Engine stalls quite easily in first gear - Mazda 2 Ts2 2011 - what might it be

[headache56]

.Just recently, I have notice that my car is susceptible to stalling when pulling away in first gear.

I have had the car for 14 months and this has not been an issue that I noticed previously.

Is this something that could be fixed easily by adjusting the idling speed (er how would I do that please) or is there anything else that I could check / get a garage to check that might be an obvious suspect ?

 

[Phone]

The Mazda2 has a fairly lightweight flywheel and is rather punishing if you don't slip it just right.

Adjusting the idle speed would do NOTHING.

 

[genericmoniker]

Keep your foot on the gas. Problem solved.

 

[flatlander937]

These cars have an electronic throttle body, which itself regulates the idle speed. If carbon builds up in the throttle body then the blades can stick and cause it to die easily and not want to idle... very common on nearly any automatic car with an electronic throttle... honestly I haven't run into it on a manual trans car... but that is probably because 99% of the cars that come through the dealer I work at are autos. They will randomly die at idle when shifted from P to D, and usually occurs on colder days/mornings.


You will be able to tell for sure if the throttle body is potentially sticking by doing the following:

-Turn car OFF and keys out of the vehicle!
-Remove your intake ducting to get at the throttle body blades.
-Using your finger, gently push the throttle body to it's full closed position(by default they go to about 10% open when not powered)... then see if it attempts to stick there... do it a few times, and see what happens. If so, then it probably needs cleaned and may be contributing to your problems.


Here is a quick youtube video I found showing the general process... it is on a Silverado that has electronic throttle as well so it's basically the same deal:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnWiOrnVk28

Only things to add that I do differently:

-If it's easy enough to remove the throttle body entirely... I'll go ahead and do that. Makes it super easy to clean it 100%.

-If not removed, I'll do like in the video, but also will spray some into the throttle body while the car is running when done(not too much at a time, you might stall it... just quick little "psst" "psst" "psst") which will get the remaining bit left inside that you broke loose, but didn't capture with the rag/toothbrush/whatever. You may set of codes if stuff is unplugged like the intake air temp sensor or MAF sensor(if your vehicle uses one). If it has a MAF sensor, it will probably need unplugged just to run without the intake ducting in place.




If the above fails... then maybe you just got bad at driving



FWIW there is not "idle speed adjust" on these since it's done by the PCM. If you set any codes, disconnect the negative cable of the battery for a few minutes to clear them. Coincidentally, it will also force the PCM to relearn all of it's parameters, including an idle speed relearn. So don't be alarmed if it wants to or even actually dies once or twice shortly after doing a battery disconnect. I haven't had to do this on a Mazda2 yet myself, so I don't know how sensitive they are to the relearn process, especially with a manual trans thrown into the mix.

 

[Max Archer]

Honestly? It's a 2011, no way it should be doing anything like this. I'd take it in and let the dealer deal with it, that's what the warranty is for.

 

[headache56]

Thank you and....

Thank you guys, very helpful and I will try the suggestions, first going back to the dealer again. The problem is intermittent and, of course, I could not make it perform for the dealer. If all else fails, I may need to take refresher driving lessons for the elderly .


Any tips on how I can get a Workshop Service Manual for a Demio 2 / Mazda 2 (Generation 3, 2007+) would be much appreciated. It seems impossible. Even the especialy helpful websites like Garageforum can't help.

Cheers,

 

[PGTBrow]

Keep your foot on the gas. Problem solved.

LOL

Yea I stalled the crap out of mine the first couple weeks... install a RB muffler so you can hear your car, its helps haha.

 

[Phone]

Yeah man, my exhaust helped me with my weird clutch and flywheel issues, too!

 

[shaowq]

no offense to our members here, Phone, PGT and the OP, but if you were having such issues driving the car then you really need to stop trying to drive your car and actually just feel it and drive it.

The way that i feel and drive my cars, i can pretty much hop into any car with a hard clutch or soft clutch and drive away without stalling it.

It's almost fool proof...i literally blip the throttle as i release the clutch. So the Tach will blip to like 1k rpm and when the car starts to move you can drop the clutch.

This is for pure example/comparison to how I see different clutch pressures in my head.

I went from an ACT Stage 2 aka XTSS clutch which took (lets say) 100lbs of force to completely depress the clutch to start the car and to shift properly and that would engage fully less than 1 inch off the ground

To my gf's yaris that had a horribly soft clutch that turned out to maybe require 45lbs of force to completely depress

to my impreza that requires maybe 30 lbs of force

and now to the mazda 2 that requires maybe 15-20 lbs comparatively.

Don't take the "lbs of force comparison to be true and accurate, it was just a representation of how much pressure i had to apply"

I had the XTSS as the DD and the yaris i would drive on weekends when we wanted to save gas and I would just hop into the car blip the gas and take off no issues. Same thing with the Impreza that actually has a softer pedal than the Yaris of all the believable things. Now I have the Impreza and my XTSS DD is gone but replaced with the Mz2, and the Mz2 clutch is incredibly softer than the impreza clutch, but I still have no issues.

At some point you stop "driving" the car and just feel it and feel the way it reacts...but blipping the throttle has not failed me yet...stock clutch or aftermarket clutch, stage 1 or 2 and once even a stage 3 in a turbo'd car, i don't stall them more than once if it's the first time i've stepped into the car.

Try it...once u get used to it you'll be almost invincible! I don't gas then burn the clutch as i release it slowly

 

[Rotaryknight]

Im so used to my rx7 that I rarely look at the rpm gauge, and just listen to the exhaust to know what rpm I am in
The exhaust on the mazda2 is very quiet. Stalled the first time today when I just got the car. I might need a louder exhaust lol, its a habit thats hard to drop.

 

[headache56]

shaowq and Rotaryknight,

Thanks guys, for your helpful response. Getting sensible responses from sensible people is very useful.

 

[PGTBrow]

no offense to our members here, Phone, PGT and the OP, but if you were having such issues driving the car then you really need to stop trying to drive your car and actually just feel it and drive it.

LOL trust me no offense taken. I feel retarded everytime I stall it haha. The thing is I drive numerous cars, many with manual trans every week when me and my buddy take co-workers cars home to do brake jobs etc. The 2 is probably the most finicky 5 spd i've ever driven. I thinks its just the lack of "feel" I get when releasing the clutch. BUT the RB muffler pretty much fixed my problem.

 

[headache56]

Thanks

 

[glsirois]

I don't know if it's just me, or what, but I have much less problem with this since I installed the short shift plate. (dunno)

 

[ScorpioGTX1]

The problem is intermittent and, of course, I could not make it perform for the dealer.

I find my car stalls twice as easily when I have A/C running. Could that be an issue?

 

[headache56]

GLSIROS (sam color car as mine) and others - thanks,

I have just got used to driving the Mazda 2 now - there are probably a couple of design issues, I reckon with the clucth mechanism with the Mazda 2

The clutch pedal spring has been redesigned since my 2009 model - I heard it was to stop a clicking caused by the slightly concentric nature of the pedal spring winding.

I have the revs higher and the radio turned up so its not a problem any longer. I also get a chirping from the clucth when under load but a higher radio volume fixes that - this chirping is apparently a "well known" problem with the current Ford Fiesta here in the UK (made is same factory) - but I never heard of it.

All in all, its a great car and there are always some compromises with a small engine but I find the reliability fatastic, self servicing is easy (if you can get hold of an owner's manual) and its cheap. It is ideal for city driving here in London... er and no I don't work for Mazda.

Thanks guys for your comments.