hey guys. i changed the coolant today and while driving around the block that add coolant buzzer came on. there were no leaks, the temp was fine, and i topped it off with coolant with the car running before i drove it.

i'm afraid to drive it around again.. i'm thinkin maybe there's air in there or i just need to let it idle for a while???

 

there might be air in there, i heard someone say take a hard turn and if it goes on then off, its an air bubble, other than that check the wire on top of the radiator.
- James

 

You need to bleed to cooling system. Heres how:
Look on the top lef of the radiator, where the hose comes down from the theremostat housing neck. You will see a black plastic screw plug. Take the radiator cap off (careful if the car is warm the system may be pressurized), then unscrew the black plastic plug. Add coolant via the thermostat housing neck (where rad cap goes). Keep adding coolant until it starts to flow out of the hole where the black plug was, then quickly re-install the plug. Keep adding coolant until it is topped off and wont take anymore, then re-install the rad cap. Your sytem should be bled now.

Also, if you do replace the rediator cap or thermostat, use only OEM mazda ones. The generic "stant" or whatever else brands do not work, I know 1st hand.

 

I ususally have to drive the car 2 or 3 times and top off before it really stays full.
Dont let this worry you.

 

Thanks guys, ill check those out... the buzzer went on this morning (before i checked anything) w/o even starting when i turned the ignition half-way to move it down the driveway. but ill check it out


rxmfn7: I've had the stant cap for like 5 years now... do you think i should take it off and get the mazdatrix one? the cap has given me no problems. did it fail you?

thanks again

 

Well, I was having a problem with my cooling system, it was pressurizing weird and causing the coolant to be forced out of the overflow bottle. I replaced the rad cap and thermostat with the stant ones, with no luck. I then ordered OEM ones from mazdatrix, and have had no problem since then. One thing I did notice on the thermostat, the stock one has a jiggilin-pin (small hole on lip of thermostat, with a metal bob in it) while the Stant brand does not. Im not even 100% sure of what the purpose of this is, but even in the service manuals it makes note of it, so Id assume its fairly important.

 

That's the air bleed.
The stat should be positioned with it on the high side.
As you fill the system, it lets most of the air out.
When you fill a completely drained cooling system, air still gets trapped in the heater core, the fast idle warmup circuit & a few other places.
To vent the remaining trapped air you have to warm up the engine. run the heater, turn off the engine, wait till it cools & top it up.

 

OK, I figured it had to have something to do with that, since the hole needs to be placed up top.