new timing belt... crappy gas milage???

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Jan 23, 2007

• #1

so i used to get like 500km to a tank but i got my timing belt changed like 7000km ago and now im lucky if i get 400km to a tank. if the stealership didnt set the timing back properly would that be the cause of my poor gas milage?

 

K

Kooldino

MOTM Winner Jan '09

Authorized Vendor

Contributor

:

MP3

• Jan 23, 2007

• #2

Yes. But it's not hard to check...have them double check it.

 

T

the tortoise

Member

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2002 Black Mica P5

• Jan 23, 2007

• #3

7000 km ago would have been summer/fall right?

It's normal for your fuel economy to tank in the winter time.

How's it driving?

 

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Jan 23, 2007

• #4

it would have been october... and it was a sudden change. my car idles bad now, it sputters and almost stalls from time to time. i've just been to busy to question/do anything about it

 

P

P-Funk!

:

Lancer Ralliart Sportback

• Jan 24, 2007

• #5

Yep - this mis-aligned the marks. Take it back and have them check it.

 

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Jan 24, 2007

• #6

they better not charge me for this s***... they already chipped the paint on my valve cover they last time they had it off...

 

F

falsedawn

Member

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Red 2002 P5

• Jan 24, 2007

• #7

Surely if the timing was off you'd have noticed it from the moment the belt was changed? Spluttering and bad idle are more likely indicative of egr clogging (very common problem) and/or vacuum leaks IMO.

 

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Jan 24, 2007

• #8

egr was replaced on warranty within the last year...
and i forgot to mention that i have to put 1L of oil in every 1500km now. before i didnt have to do that. and my car doesnt burn oil

 

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Jan 24, 2007

• #9

Mr.Ames said:

...and it was a sudden change...

Click to expand...

so i still think its the timing belt

 

P

P-Funk!

:

Lancer Ralliart Sportback

• Jan 25, 2007

• #10

We have timing marks on the pulley and a timing plate. Put a light on that thang! That will tell you right away!

 

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Jan 25, 2007

• #11

anyone wanna show me a pic of what its supposed to look like so i can compare to mine?

 

P

P-Funk!

:

Lancer Ralliart Sportback

• Jan 26, 2007

• #12

Refer to the ugly.net tech data.

 

I

illogik

Member

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2001 ES / MP3 conversion

• Jan 26, 2007

• #13

I had the same issue - turned out the ECU had switched to limp home mode after the service. Try resetting it and see if it fixes your problem too.

 

M

Mr.Ames

Member

:

2002 Mazda Protege 5

• Feb 16, 2007

• #14

so i reset the ECU and burned thru like 7 tanks of gas and i'm still getting crap for mileage and my oil is still mysteriously disappearing (no leaks and it doesn't look/smell like its burning). Should i take it to the dealer and make them check the timing or is there something else i should check first?