ZE running on 3 cylinders, HELP......

[Tommy D]

I had my ZE dyno tested last week, it ran 191.3 at fly and 152.3 at the wheels, is this ok? My torque figure was 80-90Nm, seemed low...?

I was booting it up a hill through 2nd, changed into 3rd, just after the gearchange my ZE instantly lost power and sounded like a Subaru.

The problem is with the front 3 cylinders, the plugs are sparking, the cams are turning as i looked into oil filler, and the injectors seem to be working as there is atomised fuel coming through the Vaf after i switch her off? cam? There are no bubbles in the water tank..... I have no idea what is going on, when driving along in any gear under load especialy 4th, if i put my foot to the floor she bangs and misfires, if i back of she pulls gently along. She is going to a specialist as the local "hill billys" dont have a clue what is wrong.

Has anyone had any experience of a ZE doing this? I hope its not expensive as i am going to turbo her soon.

If its shagged ill prob buy a shatpiece and build mental engine to drop in and boost with the kit...

[hgallegos915]

ive had my kfze do that (same k series engines) my probloem was the hei..doe some reason i had spark in all cylinders except one..then 2 of them didnt hjave spark..i did hei mod and worked fine cheers that hei mod can do wonders. Most likely just the hei went bad. Check cables to make sure they are good REPLACE imediatelly if bad, check ecu connectors for any bent pins (i doubt its that) and finally do the hei mod. You wont loose power when car warms up anymore so even if its not that its a good thing to do. its in the faq.

[babyblueMX3]

I had my ZE dyno tested last week, it ran 191.3 at fly and 152.3 at the wheels, is this ok? My torque figure was 80-90Nm, seemed low...?

I was booting it up a hill through 2nd, changed into 3rd, just after the gearchange my ZE instantly lost power and sounded like a Subaru.

The problem is with the front 3 cylinders, the plugs are sparking, the cams are turning as i looked into oil filler, and the injectors seem to be working as there is atomised fuel coming through the Vaf after i switch her off? cam? There are no bubbles in the water tank..... I have no idea what is going on, when driving along in any gear under load especialy 4th, if i put my foot to the floor she bangs and misfires, if i back of she pulls gently along. She is going to a specialist as the local "hill billys" dont have a clue what is wrong.

Has anyone had any experience of a ZE doing this? I hope its not expensive as i am going to turbo her soon.

If its shagged ill prob buy a shatpiece and build mental engine to drop in and boost with the kit...

my car had the same description as you, sounded like a subaru, loss power, spark and fuel everywhere.

Problem was....broke retainer, dropped a valve...did you do a compression test like I told you ?

[Tommy D]

I dont have comp test equip, garage will have to do it as everywhere is booked up till tues. They should find prob, will do HEI, or get a ZE disty with external coil.

Im hoping they will know whats wrong, if they dont, im screwed

[Custommx3]

ZEs are know to break retainers if over reved alot. If this is your issue, and you have to rebuid it, DE retainers are thicker, thats what I used in my ZE build.

[jschrauwen]

I dont have comp test equip,

Pretty generic piece of kit. No different than removing and installing spark plugs. The cost of buying a quality compression test gauge will be cheaper than having a shop do it and you've added another handy item to your tool box. It shouldn't be necessary to seek a specialist shop as long as a local Mazda is familiar with working on the 2.5L 626/MX6. It's pretty much the same and shouldn't take a wizard to deal with the subtle differences between ZE and DE.

[Tommy D]

I'll be honest, i do drive the mx3 hard so im expecting that i am about to pay the consiquences.

As for ideas, if it is screwed? What would be the best idea for getting it working but stronger. DE retainers of course..

I know a Comp Test kit would be good but i cant be arsed to trouble shoot when i can have someone else do it, im buisy at work alot.

Unless its a shiny new tuning part im not that enthusiastic, The nearest mazda garages are now ford garages and dont know much about my old K series V6. Someone will fix it... Its going in tomorrow, will know then

[PATDIESEL]

If it is seriously all the front three cylinders I'd say it jumped timing on the front bank. Again, just something to ask them to check. If it did jump you'll b fine. They can reset the timing and the car will not have suffered any damage.
Hopefully not a retainer. A full head rebuild will cost a few pounds ot have a shop do.

[babyblueMX3]

If it is seriously all the front three cylinders I'd say it jumped timing on the front bank. Again, just something to ask them to check. If it did jump you'll b fine. They can reset the timing and the car will not have suffered any damage.
Hopefully not a retainer. A full head rebuild will cost a few pounds ot have a shop do.

this is another good assumption.

is the engine ticking ???

[Tommy D]

I had someone look at it and he said that he didnt think the belt would have slipped as it is tight still. It just seems strange, the engine is making a ticking noise when revs are held at say 3-4rpm, I took it to some guys but they havnt found anything, just told me it seems like an engine fault (obvious fool) They have done compression test but not told me results yet, will know tomorrow.

They checked electronics and fuel injectors but the fuel doesnt seem to be getting in the chamber. I'll get someone to check the dots line up, If they are out on the front ill throw a party and get it fixed. If the retainers are screwed ill use a DE Engine and whack in the ZE cams, I/M, TB, and then put turbo kit on and Megasquirt her, will that be ok? or am i missing anything from the engine build?

[hgallegos915]

oh ah i forgot to mention..sometimes your injectors will die..so maybe those 3 died.. if theres no fuel?

[wepeo]

could be a feul filter. I've just had to relearn the hard way to check and recheck the simplest things...

[XxantwawnxX]

If it was the fuel filter you would have a more all around prob..not just the front 3 cylinders.

[PATDIESEL]

You really need a true diagnosis. Most of these are no more than guesses.
Let a real mechanic take a loo kat it and tell you what is wrong.
Do all Brit mechanics seem that stupid or is it just the ones that you've taken it to.
The timing can easily jump if you drive it hard. He cannot tell hwo tight the belt is when you are running the engine at high RPMs. A vivusal inspection is not going to cut it. You need an electrical test done on the spark, electrical test done on the fuel injectors- realy- pump etc, a true timing inspection, and a compression test. If those don't yield the answer then ask us again and we can help with more suggestions.

[Tommy D]

Iv had the engine checked out. If you stand looking in the engine bay the front left cylinder has no compression at all. All the others have 190-195 or something and the other 2 are out of time, The mechanics have suggested that it bent a valve and the timing belt may have jumped one notch due to the sudden snag.

Im going to take the front head off and have a look, if its a bent valve i'll be happy as i'll get some DE retainers and get it back on ready for Turbo. If its a Piston, ill buy another engine. Can someone give me a list of what i can do to build a DE / ZE Hybrid? Iv got a bit of cash but dont want to go crazy, thanks for the pointers guys. Any more info is greatly welcome.....