Broken Passenger Motor Mount

[B16RacerN2NR]

I noticed some fluid under my car the other day. I looked underneath and everything was ok. I popped the hood and noticed some fluid under the upper-passenger motor mount. I'm like 'WTF is this?' It seems like that mount is filled with some sort of fluid. Maybe hydrolic fluid to help with vibration or something, I don't know... You guys should go check out that mount on your 5. Make sure it's still ok.

My car is still under warranty and my local dealer, who I bought the car from and is/was the only Mazda dealer in town, moved about 40 miles away (bang) So I decided to have them check out all the damn problems at once so I don't have to go back...

Anyway, along with the motor mount I had them check out my A/C. When I bought the car I noticed that during accerleration (hard accerleration. I.E. Merging onto the freeway) the A/C air would get a little warm then cool back down once I got to a crusing speed. It worked fine so I wasn't too worried about it, hence why it took me so long to have them look at it lol.

Along with the above, I brought them the TSB printouts for the Accerleration Stumble and the Suspension Crunch. The lady told me that they can't perform the work since it's not a recall. I told her that I know it's not a recall but I brought the TSB's because I am having the problems but I can't mimic the problems on command so the TSB's are there to just back up my word. So she kept the TSB's and wrote it down on my reciept that I needed those things taken care of.

So all in all, I liked the service. She didn't try to call me a liar or anything or try to argue that they couldn't check on my complaints. They gave me a loaner, an 07 Mercury Milan with the V6. It's a pretty nice car (eekdance)

I'll give you guys an update when I get my car back. The dealer I went to is Galpin Mazda in Valencia, CA. Good service

 

[dreamym5]

man.. good thing it happened before warranty *expires*..

pleasant service from a dealer is *always* good feeling..

Hope your *problems* are resolved at *once for all*..

nice to see you again...

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

Yeah I hope they knock all the problems out. I'm 14K miles away from my warranty expiring so if there are still problems I hope they pop up before my warranty is done lol.

We can buy extended warranties correct? Or do we have to use another company for an extended warranty?

 

[dreamym5]

Yeah I hope they knock all the problems out. I'm 14K miles away from my warranty expiring so if there are still problems I hope they pop up before my warranty is done lol.

We can buy extended warranties correct? Or do we have to use another company for an extended warranty?

i think... buying extened warranty from dealer is *only* available when you purchase the car.. after that...you could buy *any* aftermarket extended warranty...

( i personally don't buy extended warranty.. though.. but that is just me..)

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

Just got a call from the dealer. They said they performed the TSB work with no problem

The engine mount was infact broken so I guess I was right that it had some type of fluid in it.

My A/C had a few bad o-rings on the condensor so they replaced all the o-rings and recharged the system.

The guy was able to mimic the front end suspension crunch and they said it was the sway bar bushings and lower control arm bushings. Gave me new bushings and lubed them up pretty good. I assume they followed the TSB.

The engine stumble they could not mimic however they used the TSB I gave them and did the reprogramming anyway.

Galpin Mazda in Valencia, CA gets my vote for the best dealer i've ever been to. I'll be picking up my car tomorrow so i'll let you guys know if they did infact fix everything

 

[dreamym5]

Just got a call from the dealer. They said they performed the TSB work with no problem

The engine mount was infact broken so I guess I was right that it had some type of fluid in it.

My A/C had a few bad o-rings on the condensor so they replaced all the o-rings and recharged the system.

The guy was able to mimic the front end suspension crunch and they said it was the sway bar bushings and lower control arm bushings. Gave me new bushings and lubed them up pretty good. I assume they followed the TSB.

The engine stumble they could not mimic however they used the TSB I gave them and did the reprogramming anyway.

Galpin Mazda in Valencia, CA gets my vote for the best dealer i've ever been to. I'll be picking up my car tomorrow so i'll let you guys know if they did infact fix everything

sounds like a decent dealer...(usa)

hope your *enjoy* your Mz5 Again..!!

 

[maple_leaf]

Thanks for the heads-up (thumb)

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

Got my car back. No suspension crunch!!!!! and I took San Francisquito Canyon home and I could tell that the handling was slightly stiffer and more reponsive. Nothing too dramatic, just noticeable.

Only time will tell to see if the PCM reprogram worked lol. We'll see if the stumble happens again. It hasn't happened in about 3 weeks prior to me bringing it to the dealer, and since the dealer said they did the TSB work, hopefully it never happens again.

My A/C doesn't get warm anymore during acceleration

The new motor mount looks nice and shiny

While they were bringing me my car, I was standing outside for maybe 2 minutes and the girl who helped me came out and said 'they are taking way too long. Lazy ass people. I'll go get your car for you' lol lol.

Two Thumbs and Two Big Toes up for Galpin Mazda in Valencia, CA

BTW- I'm trying to pay off all my credit cards before I buy another car (i'll be getting a MazdaSpeed 3 ) and I was looking at one they had in the show room. They offered it to me for whole sale + taxes and fees and I was ready to say hell yeah i'll take it but I had to show some will power and turn the offer down If I would have taken it before all my credit cards are paid off I would be BARELY making ends meet and I got two kids that come before anything else so it'll just have to wait for now. They say good things come to those who wait, so i'm banking on that saying right now lol.

It was a GT Model too...

 

[Rocket]

I had a motor mount replaced as well. Same issue.

 

[Captain KRM P5]

good to hear about the good service. dealer has always been nice to me when i bring the 5 in.

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

I had a motor mount replaced as well. Same issue.

Was it the same mount I had replaced? If so, the MZ5 community needs to look at this turning into a recall or at least a TSB.

good to hear about the good service. dealer has always been nice to me when i bring the 5 in.

Yeah i'm glad too. They are 30 minutes away... If I have to drive 30 minutes to get crappy service i'd be giving people the ultimate Muay Thai Knee right in the sternum lol.

 

[rweatherford]

30 minutes? My nearest dealer is 80 miles one way.

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

30 minutes? My nearest dealer is 80 miles one way.

Yeah but mine used to be 2 minutes away. That's where I bought mine. Then they up and left. Now there is a Mitsu dealer in it's place...

 

[skyhawk]

how does a defective motor mount look? Does it make the motor 'not-level'? or is there some noise that you can hear?

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

how does a defective motor mount look? Does it make the motor 'not-level'? or is there some noise that you can hear?

Unless you can see that the rubber is cracked, there's no other way to tell other than the motor shaking freely by you physically shaking the motor.

In my case, I saw the hydrolic fluid leaking out. Not all mounts have fluid in them though.

 

[Rocket]

Look for a stain or fluid on the body of the car. The mount is the one that is near the fluid reservoirs. Here is what mine looked like.

 

[B16RacerN2NR]

Look for a stain or fluid on the body of the car. The mount is the one that is near the fluid reservoirs. Here is what mine looked like.

lol mine looked exactly like that except my fluid also started dripping out on to my driveway.

 

[Rocket]

I can remember when mine broke. I was at a stop light in wet weather. The front tires were on the wide white stripe marking the intersection. When I took off the front tires spun on the paint, then caught on the road. The resulting torque caused a very loud thud. I checked under the hood later and saw the fluid stain. Otherwise I doubt I would have noticed it until the next oil change.

I had no idea what it was, but the car was in the shop for warranty work and I pointed out the stain to the tech, thinking it was some kind of fluid leak. He knew right away that it was the motor mount. Apparently it is a very common issue with the Mazda3.

Everyone should check under the hood for this. That being said, I doubt anyone would notice a difference in ride or "feel". In fact, the new mount is solid, and you might notice more vibration while idling.

Good luck!

 

[AIMWO4]

This is actually pretty common for FWD cars. I had to DIY this on my Saab 9-5 wagon.

I can remember when mine broke. I was at a stop light in wet weather. The front tires were on the wide white stripe marking the intersection. When I took off the front tires spun on the paint, then caught on the road. The resulting torque caused a very loud thud. I checked under the hood later and saw the fluid stain. Otherwise I doubt I would have noticed it until the next oil change.

I had no idea what it was, but the car was in the shop for warranty work and I pointed out the stain to the tech, thinking it was some kind of fluid leak. He knew right away that it was the motor mount. Apparently it is a very common issue with the Mazda3.

Everyone should check under the hood for this. That being said, I doubt anyone would notice a difference in ride or "feel". In fact, the new mount is solid, and you might notice more vibration while idling.

Good luck!

 

[daan]

So the "mystery puddle" in my garage might be from this motor mount issue? I'll check it out tonight when the spouse comes home. Thanks guys.