Tis the season for bad EGR valves. Many of you have either experienced or know someone who have experienced engine performance or driveability issues with their Protege. This problem is extremely common on our cars and usually occurs on higher mileage vehicles and especially during cold weather (especially if humid). Many have resorted to disassembling their EGR valve and cleaning off the carbon build up in the pintle and housing, but this is only a temporary solution as the problem comes back at a later time.
Mazda USA and Canada has released TSBs on this common issue and also released an updated EGR valve which has a metal shield to seal the stepper motor from the valve/pintle assembly from the elements in order to "correct" the problem. The TSBs state that the problem is with water condensation built up in the EGR valve which causes the motor to rust. When combined with carbon build up (which is normal for all EGR systems) this is a perfect recipe for the EGR valve to seize. Early occurrences of this problem usually includes any or combination of the following: rough idle, cruise surge, low idle, or stalling. Later on as the problem progresses, a P0300 random misfire or P0401 EGR flow insufficient codes along with a "Check Engine" light occurs. A P0300 code is a more common occurrence with stuck open EGR valves. A P0401 is not as common and usually no driveability issues are experienced. The Protege's EGR valve does not have a pintle position sensor so it does not know that it is stuck unlike other cars such as some GMs with electric EGR valves out there (despite the fact that our cars also use electric EGR valves). The only way for the ECU to monitor the EGR functionality is with the boost (MAP) sensor but because it takes a lot of pressure change to cause a failure to be detected, the ECU misreports a P0300 code.
Many have misdiagnosed the early symptoms of a bad EGR valve or like me just simply disbelieve the EGR valve has failed. Either way, ignition system parts have been replaced and a lot of times money wasted. So note to the wise, if your car has always been properly maintained following the recommended schedules and your car is experiencing the above driveability issues, look into a new EGR valve!
Mazda USA's TSB 01-028/05 and Mazda Canada's (now obsolete) TSB 01-05-24 shows diagnostic procedures as well as replacement parts information. The FSY1-20-300-9U part has a shield around the assembly but looks like the original factory part. After almost 3 years of experience with this updated part in the harsh Canadian climate, it was proven that even this "new" valve was still prone to failure because it's not moisture from the outside but what condenses behind that metal shield! Due to this, Mazda has specially engineered an EGR valve for the cold Canadian climate which basically eliminates failure possibility and released a new TSB 01-07-17 (for 1.8l FP/2.0l FS engines) and TSB 01-07-46 (for 1.6l ZM engines) which offers an extended warranty on all Canadian 3rd gen Proteges regardless of mileage as long as it is less than 7 years old.
The Canadian EGR valve is a much superior design in which that not only combines the "sealed" design, but also utilizes coolant hoses to heat the EGR valve in order to "cook" the condensation out. A vent hose is part of the design in order for the water vapors to escape. No longer does it have rust prone cast iron valve body either-- it is now all aluminum except for the stepper motor housing. This design hopefully eliminates any future failure possibility due to rust. Mazda USA has not decided to sell this valve yet nor offer any extended warranty most likely due to lower failure rates because of the milder American climate in general. Some northern states that experience Canadian-like winters are at a great disadvantage like always (Mazda USA never offered winter package options which are standard equipment in Canada). Like I said, 3 years of Canadian winters have proven that the original style EGR valve still sold in the US fails. In otherwords, if you want to fix your car for good, forget about getting a new US EGR valve and go through the trouble of getting the Canadian one.
No, you can't get the Canadian EGR valve (ZMY1-18-W00 for 1.6l ZM-DE engines and FSY1-18-W00 for 1.8l FP-DE or 2.0l FS-DE engines) from a US dealer. I tried, trust me. The only way to get it is from a Canadian dealer. Luckily it is not really that expensive. It only retails for $149.95 CND plus taxes. It is actually a complete repair kit that includes new hose clamps, reusable zip ties, throttle body gasket, and EGR valve gasket. In the end, it really costs about the same or a little more than the US EGR valve!
More importantly, while Mazda acknowledges the EGR valves are problematic, they will NOT replace your catalytic converter damaged due to the P0300 random misfires in connection to the TSB. It will be under your emissions warranty (96 months or 128,000km in Canada and 96 months or 80,000 miles in USA whichever comes first) instead in which many Proteges have too high of mileage or service time to allow this to be covered. So in otherwords, if your "Check Engine" light starts blinking, pull over as soon as possible and shut off the engine! A damaged catalytic converter could easily add $1000 more to your repairs due to something as silly as a broken EGR valve!
Mazda USA and Canada has released TSBs on this common issue and also released an updated EGR valve which has a metal shield to seal the stepper motor from the valve/pintle assembly from the elements in order to "correct" the problem. The TSBs state that the problem is with water condensation built up in the EGR valve which causes the motor to rust. When combined with carbon build up (which is normal for all EGR systems) this is a perfect recipe for the EGR valve to seize. Early occurrences of this problem usually includes any or combination of the following: rough idle, cruise surge, low idle, or stalling. Later on as the problem progresses, a P0300 random misfire or P0401 EGR flow insufficient codes along with a "Check Engine" light occurs. A P0300 code is a more common occurrence with stuck open EGR valves. A P0401 is not as common and usually no driveability issues are experienced. The Protege's EGR valve does not have a pintle position sensor so it does not know that it is stuck unlike other cars such as some GMs with electric EGR valves out there (despite the fact that our cars also use electric EGR valves). The only way for the ECU to monitor the EGR functionality is with the boost (MAP) sensor but because it takes a lot of pressure change to cause a failure to be detected, the ECU misreports a P0300 code.
Many have misdiagnosed the early symptoms of a bad EGR valve or like me just simply disbelieve the EGR valve has failed. Either way, ignition system parts have been replaced and a lot of times money wasted. So note to the wise, if your car has always been properly maintained following the recommended schedules and your car is experiencing the above driveability issues, look into a new EGR valve!
Mazda USA's TSB 01-028/05 and Mazda Canada's (now obsolete) TSB 01-05-24 shows diagnostic procedures as well as replacement parts information. The FSY1-20-300-9U part has a shield around the assembly but looks like the original factory part. After almost 3 years of experience with this updated part in the harsh Canadian climate, it was proven that even this "new" valve was still prone to failure because it's not moisture from the outside but what condenses behind that metal shield! Due to this, Mazda has specially engineered an EGR valve for the cold Canadian climate which basically eliminates failure possibility and released a new TSB 01-07-17 (for 1.8l FP/2.0l FS engines) and TSB 01-07-46 (for 1.6l ZM engines) which offers an extended warranty on all Canadian 3rd gen Proteges regardless of mileage as long as it is less than 7 years old.
The Canadian EGR valve is a much superior design in which that not only combines the "sealed" design, but also utilizes coolant hoses to heat the EGR valve in order to "cook" the condensation out. A vent hose is part of the design in order for the water vapors to escape. No longer does it have rust prone cast iron valve body either-- it is now all aluminum except for the stepper motor housing. This design hopefully eliminates any future failure possibility due to rust. Mazda USA has not decided to sell this valve yet nor offer any extended warranty most likely due to lower failure rates because of the milder American climate in general. Some northern states that experience Canadian-like winters are at a great disadvantage like always (Mazda USA never offered winter package options which are standard equipment in Canada). Like I said, 3 years of Canadian winters have proven that the original style EGR valve still sold in the US fails. In otherwords, if you want to fix your car for good, forget about getting a new US EGR valve and go through the trouble of getting the Canadian one.
No, you can't get the Canadian EGR valve (ZMY1-18-W00 for 1.6l ZM-DE engines and FSY1-18-W00 for 1.8l FP-DE or 2.0l FS-DE engines) from a US dealer. I tried, trust me. The only way to get it is from a Canadian dealer. Luckily it is not really that expensive. It only retails for $149.95 CND plus taxes. It is actually a complete repair kit that includes new hose clamps, reusable zip ties, throttle body gasket, and EGR valve gasket. In the end, it really costs about the same or a little more than the US EGR valve!
More importantly, while Mazda acknowledges the EGR valves are problematic, they will NOT replace your catalytic converter damaged due to the P0300 random misfires in connection to the TSB. It will be under your emissions warranty (96 months or 128,000km in Canada and 96 months or 80,000 miles in USA whichever comes first) instead in which many Proteges have too high of mileage or service time to allow this to be covered. So in otherwords, if your "Check Engine" light starts blinking, pull over as soon as possible and shut off the engine! A damaged catalytic converter could easily add $1000 more to your repairs due to something as silly as a broken EGR valve!
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