i think ihave bought a pig of a car.in the last 6 months i have bought a new clutch .new turbo hoses ,a new thermostate.and someone has reversed into my front wing.but my big problem is my radiator has started pissing water,and when i took it out i found that it only has i coolant fan one is missing. can i get along with one fan or is two a must. iknow these engines get hot but how hot ...i mean is this bad......what do people recomend stock or alluminium radiators.and is it true that you should put treated water in the coolant system. i love this car and will do whatever it takes to get it right...........many thanks martin

 

You need to get that missing fan replaced. While you're at it, you should upgrade you radiator as the one that Mazda put in it is junk. Get a Koyo or Fluidyne or any other all aluminum radiator and you'll be good to go. Only add distilled water (easily found at most grocery stores for less than a dollar, err... pound maybe?) and go with a 50/50 mix of regular coolant or water wetter. Hope things start to look up for you as you haven't had much of a good start.

 

the FD creedo?

 

I had a fan that was not working when I bought my car, didn't realize for a long time...couple of years actually. Car never ran hot so I didn't fret it. Eventually replaced it, didn't see much (any) difference in temps.
There are a lot of options other than aluminum radiators here in the States, don't know about the U.K., but I would think you could find a nice brass/copper all-metal construction stock replacement radiator like the ones from radiatorworld.com.
The GOOD thing is, every time you replace an item, you are making an improvement that helps in many ways, i.e. better performance AND better reliability and longevity, etc.

 

Man i was in the same boat. I had so much broken and dysfunctional stuff on my car. I finally got it dialed in. Replaced all the worn out stuff. Then it pooped in my cheerios and gave up its coolant seals. I must say though. When it was running right, it was the most fun car i have ever driven. I'm a tech so i have driven a lot of cars too. Totally worth the money unless you have a kid with cancer or something.

 

Funny you should say that. I got mine through the Make A Wish Foundation.