Hi all,
I am really hoping you can help.
I have a 99 Milly S and recently when driving on the highway, after I break 70mph, my TCS light comes on and the car looses power. I press harder on the accelerator and the car begins to jerk violently, RPM's go all over the place and it feels like a manual when you miss a gear.

The weird thing is that it only happens on hot days.

Thank you for your help.
Y

 

when this happens, does the ce lite AND the tcs off/tcs lites come on? if so, the car has gone into limp home mode. it will not rev over 3k. if you scan it, probably have the 1525/26 and 1540 codes, at least. those would be abv vacuum/vent solenoids, and the abv itself. if those codes are not there, then probably you have missfire codes and a couple of coils/plugs going out. 0300 is random miss, and then they get cyl specific. 0301 is cyl 1, 0302 is cyl 2, yada, yada. get all your codes pulled, and write them down. do NOT have someone tell you what they are, and then erase them. you need to copy them down.

 

Here's something I posted the other day regarding Axledeep's problem with a prematurely failed clutch and his decision of whether to stay with stick shift or go automatic.
"As for the automatic transmission offer, that's a decision only you can make, but if your prefernce was for an automatic, I have to ask why you bought the stick shifter in the first place. I personally don't like automatics at all. For starters, go to a website where the OBDII diagnostic trouble codes are listed, and counted the total, and the number associated with engine/ powertrain only. It's reached the point where the number of DTCs associated with automatic transmissions is damn near equal to the number associated with the bare bones needed for transportation.
Add to that that Mazda and Ford made a "strategic alliance", with Mazda doing the engine end and Ford doing the automatic transmission. They tied the knot on this marriage made in hell with a piece of cable which mechanically links the shift lever to an electric switch on the transmission body which in turn operates a bunch of solenoid valves which in turn steer the fluid in the transmission to (hopefully) control the gear;
not the best arrangement if you like snappy gear shifts.
Add to this, the engine "brane thing" may decide that the engine is a bit out of sorts, and put the whole thing into a limp mode, which inhibits gear shifts from loading the engine to the max. (you lose overdrive, and may even be compelled to run in second gear).
Oh yeah, and don't forget the cherry on top of the sundae; if this wizard arrangement gets out of adjustment/ alignment due to cable stretch/ wear between the console and the tranny, the stick may be in the park notch, but the misalignment makes the logic on the transmission switch think otherwise; so just to be on the safe side it reminds stupid old you that you left the car gear select in an unsafe position by not allowing you to get the key out of the ignition lock!
Now tell me, how the hell do you ZOOM ZOOM with an arrangement like that ???"

I did however forget one more thing affecting the indexing between the shifter and the transmission switch, and that's engine mounts: if they get tired and soggy, they too can shift the datum between the console and the transmission.

Keninn's scan advice is solid: better still is to get an OBD-II scan from a Mazda dealer with a HARD COPY PRINTOUT. Autozone and other 3rd party scans are "iffy", because you don't know what scanner they use, the software version loaded, or the operator's competency level.
A cheap trick worth doing in your case would be to start by provoking the misbehavior, then slowing down (even stopping), and seeing if your air conditioning works. If your heat problem is associated with the engine cooling system, it will stop the A/C compressor from running until the engine temp. has dropped, whereupon you'll get cold air again.
Fonally, when posting on this forum, an accurate and complete list of the DTC's (diagnostic trouble codes), the check engine light status, and any other trouble indicators, is very helpful.

 

Thank you Oldeng and Keninn for replying.

The first few times this happened only the TCS light came on, the CE light did not. However, it happened to me again this week and this time the TCS light and CE light came on. I will go get the codes read ASAP...I know that it would be best to go to a dealership, but would it be okay if I went to an autozone?

The limp home mode sounds like what the car is doing. It will let me go up to 3k RPM, but then starts to jerk violently if I go any harder. I do find that it helps to turn the A/C off when it happens, but it doesnt make the problem go away by anymeans.

I will post codes ASAP...in the meantime, if any of you can take a guess at how much this problem is going to cost to fix, I would love to know. My car has 120k miles on it and has served me well, if I need to replace the tranny, it wont be worth it.

Thanks again for your help,
Y

 

it aint your transmission. the transmission has it's own ecu, called a tcm(transmission control module). the main ecu mazda refers to as pcm(primary control module). so, pcm and tcm are linked, and normally work together. when pcm sees certain problems(afaik, these problems are linked to the abv, which controls boost from the compressor), pcm stops communicating with tcm, and this puts the car in limp home. it gives you just enough to get home, and get it fixed. over the years, i have noticed that heat is a growing problem with the 2.3, esp the right bank, which is closest to the firewall. coils and solenoids fail when they get hot; coils/plugs will cause missfire, and flashing ce lit. solenoids(vacuum and vent) cause incorrect operation of the abv. ANY problem with the abv immediatly puts the car in limp home. generally, after the car cools down, the link btwn pcm/tcm resets, so the lites go out. only to return when hot. get your codes pulled, and WRITE THEM DOWN. i know autozone and oreilly will loan/rent you the tool, i dont think they will come out and scan it for you any more, but it is really easy to do.

 

I've already stated the risks of an autozone scan. I do think that you should do the experiment I proposed, i.e. get into the trouble zone, pull over and check if your air conditioner is working normally. If it is, that indicates your engine cooling system is not an issue. If on the other hand, the AC is NOT blowing cold air, this indicates that the engine computer (PCM- identified in my Protege shop manual and listed in the SAE index as the power control module) will prevent the AC compressor from operating until the engine temp. has dropped. You can get the engine temp. down in a few minutes just by running at a fast idle (1500- 1800 rpm.). After running at fast idle for a few minutes, check again to see if the AC is blowing normal cold; if it is, then the engine main cooling system may well be the culprit and can be fixed by such simple things as hosing the dirt out of the radiator, flushing the rad., making sure the cooling pump drive belt is in good shape and is properly tensioned. If the cooling system is such shape that the PCM "dumps" the AC compressor, you can bet your life that it will dump turbocharger/ supercharger boost first, because the thermal load they impose on the engine is much larger than that imposed by the AC compressor.
By the way, it's a very good sign that the trouble you are having is reversible after a cooldown, and it's precisely that that makes me suspect your basic engine cooling system- usually not an expensive job to restore to good health.
Don't put off getting this problem fixed though.

 

I apologize for the delay in responding, but the weather has been a lot cooler here this week and I've had no troubles with the car. I've been pushing her hard on the highway against all common sense to try and re-create the situation as Oldeng recommeneded, but nada. I'm going to have my codes pulled this weekend and post them ASAP.

Oldeng, just to note...the last time this happened it seemed that my A/C continued to work fine. However, when I turned it on, I exprienced a bigger loss of power than usual.

Also, you said that this might be a simple fix like cleaning dirt out of the radiator...can you explain how to do this? I can give it a shot.

Big thanks to Oldeng and Kennin for helping out!

Love my milly!

-Y

 

One more thing:

When I hard accelerate (onto the highway) the car stinks like rotton eggs. I had my CAT replaced about 3 yrs ago...is it the CAT again?

Thanks!

 

Hi all,

I sincerely appologize for the delay in getting my codes read.

Here they are:

P0170
P0173
P1113
P1455
P1526
P1540

 

0170/73-rt/lft bank fuel trim malfunction. most common cause for this is broke tees in the vacuum line system. there are 2 in particular that break all the time. the intake must come off to get at these. this is one of those jobs that if you dont want to be doing/paying for this over and over again, what needs to be done is change out all the vacuum line(21 ft) and replace several tees. i went to brass, which will outlive the car. the plastic will only break again. also, the vacuum leak(s) could also be the cause of your 1526/1540

1113-intake air temp sensor, compressor. this is easy to get to, just remove the plastic miller cycle cover, and you will see a cover plate with 4 bolts. this sensor is right near that plate. they generally dont go bad, i would just disconnect/reconnect it. there is a test, but you have to remove it, and put it in hot water, and measure resistance.

1455-fuel guage sender unit malfunction. is your gas gauge off or not working? to get at this, you will have to drop the tank. a very messy job.

1526/1540-abv vent valve open or short/abv control system malfunction. this could be a lot of things. for one, it could be related to the 0170/73 vacuum line leak. another reason to change out all the lines and the bad tees. the vent solenoid is also a common problem. you can ohm the solenoid, and see, but a lot of the time, they will ohm good when cold, and when they get hot, then they fail. if that happens, then you get the limp home mode. i would change out both the vacuum and the vent solenoids, along with the vacuum lines and tees. your problems have NOTHING to do with the a/c system.