JohnnyTightlips Build "Maximum Carnage"

[JohnnyTightlips]

Smol Update:

I took my car to get an alignment and they ended up breaking a bolt in the rear. I had literally done nothing besides brakes and sway bar back there since I bought the car. Due to it being a rusty disaster I was pretty lazy about it. But now with a bolt broken I decided to tear it all down and put in some new goodies.

I am pretty much replacing every part except for the trailing arms. I am going to sand blast them and pain them. I did get new bushings for them though. I am not planning to make it perfect or rust free as the car is old and tired but I did want to get the suspension back in good order.

It took quite a while to get the bolts out but the help of a heat tool, map gas torch, time, impacts etc made it all come out without breaking anything. I also ordered the bushing kit from damond as my rear brakes were not worn even at all. I bought new calipers too. I am pretty excited to have this checked off my list and get an alignment done on it. Parts list below.





I still have a couple more bolts to get out but I am getting close and ready for the fun part of new parts. I will say my Megan suspension parts as still in good working order and not leaking or broken. They have not been treated super kind so that is legit how they have held up.

 

[Cfoldone]

Excited to see your posts . This one is awaiting my first touches. Trailered home the 6 and it has to wait some more... until 3's rebuild gets completed.

 

[BAT-man]

Gonna throw some antiseize on those suckers when putting her back together? It's like sriracha for cars....

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Gonna throw some antiseize on those suckers when putting her back together? It's like sriracha for cars....

All bolts are being soaked in Krud Kutter - Rust Remover. It works great , just fill up an old pickle jar and give them a few hours. I have probably done over 100 bolts in the mix that is in there now, probably could use a refresh. I will then being putting antiseize on them. They all seem in good enough shape to re-use. If this car was going to last me another 20 years I would maybe look at some fresh bolts.

 

[Easter Bunny]

How many miles do you have on the car now?

 

[BAT-man]

Yeah KrudKutter or WD40's version of rust removal in a pinch work amazeballs

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

How many miles do you have on the car now?

I'd have to double check, I think it's about 170k.

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Update:

Rear suspension is all done, all parts fit without much issues. Took some time to get it all together but wasn't "hard".

Bushing had to be pressed in and out for the knuckle to the body. Position is important too so you need to mark the old one first.



I bought new brake shields that were meant for a focus or some shit. They "fit" but I had to drill holes for them to align the the mazda bolt holes. The reason I did not buy mazda ones as it was like an 8-10 week wait and that is dumb. I used my old ones as a template to get the right bolt holes.



I got new rear calipers as mine were pretty beat and I had to cut them to get the e brake cable out. I ended up getting Damond bushings too. I believe I need to bleed the brakes more but they brake great with a little more pedal. The brakes do feel smoother and seem to engage more evenly. I am able to modulate the brake pedal more where light touches are actually felt. I changed the fronts as well. Surprisingly my EBC yellows up front have a ton of meat on them still so that is nice. I changed out the rear pads and rotors for. I went with Raybestos Element 3, quality was great and they have an anti rust coating.


I now need to get the rear aligned at some point. Car seems straight enough but it would be good to get it properly dialed. For anyone looking at how to properly bleed the brakes on this car "I saw this too late" follow this thread. https://www.mazda3forums.com/thread...pposed-to-bleed-brakes-on-your-mazda3.394323/

tldr; Bleed Order

(2)LF - RF(4)
...|xxxxxxx|
...|xxxxxxx|
...|xxxxxxx|
...|xxxxxxx|
(3)LR---RR(1)

 

[aaronc7]

(2)LF - RF(4)
...|xxxxxxx|
...|xxxxxxx|
...|xxxxxxx|
...|xxxxxxx|
(3)LR---RR(1)

Are those dots on the left side like oil stains on the garage floor or what?

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Are those dots on the left side like oil stains on the garage floor or what?

Brake fluid....

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Smol Update:

Brakes are working great, car decided to do a start and idle and NO MORE FUEL PRESSURE, then ded. I had my cousin give me a ride home as it was already dark out and figured I would look at it the next day. I put out the call and @andale927 said to check the fuel pump resistor on the frame rail. I figured this could be it as the car started fine and ran fine for a min and then when it would kick the pump down to a lower voltage it just stopped.

I brought some wire with me and YEP, that fixed it. I made it connect nicer for the drive home, this is a picture of the test.


Not sure if I will be getting a new resistor or just leave it in bypass mode. It can run full voltage all the time so I don't really know why it exist unless it is an NVH thing. https://edgeautosport.com/mazda-oem-resistor-with-bracket-mazdaspeed-3-2010-2013/



On another note I have noticed a shake on acceleration "moderate to heavy". I have pretty much everything new up front and think it is related to drive shafts. I guess if they wear out when you apply TQ they can get off center and make a wobble. I have not been super kind to the current axles. I bought some new ones to swap and will see what that does.

 

[BAT-man]

Same thing happened to RX-8, it was so random that it took a while to pinpoint. Ran it for 30k with bypass, couldn't tell of any ill effects, folks on the rx8 forums do the same. My theory is that the idle pressure (the one that needs the resistor) is lower to extend in-tank pump life. With the pump being such a pain to get to, it makes more sense for the speeds than the rx-8.

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Same thing happened don RX-8, it's so random that it took a while to pinpoint. Ran it for 30k with bypass, couldn't tell of any ill effects, folks on the rx8 forums do the same. My theory is that the idle pressure (the one that needs the resistor) is lower to extend in-tank pump life. With the pump being such a pain to get to, it makes more sense for the speeds than the rx-8.

Yeah I don't think it is necessary for what I am doing. I will make a nicer bypass like I had before with the actual pins, maybe I can find what plug it is and just get one. I could cut the bad resistor up too and use that plug.

 

[Cfoldone]

Thank you for sharing. I always wonder about that resistor. My experience was with old points / coils and that was important for points longevity. So same thoughts on pump life.
I remember you have a new in tank pump, so I hope this lives long and prosper.

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Car is fixed, I ended up cutting the harness off the bad resistor and soldering it. That worked well.

I also fixed my wobble / shake on acceleration. It was the passenger axle. It must have something internally wrong causing it to get out of center when TQ is applied.
Here is a video of the old and new. This gives an idea of how a good axle should feel. Super happy as the car feels new and is smooth again.

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Smol Update:

I have been having trouble with the car just randomly shutting off and from time to time.I was also getting a crank code but not all the time and it would show up randomly while the car was running fine. I ended up replacing the crank sensor and the plug that goes to it and the car seems to be better. Hopefully that is the fix as I don't really want to chase any crazy electrical issues. I also have a log with the car idling and it dies 3 times. I drove the car to work today and it never shut off.

https://www.revisionsrus.com/logs/2235

 

[BAT-man]

Do those TPMS codes show up all the time or only when using winter wheels without the sensors in them? I never see mine as error codes, even when the TPMS light is on, its kinda cool that yours shows them

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

Do those TPMS codes show up all the time or only when using winter wheels without the sensors in them? I never see mine as error codes, even when the TPMS light is on, its kinda cool that yours shows them

Yeah it shows an error for each one. And my winter tires have no TPMS.

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

So IDK if I posted this before but it keeps coming up so here is the list of stuff I needed for the built motor. So far I have not had issues with any of these parts.

QTY Part # ItemName Seller
1 Crower Springs 68195-16 Valve Springs AMAZON
2 151-1001 ARP Camshaft Sprocket Bolt Kit ARP
1 ARP 251-2501 Crank Bolt ARP
1 ARP 218-5402 Main Studs ARP
1 ARP 251-2802 FlyWheel Bolts ARP
1 CB-1925A - Clevite AL Connecting Rod Bearing Set STD Mazda Mazdaspeed Rod Bearings Real Street
1 MS-2245A - Mahle Clevite Main Bearings AL Series STD Size Mazdaspeed 3 Main Bearings Real Street
1 F2GZ-6600-A Ford Focus Engine Oil Pump - Ford FORD OEM
1 Freek h11 Head Studs Freek
16 GM Ecotec 90537243 GM Retainers GM
1 L3K9-12-201A Timing Chain MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-12-671 Timing Chain Lever (left guide) MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-12-614 Timing Chain Guide (right guide) MAZDA OEM
2 9XG0-36-430L Timing Chain Guide Bolt MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-12-500A Timing Chain Adjuster (tensioner) MAZDA OEM
1 LF17-12-717A Timing Chain Adjuster Bolt MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-12-4X0C-9U VVT Actuator MAZDA OEM
2 L3K9-12-429 Cam Sprocket Washers MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-14-151 Oil Pump Chain MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-14-614 Oil Pump Chain Guide MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-14-500 Oil Pump Chain Tensioner MAZDA OEM
1 9XG0-62-860L Oil Pump Chain Tensioner Bolt MAZDA OEM
3 9XG0-36-510L Oil Pump Chain Tensioner Bolt & Oil Pump Chain Guide Bolt MAZDA OEM
1 L3K9-14-143 Oil Pump Sprocket MAZDA OEM
1 9XG0-43-977L Oil Pump Sprocket Bolt MAZDA OEM
4 9XG1-20-220L Oil Pump Bolt MAZDA OEM
1 L3G6-14-240B Oil Pump Pickup MAZDA OEM
1 L309-14-248 Oil Pump Pickup O-Ring MAZDA OEM
2 9XG0-62-820L Oil Pump Pickup Bolts MAZDA OEM
3 L3H5-11-407 Crank Friction Washers MAZDA OEM
1 1F70-15-100 Water Pump MAZDA OEM
1 0000-77-1217-ES MAZDA RTV MAZDA OEM
1 LF01-11-310A Rear Main Seal MAZDA OEM
1 L3G6-10-602 Crankshaft Timing Cover Oil Seal MAZDA OEM
1 L305-16-520 Release Fork Trans Clutch MAZDA OEM
1 YF09-11-303 Pilot Bearing MAZDA OEM
4 GB REMANUFACTURING 8059 Fuel Injector O-rings Rock Auto
1 GATES VVS179 VVT Solenoid Rock Auto
1 TYC 117914 Starter Motor Rock Auto
1 MAHLE VS50562 Valve Cover Gaskets - Main Rock Auto
1 MAHLE MS19831 Exhaust Gasket Rock Auto
1 MAHLE SS46019 Exhaust Valve Guides Rock Auto
1 MAHLE SS460198 Intake Valve Guides Rock Auto
1 MAHLE C32438 Water Octopus Seal Rock Auto
1 STANDARD MOTOR PRODUCTS GDG501 Fuel Pump Gasket Rock Auto

 

[Enki]

tldr