So El_Don, any updates about your engine health?
Protege 5 Oil Consumption
- Thread starter ChaRLeS23
- Start date
So El_Don, any updates about your engine health?
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- -- 03 P5 / 23 CX-5 --
I'd be happy as s*** if mine are all still 160........
I called my uncle yesterday to go and roll on the mechanic today. So hopefully by this afternoon I'll have some information.
So an update from the mechanic. It appears there are two sets of seals on the valve stems and there was leakage. As I understand the engine is out of the vehicle right now and they're checking around for any more possible causes. Hopefully this was the full problem. Any other ideas to look for while the engine is out?
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- -- 03 P5 / 23 CX-5 --
I'm confused why they'd pull the whole motor with that good of a compression test. Seems like with 160 accross the board you'd pull the head to check for valve stem seal issues and go from there. I'd consider replacing the rear main seal, cam seals, timing belt, tensioner spring or tensioner, water pump, thermostat & drive belts if motor is already out of the car while there is good access and so you don't have to next week....at least any of that that hasn't been done very recently.
At least with the engine out the T-Belt and the water pump will be easy to replace. I had mines done last week ( I have 70k on the car ) and it took the guy 4 hours total to get everything done. Replaced all the belts and the engine coolant. Replaced all 4 brakes with ceramic ones, all the disks and the 2 rear calipers. Now my car is top notch except it has a little bit of rust, will have it repaint next year with red mazdaspeed 3 color 
As far as your seals go, that might be the only thing that needs repair on the engine for oil consumption, as mine do not use oil anymore since I put the seal conditionner in the oil; 2K miles since last oil change and still on full. Keep us updated.
As far as your seals go, that might be the only thing that needs repair on the engine for oil consumption, as mine do not use oil anymore since I put the seal conditionner in the oil; 2K miles since last oil change and still on full. Keep us updated.
So all seals have been replaced along with the timing belt and water pump. The mechanic has been testing it out and has seen no oil consumption. I'll be picking up the car this weekend. The trip back will be the ultimate test. He took the engine out because he couldn't change the timing belt with it in the bay.
MazdaSpeeder
Member
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- Protege5 (5-spd)
Great news. Glad it wasn't piston rings. But he should have been able to do the T-Belt with the engine in the car.
+1. I find it very strange that he was unable to do this. Our cars are actually not that bad in terms of replacing the timing belt, clearance-wise.
Hey all. I received the bill from the mechanic in an email and will be picking up the car this weekend. I'm posting it here so everyone can see what work is involved and what to expect for those who run into this problem in the future.
It's a bit hard to read but it says:
Water pump - 58.84
Front Seal - 10.27
Rear Main Seal - 15.99
Timing Belt - 31.03
Timing Belt Kit - 92.41
Fix Head - 125
Coolant - 14.99
Oil Change - 21.35
Gasket Kit - 118.85
Spark Plugs - 12.95
Thermostat - 17.99
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Total 523.67
With those parts he did the following:
Checked the piston rings, changed the water pump, timing belt (including idler and tensioner), front seal, rear main seal, pulled the head, replaced the head gasket, replaced the valve seal (source of the problem), replaced the thermostat, changed the oil, the spark plugs and the coolant. The cost of labor came out to be 690. At 75 dollar an hour that means he charged 9.2 hours.
My biggest concern is that he took the engine out of the car. The reason he gave was that although the valve seals were the likely source of the oil consumption, it could have also been the piston rings. Since it would have been good to check them and made life easier for him in the long run when it came time for the water pump and timing belt change he decided to go that route.
In my opinion, think the price is fair considering the amount of work. But I don't know since this is the first time I've given the car to a mechanic. What do you guys think?
It's a bit hard to read but it says:
Water pump - 58.84
Front Seal - 10.27
Rear Main Seal - 15.99
Timing Belt - 31.03
Timing Belt Kit - 92.41
Fix Head - 125
Coolant - 14.99
Oil Change - 21.35
Gasket Kit - 118.85
Spark Plugs - 12.95
Thermostat - 17.99
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Total 523.67
With those parts he did the following:
Checked the piston rings, changed the water pump, timing belt (including idler and tensioner), front seal, rear main seal, pulled the head, replaced the head gasket, replaced the valve seal (source of the problem), replaced the thermostat, changed the oil, the spark plugs and the coolant. The cost of labor came out to be 690. At 75 dollar an hour that means he charged 9.2 hours.
My biggest concern is that he took the engine out of the car. The reason he gave was that although the valve seals were the likely source of the oil consumption, it could have also been the piston rings. Since it would have been good to check them and made life easier for him in the long run when it came time for the water pump and timing belt change he decided to go that route.
In my opinion, think the price is fair considering the amount of work. But I don't know since this is the first time I've given the car to a mechanic. What do you guys think?
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- -- 03 P5 / 23 CX-5 --
Doesn't seem unreasonable but....you'll find out after you get car back and see how things are after a few days. If all is well then call it good.
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- DC
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- 03 Protege ES
thats not too bad, i've been quoted $1100 for timing belt/water pump + crank, camshaft seals alone. let us know any more updates
-peter
-peter
Yeah I figured the pricing was pretty legitimate. Once I go and pick it up on Friday I will be driving it about 360 miles on Saturday and maybe another 350 on Sunday. I think it'll actually be good to cruise at a constant speed so the parts can break in. We'll see how this mechanic did.
I guess I'm the odd guy out - to me, that seems suspiciously cheap, considering that I was quoted $600-700 by several dealers and independents just to replace the timing belt and water pump. If he really did all of that work, no wonder he pulled the freaking engine, especially with the rear main seal.
If the guy's legit and his work is good, stick with him, as you're not gonna find a better deal anywhere. But I dunno, that still seems an obscenely low cost for such a large amount of work...
I don't feel like reading all the way back, though - was this guy an independent, "shade-tree" mechanic, or does he actually work at a garage?
If the guy's legit and his work is good, stick with him, as you're not gonna find a better deal anywhere. But I dunno, that still seems an obscenely low cost for such a large amount of work...
I don't feel like reading all the way back, though - was this guy an independent, "shade-tree" mechanic, or does he actually work at a garage?
The guy is around 26 and works at a garage in McAllen Tx (about 6 hours south of Houston). My uncles have used this guy as their mechanic who one of my uncles met through their mutual church friend. He and I spoke before in regards to just the timing belt which he was quoting me 375 for parts and labor. It's cheaper than most because of the relationship he has with my uncle I guess and also due to the town's proximity to Mexico (~45 miles) which people could take their cars for repairs for cheap. Like I said, I was pretty ok with the price considering the work, I'm glad there is agreement. I head down there tomorrow to get the car.
Yep price is good IMO. Other than the rings, you basically have a brand new engine. The guy is not stupid; if he pulled the engine out and removed the head, he did check the pistons and if they would've need repair, I think he would have done them. You can get a used engine for cheaper than that, but you don't know in what shape it is. Now you know your engine is almost like new, so I think you did the right thing. Let us know after your week end how is the car doing.
Finally
Ok, so it's been a long time since I posted here because of the problems that I've had.
In short, the valve seals were only part of the problem. I picked up my car from the mechanic and it was in pristine shape for about 150 miles and then it was low on oil again. It was smoking, stalling at lights...pretty much running like crap. So I took it back to the mechanic and he said that there would be no extra charge because he didn't fix the problem (good news for me). Though he had already checked the piston rings (engine had good compression), he checked them again and their separation was not within spec. So he replaced them and put the engine back together. I just picked it up on Saturday and what a difference! I now basically have a brand new engine and the oil is full and clean like a normal car again.
I felt bad that he had to spend time to open up the car again so I asked him to give me a bill for the rings etc for the extra work that he did. I also paid him $150 for the extra work (out of my insistence). The total bill came out to $1500, for everything mentioned above and new rings and a tip. So hopefully this will help anyone else who has this problem in the future. (drive)
Ok, so it's been a long time since I posted here because of the problems that I've had.
In short, the valve seals were only part of the problem. I picked up my car from the mechanic and it was in pristine shape for about 150 miles and then it was low on oil again. It was smoking, stalling at lights...pretty much running like crap. So I took it back to the mechanic and he said that there would be no extra charge because he didn't fix the problem (good news for me). Though he had already checked the piston rings (engine had good compression), he checked them again and their separation was not within spec. So he replaced them and put the engine back together. I just picked it up on Saturday and what a difference! I now basically have a brand new engine and the oil is full and clean like a normal car again.
I felt bad that he had to spend time to open up the car again so I asked him to give me a bill for the rings etc for the extra work that he did. I also paid him $150 for the extra work (out of my insistence). The total bill came out to $1500, for everything mentioned above and new rings and a tip. So hopefully this will help anyone else who has this problem in the future. (drive)
Just to put it in this more relevant thread: I was burning oil, so I recently replaced the PCV valve and oil pressure switch, as I read that both could cause it to burn oil. Oddly, one of those evened out my uneven idle. I'm still only 1k miles after the oil change and new oil pressure switch, so I'll report back at my next change as to whether or not it's fixed.
