What is this....
 

http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/8411/huh6fq.jpg

I was replacing the old vacuum line on the bottom of this, the nipple snapped off with no effort. This is from an '86 N/A.

Is this thing needed for anything, if it is I can just go get a new one from the junk yard, but if I don't need it I will just bypass it. Anyone have a thought of what it is?

I do have a haynes manual, but it's at my shop so I can't look it up in there, and the FSM would take forever to find what I am looking for, thanks in advance :)

PCV valve. Comes off the filler neck and is plumbed to the UIM right?
Crispy

PCV

Feeds oil vapor into the intake

Yup, thats exactly where it comes off of, thanks man, I might as well just go get a new one from the auto store then.

Awesome thanks you guys :)

Had me worried there for a second, lol.

Now its off to the auto parts store :)

I have not been able to find one anywhere but Mazda, so good luck finding one at the autoparts store.

Damn...

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/6177/huh1py.jpg

I circled the connections in blue, if I decide to bypass this (from what I found in the search I did) I Know the bottom left on the fill neck needs to vent to the air (or a catch can) where to the top and right connections need to go? Can I just plug them or do I need to connect them to something?

Don't bypass it. Get a new one at the dealer or from the wreckers. They are not expensive.

silly rotary engines
"filters oil vaper"
lol. who came up with this stuff
i cant complain... it works..
:)

Most piston engines have the same thing...

Almost every 4 stroke gas engine with a closed crankcase has some way to vent the vapours that bypass past the piston rings/rotor seals. Most of the time it is a one way check valve but Mazda designed their purge system to vent fresh air through the entire engine. Presumably because there is far less blowby in a rotary then a piston engine and there isn't as much need to maintain a slight vacuum on the crankcase. Even lawnmower engines have PCV systems. The venerable Briggs and Stratton vertical shaft 3.5 and 5HP engines have them integrated into the valve cover and venting into the carb....anyway... :)