snap-on

Sounds illegal.

one 10mm head bolt per side. Pull the sensor right out.

:D

GSXRSTAR

OK guys, after hearing all of this I'm kind of confused. Maybe someone can help... I bought my car in late March. It had the "K" on it. After looking at all the talk on the board about the "L" flash I decided to go and have it done at the dealer I purchased my car @. ( I did notice a diffrence) Yesterday, I bought a used CZ 1.1 with the USB cable so that I could update it if need be. The 8 that is came off off was updated to the "M" flash and he uploaded the "M" program to the CZ 1.1. I guess my question is do I need to try and take the car to the dealer with nothing wrong(last time I was having a rough idle) and try and get them to flash again(great I get to drive another loaner kia spectra...) or would it be easier to go backwards on the 1.1 and put the specs for the "L" flash back on it...OR does it even matter.... Thanks ahead of time for all your help...MD

snap-on

How do you know the car was on the "K" level?

241Commuter

Got my M flash today. A bit annoyed at the service writer who felt he had to lie on the ticket - it says I complained about a stall-no start condition, but the main thing is, I guess I got it. My butt dyno which is not exactly a precision instrument, says it made a nice imporvement, even at low RPM. Good job, Mazda!

Also got my AC worked on, but it will take another trip to Vegas before I can tell you whether that got better. Also did the air bag recall. Guess what? The glove box comes down smoothly.

cashcowbp

how do you know if they did the reflash or not?

GSXRSTAR

Will I really didn't know what was on it. I just new that I didn't get "the sweep" on the gauge when I did the brake test...So it was "K" or lower....

thew

same here mines at the delaer now !! well see if it happens this time .

RX GR8T

Hey Guys !!
This has been a great read. I happened upon this thread as my auto blue 8 went in because of a CEL. I also asked for the A/C fix..
Well my dealer (BERGE MAZDA) didn't drop the ball. They ordered the A/C part for the A/C cycling and reflashed the PCM with M. It was @ K. My car was built in AUG but the motor was replaced in early Nov. Bad seals. Anyways, the car feels good as far as smoothness goes. But I also noticed that it feels tighter. Like it's wound tigher..Can't put my finger on it just yet as I only got it back today. But as I drive it more I should be able to dial it in. Had it up to 95 with little effort and she was purring along. a/c worked well even @ slower speeds!! That was my biggest concern as I leave in AZ. and have the black leather interior.
Dealer gave me copies of the work done with the (computer)WBS? it was @ 30.9 and it also gave me all the pass fail info. Reason for the CEL..dealer said code was lean mixture. I only use 91 octane so that surprised me. Special thanks to Snap -On who gave me the biggest insite!!

Cheers,
John

thew

Yea,, Finly really did get me M flash today .. wow it is diffrent!

After i ched my service writer out for not flashing it with m the first tiime !!! I find out the just washed my car .. Doh..

This time my paper work say the flashed it with the M flash !! yea

anf the Break pump thing does work now !!!!
Cool noy i can by my Canzoomer stage 1.1 sweet ...

rudy8

it takes one to three months to receieve. so be patient even if maurice says it will only be a couple of weeks. i hear it is worth it though and mine will be here on monday according to fed ex.

Herkypilot

I also got the M flash done today. I made the service writer check with the Tech to make sure their WDS was #30.6 or later before I brought it in. I told him I didn't want to be wasting my time in the waiting area while they updated their WDS.

It was the usual story...I had to bring a copy of the TSB to them and highlight the appropriate area so they would believe that the car needed it. When he was writing up the ticket, he just put down "customer wants TSB 01-011/04 done". He then brought the ticket to the Tech who told him the explaination was not good enough for a warranty claim. He then proceeded to re-write the ticket to be more like "Customer complains of hard cold start". As most of you have stated, it doesn't seem to matter that the TSB states that this is for all cars, the dealers seem to think they need a valid reason to get MNA to pay for it.

Service Tech said I was at K and he flashed it with M. I was getting tired of "almost" literally seeing the gas gauge go down as I drive. I was down to just above a quarter of a tank when I arrived at the dealer from a 1/2 tank when I left the house. After the flash, the needle bairly moved on the drive home. I'll do the math over the next couple of tanks to see what I'm getting.

The initial impression mirrors what most everybody else has said thus far. Smoother in the lower RPMs, still feel a good kick in acceleration above 4500 rpm. So far...I'm happy that I got it done. We'll see.

I think it was just too rich in the lower rpms - period! Do you all get the black carbon deposits on the bottom of your crome exhaust tips? I can clean it off and have it back after one or two trips in the car. Seems to me when a car is running too rich it will leave a lot of that carbon residue on the pipe. Besides...a 10-20% increase in gas mileage after the "M" flash would indicate too much gas was being dumped in the rotor - would it not?

Thoughts?

snap-on

The Advisor asked the TECH? That seems a little backwards in my world.

When the recalls and TSB's are released it is up to the Service Manager to disperse the info..The advisor should be the first person informed, since he/she will be the person talking to the customer.

If the Tech is driving the train....It's no wonder it's off track

Herkypilot

I'm not too sure of the process...what you said makes sense to me, but if I have to bring a copy of the TSB with me to prove that it needs to be done...(as many have stated they had to do also) then most service departments are sadly uninformed of the "process".


Regards.

Herkypilot

I'm not too sure of the process...what you said makes sense to me, but if I have to bring a copy of the TSB with me to prove that it needs to be done...(as many have stated they had to do also) then most service departments are sadly uninformed of the "process".


Regards.

snap-on

Seems to be the "theme" in most threads I'm afraid.

musclecarconvrt

I've tried twice now to get the M flash. Niether dealer had a clue. Both tried and were nice about it and all. I even schedualed an appointment with both well ahead of time. They just didn't know what to do or how to do it. I even emailed customer service through the Mazdausa website. I must say, the fast, courtious responce you get from them sure is nice. Too bad it doesn't do a blasted thing for my car. I'm afraid I'm just going to have to wait until my part of the planet gets caught up. Oh, I'm in Middle Tenneesee. Bummer

thew

nooo.. it wil happen for you.. it took me 2 tryes.. the first time they said they did it but they did nothing!. the second time i lied and told them my car was very hard to start when cold and that the check engin light had come on twice and then gone off.

When i got it back the had really done the M flash!!

if you dont tell them those 2 things they are likly to do nothing cept scratch up you car a little ..

RX8by

I just got mine flash. The mileage went from 16.6 to 18.5 in 50/50 driving. It is a lot smoother and starts and rums better cold. I have measured the mileage since it was new and never gotten over 16.9 on the type of driving.

RodsterinFL

Well I just got the "M" !!!!!

There is a definite difference.

Every time I started my car cold before, within 30-40 seconds it would sputter - RPM go up and down and it would have a sputter in the exhaust for about 20 seconds or so. Not any more!

The next thing I noticed was that there is a very slight rattle on hard acceleration - like valve rattle on other engines. That is new.

When I go for an all out accelertation, the RPM's climb faster and the engine really sounds better.

THe ilde is smoother. It sounds as if the engine is idling faster but it isn't according to the gauge. IT is my opinion that it it breathing better - not bogged down by too much fuel - better tuned.

Gyro

Here is the location of the ECU for Spaceman.

spaceman

Thanks Gyro!

This is perfect. One question. Everyone mentions a "sticker" or something showing if/what flash has been done. I dont' see one on the top of the ECU (not ECM...sorry). Should/can I take the cover off?

thanks. the pic helped a lot.

spaceman

Gyro

The sticker is applied if your dealer reflashes the ECU to a newer version. The sticker shows that the car was modified.

It sounds like you never had your ECU updated by the dealer, so you should not have a sticker.

There is a way to tell if you have the "L" version or later. Its the 20 tap test.


Is your objective to find out if you have the "L" or later version?

psionic1

Just wanted to mention this because it sounds like a lot of people are getting an "I don't know" attitude from the service guys about what version flash they have, or have been upgraded to. See page three and four of the TSB. It very clearly tells you (or your service guy) how to find out what version you have when it is hooked up to the computer.

When I went to buy my 8 from a local dealer and told him all that I knew about the car, and said that I would drive out that day if he could tell me that that I had the latest flash, he said "there's no way for me to tell that". I told him it must be documented somewhere, this is a computer, it's software version WILL be documented. He simply said no. That was one of many reasons that I went somewhere else to get my 8.

It's there folks. Tell them to hook it up, and follow the instructions starting on page three. You'll get the number as explained, and you can tell which flash you have...

As a matter of fact, you could ask to see a print out of that screen, or simply see that screen to make sure that you got what you asked for. I have heard also though that if they reflash it, they put a sticker with the number under your hood.

grifster

My local Mazda dealer is pretty cool. I printed off the TSB and took it in telling them the check engine light came on and stayed on for periods at a time. When I showed them the TSB for the M flash, the service manager asked for the web page so he could print them out. Needless to say, I have the M flash. I was in and out in 25 minutes. Pretty cool. I was most impressed. The dealer is in Clarksville, TN. Let me know and I will put in a good word.

An8inLAS

I have found that once you show your service writer that you are not some "quack" and you are pretty much as knowledgable as they are (when it comes to the 8 anyway), they do whatever you ask. Rolling in there with TSB's in hand to get them to do their job is not asking them for any big favors. If they have a problem complying with Mazda's instructions, then a well placed call to MNAO with dates, times and names seems to help the dealer realize you are serious about keeping your baby in top shape.