Stevey629

Im going to start with my cooling system, which has been having problems ever since I've had it. Before u read on, realize that I may be "venting" quite a bit, as Im pretty unsatisfied with how fickle this car is, but when its running, its all worth it.

I have been attempting to burp the system for the past 2-3 months, with no success. I understand that not all of the air can come out, but being able to hear air and water/coolant rush through my heater core signifies to me what would be considered "excess" air in the system. My car used to spit up coolant from the overflow tank every time after shutdown, and adding coolant on top of that would just displace the air. I've since replaced the AST with an aluminum one from ASI, and associated hoses, in addition to having the system pressure tested 3 times, once from mazda, and twice from my mech. Its been pressure tested to 20 psi, with no leaks. I also read that it is not possible to pressure test the overflow to AST line, so this may be some of the problem. I may need to get the system further tested, maybe with some coolant dye, or a longer duration pressure test. The problem that I'm worried about is, that very occasionally, I have difficulty starting. And when I do start, which is most of the time, I usually get a cloud of smoke, much much more prominent during evenings and mornings. I've made many posts about my coolant situation, and u guys keep telling me I have air in the system. How do I check the integrity of the seals between the areas that cannot be pressure tested with a tester???

Next area of concern, is my gas mileage and oil consumption. I am getting around 160-170 mpg. Is this normal? I posted about this before as well, and I guess most of u guys are getting more than what Im getting. I recently changed my poor excuse for an air filter to an K&N one, and the throttle response and gas mileage has gone up a little bit, but not too much.
Oil consumption has been horrific. I have added about 3 quarts in the past 700 miles. Do I have a leak somewhere? I had my turbos rebuilt very recently, but I can see oil on the y-pipe. Does this mean there is a leak (sorry for the dumb ques, but I figured it may be somewhat normal)? visibly, this is the only "leak" that I can see. I can't see how that could be normal. My mech said that eating one quart of oil up every 1000 miles is normal, but 3 quarts in 700? That just screams a leak, or a really bad seal(s).

Another problem, is the "clank" that I hear from either braking, or cruising slowly, I believe comes from my brakes. However, I've also heard that it can be suspension related. I've had the car "shake" tested, whatever that test is supposed to do, and it was stable, and had no loose arms, links, bolts, etc.

lastly, I get a hesitation at around 2800 rpm...isnt it supposed to happen around 3k? Again, thx for any help, those are all the somewhat larger problems that I can think of for now, I will post more "complaints" so to speak later.

Redrotor

for cooling system I was there.

water running sound when start up and over flow aftre shut off and it held pressure .
I changed all kinda stuff but no sucess last fall I had to admit my coolant o-ring gone south.
I rebuilt my engine myself 2weeks ago with street port and nomore water running sound and no over flow at all..

I hope yours is not this case..

P'cola FD

Sounds like you could have a bad coolant o-ring. Smell the exhaust when you start it in the morning, and it's smoking.
160-170 miles per gallon would be pretty amazing gas mileage. I think, however, you mean 160-170 miles per tank of gas, which is pretty crappy. I get anywhere from 180 (that's like WOT all the time) to around 300 (road trips) normally around 220 per tank (about 15-16 gallons of gas).
You are consuming way to much oil. Get the car thoroughly checked for leaks. Also, check the compression. How many miles are on the engine? It could be oil control o-rings. To find out if it's the oil seals, let off throttle at redline, and look for copious amounts of smoke.
Hesitation at 2,800 rpm isn't too abnormal. That is the least of your worries.
You may get lucky, and it just be a bunch of little things, but I would start saving for a rebuild, or a reman.

spurvo

If you've pressure tested cold and hot and held pressure, you are most likely spitting up due to leak in your overflow to AST line. Replace it. Cheap and relatively easy

I get 220 mi per tank as well, just like P'cola.

2800 seems right, probably most of us think it's 3K cause that when we get our eyeballs to the tach when it hits (and 200 RPM pretty hard to differentiate on that tack anyway!) Normal.

Oil is fukked up. You shoud have a coating ALL OVER the underside of your car with that much consumption, yes? If you don't, betcha the turbos be eating it (noplace else I can think of for it to go. Oil only gets into the combustion chambers through the OMP lines and the turbos if their seals are pretty bad).

Your hard starts may be the OIL SLICK that must be standing in place of your intake tract, not the coolant seals. You don't describe the CLOUDS of THICK white almost powdery smoke that smells a lot like molassis that presages a blown seal, and the overflow line will spit up RELIABLE, EVERY TIME. Mine did!

I'm limbing it here, but I think you have to deal with that transfer line, pull the turbos and check their clearances (yes you can do it still on the vehicle, but they're toast by now anyway, right? Probably the primary gone and the secondary fair to passing), get 'em rebuilt or replaced, and get a ecu piggyback if you really don't like the hesitation (or just make sure you are above 3K when you stomp it. Should do that anyway to avoid fuel starvation unless you have an engine management system, hogged out injectors, dyno tuned spark/fuel maps, reasonable outside air temps, no water on the ground, and even then...)

OK, now I sound like an expert, which I'm REALLY NOT! But I dealt wth the cooling issue, and the rest I'm making up

Stevey629

Spurvo, thx again. I asked a buncha coolant questions before, and yea, u do "sound" like an expert. Guys, thx for the advice I appreciate it. Ill see if I can figure this out. I really can't seem to distinguish that smoke smelll still, because it smells sort of sweet, but not really maple syrup-like at all. I think (HOPE) its just fuel, or even oil for that matter, since I seem to be using a ton of it.

One more thing, Spurvo, I recently had my turbos rebuilt. That is no more than 1000k ago. I can't see how there could be a problem. However, Im not sure if the transfer lines (not really sure what those are yet) are going out.

CantGoStraight

Hate to say it, coolant problems are identical to the ones I had with a bad coolant o-ring. Motor had 85k on it when it failed for good. You can try the block seal treatment for temporary relief but you'll have to baby the car (stay off the boost) if you want it to last till your money is ready for how ever your planning on replacing the motor. Oil consumption is way to high. I see about 1/2 quart over a 1500 mile period or 1 quart if I go to 3k oil change. Rebuild may solve both your problems. (coolant and oil)

twokrx7

iTrader: (1)

You can have your coolant tested to determine if the o-rings are leaking. They can tell if combustion gases are getting into the coolant.

Hate to say it but your setup sounds expensive, eating oil at that rate and belching coolant ... best of luck.

Stevey629

well, I figure don't think negatively, but expect and prepare for the worst. So, with that, I guess I better start finding out how much it takes to do a rebuild, and what parts and labor costs are involved. Any recommendations on what to look for when rebuilding, what to renew, replace, upgrade, etc. Suggestions, ball park pricing or really "competitive" pricing would be nice. Thx for the help again.