Why Am I Slow!?!?

[racer x 3]

I know that by starting my thread with that I am walking right into some potential flames, but seriously.

I have a 2004 2.3L 3 sedan ATX with (in terms of performance related mods) :

Mazdaspeed CAI
Mazdaspeed cat-back
advanced timing mod
Buddy Club condensor
that's it.

I use 89 pump gas and synthetic oil. I used to feel mighty quick and have had these parts for a good long time. Lately (past couple weeks) it has been a whole lot of pleasant noise (like before) but it feels sluggish.

Today my zero to sixty (redlining out of 1st and pushing top of 2nd) was 9.5 seconds.... 9.5!!!!!!

WTF. Any thoughts? There are no overt issues with the car. Just noticing it to feel not so peppy as of late.

 

[Akaveli]

Question is, how much are you willing to spend???? Do your typical basic bolt ons Intake/Header/Exhaust. If you are interested in going further try investing in pulleys, BSD(2.3only), Engine Torque Damper and lighter wheels. Or if you want boost, try looking into F2 stage 1 kit which shouldn't put much stress on your ATX tranny.

 

[racer x 3]

yeah, thanks for the pointers.... what i should have said however, is "why am is slowER" than before......

 

[tsunami]

when is the last time you had a tune up? checked/cleaned your air filter? how is the psi in your tires? you hauling something in your trunk (dead body cough cough) how did you time your 0-60? is your clutch slipping? how many miles on the odo?

 

[racer x 3]

35k on it.... no clutch issues, just did oil and lube, same gasoline pattern as ever, no dead weight, have NOT done a full tune up (could check plugs), have not done any extraneous tuning at all...

just suddenly (2 weeks or so) slower.... and yes air filter is clean (just cleaned it about 1k ago..... any thoughts?

 

[racer x 3]

by the way tsunami, how ya been?

 

[kura808]

try reset ur ecu and use a slightly higher octane gas?

 

[xboxlivemonkey]

try reset ur ecu and use a slightly higher octane gas?

dude octane wont do anything performace wise , also i thought he stated he was using an automatic , do a tune u , wait just noticed he advanced the timing , then yea the fuel could be a problem could be running lean

 

[LASERBLUE135]

Really how did you calculate your 0-60? My 1997 115hp Chev Cavalier 4 speed automatic used to do 0-60 in 10 seconds and it went 0-100 in 30 seconds! I timed it on my cd player when I was 18 years old. If your car is seriouly that slow I'd imagine you have a big issue somewhere.

here's a fix, trade it for a MSP?

 

[NCZ13]

of course hes not going to have clutch issues... his car is automatic...

 

[racer x 3]

Really how did you calculate your 0-60? My 1997 115hp Chev Cavalier 4 speed automatic used to do 0-60 in 10 seconds and it went 0-100 in 30 seconds! I timed it on my cd player when I was 18 years old. If your car is seriouly that slow I'd imagine you have a big issue somewhere.

here's a fix, trade it for a MSP?

i just jammed on it while a buddy used my watch. exact was SOMEWHERE between 8.5 and 10 seconds (gonna say he may have lost track, but either way it FELT very slow). yes it was that slow, though there are better days, and they don't get much worse. the ecu/gas concept mentioned before makes most sense thus far.

hmmm

 

[Akaveli]

The Mazda3 2.3l stock is rated at 9.13 seconds for 0-60. So don't expect to see that much of an improvement with the additional performance mods unless you have made some adjustments. Figure out how much your rims and tires weigh. If they are in the range of 43lbs to 45lbs each wheels then don't expect much.

I know with the setup I have, my stock rims are 19.4lbs and the tires I have weigh 18lbs inflated. Last time I weighed them my rim and tire was bwt 37lbs or 38lbs each wheel.

 

[xboxlivemonkey]

of course hes not going to have clutch issues... his car is automatic...

Hydraulic automatic transmissions have clutches in the planetary gear set


(hi)

 

[tsunami]

i think i just burned a hole in my comp screen staring at akaveli's avatar... so umm thanks for that in the early morning!!

yeah if you haven't reset your ecu i would try that i would just pull a plug or two and see what they look like.

as far as how have i been... work entirely too much for not enough money... though my carbon fiber hood just showed up

 

[Mazda3Spaz]

i think i just burned a hole in my comp screen staring at akaveli's avatar... so umm thanks for that in the early morning!!

yeah if you haven't reset your ecu i would try that i would just pull a plug or two and see what they look like.

as far as how have i been... work entirely too much for not enough money... though my carbon fiber hood just showed up

Don't want to thread jack but what hood did you get?

 

[TRXSandRacer02]

As a Mazda Master technician, you all should know that on ANY OBD II vehicle pulling the fuse or diconnecting the battery you are erasing any mode 6 data and comprehensive component monitor items, thus making the fuel system to go to base data tables until driving habits are relearned through completing the required drive modes. A suggestion would be to check fuel trims and for a vaccum leak at the intake, they are very common on that year. Also there is always new PCM and TCM updates through Mazda so maybe you should just go to your local MAZDA or MAZDASPEED dealership. PM if you have any questions

 

[TRXSandRacer02]

Also check your MAF wires, they are also prone to coming loose on that year at the connector

 

[racer x 3]

thank you sir. i will take the proper steps toward looking into it further as time allows and, in fact, likely will end up PM'ing you at some point for more info/convo.

thanks

 

[tsunami]

Don't want to thread jack but what hood did you get?

VIS... going to install this week the quality looks top notch from what i have seen of it so far. will no more when i install it. /threadjack.