Another P5 on a College Budget....Meet Ozzie

[esnave09]

Well I have come to a conclusion. I am going to spend money on new fog lights, and finishing my projector project. Now for the reasoning.

For the fog lights: I was delivering Tuesday night and heard that I drove over something, turns out the glass and reflective housing dislodged themselves (one way to get out stripped screws) and I drove over it, shattering the glass. I just ordered some Hella 500FFs and they should be here next week.

As for the headlights, I was trying to adjust the headlights, but didn't know if my bulbs were seated correctly. I tried to take out the passenger side light (duct taped in), and smashed the bulb. Ordered some Kensun replacements (can't afford to wait 3 weeks for bulbs) and then realized I had thrown the H7 adapter in the dumpster. I have been layering on crumpled up pieces of duct tape and still can't get it to be low enough. So that is why I want projectors so bad: not having to deal with duct-taped bulbs, and the beam will be focused.

 

[esnave09]

Well, I don't have Ozzie back yet, but I am getting the rust on the wheel wells repaired. I would get the other rust repaired, but the wheel wells alone could be costing me $1000. I figured this is the last project I would spend money on before I plan on getting rid of my car and getting into something new. I tried to get the new fogs in, but alas they are about 2 inches too big. I was going to cut the bumper to make them fit, but then I got crazy busy working both jobs and trying to move before going on vacation, which is where I am right now.

Also, the projector retrofit isn't going to happen anytime soon. I did manage to adjust my lights borderline perfectly with a lot more duct tape. Hopefully whoever gets my car next doesn't have to replace the headlights anytime soon....

So right now the plan is that sometime in the next year I will be in a brand new car. I'm thinking between tax season and my last semester (Fall 2015!), or whenever something else vital fails on Ozzie is when it'll happen, but until then I have some deciding to do. Right now the plan is to lease one of the following vehicles (spec'd as shown) and then probably buy out the lease in 3 years, depending on what my financial situation is:
1) 2015 Honda Fit EX 6-speed

I mostly want one because it's the first Honda since the Civic Si hatch to be a hatchback with a stick shift and sunroof. It's got plenty of room inside for people and stuff (particularly my bike, which is a pain in the a** to get inside the P5), gets really good gas mileage, and it's a Honda. Nice thing is that since I work at a Honda dealer, I get a great discount right off the bat.

2) 2015 Scion tC 6-speed (manual)

I have loved the tC since it came out, and it's loaded up from the factory. I added about $4k in options and it's still very reasonable to lease. Additionally, it's a hatch as well, although not as practical as the Fit since it's a 2 door. Plus, it'll be tough to get a kayak rack on it since it is a glass roof, and I'm not sure how my bike will fit. Something for the test drive I guess....

I work for a dealer that's part of a giant network, so I technically get a discount with almost every make and model possible, but these are my main options. I would love to stay with Mazda and get a 3 hatch, but the only manual/sunroof combo is for the i Grand Touring, and that STARTS at $24k, with leases being, well, expensive for a college kid/grad. So, any thoughts?

 

[31N007]

I'd say get what you are most happy and comfortable with.

I have been yearning to buy an MS3 for a little bit now, and I still plan to.

A friend of mine who used to be a Mazda master tech said to me that if I was looking for an upgrade from the P5, perhaps think about the last gen (funny saying that as it doesn't seem last gen to me) Mazda3 with the SkyActiv and 6 speed. Still able to get the hatch, and you have more reliability.

I am not sure your financial situation, but if you wanted a Mazda option, that is the other route I might go if I wasn't hell bent on buying premium gas and having dat terbow.

The first generation 6 was a great car for my friend. He had the 4 cylinder 5 speed auto. Took the thing drag racing, autocrossing, and to the Tail of the Dragon (look it up) and he didn't have one bad thing to say about it. It was the "hatchback" model- I love them myself, and would get that as a 6 speed V6 if that was even possible (see what I'm saying about me wanting more power?)

I've not yet seen the new Fit on the road, but I like how the old ones look. I'd actually like to drive one some day.

At the end of the day, just weigh pros and cons. I (as well as others) am not going to look down on you for not getting a Mazda as your next car. If I had enough money to buy whatever (new) car I like right now, I'd probably go for a Golf GTI. I haven't got any idea why I like it- maybe it's because of the history the car has, maybe it's because it's a german car... Either way, it's not a Mazda and I'm not ashamed. (okay maybe a little, lol)

 

[esnave09]

Ermahgerd, the Tail of the Dragon. I've heard many a tale about that legendary place..... Haha I would love to go there!

Anyways, I would love to get a new Mazda, but I'm looking to lease for sure while I'm in school. But if I do a two-year lease on a Honda, I would be due for a new car a little after graduation and would hopefully have a good idea of whether out not I could afford a new Mazda.

Speaking of which, I was almost talked into a new Civic last night cuz we needed two more sales to meet quota for the month, which we needed to get after we sold some 60 cars in the last week (following a huge slump). The big problem with the Civic was the lack of a manual, but they were ready to give me twice what auction value was for my car ($20 less per month) AND give me $50 less per month regardless on the lease. They were pretty hellbent on getting me into that lease. Nice thing would be that the car was loaded up, and I could get out in probably a year and a half, if not sooner. But I decided that end of August, I will hopefully be getting into the Fit. The new Fits look kinda odd t first, but I found that t kinda grows on ya. Right now, the only one I've found in the area that I like is red, which I'm not exactly thrilled about. I did get to see what a blue one in winter mode would be, and I fell in love with it.

I have definitely thought about getting a used 3 and did find one that's perfect (gray 2011 s hatch with manual and sunroof) but it's out of my price range. In my mind though, used cars are kinda outta the question. If I'm getting a different car, it's gonna be brand new.

As for the 6, that would be what I would have wanted too. I actually found one a couple months ago like that, but it was a salvage. Booooo.....

So yeah. Found out tonight that a co-worker might be interested in buying my car, so it would stay local! But he's still gotta figure it out, and I gotta figure out stuff I can/should do if and when that happens. Hopefully it works out that he can get it!

 

[esnave09]

Suddenly, Ozzie is starting to act up again. last week when I was delivering I had one instance of the car stalling after startup, but now there is a new issue. When I'm idling and the car is warmed up, the RPMs drop like it's going to stall but then recovers itself.

As if that wasn't bad enough, I noticed last night dropping off some buddies that my idle was fluctuating wildly between 300-800 RPMs. It only did it once, so I wasn't able to catch it on video, but it's still something to make me nervous about selling it to my coworker. Any clues on what it could be? It's been forever since I've done anything under the hood, but I'm hoping I can jump into it on Sunday and get a bunch of stuff done.

 

[mp5la]

Sounds likes a vacuum leak. Check the accordion hose for the intake system for any cracks. Otherwise a good MAF cleaning couldn't hurt.

 

[esnave09]

I have an eBay intake, but I did notice that the brake booster is rubbing away at the intake, so it may be time for some JB Weld or something. What would I use to clean the MAF?

 

[mp5la]

I'd make sure you don't have any leaks at the unions for the intake then. Spray some carb cleaner around the joints or anywhere suspect and listen to the idle. If it jumps up after you spray, you've found your leak. Do this when the engine is cold, carb cleaner is fairly flammable.

They sell CRC maf cleaner at most autoparts store. Just pull the maf sensor and carefully spray it down with the cleaner. A few shots of that and you should be good to go.

 

[esnave09]

Good to know! Maybe I'll be able to find time between jobs tonight to try that.

 

[psychoMP5]

The college/family man budget is definitely what I'm on. Will have to start from the beginning to see what you've done to the car. I think I'm finally starting to get ahead of all my repairs. Have a red 02 mp5 automatic. Looking for a good suspension setup that won't lower me too much in ride height or wallet weight haha.

 

[esnave09]

Haha I've done so much repairing to my car it's not even funny. I think I figured it out one day, and I have dumped in $8k, with the only real mods being summer rims/tires, the Kenwood deck, a new intake, and the MZ6 big brake kit. Most of what I spent is in repairs sadly, and I'm sick of it. Right now throwing around the idea of leasing a Civic Si, but not sure what the dealer can get me for payments. Hoping that I can get into something new in the next couple weeks.

 

[psychoMP5]

Oh dang dude yeah my fixes haven't been that crazy. Picked my little lady up for 4k and have only put in a couple hundred in true repairs so far. If wanna parts out or sell for parts on cheap let me know haha. There's a few things I really need that I've not been able to find. Will have to go check out your pics.

 

[esnave09]

Shoot I just realized I never replied to this. That's not bad at all! I guess more than half my cost was in maintenance that the previous owner decided not to do: struts, brakes, battery, valve cover gasket. But even still, it's a lot of money.

However I do have good news. Ozzie is gonna be sticking around for a while! I found out that the dealer wasn't going to give me hardly anything for my car, so my payments would only be like $20 less per month, plus my insurance will be cheaper with both cars around. Not only that, my co-worker plans to buy it at some point in the near future so I'll still see Ozzie around.

Now onto the not-so-great news. My idle issue has some new developments. I've gotten a CEL with 2 codes, but I don't remember what they are (wanna say one for running lean and the other for low vacuum). I have one of the guys at Advance read them and he said it's probably a lack of vacuum, and I remembered that I had a part snap when I put in the eBay intake. It has two vacuum lines to it and a sensor on top, but idk why it hasn't given me issues until now.

Normally, the second vacuum line goes here on the bottom

.

So my main question is this: what is this part, and where do I get it? Yeah, I think that's it.

 

[esnave09]

Found out what the part was. My purge valve solenoid. New one is ordered, should be here in a couple days. Hopefully this fixes it, but I have a feeling it might not completely solve the problem.

Had the CEL looked at again: P0455 Evap leak, and P0171 bank 1 running lean. Both of these codes popped up once the issue started (frantic idle), so do you guys think this is the issue? The part has been broken since winter and hasn't given me trouble until now, so maybe something else is bad? Thoughts?

 

[Jackie chan]

Yes, that is your issue. You've got an evap leak on one side and a vacuum leak from the throttle body. Vacuum leaks cause a lean condition from the incoming unmetered air. Your car is actually getting more air than it thinks, so it is not basing its idle speed on the ACTUAL amount of air it is getting, causing your idle problem.

 

[esnave09]

I really hope so. I still think it's weird that it didn't really cause any problems for 8 months after putting in my new intake. Hopefully the part gets here soon!

 

[esnave09]

I think that part was the part that I needed! Almost a month later and no issues at all.

I think I'm finally gonna be getting the Fit tomorrow, and so Ozzie will be getting a much-needed break. My hope is that I will be able to refinish my rims (winter and summer) during this time, fix my exhaust leak, and look into many rattles that have made themselves known lately. I'm also trying to decide whether or not to go ahead and do clutch/tranny work. I wouldn't do it myself, but my clutch will need to be replaced soon, my 5th gear synchro is getting a bit worse (has always been touchy) as is my reverse synchro, and I thought for a while that my 3rd gear synchro might be getting a little weird (was stiff for a couple weeks). I'm just about to cross 175,000 miles, and wanna make it to 200k, but I'm starting to get a little worried. Heading into senior year, and my finances are gonna be shrinking a bit (cutting down hours and leasing the Fit), so I'm kinda torn. Thoughts?

Sidebar: New financial goal: lease-to-buy the 2016 Speed3 when it comes out. That's my dream right now. So yeah.

 

[psychoMP5]

just got back to the forums after military orders haha. Great that you can keep your car man! I wouldnt be happy if i had to sell mine.

 

[esnave09]

I feel the same way! I think the only point that I will be satisfied selling it at would be if 1) Someone I knew and saw frequently bought it (i.e. a coworker or close friend), 2) It was over 200k miles (current goal), and/or 3) I bought a new Mazda (probably the most likely scenario).

In other news, I have decided to leave my job at Honda, which means that I may or may not be returning my Fit. It ultimately depends on whether or not I still get my discount, which I think I still will. If I do return my Honda, I have some big plans for Ozzie. I plan on getting a lot of body work done, as well as the clutch and gear synchros. I want to get my driver's door replaced (nice dent at the bottom, and rust), hood and front bumper replaced (bad touchup paint job, and rust), and get the hatch touched up (again, rust). After that all gets done, I want to get the whole car plastidipped. There's a local place that'll do whole cars for $600-$1500, and I saw a candy-coated Audi that they did, and it looks amazingly well done! Taking suggestions on not-too-crazy colors....
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.818313428208634.1073741856.111221412251176&type=1

So that's that. Maybe it won't happen until after graduation, but who knows. I love this car too much to get rid of it, and honestly want to start delivering in it again. Much more torque than the Fit, and ultimately cooler than it too.

 

[esnave09]

Yeah.....none of this ^^^^ is gonna happen. I've been having some financial issues, mostly with roommates not paying me the money they owe me for bills. Between that and the extra expenses from, ya know, a whole new car payment and higher insurance, I'm sitting lower than I thought financially. So I'm slowly going to work my way back to having a decent looking car for deliveries. Once it gets cold again next week, I'm going to swap back to winter rims for a while so I can get my summer rims recoated. Hopefully it will get warm again after that, so I can actually use my rims once they're refinished and see how they look. Problem is that the color of spray that I got is a discontinued color. Soooo......suggestions on new gold colors that are similar? As much as I don't want to do this, should I go with *gasp* plastidip? It's really tempting.....