2003 MAZDA PROTEGE Engine And Engine Coolingengine Problems

MY SON BOUGHT A 2003 MAZDA PROTEGE 5, BACK IN LATE JULY 2010. SHORTLY THEREAFTER, ON AUGUST 3RD, 2010 IN FACT, HE KNOWING OF AN OPEN RECALL, HAD THE CAR SERVICED AT THE LOCAL MAZDA DEALERSHIP. APPARENTLY THEY PERFORMED PART A OF RECALL 3005C AND DID A COMPRESSION CHECK AND SLAPPED A "RECALL COMPLETED" STICKER UNDER THE HOOD. COME LATE AUGUST, MY SON TAKES THE CAR AWAY TO SCHOOL. ON NOVEMBER 1ST, 2010, HE CALLS COMPLAINING OF A "'LOUD ENGINE NOISE". 2 DAYS LATER, WE HAD THE CAR TOWED TO A NEARBY PERFORMANCE SHOP. THEY INVESTIGATED AND NOTICED THE RECALL 3005C STICKER UNDER THE HOOD. KNOWING THIS, THE PERFORMANCE SHOP RECOMMENDED WE TAKE THE CAR TO THE LOCAL MAZDA DEALERSHIP NEARBY MY SONS' SCHOOL. THIS SECOND DEALERSHIP VERIFIED WITH A BORESCOPE THAT THERE WAS DAMAGE IN CYLINDERS 1 AND 3. AFTER MUCH DISAGREEMENT, THIS SECOND MAZDA DEALERSHIP EVENTUALLY OPENED THE...

WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AT ABOUT 60 MPH FOR 40 MINUTES, THE CAR BEGAN SPUTTERING, JERKING, MAKING NOISES, LOSING ACCELERATION AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. IT INITIALLY FELT LIKE SOMEONE WAS TAKING THEIR FOOT ON AND OFF THE GAS. WE PULLED OFF ROAD AND WERE TOWED TO OUR GARAGE. MECHANIC FOUND THAT THE SPARK PLUG FOR CYLINDER 4 WAS SMASHED SHUT, HE REPLACED IT AND TOLD US TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER SINCE THIS WAS THE 3RD TIME WE HAD THIS PROBLEM. IN DEC OF 2009 THE SPARK PLUG FOR CYLINDER 1 HAD SAME PROBLEM THEN AGAIN IN FEB 2010 IT WAS THE PLUGS FOR 1 & 4. EACH TIME WE WERE DRIVING AT 55 MPH OR HIGHER WHEN CAR BEGAN TO SPUTTER THEN CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. MAZDA IS TELLING US NOTHING IS IN THE ENGINE, THE COMPRESSION IS FINE AND THEY HAVE NO IDEA...

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 MAZDA PROTEGE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE EXHIBITS A NO-START CONDITION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER, AND A TECHNICIAN CONCLUDED THAT THE FAILURE WAS CAUSED BY SCREWS THAT HAVE FALLEN FROM THE BUTTERFLY SHUTTERS INSIDE OF THE INTAKE MANIFOLD AND THAT THE REPAIRS WOULD COST $1000.00. NO REPAIRS WERE MADE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED; HOWEVER, NO ASSISTANCE WAS PROVIDED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 107,000.

MY 2002 PROTEGE 5 (BUILT DECEMBER 2002) HAD A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE, DUE TO LOOSE VICS SCREWS FROM THE INTAKE MANIFOLD COMING LOOSE AND BEING SUCKED INTO THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER. THESE SCREWS SHEARED OFF THE TOP OF MY SPARK PLUG, AND DESTROYED MY PISTON AND VALVES. THE OUTWARD SYMPTOMS WAS A LOUD 'COIN IN THE WASHING MACHINE' SOUND COMING FROM MY ENGINE, FOLLOWED BY A SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AND STALLING. AFTER THE ENGINE WAS OPENED, 3 OF 8 VICS SCREWS WERE OFF COMPLETELY, AND THE REMAINING 5 WERE LOOSE. THIS IS CLEARLY THE IDENTICAL DEFECT TO A RECALL FOR PROTEGE 5'S BUILT SHORTLY AFTER MY VEHICLE (EMISSIONS RECALL 3005C), BUT MY VEHICLE WAS NOT COVERED IN THE RECALL. READING ONLINE BOARDS FOR PROTEGE OWNERS, IT IS CLEAR THAT THIS IS A FREQUENT DEFECT EFFECTING BOTH OWNERS IN AND OUT OF RECALL RANGE, AND THAT THIS VICS RECALL SHOULD BE...

TL*THE CONTACT'S SON OWNS A 2003 MAZDA PROTEGE 5. WHILE APPROACHING A RED LIGHT AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE VEHICLE STALLED AND HAD TO BE RESTARTED. THE CONTACT HEARD LOUD NOISES COMING FROM THE FRONT END OF THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO A SERVICE STATION. THE MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE AS A BLOWN ROD. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TOWED TO A MAZDA DEALER, WHO STATED THAT THERE WAS ENGINE FAILURE AND IT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 31,289 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 26,490.

LOUD RATTLING NOISE AT HIGHWAY SPEED, ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. TOOK TO MAZDA DEALERSHIP, FOUND PROBLEM TO BE BUTTERFLY VALVE SCREWS BACKING OUT AND FALLING INTO INTAKE MANIFOLD. ESTIMATED REPAIR COST ~$900.00. *TR

I PURCHASED VEHICLE NEW IN JAN 04. WHILE EXITING THE FREEWAY, I FELT A "HICCUP" IN THE ENGINE AT WHICH TIME IT RAN VERY POORLY AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME. THE SERPENTINE BELT HAD ALSO JUMPED ABOUT 25% OFF DRIVE PULLEYS. I WAS TRAVELING OUT OF TOWN AT THIS TIME AND TOOK IT TO A LOCAL SERVICE STATION. TECHNICIAN IDENTIFIED PROBLEM AS AN ENGINE MISFIRE AND INSTALLED A NEW BELT. I DECIDED NOT TO HAVE SERVICE STATION PERFORM ANY ADDITIONAL DIAGNOSIS PREFERRING TAKE VEHICLE TO DEALERSHIP INSTEAD. DEALERSHIP DETERMINED THAT A SPARK PLUG HAD FAILED AND CAME APART. DEALERSHIP THEN REPLACED ALL SPARK PLUGS. VEHICLE RAN FINE. APPX 1 MONTH LATER, EXACT SYMPTOMS OCCURRED - ENGINE HICCUP, ROUGH IDLE, CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. AGAIN I TOOK TO DEALERSHIP. MASTER TECH WAS ASSIGNED TO MY VEHICLE THIS TIME AND DETERMINED CAUSE TO BE SHUTTER VALVE SCREWS HAD COME LOOSE FROM THE INTAKE...

FOR OVER TWO AND A HALF YRS, MY CAR HAS HAD A ROUGH IDLING NOISE AND THE ENGINE OFTEN HESITATES AND WANTS TO TURN OFF. ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS THE ENGINE HAS HESITATED AND SHUT THE CAR OFF. VERY RECENTLY A LOUD NOISE WAS COMING FROM MY ENGINE. (YOU COULD HEAR A RATTLING NOISE) IT SOUNDED LIKE A PIECE OF METAL RATTLING AROUND IN THE ENGINE. A YEAR AGO I TOOK MY CAR INTO THE DEALERSHIP BECAUSE OF A RECALL (RECALL 3005C) TO GET IT CHECKED OUT (THIS IS WHAT THE LETTER FROM MAZDA ASKED ME TO DO) MY CAR WAS THERE ONLY TWO HOURS AND ONLY LOOKED AT MAYBE ABOUT THIRTY MINUTES. I RECEIVED AN OIL CHANGE AND THEN THEY WERE TO INSPECT IT DUE TO THE RECALL. WHEN I RETRIEVED MY CAR THEY GAVE ME A CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION, BUT INFORMED ME THAT NOTHING HAD BEEN FIXED AND THAT...

CAR STALLED AT RED LIGHT, THERE WAS A LOUD KNOCKING SOUND COMING FROM THE ENGINE. AFTER STALLING T MORE TIMES THE CAR RAN FOR ANOTHER 3 MINUTES TO GE ME HOME FOR THE EVENING. I THEN TO IT TO MY LOCAL MAZDA SERVICE CENTER.*AK

VEHICLE WENT BACKWARDS EVEN AFTER CONSUMER PUT THE GEAR INTO PARK.*MR WHEN THE CONSUMER GOT BACK IN THE CAR AFTER LEAVING IT RUNNING SHE NOTICED THE ENGINE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT WAS ON, BUT THOUGHT NOTHING OF IT. THE CONSUMER WAS UNABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE UNTIL IT CAME TO REST ON ITS OWN AFTER ROLLING IN A DITCH. THE DEALER WAS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. *JB

ENGINE HAS A VERY BAD HESITATION DURING EXCELERATION, BOTH FROM A STANDING AND ROILLING START. HESITATION IS BAD ENOUGH TO CAUSE VEHICLE CONTROL PROBLEMS DURRING THE WINTER WHEN DRIVING ON SNOW OR DURING RAINY CONDITIONS. ENGINE HAS ALREADY HAD THE PCM MODULE REPROGRAMED AS PER OUTSTANDING SERVICE BULLETIN THIS FIXED THE ENGINE MISSING UNDER SAME CIRCUMSTANCE BUT DOES NOT CORRECT THE HESITATION. DEALER HAS LOOKED AT THE VEHICLE 2 TIMES AND CANNOT FIND OR FIX THE PROBLEM.

WHILE APPROACHING A STOP SIGN, THE ENGINE STALLED CAUSING THE BRAKES AND POWER STEERING NOT TO WORK. I WAS UNABLE TO STOP AT THE STOP SIGN AND RAN INTO THE EMBANKMENT ON THE OTHER SIDE. THIS CAR HAS HAD A HISTORY OF ENGINE STALLING WHILE RUNNING. *LA

WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED A KNOCKING NOISE WAS HEARD. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER AND WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE PROBLEM. *JB