Recent content by negusm

Might be tough. I don't know of a shop that will allow you to bring your own parts anymore. I tried to bargain with a shop for my 4Runner that they were TOYOTA rear shocks, sealed in the TOYOTA packaging and they wouldn't budge an inch. Even when I said I'd sign off on no warranty. They also...

I bought OEM rotors from MazdaSwag. Swapped the ones from Firestone off my mom's car and there was noticeable difference in weight. The OEM ones were far heavier. I vote for OEM. They weren't that much more.

Maybe the transmission mount counts as a combined third one? I usually go to partsouq.com, put in my vin and look at the exploded diagrams to see what parts are doing what.

It comes back after the car sits overnight. Months ago it would come back after about 30 minutes. At that time a frozen evap crossed my mind but since it's gotten far worse, I discounted it. I'll check the drain. It's easy and free after all.

Some more good suggestions. It's not a freezing evap coil or the AC would come back on after a bit. Like I said, you get one good run on a cold startup and then when it cuts out, it never comes back. Even with running around and doing multiple stops for some errands for an hour.

Thanks for the info. I do have the service manual and will crack it open. I don't think the temp sensor is the issue. Cranking the temp down to 60F makes the fan come on full blast, no problem. The fan also ramps up and down as I get closer or or farther away. I assume that if the temp...

So this 2008 has manual AC. I cracked open the service manual and it should be a three step process. Remove gas pedal. Remove Driver's side console panel next to the gas pedal. Remove wiring connector and then pull the Resistor.

My AC will work great for a while and then just quit. It used to come back on after 15 minutes and work great again until it would stop again but now it seems like it works when the car is first started cold, then when it cuts out, it stays off permanently until the next day. I checked the AC...

Looking for a good 2008 Mazda3 vid or guide...There's exactly one vid on youtube but it was pretty worthless. The guy had everything apart already.

We've had a few 5s and a 2008 3 and no covers.

I haven't done it but if you're going to do it...I assume it's all on the "front" of the engine. (which would actually be the passenger side). If it's a typical engine setup, Replace: Water Pump Front Main Engine Seal Cam Seals? There are probably chain guides. Usually made from plastic on...

@ramshankle How bad is the noise? I'm very surprised that Mercon V would damage things that quickly. How many miles did you put on it? Are the high gear synchros causing issues? The first gear synchro never works all that well on these.

If you don't have at least 200k miles on the chain, it's a waste of money.

On a 2.3L, it helps keep crap out of the AC Compressor which is on the bottom of the engine. I replaced both on the 2008 Mazda 3 and 2010 Mazda 5 2.3L. They were missing from the used car dealer.

Never seen such a thing. You can always get something custom made but it won't be cheap.