Boost drop normal for MS3 - DashHawk log attached

[Parkeway]

...and...after further review:

Checked hoses at I/C, line from BPV, and every other clamp or hose I could put my hands on and all were solid.

- this is a BPV issue, no?

(and thank goodness for the DashHawk...otherwise I'd have no other way of knowing I was driving a plain ole Mazda3)

 

[mckraut]

Sounds like a leaky BPV, yes. Is yours stock? Might want to look into a Forge.

 

[Bravnik]

...and...after further review:

Checked hoses at I/C, line from BPV, and every other clamp or hose I could put my hands on and all were solid.

- this is a BPV issue, no?

(and thank goodness for the DashHawk...otherwise I'd have no other way of knowing I was driving a plain ole Mazda3)

Ok just a few questions - The big one, did you put a wrench to the clamps or just pull on the hoses? Reason I ask is that mine felt just fine too, but when I put a wrench to them I got at least 20 cranks on it before they were tight

Second - What are your mods? The Stock Airbox just kills this car. A Simple CAI will give you 20WHP if that tells you anything. I saw this first hand at a Dyno day for Mazdas in my local area. CAI equipped mazdas pulled 18-22 more WHP than ones with stock airboxes.

Third - Keep in mind that I'm modded pretty good thus my car will hold Boost longer and higher than a stock one.

Forth - The stock BPV is knows to hold boost very bad. At 16PSI it has known to leak. Forge makes a really good and cheap BPV for our car.

If you're stock then I would assume that is your issue. Do some runs shifting at 5500RPM's and see what happens. Do a couple pulls from 3rd through 4th and see what you get.

Also the odds of someone not modding the MS3 is rare. Thus when the original owner put the old parts back on they might not have done it right or half assed. Something to think about.

If you think this is the case then I would check a couple things. First I would look for the MBC How Too and then check the hoses it refers too on your car to see if they are factory or after market/tampered with. If it looks like it was tampered with, I would check your wiring harness to see if any of the wires are taped which would indicate a Map Clamp being installed.

Both of those would be my biggest concerns as the person may not have hooked them back right.

After that I would get a CAI of some sort (if you don't already have one) to get that noose around your cars neck off.

Anyway, I hope this helps. If your car is stock don't panic. A few hunder dollars will get you up to speed pretty quick

 

[Parkeway]

Brav - youdaman! Thanks for taking the time to follow-up - I am taking notes on all the feedback here with the goal of getting this car to (mis)behave

I made ONE MORE RUN tonight and with the temperature in the low 80's, it seemed to run a bit better. Most runs I've made in the short two-weeks I've owned this car have been in the 95-100 degree afternoons here. And while temps did affect my SC'd Miata, the oversized FMIC and eManage made quick work of the heat (ran strong with 160deg track temps at VIR one year)

The Speed3 on the other hand, in my bone-stock trim, seems a little "moody". What this means, of course, is that I will waste no time slapping the mods on it to unleash the beast.

Thanks again to everyone here trying to zero-in on the issues.