Forcus

Hi guys,

Just got my basketcase S5 TII started for the first time Saturday! I've never heard it run before and I literally brought it home in boxes.

In any case my gauges aren't working. Actually my tach works fine, it's the four gauges located on the left side of the steering column that aren't so good. I can see the boost gauge flicker just a tad when I get on the throttle but otherwise it is all the way at the bottom. Oil pressure gauge is pegged and the other two gauges (coolant temp and the other one) are at the bottom.

The coolant buzzer stays on as well as the idiot light. Any ideas?

Also, coolant absolutely POURS from over the back 1/3 of the transmission. I cannot see anything spraying or any hoses cut. Engine to heater core hose is new, heater core to radiator hose appears fine. The hose from the top of the engine which supplies the TB and other areas is simply looped back to the water pump.. I removed all emissions and the BAC valve. The thing is I ran the engine for a good 15 minutes and the water is still cold... Where could it be from?

In good news though it is firing on 4/6 sides, all the seals were stuck before except two so these will unstick in time. Idles nicely at 750 RPM

The Spyder

iTrader: (8)

Coolant is from either heater core lines, or the TB coolant lines.

The buzzer is because of the coolant.

THe water temp guage isnt going anywhere until it warms up for a good 15 minutes.
The boost guage wont go anywhere in neutral reving it either. Except a tiny bit.

Oil pressure, sender not connected? K&N filter mabey?

Forcus

I will check the TB / underneath again.

Is it really that slow to warm up? sorry this is my first second gen. As far as the boost gauge goes, it is under -20. I was under the impression that it idles at 0 psi.

I'll check the oil pressure sender again.

Thanks for the response.. any more help?

Brian

Digi7ech

iTrader: (1)

only a couple spots where coolant can come from.

LIM spot for turbo models,pass side rear iron,water pump,nipple on back of pump,and firewall connections.

Forcus

I found the leak. The guys who started stripping it to make it a "race car" completely buggered up the nipple for the heater core inlet. When I was putting it back together I had straightened it out pretty well but had missed a dent on the bottom of it. Straightened that out and all was well, but I put two hose clamps on it for good measure.

However my coolant buzzer refuses to go off. My temp stays steady between H and C and the buzzer continues. I do not think there are any more air bubbles and even if there weren't, grounding the wire to the radiator doesn't work! Which it should. Any other places to check??? I'm desparate because I am keeping the warning buzzer no matter what but I want it to function correctly.

Digi7ech

iTrader: (1)

I'm sorry dude but that is THE BEST QUOTE EVAR! Only if All FC's would do this

It goes off when it hits a air pocket.

I think it uses the coolant as the ground thus when no coolant you get no ground causing it to go off.

It usually takes 2-3 times to fully remove air from the system.
Make sure to turn the heater on so if makes that stuff flow out and get's rid of trapped air.

OverDriven

Half way between H and C is too hot IMO.

-Joe

pyrojunkie

Not for a S5.

Also the buzzer goes off when there is low oil.

NoPistns

Half scale on coolant is about normal for most S5's I've seen. Mazda cooling system has lots and lots of places for air to get trapped. Like Digi7ech says, it takes several tries to get the air out.

This worked for me: run the engine at idle with the heater control full hot and the radiator cap off, for a good half hour. Add coolant to the neck as necessary. You should always have coolant in the filler neck. Add coolant to the overflow bottle until it's almost to the maximum level. Put the radiator cap back on and drive the car for 15-20 minutes. By this time you should have most of the bubbles out and a silent buzzer. Shut the car down and let it cool completely (overnight is good) First thing in the morning, make sure the coolant bottle has coolant at least to the minimum. Top that up to 1/2 way between minimum and maximum.

The low oil level/pressure uses the same buzzer as the coolant and the almost to redline signal. Make sure that you have oil pressure that is around 30 psi at idle and 60-70 any time the engine is turneing > 3k. You may have to plumb a direct reading guage as a stop-gap measure. If the dash guage doesnt work, try cleaning the contacts and cleaning the orifice on the sender. If that doesn't help, replace the sender. They aren't expensive.

Forcus

Thank you for the tips. I do not have any more air bubbles in the cooling system that I can determine. I tried grounding the wire from the harness to the sensor and it wouldn't turn off. I am curious what kind of measurement is supposed to be at the wire because I tried finding continuity to ground and to the positive post of the battery, key on. Am I missing something? It wasn't finding a connection either way and the buzzer continued to buzz.

I am also confused because I thought the buzzer only sounded with oil level not pressure. My pressure gauge is busted, but I believe the sensor is fine. In any case I used a mechanical gauge to make sure my pressure is ok (it is). Is the oil level wire tested by grounding it as with the coolant wire?

Thanks,
Brian