Have you put your hand on the ssv to see if the clicking goes away ? Probably is the SSV . Cleaning it doesn't fix the clicking . Teamrx8 had a good solution for that which involved removing the valve and holding it carefully around the bush then hammering the end of the shaft to expand the metal out . Making sure no load goes into the aluminium valve body while you do it (or you will f**k it).

dimly lit ? WTF does that mean ?
Need a better description of what is going on here to make a guess on what it might be.


Few people realise that putting on an aftermarket intake can f up your tune . Sounds like this is what has happened in your case . Do you have access to a scanner to try see what your fuel trims and/or AFRs under load are ?

 

I am going to look for that SSV solution by TeamRX8. What happens if I can't fix it and it just keeps clicking though? Does it hurt anything? Will it fail and need replacing?


Dimly lit, like, the instrument panel is lit by 5% power. Like a flashlight almost out of battery power. But when I remove the wireless fob, walking away from the car till it doesn't get picked up by the car's receiver, and then walk back and jiggle the battery terminals, everything resets. I originally thought I had a loose connection but everything seems snug. Usually on the 3rd attempt, the lights will come on fully, and the car will start. I cleaned the contacts and the problem still occurs. I've checked my ground wire and it looks good. I don't know what I would have bumped to cause this issue and it is happening with a brand new batter and the old. I am going to get under the car again tomorrow to check everything and install the insulating foam on my radiator.


I actually asked AEM and Mazda if I would have had to retune it before I even got the intake and they both said no. So I'm a bit bummed now. How much does tuning usually run? I do not have a scanner unless my old DashHawk OBDII reader can read that. I've never tried though. Would you know if I can use it that way?

 

Don't think he did a DIY ... PM him perhaps ...
The clicking is a sign of a worn shaft and will cause a vacuum leak ... not much of an issue on it's own but combined with the AEM intake ..................

You jiggle the terminals and it resets ............... there is a clue in there for you .Replace the terminals with some solid brass ones !

Most people don't have an issue (that they know about). I would be pulling it apart to see if the screens were in good shape and tubes were properly aligned before doing anything else.
Then perhaps get hold of a scan tool and post up the results here. Dunno about DashHawk .

 

Can you recommend a scan tool? Or maybe a place I can get a read out (Like AutoZone, Pepboys, etc?)? What am I looking for when I scan it?

 

Continuing:


Update on pulley. Taking it a part for the fourth time and I see now the crank of the pulley is what is wobbling. It is a very slight wobble, but it is there. Sooooo, is this a rebuild at this point? Or is there a way to remove the pulley crank without rebuilding? Does it even matter? I am guessing I simply didn't realize the wobble was there until I spent significant time in that area and assumed it happened after I cleaned the SSV.


Again with the terminals and contacts. Placed Brass contacts on there and the car didn't start again. Same exact symptoms. It isn't until I walk away with the fob before the car seems to "reset" to allow me to try another crank attempt. I got tired of dealing with this and moved onto the pulley and right now it is all taken a part so I won't be able to trouble shoot the electrical issue until the pulley is back together. I checked the bolts of the pulley and I feel it is time to replace those as well; one looked a bit warped around the bolt head.

 

crank of the pulley ? makes no sense to me . The crank pulley shouldn't wobble , if it does it's usually from a poor install ... IE not seated properly when bolts were tightened up . Do you know how to evenly tighten bolts properly ?


The electrical thing sounds like a job for an auto electrician ... unless someone on here has experienced the same thing ???

 

There are heaps available . Someone else may be able to recommend something specific as I only use a full tuning suite.
You are looking for fuel trims and AFR under load .

 

If you take the water pump pulley off of the engine, you reveal that triangular like base that the pulley screws onto over the water pump. If you grab that triangular base, you can wiggle it very slightly. Here:

@ 13:41 you can see the pulley removed and that sort of triangular mounting base. That is what is wiggling, not the pulley. I forgot that shaft doesn't extend any further into the engine than the water pump. So maybe my water pump is just going bad?


I use a torque wrench and I found a thread that said I need to put them at 8-12lbs. Other than that, I do not know how to evenly tighten bolts.


Thanks for all the help, by the way. I'll try and find something that reads the AFR and I'll post them when I get them.

 

Ah ..... when you said "crank pulley", I thought you meant crank pulley . Not water pump pulley .... silly me lol.

So no , the water pump pulley flange shouldn't wiggle either . Sounds like it's time for a new water pump . I would expect the pump to start leaking eventually if there was play in the shaft like that.

As far as tightening bolts goes .... that's just a skill you will get better at the more you do . Put simply .... tighten the bolts up in stages ... for example : fingertighten ,then nip up lightly all around then fully tighten all around.

 

Is there an oil filter wrench for the OEM SII filter? Autozone sold me one that fit their aftermarket filters but is slightly too small for the Mazda one. I took it back and got an adjustable one but it's too large. I ended up having to use a screwdriver. I would prefer a single size one to an adjustable one, but anything would be better than trying to hammer a screwdriver through it when I have about 3" to swing the hammer.

 

I think the bigger problem here is that the filters are being screwed on far too tight in the first place.

Try looking for a wrench that's used on the newer subarus, their filters are supposed to be dimensionally the same (aside from some height difference.

 

This is my second oil change on this car. The first time, I screwed the filter on by hand as I've done with all my vehicles. They of course get a little tighter after being on there for a while.

 

Everything you've written about your electrical problems scream GROUNDING problem.

 

Some aftermarket filters have a textured casing, presumably to make it easier to grip with oily hands. But that also adds a bit of thickness to the casing and I noticed my filter socket has to be pushed on with a bit more force. Could this be why you thought the first socket they gave you was too small?
I only buy quality filters with good gaskets. And like you I only put them on hand tight. But I still need a socket to remove them easily. FWIW I like the cast metal filter sockets much better than the stamped steel versions. They don't flex and bend and tend not to slip as easily. But are also a little harder to put on and get off without a few taps from the wrench.

 

Water / methanol. Hit topic, I know. MM said it wasn't worth the effort, and that you could get the same results with careful tuning. I am not looking for power, I am looking for anti detonation protection. I know Brettus used it in his setup past ten psi. My question is: is power loss unavoidable, or do you have to add timing in order to make the most use of it?

 

You didn't say specifically but assuming you're forced induction. If you're not looking for power then with a properly sized nozzle there is no noticeable loss of power in my experience. I am running water only post intercooler pre-throttlebody, M5 nozzle, on a boost activated system. And the car runs perfectly. Stock heat range plugs and stock ignition. I have no break up all the way to redline @ 11 psi.
And for what it's worth you also get carbon control and significant cooling with that set up.

 

Thanks, signal!

Yea, going forced induction at this point. 67mm low mount. So you run only distilled water?

 

No, this was an actual Mazda filter. I read on here that aftermarket filters may have the wrong pressure for the SII so I went with OEM. It has no textured surface.

With that said, I maybe could have gotten it on if I tapped it with a hammer, but I didn't have much room to work with. Surely there's one that just slips on no problem.

 

On the topic of the bypass pressure, the SII filter is something like double that of the SI and normal car oil filters, but as long as you change filters when you do an oil change you'll never hit that bypass pressure. Thats why the FDs didn't need the same SII filters.

 

Yeah , wouldn't use anything but distilled water ......... mainly worried about clogging the nozzle itself more than anything else .
I have done dyno tests showing a loss in power lower in the rev range , but I have also done back to back logging runs and seen zero difference in acceleration . You can't rely on it when running at the ragged edge but I would concur with what Signal had to say.

 

Pardon me for asking twice. It sounded like signal was only using water, but Brett, do you use 50/50 methanol? How do I know when to turn it on? The AEM kit I was looking at has a variable on for psi.

 

I run 25% methanol ......... but not for any reason you could possibly think of ...lol

I Turn mine on at around 10-11psi ....

 

I am looking for safety, not MOAR POWER. I will probably run distilled water. I assume I can use reverse osmosis water instead? I have easy access from my aquarium supply store

 

If it's free of contaminants ......why not ?

 

How did you decide to bring it on at ten psi?