Skyactiv Owners - Who is on their Original Belt Tensioner?

[SparkYellow]

Oh man, it's good you replaced that belt. I'll say it again, amazing how long it lasted.

When you start the engine, if the tensioner is holding the belt steady, I don't think it is an immediate concern.

I think you've already done your transmission fluid, yes? Have you checked your valve cover gasket for leaks?

Front suspension components for wear or play?

Check your rear strut mounts.

Otherwise, you have nothing else to worry about.

If it weren't for you, we were gonna find out at what point the belt finally snaps and leaves me stranded, 190K or 200K...

The transmission service was done last year. Shocks/struts and motor mounts were all replaced around the same time. I will ask the mobile mechanic to check on the VC, they're doing my rear brakes pads tomorrow.

 

[Lazy2.5]

If it weren't for you, we were gonna find out at what point the belt finally snaps and leaves me stranded, 190K or 200K...

The transmission service was done last year. Shocks/struts and motor mounts were all replaced around the same time. I will ask the mobile mechanic to check on the VC, they're doing my rear brakes pads tomorrow.

How much did it cost to do your motor mounts? Do you know how much labour was involved?

You can easily check the VCG yourself with the plastic engine cover removed.

Then you're good to go, no need to worry about anything else. Even if the VCG is leaking, the replacement will eventually leak too, and it's not anything serious.

 

[SparkYellow]

How much did it cost to do your motor mounts? Do you know how much labour was involved?

You can easily check the VCG yourself with the plastic engine cover removed.

Then you're good to go, no need to worry about anything else. Even if the VCG is leaking, the replacement will eventually leak too, and it's not anything serious.

The quote I got from a highly rated medium size shop for all 3 mounts was $1,250 (parts/labor as shown in the quote).

I paid $305 for OEM mounts including tax. I have to check my earlier post to see how much time it took. I recall the transmission bottom mount and passenger side mount were done in the same 4-hour session. The driver side upper mount was done in separate session and more labor intensive. There were two bolts that were hard to get to. One bolt hole ended up getting stripped and had to be re-tapped. For a professional mechanic with all the equipment, I don't think it'd take more than 4 hours for all 3, but book rate is surely more.

I still have all three worn mounts, would you like to see them?

... This is the thread: Mazda3 Engine mount inquiry

 

[Lazy2.5]

The quote I got from a highly rated medium size shop for all 3 mounts was $1,250 (parts/labor as shown in the quote).

I paid $305 for OEM mounts including tax. I have to check my earlier post to see how much time it took. I recall the transmission bottom mount and passenger side mount were done in the same 4-hour session. The driver side upper mount was done in separate session and more labor intensive. There were two bolts that were hard to get to. One bolt hole ended up getting stripped and had to be re-tapped. For a professional mechanic with all the equipment, I don't think it'd take more than 4 hours for all 3, but book rate is surely more.

I still have all three worn mounts, would you like to see them?

My god.. my mounts are all worn, but the amount of play in the engine isn't too bad. I'd rather have the engine flap around slightly than pay that much.

And if you want to upload a pic, sure. I'd be curious to see how yours held up.

I can show you my original passenger side upper engine Mount (since it's visible in the engine bay) if you're curious to see. It's cracked.

 

[SparkYellow]

My god.. my mounts are all worn, but the amount of play in the engine isn't too bad. I'd rather have the engine flap around slightly than pay that much.

And if you want to upload a pic, sure. I'd be curious to see how yours held up.

I can show you my original passenger side upper engine Mount (since it's visible in the engine bay) if you're curious to see. It's cracked.

The two mounts accessible from the top can be done without a lift, if you can find a buddy to help out. If your buddy is low-profile, it is also possible to replace the dog bone at the center/bottom with jack and stands.

The pictures I took aren't very clear. At the time I thought they were to blame for the increased vibration I felt, but it was in fact the worn shocks/struts.

Yes please show us the condition of your original mount!

 

[ColoradoDriver]

Replaced once. So far so good on the replacement many years later.

Beltds replaced at same time. I wish I remember mileage / year they were replaced, but want to say it was pre-COVID.

 

[Lazy2.5]

The two mounts accessible from the top can be done without a lift, if you can find a buddy to help out. If your buddy is low-profile, it is also possible to replace the dog bone at the center/bottom with jack and stands.

The pictures I took aren't very clear. At the time I thought they were to blame for the increased vibration I felt, but it was in fact the worn shocks/struts.

Yes please show us the condition of your original mount!

350,xxx KM

Doesn't look great, but the whole engine moves side to side by maybe about 1cm when revving lightly. Unless the engine is flopping side to side extensively, I'm not worried about it.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

 

[SparkYellow]

I believe that is the passenger side upper mount. There are surface cracks at the top of mine (removed at 155K miles). The whole piece of rubber is solid. The pedestal shape (?) allows for quite a bit of movement. Among the 3 mounts, this is the only one that I can move with my hand. I didn't check if the new ones did the same.

 

[Lazy2.5]

I believe that is the passenger side upper mount. There are surface cracks at the top of mine (removed at 155K miles). The whole piece of rubber is solid. The pedestal shape (?) allows for quite a bit of movement. Among the 3 mounts, this is the only one that I can move with my hand. I didn't check if the new ones did the same.

In this image that you shared here, the cracking is significantly worse than on mine. to confirm, this is the passenger side upper motor mount, same as the one I shared a picture of earlier today?

I can see why you decided to go ahead and replace your mounts, assuming the rest of them were this worn.

I wonder why yours wore so much faster. You have a CX-3, 2L AWD, correct? My Mazda 6 has the 2.5 and is FWD, so hard acceleration is certainly going to place more wear and tear on those mounts. I used to sometimes get horrid wheelhop during hard acceleration from a dig when the road surface was slippery, which surely puts immense stress on these soft mounts. The 2.5 probably gets beefier mounts, but I am wondering what your driving habits are like?

 

[Lazy2.5]

350,xxx KM

Doesn't look great, but the whole engine moves side to side by maybe about 1cm when revving lightly. Unless the engine is flopping side to side extensively, I'm not worried about it.

@SparkYellow I've been keeping an eye on this mount, and it's certainly gotten more cracking over the last 1-2 years or so.. Looks like it will eventually just crack clean in half like yours.. I am mostly quite easy on the throttle too..

 

[SparkYellow]

View attachment 382969
In this image that you shared here, the cracking is significantly worse than on mine. to confirm, this is the passenger side upper motor mount, same as the one I shared a picture of earlier today?

I can see why you decided to go ahead and replace your mounts, assuming the rest of them were this worn.

I wonder why yours wore so much faster. You have a CX-3, 2L AWD, correct? My Mazda 6 has the 2.5 and is FWD, so hard acceleration is certainly going to place more wear and tear on those mounts. I used to sometimes get horrid wheelhop during hard acceleration from a dig when the road surface was slippery, which surely puts immense stress on these soft mounts. The 2.5 probably gets beefier mounts, but I am wondering what your driving habits are like?

It is the same mount. I thought the crack was superficial and the whole piece appeared intact. Let me try to stab it with a knife...

The CX-3 is front-heavy, the tire pressure is 36/33 front/rear. I am gentle on the pedals. I downshift to climb hills but that's not hard acceleration? Best 0-40 mph in the CX-3 is about 6 seconds.

 

[SparkYellow]

Did you mean this crack/slit that goes all the way around? It is only on the surface. Where is the crack clean in half? I didn't know it was that bad.

 

[Lazy2.5]

Did you mean this crack/slit that goes all the way around? It is only on the surface. Where is the crack clean in half? I didn't know it was that bad.

I can't possibly know just by looking at the pic, how deep that crack goes.. If it was only on the surface, that's not too bad.

 

[Lazy2.5]

The CX-3 is front-heavy, the tire pressure is 36/33 front/rear.

Interesting.. If you haven't seen, I made a post showing the tire pressure recommendations for the rest of the world (Global owners manual..) - The "Hidden" Tire Pressure Specs (US/CAN vs. The World)

Here is a screenshot for your CX-3:

Link: (Under "Tyres"):

https://owners-manual.mazda.com/gen/en/cx-3/cx-3_8gt4ee18d/contents/10020108.html

Note, that Mazda considers a light load anything up to 495LB, and suggests a square PSI of 33psi all around for your AWD model. Obviously unrelated to our discussions related to belts and motor mounts, but I would suggest to play around with your tire pressures between a range of 33-36PSI square and see what works best for you.

I have the same light load rec. for my Mazda 6 of 33psi square, but my door jamb (is dummy-proof specced') at 36 square. I usually drive alone - well within light load. I found that anything between 33-36psi square is great, though I prefer to be on the higher end of that range, for increased sidewall stiffness when cornering. It seems like a similar range would be optimal for you and worth experimenting with, assuming you regularly drive loaded below 495lb.

I downshift to climb hills but that's not hard acceleration?

so long as you are not accelerating excessively while climbing hills, and not higher than 3 or 4000RPM, perfectly reasonable and optimal.

The Skyactiv's have an optimal efficiency zone between 2000-3000RPM or so, though it will be higher on the 2.0 vs the 2.5, maybe somewhere around 2500-3500rpm.