Anyone got any real world experience on the long-term reliability of the SkyActives in the new Mazdas? Looking at new 3's with the 2.0 liter engine. Wondering if there's a reasonable expectation of it being a 200,000+ mile engine.
Any special maintenance that's needed or strongly encouraged on these?
My parents have a 2014 CX-5 with the 2.0L engine in it. It's got pretty close to 100k on it and they've had zero issues with it minus the start/stop button not recognizing that the car is in park all the time. Mazda fixed that last year.
There really isn't anything special about maintaining them from what I can tell.
Same with my folks. Right at 100k, mo issue. That runs injector cleaner at every oil change and uses only mobile one
I have a friend who has over 150k on his. Not one single repair on it ever, only shocks and brakes.
Why would you think it would?
It's not a high strung engine or anything. Regular oil changes, replace stuff when it breaks?
In reply to z31maniac :
Mostly concerns that I've heard pop up from time to time with regard to GDI engines and valve issues. That's my main concern. Not necessarily related to any specific manufacturer, just sort of an issue with that tech.
Been sort-of looking at new cars, was entertaining a diesel Cruze for awhile but they just don't give me the warm fuzzies with respect to reliability.
volvoclearinghouse said:In reply to z31maniac :
Mostly concerns that I've heard pop up from time to time with regard to GDI engines and valve issues. That's my main concern. Not necessarily related to any specific manufacturer, just sort of an issue with that tech.
Been sort-of looking at new cars, was entertaining a diesel Cruze for awhile but they just don't give me the warm fuzzies with respect to reliability.
Didn't Mazda figure out (or at least mitigate) the valve deposit issues by using sodium filled valves on the SkyActive GDI engines?
Interested in this. The Mazda6 is creating an itch that may need to be scratched for a DD.
SlimShady218 said:Interested in this. The Mazda6 is creating an itch that may need to be scratched for a DD.
Still a car I always find pretty
Jaynen said:SlimShady218 said:Interested in this. The Mazda6 is creating an itch that may need to be scratched for a DD.
Still a car I always find pretty
It's a fantastic driving car as well and the top Trim level is a very nice place to spend time.
If i could find a clean, lower mileage , 03-04 mazda6 sport in white, i would take out a loan right damn now.
Mazdax605 said:volvoclearinghouse said:In reply to z31maniac :
Mostly concerns that I've heard pop up from time to time with regard to GDI engines and valve issues. That's my main concern. Not necessarily related to any specific manufacturer, just sort of an issue with that tech.
Been sort-of looking at new cars, was entertaining a diesel Cruze for awhile but they just don't give me the warm fuzzies with respect to reliability.
Didn't Mazda figure out (or at least mitigate) the valve deposit issues by using sodium filled valves on the SkyActive GDI engines?
I believe they added the sodium filled valves and the other big change was that they baffled the PCV system (sort of like a built in catch can (please no one light me on fire)) to try keep atomized oil from blowing through.
Antecedal evidence suggests it's not nearly the problem it was with some of the first gen DI cars like the MS3.
volvoclearinghouse said:In reply to z31maniac :
Mostly concerns that I've heard pop up from time to time with regard to GDI engines and valve issues. That's my main concern. Not necessarily related to any specific manufacturer, just sort of an issue with that tech.
Been sort-of looking at new cars, was entertaining a diesel Cruze for awhile but they just don't give me the warm fuzzies with respect to reliability.
GDI has been around long enough that I would not worry about that anymore. OEMs are well aware of that issue, and since we need to make sure that emissions durability extends to 150k miles, lots of work is done to make sure that there are as few long term issues as possible.
The only OEM who I would really pause for is BMW, but that's more because they've historically had this problem for close to 40 years- so it's not really DI related. Even them, I would not worry too much about.
Had 12 Mazda3 with 2.0 Skyactiv, 60k miles no issues. Now 17 CX-5 with 2.5 Skyactiv, 15k miles no issues.
'14 Mazda 6 with 2.5L Skyactive with 88k miles. It's been great. You can tell when you start reaching the oil change interval - it seems to lose a little more zip than other cars I've had. The mileage has dropped off some from when it was new but it's still not bad. I have had a little sluggishness now and then and run a can of the GDI spray cleaner through it. It apparently knocked loose some build up because it ran like crap and smoked for about 15 minutes after. It threw a code and went into limp mode, but after a restart it ran better than it had in a while.
I see no reason it won't go 200k, but most motors these days will.
I believe Hyundai is the first mfr I heard issues about with regard to valve deposits and GDI. That was a few years back when they first started using it.
The 6 is/was sort-of on my radar, too, but more money and questionable added utility (to me, anyway).
I still remember test driving a brand new 5 speed Protege5 back in (IIRC) ~2002 and loving it. Kind of kick myself for not buying it then; they're all but disappeared in any kind of decent condition now.
Mazda 3 5 door seems to be the go-to appliance commuter that's also fun to drive. I think I'll test one out.
I thought I read Ford’s early ecoboost engines had carbon problems to where the head had to be removed or replaced because cleaning with head intact damaged the turbo. Is this correct?
In reply to rustybugkiller :
I've not heard any news about that kind of failure in our engines. At least that has caused any kind of recall (which it should, given the type of failure). So if it's happened, it's in very few numbers.
volvoclearinghouse said:I believe Hyundai is the first mfr I heard issues about with regard to valve deposits and GDI. That was a few years back when they first started using it.
The 6 is/was sort-of on my radar, too, but more money and questionable added utility (to me, anyway).
I still remember test driving a brand new 5 speed Protege5 back in (IIRC) ~2002 and loving it. Kind of kick myself for not buying it then; they're all but disappeared in any kind of decent condition now.
Mazda 3 5 door seems to be the go-to appliance commuter that's also fun to drive. I think I'll test one out.
The BMW N54 twin-turbo motor is NOTORIOUS for them.
Like, multiple companies sell DIY kits to do the walnut blasting at home it's such a problem.
Father in law has a skyactive CX-5 with mid 190k miles. No problems whatsoever.
every DI vw motor needs carbon cleaning every 40k. it's big doll hairs at the stealership
Test drove a 3 5-door the other day. What a sweet-driving little car. Interesting comparing it to the Cruze I'd drive a couple weeks earlier. The Cruze definitely had more oompf (diesel) but it came on like a switch at 2000 RPM. The Mazda has a more linear power delivery, it's all a matter of gear selection. The engine sounded awesome. Torque steer was noticeable in first gear, but it was also a bit wet out so I did break the front tires loose a couple of times.
The Mazda was loads more refined-looking and feeling inside, and the nav/radio setup more intuitive to use. I sat in a salted-up model with leather on the showroom floor, but the Sport model (lowest trim) I test drove did not feel de-contented.
One big thing I noticed- the back seat on the Mazda had more headroom. In the Cruze I couldn't sit back all the way- my head hit the roof. In the 3 I could sit comfortably and not hit my head. Rear-seat ingress/egress was easier, too.
Interesting tidbit the salesman told me- 3's with a VIN starting with 'J' are Japanese built cars. If the VIN starts with a '3', its a Mexican-built car. The one I tested started with a 'J'.
I had a 13 cx5 from 88k-130k miles before it was totaled. Nothing but tires, oil, gas..
My GF drives a 17 Mazda3 5-door (Sport, 2.0L, 6MT). She's only got ~ 25k miles on it, but we've both been impressed with the chassis dynamics and interior quality. Done several road trips with it and have no complaints. At the price point I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a better all-around package.
Given that the apparent design paramaters for the Skyactiv concept is lightweight and low-friction everything, I'd mainly be concerned about the piston rings sticking, something the Duratec/MZR fours are horrible for. They'll burn huge amounts of oil, and when you pull the pistons out, the rings are just fine, they're just stuck and the oil return passages are plugged. Clean everything up and slap it back together and it's good to go for another 150k, assuming that you didn't kill something from running out of oil.
The same kind of decarbonizing procedures that degunk combustion chambers and intake ports will also do a dandy job of degunking the sides of the pistons, so that should be a regular maintenance item.
Other than that, hey, just get in and drive, that's what everyone else does...
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