Hello Everyone,

Here's the deal. I have a 05 that sometimes starts, sometimes it doesnt. Its currently at the dealer. They have replaced the ESPS ($342) and they report that it still is having the same issue. Now they want to replace the starter claiming that Mazda Technical stated that a bad winding can cause feedback thus making the car hard to start . They want $392 for that. I dont believe that and think they are just adding crap to the bill. So I want to know what you guys think. initially if it wouldnt start the first time... Stop... and try again.. it would fire up within a second or 2 without hesitation. Then it would take more and more attempts as days went on. Then it would take a dozen trys until it would actually fire up. One thing i noticed was that when I was cranking it and when it wouldnt fire up. The RPM's would show almost nothing. Then it would show alittle bit (Around 250 rpm or so) and then crank. Or sometimes it would show 0 , then something then nothing. As if it was picking up a ESPS signal then loosing it. Below I have listed answers to some of the questions that I know are coming.

New Motor - less then 4k on it.
Yes, I cleaned the ESPS
Cleaned up the ground under the battery / airbox
Added additional ground from battery to strut tower brace (greatest voltage drop I could find)
Does the same thing whether its hot or cold
No its not a flooding issue. Even when it I thought it may be flooded it would not fire . (No spark no fuel?)
Premium fuel only, alittle bit of premix less then 4oz per tank.
No mods. Bone Stock
Last check Mazda stated that the coils were good (March 11)
Spark Plugs less then 5k on them. Mazda stated they were good (March 11)
Good gas mileage I think 225mi / tank 100% city
No hesitations, pulls solid (as can be expected) from idle - redline
Smells worse than my catless DSM did.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm at wits end. Im about to trade it in and buy something else. HELP!!

 

Forgot one thing. Yes I do have the upgraded starter

 

when replacing the esps, did you (or mazda) perform the NVRAM reset? (20 brake pedal stomp)

 

I did yes. Mazda. I can only assume so. I use that really loosely. They told me initially that they had to replace the cam position sensor. LOL

 

may as well test your plugs/coils/wires.
And, make sure your starter is grounded properly

 

Just as an update. I didn't let the dealer put on a new starter. When I picked it up they have it to me with the check engine light on. ;( So they took it back in the shop and said that it was a code for the esps again. The tech told me that if I insisted on taking it home (they had it for a week) to disconnect my sub amp just to help remove another item out of the equation. While I have not done that yet, I will this weekend. I have driven my 8 a few times this week. I have had 2 instances which needed an additional 3 second "crank" to start the car. On the other attempts it started up fine. So at least there is an improvement. One thing that came to mind was this. I don't believe the starter feedback solution originally offered by the dealer. But, after reading a few threads on batteries I am kinda thinking it may be the battery. Here is why. It has been cold in the mornings the past week here in Georgia. Even though my 8 sleeps in the garage it still gets cold down there. I noticed on the coldest morning a few days ago that the first 1/2 second of cranking was faster then it slowed a little bit. Also the battery is alot smaller than the battery box. From the pics that I found, the battery is supposed to fill the battery box with little space around the battery. So I ordered a Optima Red Top. So we'll see what happens.

 

do you know why they singled out the eshaft sensor in the fist place?

disconnecting the sub- your op said you had nothing extra. this is something non stock ,yes?

there is a mention in at least one of the tsbs ive read about starting problems about disconnecting after market stereo/electronic equipment to get rid of "noise". im assuming they have seen enough badly installed/grounded systems causing issue over the full line of cars that they have made this a sort of standard goto on hard to diagnose electronic weirdness

 

That was the code that the ecu threw out. But it would only throw a code if you stayed in it for a long time. I would guess more than 6 seconds maybe? My apologies. I forgot to mention the amp and the subwoofer. Yes, its after market. Some other guys run the same amps on here. (Alpine PDX 1.600) I really doubt that its causing the issue but I will try it anyway. It has been in the car since the engine replacement. I am strongly leaning on the battery issue. After doing some more research the battery isn't recommended for the 8. It only has 540 CCA. While the dealer "tested" it and it tested fine. It would explain the difference in cranking speed that I am noticing. But who knows. We'll see.

 

How many miles on the coils?

 

fuel pump or bad coil ground?
a 540cca should crank the car. Slower but is should crank.
Battery voltage would have to drop below 9 for the car not to crank. (during starting)

 

Not sure. Maybe originals? But, the dealer says that the coils are good.

 

Im not suspecting fuel pump since the issue is intermittent (Random). I can probably go down stairs now and it will crank right up. It happens maybe 25% of the time. I dont drive my 8 that much since I have a company vehicle. I put gas in it 3 weeks ago to give you an idea. When it doesn't crank it seems like its not getting fuel or spark.

 

Just to update. I installed the new Optima Red top battery. Sad to say it has not cured the issue however it has made it better. Instead of not starting it has an "extended start". as in at worst, taking 3 - 4 seconds to start. I have removed the amp (Actually sold it ) so here we are. I think I will go ahead and pickup an starter from Autozone. I probably will not do this until after the holidays. I will continue to update until the issue is resolved.

 

Just another update. I was in the area and visited the guys at Mazcare in Marietta. Good guys over there. I told them the issue that I was having and they said that it may sound crazy. But its probably the starter. They gave me a similar explanation to the one that Mazda gave me. So, I went to autozone and picked up a starter. Well, after about 3 weeks and 20+ starts I would have to say Mazda wasn't full of it after all. With the exception of their parts and labor costs. So that issue is resolved. Now on to the reservoir barfing up coolant out the overflow issue.