2012 MS3 Tech. 165k. Pretty stock. Owned since new.
Last week I noticed a horrible sound at low speed stops. Almost like metal on metal dragging and swinging for several seconds after the vehicle came to a complete stop. It sounded like someone hung a bag of scrap metal from the underside of the chassis and it was just swinging in the wind.
I jacked the car up on all fours, took all the wheels off, checked every suspension pickup point, exhaust hanger, mount, sunbframe bolt, etc. Checked the tank hangers, heat shields, anything that i could grab and shake. Couldn't find the source of the sound.
Checked the forum, reddit, etc. After some deep level 5 youtube googling, i found this video:
https://bit.ly/3D3aNBk
I felt vindicated! Omg what the fuck is going on.
Found a second video of some mechanic in Australia who pulled the tank down and actually shows the cause of the sound: spot welds holding the baffle inside the gas tank break and the baffle drags along the inside of the tank:
https://bit.ly/3y2ZLIv
At this point I am assessing my options.
1. Replace with an OEM tank.
2. Replace with a used tank.
3. Do nothing.
Decided to go with #1. Took it to a friend's shop, they dropped the tank and found some rotted hoses that also needed replacing. I also had them swap a new Purge evaporator valve in as the old one was toast for some time.
Heads up most of the hoses that are part of the gas/evap system are only available from Mazda.
Thanks for playing!
Last week I noticed a horrible sound at low speed stops. Almost like metal on metal dragging and swinging for several seconds after the vehicle came to a complete stop. It sounded like someone hung a bag of scrap metal from the underside of the chassis and it was just swinging in the wind.
I jacked the car up on all fours, took all the wheels off, checked every suspension pickup point, exhaust hanger, mount, sunbframe bolt, etc. Checked the tank hangers, heat shields, anything that i could grab and shake. Couldn't find the source of the sound.
Checked the forum, reddit, etc. After some deep level 5 youtube googling, i found this video:
https://bit.ly/3D3aNBk
I felt vindicated! Omg what the fuck is going on.
Found a second video of some mechanic in Australia who pulled the tank down and actually shows the cause of the sound: spot welds holding the baffle inside the gas tank break and the baffle drags along the inside of the tank:
https://bit.ly/3y2ZLIv
At this point I am assessing my options.
1. Replace with an OEM tank.
2. Replace with a used tank.
3. Do nothing.
Decided to go with #1. Took it to a friend's shop, they dropped the tank and found some rotted hoses that also needed replacing. I also had them swap a new Purge evaporator valve in as the old one was toast for some time.
Heads up most of the hoses that are part of the gas/evap system are only available from Mazda.
Thanks for playing!
