IamFODI's 2012 Mazda5 6MT: Intro, plans, questions and build

[IamFODI]

Got the vehicle back from the dealership last week. Jobs done:

• Clutch disc
• Pressure plate
• Pilot bearing
• Throwout bearing
• Rear main seal
• All powertrain mounts
• Serpentine belt
• Starter

A lot of this was preventative. I don't know exactly what in the clutch assembly was causing the noise, but it didn't seem worth diagnosing; at >164k miles, there was no way I was going to have them tear all the way into the clutch assembly just to surgically replace one or two parts, so I just had them replace everything.

....Except the flywheel, which apparently was in great shape. They said they just cleaned it up and put it back in. Nice perk of a single-mass flywheel, I guess.

Everything's so quiet and smooth now! Noises I had thought were coming from a pulley are gone. Maybe the old belt was worse off than I had thought. And the clutch pedal has gone from suspiciously heavy to nice and light, so I guess the hydraulics are fine.

This really is a great car. Not great as in very good; great as in great. It's comprehensively practical – lots of interior space, compact exterior footprint, sliding doors – and not expensive to own, while also being both easy and rewarding to drive. I'm really, really loving it.

 

[IamFODI]

Well, the 5 is back in the shop. I had taken it in because I had found a couple of minor things amiss since the clutch job. Then they found a bunch of leaked oil, seemingly from the rear main seal they had just replaced. So, they have to tear all the way back into it and put everything back together. Hope they get it right this time.

 

[IamFODI]

Nice quality-of-life upgrade: custom leather wrapped steering wheel by my buddy! (IG: @chesis300)

Could have had any of a wide variety of materials and colors. Would have loved Alcantara with thumb grips, but wanted something simple, anti-pretentious, and easy to clean. Even opted for black stitching to keep it as low-key as possible.

Amazing what a difference a good-feeling steering wheel makes. It's a small thing but you feel it literally 100% of the time you're driving the car. Low effort, low expense, high impact. Strongly recommended.

 

[Silentnoise713]

Nice quality-of-life upgrade: custom leather wrapped steering wheel by my buddy! (IG: @chesis300)

Could have had any of a wide variety of materials and colors. Would have loved Alcantara with thumb grips, but wanted something simple, anti-pretentious, and easy to clean. Even opted for black stitching to keep it as low-key as possible.

Amazing what a difference a good-feeling steering wheel makes. It's a small thing but you feel it literally 100% of the time you're driving the car. Low effort, low expense, high impact. Strongly recommended.

No Alcantara, you are slumming it... Leather wheel does make a big difference in your hands.

How much did that cost ya? Is there a reason why you went this path vs pulling/ebay a complete OE leather wheel off a comparable Mz3/Mz5 GT or MS3 car? Cheap (b/c reuse airbag) and easy, has better fit and finish, and OEM leather is actually pretty good/durable.

Alternatively, a complete latest gen Mz3/CX-3/CX-5 (hex shaft mount) GT OEM steering wheel looks much better, leather, has thumb nub, heated, has more buttons/functions for your aftermarket radio (not that you need/want it, via Axxess/iDatalink/PAC/Android/etc). Clock spring & airbag connectors 'appear' to be the same and betting still resistance base triggers, but cannot confirm 100% since I only looked into as a curiosity. Will need minor wiring&button to turn on heated wheel. The biggest cost is needing a new airbag but you can 'try' to look for auction listing and sell your airbag to offset cost.

 

[IamFODI]

How much did that cost ya?

They start at $325 shipped + refundable core deposit if he has a steering wheel core in stock. No core deposit if you send the steering wheel. With options they go up to $500+.

Is there a reason why you went this path vs pulling/ebay a complete OE leather wheel off a comparable Mz3/Mz5 GT or MS3 car? Cheap (b/c reuse airbag) and easy, has better fit and finish, and OEM leather is actually pretty good/durable.

This was a "congrats, you bought a car" present from last year that took me until now to install.

I like that it's thicker than the OE steering wheels, though. I like a chonky steering wheel.

 

[IamFODI]

One of the rear ARB end links I installed just last year – the driver's side one – already started making noise:

I expected more from TRW.

Replaced it yesterday and all is well. Glad it's such an easy job.

Noticed different markings on the old one (the one that went bad in less than a year) and the new one.

Old:

New:

#ShrugLife

 

[Z3SpdDmn]

Hey Fodi, just wanted to say I appreciated your approach to M5 life (and FCP Euro life). I've gone down a similar path in changing my wife's runabout from 2016 Mazda3 GT Hatch 6MT a 2012 Mazda5 Grand Touring as we had a live-in au pair for our twin babies and she needed an automatic (way overstated her driving capability when we selected her). I've gone through some similar upgrades and repairs with ours. It's kinda fun to work on "simple" cars after dealing with more modern european stuff.
You'll probably enjoy this... I was sponsored by FCP Euro when I raced in Pirelli World Challenge in 2017 in TC. I have always had a close relationship with them as our partnership was part of their major growth spurt.

- Anthony Magagnoli

 

[Z3SpdDmn]

I went with Bilstein B4 dampers all-around and it was a huge upgrade over the blown-out rears and RF. They feel like an OE sport option that makes the car fun in a roly-poly way, but leaves something to be desired in roll rate and angle. I've been looking for an aftermarket swaybar upgrade, but haven't arrived on any solid options. It sounds like the front is a PITA, from your description of changing the bushings, so maybe not worth the effort since it's mainly our au pair who's driving the car at the moment.

Finding a solid used car is an incredible PITA. I ended up flying to VA to pick it up from a private owner who bought it from a friend, so it had a fully known history and even lived in Hawaii for a bit while it's original owner was deployed there. Being out of the rust belt was a big positive for me.

I initially went through a lot of detailing work as the car had lived under a tree. Since then, it's been dampers, valve cover gasket, and minor other updates/upgrades to get it up to snuff.

Went from this:

To this:

I really like the little car. It's super practical with enough fun-to-drive to be entertaining.

Here's what I've done so far:

Cheers,
Anthony

 

[RiverdaleDIY]

I also feel the clutch effort is kinda high in this car. I used to daily it, and thought nothing of it. Then stopped driving it for 3 years while other family members had it. Just started driving it again, and compared to my ‘21 Subaru WRX it feels significantly different, and harder. But clutch still operates fine, with 230,000 km’s on the original unit. Good idea to flush your brake fluid, as the M/C for the brakes and clutch is a single, shared, unit.

 

[RiverdaleDIY]

Thanks! It's basically a Mazda3 with a big bubbly body up top. Also the only way to get 3 rows with 3 pedals in the US, outside of some very old vans. The stick was only available with the lowest trim level, so this one's pretty no-frills. Manual seats, no sunroof, etc. etc. But that also makes it lighter, which I like. :]

You may not want to hear this, but….Just to the North, in Canada, I’ve got a “fully loaded” GT w/sunroof etc. in 6-speed manual.
Mine has cloth seats, but leather was available.

 

[RiverdaleDIY]

wow, not sure why i didn't realize about it having 3 rows (duh) and being based on the 3 (also duh). i assume it came with the 2 litre engine?

In Japan spec (so slimmer Asian clientele vs shall we say, robust North Americans) it was a 7-seater. Had a third seat jammed in the middle of the second row.

 

[IamFODI]

I went with Bilstein B4 dampers all-around and it was a huge upgrade over the blown-out rears and RF. They feel like an OE sport option that makes the car fun in a roly-poly way, but leaves something to be desired in roll rate and angle.

I have the same gripe with Koni Special Actives. Would love to tighten the ride up a lot without resorting to lowering springs or half-ass-engineered coilover kits.

 

[Z3SpdDmn]

I have the same gripe with Koni Special Actives. Would love to tighten the ride up a lot without resorting to lowering springs or half-ass-engineered coilover kits.

Do you know if the platform shares swaybar mounting points with others? I've been hearing Speed3 rear bar. I'd like to upgrade both if I was going to do it, though.

BTW, window tint (at least 2nd row and back) is on the to-do list.

 

[RiverdaleDIY]

#4: Change your transmission fluid! Use Redline MT-90, and only Redline MT-90. You'll need about 3 quarts to do the job, and it's super easy. Just do it the next oil change when you already have it up in the air.

Do you happen to know the size of the drain & fill plug crush washers, or the torque specs? I've posted my own question, but so far nobody has an answer for me Thanks.

 

[theblooms]

Do you happen to know the size of the drain & fill plug crush washers, or the torque specs? I've posted my own question, but so far nobody has an answer for me Thanks.

For the ATF, it's the same size as the engine oil, and I torque mine to 28 ftlbs.
If you have one of the very rare manuals, it's the bigger size, but I can't remember the exact size off of the top of my head.

 

[RiverdaleDIY]

For the ATF, it's the same size as the engine oil, and I torque mine to 28 ftlbs.
If you have one of the very rare manuals, it's the bigger size, but I can't remember the exact size off of the top of my head.

Yep, I’ve got the delightful 6-speed. Thanks though.

 

[IamFODI]

Do you know if the platform shares swaybar mounting points with others? I've been hearing Speed3 rear bar. I'd like to upgrade both if I was going to do it, though.

I've heard the same about the rear bar. I think you have to use MS3 end links as well but IDK.

Not sure on the front. Def. looks like a PITA though, as you noticed.

Do you think stiffening things up is the way to go here rather than increasing damping? I feel like the vehicle's main sin is that it's under-damped.

BTW, window tint (at least 2nd row and back) is on the to-do list.

Same here!

 

[Z3SpdDmn]

I've heard the same about the rear bar. I think you have to use MS3 end links as well but IDK.

Not sure on the front. Def. looks like a PITA though, as you noticed.

Do you think stiffening things up is the way to go here rather than increasing damping? I feel like the vehicle's main sin is that it's under-damped.



Same here!

Yeah, the Bilstein B4s are on the sporty side of matched with the OE springs. Sure, you could get some initial response and initially controlled roll from stiffer dampers, but you're still lacking overall platform support and you'll degrade ride more significantly by going with stiffer springs or trying to make up for it in damping. So, yeah, more spring rate is in order to really make the ride more sporty, but I'll take the mild upgrade of the bars that will provide more roll stiffness and response with minimal straight line penalty, given the choice for this car.

 

[IamFODI]

Yeah, the Bilstein B4s are on the sporty side of matched with the OE springs. Sure, you could get some initial response and initially controlled roll from stiffer dampers, but you're still lacking overall platform support and you'll degrade ride more significantly by going with stiffer springs or trying to make up for it in damping. So, yeah, more spring rate is in order to really make the ride more sporty, but I'll take the mild upgrade of the bars that will provide more roll stiffness and response with minimal straight line penalty, given the choice for this car.

Fair enough.

I'd love a coilover kit from KW or someone, with 4- or 5-way adjustable dampers and spring rates ~50% higher than stock. Let them get the damper valving roughly in the right ballpark, and let me tweak it from there. Rear springs could be pretty easily swapped out if handling balance or pitch tendencies needed to be tweaked. Would be a good way to get a good setup without a full development process. Still a pipe dream, but that's part of the fun!

 

[Z3SpdDmn]

Fair enough.

I'd love a coilover kit from KW or someone, with 4- or 5-way adjustable dampers and spring rates ~50% higher than stock. Let them get the damper valving roughly in the right ballpark, and let me tweak it from there. Rear springs could be pretty easily swapped out if handling balance or pitch tendencies needed to be tweaked. Would be a good way to get a good setup without a full development process. Still a pipe dream, but that's part of the fun!

KW would be far from my go-to, but if you want to spend $8k on a set of coilovers, we can make it happen with MCS 4-ways
Actually, I've set up a lot of BMWs on MCS. If you ever want to go down that road with your E90 M3, LMK You can do a much more modest 2-way non-remote in the $5-6k range. The low speed bleeds for comp and rebound are not terribly necessary for street and you have to be at a pretty high level on track to make use of them. I suspect this is the wrong forum for this topic, but what the heck

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