Bought a Speed6 last week. Loads of fun so far!

That's just a wee bit of slack on the timing chain... As for the turbo not sure what it is, but not really my scene, I saw in shoutbox you said you reached out to BNR that's a good call please let us know what they say

 

Yeah... If that's at TDC your VVT needs to be replaced.

Also... I think that's a Hitachi, 1986-91 Mazda RX 7 Turbo II HT18S-2SF Turbo

 

That's what I thought initially. Somebody posted one for sale on a Facebook forum as a BNR S3-V1, so I went to double check mine. Sure enough, it has BNR laser cut into the WG mounting bracket. Further digging online turned up a thread from 2008 where Bryan (BNR) was doing the first group buy for S1 and S2 models that were machined from the Hitachi compressor housing. He was going to release an S3 option using the same housing after he'd sold 10-15 of the S1 and S2. Here's the thread on Mazda6Club:https: //www.mazda6club.com/threads/mazdaspeed-3-6-k04-hybrid-turbocharger-330whp.227126/page-5

Yeah - The chain seemed fine, then it made a ton of noise one morning on a short drive. Pulled it over and had it towed home. I haven't had time to open it all the way up, but it doesn't appear to have skipped timing and not TOO much flake in the oil, which I'm hoping was just from the contact with the VC. Going to dig deeper this weekend before ordering VVT kit vs "new" engine.

 

If she slaps she claps. Swap it out. Wouldn't take the chance. It's fairly easy if you are mechanically inclined. Ask all the questions you want for VVT. I gotcha fam.

 

Appreciate it. Yeah - she's docked with oil drained and parts coming off. It's rotating freely, but the flakes in the oil were just enough to make me hold off on ordering anything before I dig further. The metal looked bronze in color, so I'm thinking turbo/discolored VC material from chain contact based on the bearings being aluminum - according to my understanding.

I've done plenty of timing and head jobs on 2UZ-FE, Hondas, Subaru, etc., so I'm not that intimidated by the job. If you have any feedback on whether going OEM is worth it on all parts or if there are better alternatives, I'd definitely appreciate that. Want to do it right, obviously, but the aftermarket seems to be ahead of Mazda engineering in some regards.

Based on the metal, think it's worth pulling the oil pan to investigate/clean it out? I haven't poked around a lot under the car, but the internet writeups make it seem like a PITA - not hard, just kind of tedious with loosening the trans bolts to create a gap and then FIP gasketing it back in. I despise doing FIP gaskets.

 

Good news for you on experience doing timing. These are a little more nerve racking because of the crank and cams not being keyed.

I've never been against dropping the pan to inspect during a VVT job. It is tedious for sure and has the potential for leaks after the fact if you don't add enough sealant at the rear main. It does add to the already extensive job you're doing, however, it's not a bad thing to look into. If the VVT is completely in tact I wouldn't bother with the pan. If it's broken and missing parts that you can't find, then I highly recommend dropping the pan and searching for missing pieces.

As far as VVT goes, ALWAYS OEM! Go through Edge for the VVT kit and call it a day. FIP gasket sucks but, IMO getting the permatex ultra black never fails. It is a PITA for sure. I did just walk another member through doing his VVT and Definitely found loop holes in my write up (which I still need to correct), but his came out fine.

 

Looks like everything is in it's place. Going back to the comment about the slack being at TDC in the picture; no. There was less slack at TDC, but the picture was taken with a stone cold chain @ like 45 degree ambient temps. It's tighter at TDC, but I have witness marks and can't imagine that slack like that ANYWHERE in the timing cycle can be acceptable.

All looks to be in place, but the metal has me concerned. Going to look pretty hard for the obvious sources before pulling the pan. Knowing 0 about the car and from everything I keep discovering, I wouldn't be super surprised if whoever made the upgrades rebuilt it with tri-metal bearings or something...

 

As long as the VVT doesn't look like this you should be able to avoid pulling the pan. Chain marks on VC are bad for sure. At TDC even cold you shouldn't have more than 1/4" give or take of play in the chain over all.

 

Been a long time. It wasn't the chain or VVT gear - that had all been replaced with the updated parts. I had replaced the passenger motor mount and Autozone gave me the regular 6 mount that seemed to be identical + a stud for what I assume was a ground. Noticed that stud was making significant contact with the aluminum brace (?) that spans the mount to the timing cover, so I thought the noise could have come from there OR the power steering also had a stripped out pocket on the timing cover. None of the above. It was a failing rod bearing... ask me how I know. Probably going the 2.5 route. If anybody is reading this, how likely is the head damaged beyond use. I shoved it in the barn for a few months, but the car is now in my garage with the motor coming out tonight. Intake valves visibly look okay and the cam lobes don't appear to have gotten any special "polishing" from the metal as the oil left the party pretty quickly.

This happened at around 20 PSI with all 4 wheels smoking in 2nd Figured I'd give the block a Viking burial and start fresh. If anybody has a Speed pan sitting around, I think I might need a new one.

 

i need a video of said viking burial

 

I wish... Buttoned it all back up and the noise was still there. Took it for a little test drive with my 5 year old in the back seat, and he is an instigator. Figured what the hell - loaded the OTS stage 3 tune, and sent her to outer space. The death was decisive. Medium length burnout marks followed by a long trail of oil on the road.

 

Dang!
Pan... I bet you could buff that out lol.

I must say you are now truly a member of the community.

 

I drove it from my barn to my garage with those holes in the block and pan haha. Poured some sacrificial driveway oil in and she fired right up. Couldn't believe it. Hope the filter/catch can did their jobs, but I think a turbo rebuild will be on the list after that act of laziness.

 

Your car is clean and the red and black looks good. Your enthusiasm is inspiring, now i know how im gonna spend my next off day!

 

JESUS CHRIST! LMFAO!!!

Videos or it didn't happen.

 

I'm terrible about videoing things. Here's the best I can do... It drove from the far side of the barn into my driveway and backed uphill into my garage. The noises she made were NOT pretty, but she did even build some boost

 

I just bought a wrecked 6 with good motor/trans for $800. NOW I feel like a member of the community. I can see how y'all accumulate so many worthless parts on shelves owning these things. Planning to use the shell as a table-top for my dirtbike track unless somebody wants a huge mailbox.

 

none of these pictures work

LOL, I have 2 ms6 transmissions, 2 rear diffs, 3 PTO's, two ms3 transmissions, and four complete long blocks that are all busted with all accessories, harnesses and brackets... keep these cars long enough... you end up having enough parts for 3 or 4 cars, but none of them will make one run.