Thermostat replacement

[SkinnyJoint]

Hey guys, havent really posted here in a while. Which i was attributing to good luck . But i think ive had my first official problem with this car. im right at 81,000 and today on my ride home i noticed my ac wasnt really that effective (live in florida still using ac) and then i looked at my temp gauge and it was at the top then saw some steam pulled over blah blah made it home.

The result is i need a new overfill coolant resevoir, mine cracked right where it appears to be "plastic welded" you know in the middle. anyways. thats easy to fix but what was the cause? im led to believe possibly a sticking thermostat. I couldnt find a write up on how to replace it so wondering if someone could point me in the write direction and is it a pain in the ass?

p.s. whats up to all the people i havent talk to in a while if your still around

 

[magnumP5]

I know this sounds dumb but are both belts still there? You could have broken the water pump belt and thus stop all coolant flow. Never heard of the thermostat sticking in these cars though.

 

[EviLMaN]

before you go replacing a thermostat. have you cooling system pressure tested. to make sure you dont have a leak in the system.

 

[MTV]

Quite easy actually. Drive your car over a shallow bucket and drain out the coolant into that by pulling out the hose located near the headers, right in front of the rad. Replace Thermostat and refill coolant.

 

[grease_monkey]

Troubleshooting is always a pain. Could be anything. If it is a thermo it shouldn't be too hard to do, but I haven't done it on this engine before. Definitely do a coolant pressure test. You could also try using some sort of black light/water tracer lights to see if the fluid is leaking somewhere.

 

[SkinnyJoint]

Quite easy actually. Drive your car over a shallow bucket and drain out the coolant into that by pulling out the hose located near the headers, right in front of the rad. Replace Thermostat and refill coolant.

pics? and its on the front as in when your looking or on the front of the engine as in where the belts and such are.

 

[grease_monkey]

pics? and its on the front as in when your looking or on the front of the engine as in where the belts and such are.

Most likely the bottom radiator hose aka the one closest to the belts

 

[probin94]

i have a write up with a tons of pics. its actually very easy once you do it. took me alot longer than im sure it would have most. but my thermostat DID freeze up on me. changed it out problem solved.

heres the link of my write up with pics. dont know if itll get removed cuz its from "the other place". but if it does drop me a pm and ill get it to you.

http://www.mazda3club.com/showthread.php?t=44997


james

 

[grease_monkey]

By any chance does anyone know if these is any sorta of maintence book on the 2002-3 P5? Hanes doesnt seem to make one and i haven't called Mazda yet to ask.

 

[magnumP5]

By any chance does anyone know if these is any sorta of maintence book on the 2002-3 P5? Hanes doesnt seem to make one and i haven't called Mazda yet to ask.

The best I've seen so far: http://protege5.ugly.net

 

[323CiP5]

i have a write up with a tons of pics. its actually very easy once you do it. took me alot longer than im sure it would have most. but my thermostat DID freeze up on me. changed it out problem solved.

heres the link of my write up with pics. dont know if itll get removed cuz its from "the other place". but if it does drop me a pm and ill get it to you.

http://www.mazda3club.com/showthread.php?t=44997


james

When yours froze up did it make a funny noise....like when you don't turn the tap all the way open and it kind of squeals? Mine does that when i shut my car off, but not too sure if it came from the thermostat.

 

[aMaff]

it actually seems to be a recurring problem on the forums now that a lot of proteges are starting to get up in mileage. I'd recommend going with that and a new rad cap. They're both cheap and easy enough that it's not really a huge deal taking an educated guess.

 

[Rusty]

When yours froze up did it make a funny noise....like when you don't turn the tap all the way open and it kind of squeals? Mine does that when i shut my car off, but not too sure if it came from the thermostat.

That noise is probably the vacuum line that controls the heater settings. Not usually a problem.

 

[probin94]

yeah no noises. i dont even think that would be something you could hear anyway...i may be wrong. but i had the same thing. was driving...smelled coolant and temp gauge was in the hot. got home and found the coolant was boiling out of the overflow tank. changed thermostat and was done with it. if you look at my write up you can see little cracks in the t-stat.


james

 

[SweetPoison]

I had the same problem at 81K, right when I pulled in the driveway. I heard a long squeal, looked at the temp gauge and it was topped. Pop the hood, saw the coolant had overflowed on my engine...arghh.
So went to local parts store, grabbed a new thermostat for $6, couple 50/50 mix bottles. Nice thing was the store had a computer with shop manuals, just had to do a quick search. Found out the thermostat was located near the belts and that it was only two bolts to remove it.
Got home, drained the coolant(using the cap at the bottom of the rad). Then flashed it a few times with warm water, till i saw clear water coming out. Replaced the thermostat, but i noticed there was no gasket so used some high temp gasket sealer, just to be on the safe side. Filled up the rad, ran the engine, and filled it up more. Done! Car ran like new for a week.

 

[i12drivemyMP5]

Car ran like new for a week.

Then what happened?

 

[Rusty]

The result is i need a new overfill coolant resevoir, mine cracked right where it appears to be "plastic welded" you know in the middle. anyways. thats easy to fix but what was the cause? im led to believe possibly a sticking thermostat. I couldnt find a write up on how to replace it so wondering if someone could point me in the write direction and is it a pain in the ass?

The reservoir is not even a pressurized container. No matter what goes on in the cooling system, it won't cause it to crack. It ran hot because every time the radiator expelled coolant, it leaked out until eventually there wasn't enough to keep the radiator full. Fluid is supposed to cycle in and out of it all the time.

Some cars, like Pontiac do use pressurized reservoirs.

 

[RABID_MP5]

I had the same problem at 81K, right when I pulled in the driveway. I heard a long squeal, looked at the temp gauge and it was topped. Pop the hood, saw the coolant had overflowed on my engine...arghh.
So went to local parts store, grabbed a new thermostat for $6, couple 50/50 mix bottles. Nice thing was the store had a computer with shop manuals, just had to do a quick search. Found out the thermostat was located near the belts and that it was only two bolts to remove it.
Got home, drained the coolant(using the cap at the bottom of the rad). Then flashed it a few times with warm water, till i saw clear water coming out. Replaced the thermostat, but i noticed there was no gasket so used some high temp gasket sealer, just to be on the safe side. Filled up the rad, ran the engine, and filled it up more. Done! Car ran like new for a week.

On the gasket, my 96 626 2.0 litre had a big rubber O-ring. I thought that was what I need to buy for the P5? Don't know for sure - haven't had to pull it yet.

 

[Rusty]

That's what the gaskets look like now, just the ring. Don't add a gasket or any sort of sealer to the housing.

 

[SkinnyJoint]

thanks probin 94, ya i didnt know the t-stat was so easily assessble on these cars, i will do that as it looks super easy.

the link to the manual is not valid anymore it seems, i remember using that quite a few times back in the day.

thanks guys