sky high.. we had to tell her it really wasn't worth anything.
and thats too bad, its a texas car. around here in the rustbelt that's usually worth gold.
we are pretty sure the auction disabled it, and tore it down specifically too sell it to some poor sucker. they knew what they had, or at least whoever owned it originally did.
Big time agree with your assessment on the viability of these engines. Mazda really dropped the ball.
Or...The engine was simply, and obviously, poorly serviced.
kelon32 - It's just the turbo version. I have the NON-turbo 2.3 in my 3, and it's a fantastic engine with literally zero issues in 150,000 miles.
Easy fix to the timing chain. Just swap it out with the 2.5 with 2.5 sprocket and cam gears
They also put those in the mustangs and focus RS. The RS had a head gasket recall. I dreaded doing these engines when I worked at ford
Popular mod is to swap in a 2.5 duratech which apparently is a lot more reliable
I bought a 2006 3 with the nearly identical, nameless 2.0 variant of the 2.3 MZR shown in the video. It had been overheated and I was expecting to replace the head gasket and a few other things. I will start by saying that This is the worst engine I have ever had to work on by a significant margin. It seems like they engineered this thing to fail in every way possible outside of the block.
If you own a 2.0/2.3 Mazda I would strongly suggest you go and replace every single coolant pipe bolted to the head and block before they inevitably fail within the next few years. They are all made out of plastic, do not age well (extremely brittle after 10 years), and cost way more than they should. This is still cheaper than overheating and blowing this engineering nightmare up. I had to replace all but one of these because they were all broken and leaking.
The reassembly of one of these made me want to never work on another vehicle again. Do not think of doing anything important to one of these engines unless you have lots of prior knowledge and a full understanding of how timing is supposed to work. You will have to throw most of your knowledge away while you wait for 2 specialty timing sets and a few other tools to come in for the project.
On that note, I hope you own lots of specialty tool sets, and even if you do, I am thrilled to tell you that you will have to buy several more if you plan to do anything outside of basic maintenance on this engine.
To give it some credit, the car is decently quick after replacing the head (perfect valve lash on the tight side), cams+gears, VVT actuator, entire timing and tensioning assembly, every crush washer (enjoy paying >$100 for these stupid things every time you take it apart, upgraded head gasket, and most of the electronics.
The variable valve timing for these cars is frighteningly bad. The actuators will fail regularly within 25-100k if you don’t do near perfect maintenance, the VVT solenoid will get clogged and either make it stick or completely starve the actuator of all oil. (The quality and weight of the oil is incredibly important for this engine to not sound like the top end is going to explode.
I thought Chrysler engineering was terrible, but these things have redefined my lowest low for a somewhat modern engine.
Here I am left with a car that cost me $200 with around $3000 (everything but machining done by me) to replace the top end and timing assembly but is worth $1000. I wanted to turn this into a nice little sporty daily, but have completely changed my mind after seeing how it was engineered.
I love reading the stories of people with high mileage on these engines, but I can only say it’s a combination of extreme luck and a spotless maintenance record. I genuinely hope all of your engines go a million miles. Though I can promise you it won’t if you beat on this engine marginally (high revs and poor maintenance specifically) because it is designed to fail disastrously with small amounts of either. Best of luck to all FoMoCo 2.0/2.3 owners!
There is a company that keys the crank as well as the camshafts on these. If you plan on building a higher HP build, it's a great idea to get that done. And to be honest, if you use the cam and crank lock tool, doing the timing chain is really simple.