How Reliable is a MAZDASPEED3? | Common Problems!

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Watch this video before you dive head first into owning a Mazda! You may be in store for some problems that you are not aware of! My speed3 has treated me great throughout my ownership and time I've been modifying it. Enjoy the POV video at the end, full POV coming soon!
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0:00 cold start
0:35 whippin to the shop
1:25 how reliable is the stock motor
4:10 how reliable is a modified motor
7:30 stock boost Vs. modified boost
9:30 interior reliability
12:50 POV doing pulls

[@robertwatts9800]

I had the first gen, i had just under 250k miles before I sold it. I drove it for 14 years I kept it stock and abused the hell out of it. The only time it was in the shop was for. serpentine belt and timing chain recall. Never replaced a clutch or anything.

[@KN-sd9lt]

Thanks for putting out this vid!

[@Heartseasestudios]

I’ve had my gen 1 speed 3 for almost 3 years now and it’s been my absolute favorite car, actually has been the most reliable car I’ve had, these cars are amazing! But only if you find one that’s been taken care of and not beat to crap! They have there common issues but if you take care of the common problems, and treat them well they will last a very long time!!!

[@HorrorEdits]

thats every car ever.

[@user-og4fi7hb5h]

Great video! Love the info and hearing your experience. Wanted to know which mishimoto fmic/piping you got? Looking into it myself, love the black/white!

[@illryt]

Nice video. Everything you say is accurate af. I got the second gear pop out and just baby it; I also let my car warm up before driving and cool down after operating. It actually says in the manual to do so; for most every car in fact. And for the turbo specifically, to let at least 30 seconds of cooling before turning off the car otherwise you can cause damage to the turbo. Especially if you were running it hard. As well as not to run the turbo hard when you first turn on the car. I think all these things taken into consideration and with proper care and maintenance, these are great vehicles to own for anybody who loves a car with great speed and acceleration while not being too pricey comparing to a WRX or greater. Thanks for sharing man.

[@jorgecampos9659]

If you only update the fuel pump and keep the maintenance it will last forever. I had mine for 15 years

[@SvGTAPES]

Yup! Exactly! You know how to do it, 15 years is an accomplishment 👏🏼

[@j.a.g.8689]

Really, I'm going to get a speed eventually

[@thehoneybadger9262]

Just about to turn the corner on 180K with my 2007 Speed3. I recently had to replace the pivot shaft seal (actually did the whole assembly (did a video on that), and my oil cooler gasket was leaking, so switched over the the oil cooler for the spin-on filter. Am about to replace all four end links. Other than that, it's been a great car. Had some trouble with the idler roller bearings early on and had to replace the idler pulley. My records say I did that on two separate occasions, not far apart, but I don't remember why. Too many whiskeys ago. It got totaled at 179K when a Rav4 tried to climb into my hatch, but I got a salvage title and had it repaired (mostly body parts). I think it'll be good for another 5 years at least.

[@au123ful]

@@thehoneybadger9262 so for the sake of preventative maintenance, should one change the pivot shaft seal around 150k miles?

[@kevinh9262]

@@au123ful If you monitor the area for leaking transmission fluid, I'd say just let it go until you start seeing evidence of leaks. You may get rid of the car before you have a problem, so why spend the time and money on it? It will start off being a slow leak, so there's really no danger to the vehicle if you keep a close eye on it. My leak was pretty bad by the time I got around to actually figuring out where it came from (getting laid off really freed me up)! You'll most likely start seeing the evidence as fluid in the wells of the top of the housing. Oh, and BTW, since I posted that comment I replaced all of the end links, and my rear end clunk went away! However, I found a torn CV boot when I was replacing the front end link, so had to deal with that.

[@molefesefeane4321]

great video bro, I have heard there is a lot of torque steer with these cars, how is it after you've modified it to these high numbers?

[@princesssolace4337]

I ran a fully build motor in my 2012 Speed3 with upgraded engine parts (pistons, con rod, valve springs, head studs, valve seals + main bearings) rated at 500hp max. Here is the catch, I tune it to a conservative 300hp/470Nm@1.2bar on RON100 pump gas using Mazda Edit software. Stock turbo+manifold with aftermarket down pipe. OEM exhaust, resonator and muffler. Upgraded the TMiC, HPFP and deleted both catalytic converters, EGR and balancing shaft plus few other bolt ons and safety upgrades. Cured the torque steer by having a much linear boost delivey, solid RMM and a 235/40/18 on 18x8 wheels. OEM left/right engine mounts. Still with the original color, bodywerk + nterior and oem head unit. Its been 100% consistenly reliable since 2019 with zero issues and not fearing the engine might blow up when pushing it on regular basis. Bottom line, it can be made reliable when upgrade the internal engine components that was design to handle much higher rating horse power+torque. It can be tune without the need for COBB Accessport. I do have an upgrade hybrid turbo + manifold with a 3bar MAP sensor on stndby just incase😅 (I'm not gonna use external wastegate and e85)

[@MPS380]

Why did you build up the engine like this if you only want to drive 300 hp in the end? I've been driving my 2010 speed3 daily since 2017 with 30,000km a year, it now has 275,000km. It has been running on ~308hp with RON 102 with all standard parts since 2012. I haven't had to replace anything yet and only had to blast the valves. To me, a fully rebuilt engine with all the trimmings seems like money thrown out if you want to drive it on the "classic" 300hp. 🤔 I haven't even changed the hpfp internals, which you should definitely change. And I drive it every day on the highway to work and some places without a speed limit. I think the standard engine can handle 300hp perfectly. I can't report any problems so far. Still the first chain, the first turbo, only the injectors have been replaced at the same time with the walnut blasting.

[@princesssolace4337]

@@MPS380 I like to do it bcoz I can and its for my peace of mind .... same goes with my 94 CyborgR and 01 RS4 Avant .... now, its 14' Duke 690R. ...Nice build u got there, loads of fun definitely

[@coreyirwin3623]

I just bought one that has front mounted intercooler,and 3.5"intake first turbo car I get it back from shop Monday and I'm soooo excited

[@SvGTAPES]

Ooo man that is going to be awesome! They’re great cars, ours has treated us well!

[@dbest1289]

mazdaspeed3 the cars are amazing mine is a 2007 have mine on 26 pounds of boost sounds great with blow off valve

[@fukkoff2024]

Please do more mazaspeed3 content🙏🙏😁

[@SvGTAPES]

Forsure going to be more content coming on the speed3!👍🏼 thanks for your support

[@bellumavis8395]

Though the 2nd gen has the updated vvt gear, timing should be a maintenance factor @100k. Pivot shaft seal will inevitably go out. Egr delete with occ and PCV plate is a must due to direct injection. Walnut media blasting of the intake valves.

[@SvGTAPES]

Yes all very true gotta keep up on the maintenance!

[@princesssolace4337]

I decide not to use OCC. Still on stock PCV system but I did delete the EGR, cat converters and balance shaft. Was thinking about installing port injection to avoid walnut blast for ever ....... and maybe , just maybe laying down the foundation a.k.a excuse to make 400hp😊

[@jacobnieves8776]

Just got a 2012 speed3 2nd gen if i havent changed the injector seals will it leak and smell like fuel ?

[@fisticuff5200]

I've had my 08 MS3 for a few years now and have a few minor mods-its sitting at 221,000 at the moment and running pretty good. I am getting nervous though lol cause it is hard not to rip on it at times. This is with upkeep on maintenance and fixing/replacing minor things along the way.. Hoping to make it last longer but trying to plan for the inevitable. Don't know what to do when she blows- a built block would be nice but than id want to upgrade all the bolt on stuff as well but than that'll be costly...

[@steveromeocars]

Nice video mate. I´currently also own a mazdaspeed 3 and I have a massife cut at 4000rpms. Already changed to ngk plugs and Denso Airmeter. Did a boost leak test with the smoke machine and all good. Live diagnoses shows that the O2 sensor shows very lean... but there is No fault code in the obd storage ;( I don´t know what else to check now.... Don´t want to buy new parts any more :D

[@waffleXstudios]

im at 195k with a blown ko4 that im replacing next month, gonna see if I can take this engine to 200k+ on a 06 speed6

[@DomParenti]

@15:31 ive been through that town a few times.

[@mike_prod.9224]

Looking at a 2007 one today that has the turbo replaced with a K04 2k miles ago, otherwise completely stock at 110k miles. You think it will be reliable assuming it's been taken care of it's whole life and I will do the same since it'll be my first stick to learn on?

[@SvGTAPES]

Yeah a great car to learn stick on! And yeah man jt may need the timing chain replaced soon for longevity of the motor but if it was taken care of theres no reason why it shouldn’t last!

[@haroldrumbaugh6550]

I have a stupid question, could you pls tell me how long is your dip stick? I put in 6qrts and it didn't even register. My car is a recovered stolen vehicle

[@Anthony74te27]

My 09 Speed 3 with 232K the original engine just died. I'm running BNR S4 since 2016 tuned by Justin .

[@SvGTAPES]

Helll yeah dude! The bnrs4 is a straight ripper, had a buddy with that on a ms6 and it was sick

[@king49334]

this is front drive?

[@itzlizpy]

As a 2013 owner.. I've had to change my turbo as the stock blew up..so far that's all and please let it be. Can't keep sleeping on the couch.

[@SvGTAPES]

Hahah yeah man feel that one, they all need better turbos, lets all be honest the Ko4 is buns

[@itzlizpy]

@SvG TAPES oh I agree! The seals blew up 2 minutes from work. Looked like I was vaping from my exhaust lol thought it was the head gaskets at first. Now running a cst4 with a built motor and other stuff. 20psi Love your stuff man keep up the content!

[@SvGTAPES]

@@itzlizpy ahh yeah we all get the headgasket thought lol, ours blew up at the top of 6th gear on the highway right when i let off the gas. thats a great reliable setup man, and we appreciate that! thankyou!

[@richardbp5045]

My speed is having missfires in multiple cilinders when starting the car in the morning, it feels horrible until it warms up after some long 15 min, then everything is fine again until it gets cold after 5 hours of being off, any ideas?

[@andreytsoy44]

could be injector seals

[@cr-x7344]

my brothers speed 3 has 185k on the dash and has no issues with the turbo

[@ballistinarwhal7530]

Has this thing sold yet

[@agmxdestiny9387]

Just got a 2010 speed 3 2nd gen. Currently at 22,982miles! Bone stock besides cork sport muffler setup. What should i do to it to make it extremely reliable? I’d like to keep this car as oem and stock as possible. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

[@SvGTAPES]

That is crazy man thats an amazing find! So your going to want to get the cobb or corksport high pressure fuel pump internals first if you plan on doing any modifications to make more power

[@SvGTAPES]

If your not trying to make more power, you will be fine with just keeping up on your scheduled maintenance, the car will last forever hypothetically

[@princesssolace4337]

U can do like what I did( see my reply on comment section). It's been 4 years trouble free with basic maintenance + wear and tear.

[@thehoneybadger9262]

My only engine performance mods were a turbo inlet pipe, Forge BPV, and Corksport short ram intake, and I'm running great at 180K miles.

[@user-hn7mm8gg8q]

I doubt you will answer but screw it: 1)Do gen 1 & gen 2 speeds share the same bolt pattern for wheels? 2)Would I have to go high pressure fuel pump internals if I just want to do cold air intake and exhaust? (Currently have a gen 1 speed with no radio, but I'm looking into selling it for a lower mileage gen 1 or gen 2.)

[@SvGTAPES]

Yes they have the same bolt pattern, and yeah I would recommend you do that with those mods these cars can be finicky

[@user-hn7mm8gg8q]

@@SvGTAPES Sick, my current speed has a set of RPF1s I would like to keep. As for the other mods, those are the only engine mods I would like to do. Need it daily driver reliable 🤣👍

[@SvGTAPES]

@@user-hn7mm8gg8q YEAH MAN EXACTLY GOTTA KEEP IT RELIABLE! That would be a great reliable setup, you shouls have no issues, gotta get it tuned tho!

[@princesssolace4337]

​@@user-hn7mm8gg8q Just upgrade the HPFP internals for better piece of mind and just incase u start tweaking the turbo+downpipe , at least u know that fueling has been dealt with.

[@tylerFC1]

How did you relocate your ECU to the top of the fuse box?

[@SvGTAPES]

You have to take all of the plastic case off and just really finagle it around

[@tylerFC1]

@@SvGTAPES Gotcha. How did you secure it down though?

[@mitchellmartin2159]

@@tylerFC1 I used 2 sided tape actually holds on really nice

[@mzr3553]

My mps 280 000km stock motor.still holds compression.

[@SvGTAPES]

That is insane! see it is possible to everybody watching!

[@kobra289]

Lax player! Sweet.

[@SvGTAPES]

Yesssir

[@user-rz6cy8py3x]

У меня gen1 2006 года и вот что я скажу. На мой взгляд, очень надежная машина. Чаще всего проблемы начинаются из-за неграмотного тюнинга. Если все делать с умом, она и надутая до 400л.с. Будет служить верой и правдой долгие годы. Что сделано: подвеска- Bilstein b8 с пружинами Eibach (-30мм), Двигатель- портированная голова и впускной коллектор, кованые шатуны и поршни, равнодлинный коллектор, холодные свечи, выпуск 76 мм, турбина g25-550 .64 a/r, вставка в топливный насос, холодный впуск. Короткая палка на переключение передач. И главное- правильная настройка. Для ежедневной езды - более чем достаточно. Будет мало- поставлю форсунки в порты. Нажимаю на акселератор- и улыбаюсь!

[@donQpublic]

Car sounds broken over 4k RPM.?.

[@dattexasboi_3697]

Right when you called the engine a motor I left the chat

[@juandiegoflores2486]

Why it sounds like crap ? When you up the revs ?

[@waveydaveyyyyy8968]

External wastegate, sort of like a screamer pipe

[@LevelUpNorrr]

I’m thinking about picking up one as a daily..

[@brysonrogers627]

Same here or a Honda Civic si

[@LevelUpNorrr]

@@brysonrogers627 both great options. What year?

[@brysonrogers627]

2015 or 2014 si

[@jfinesse9160]

400HP Video !!!! 📶📶📶📶

[@SvGTAPES]

yessir were thinking it is about 360 to the wheels, got to get it on a dyno on the current setup one day!

[@stiltrsh]

quick question, what is that loud flutter noise you hear at high speeds?

[@SvGTAPES]

That is my external wastegate! It flutters under acceleration

[@SvGTAPES]

We think it is the tial brand wastegate itself that makes it flutter

[@stiltrsh]

@@SvGTAPES oh ok thanks!

[@jenzim3639]

these cars are 10 years old or more, yes they will start needing maintenance plus people beat the shit out of these. i love mine

[@jenzim3639]

2nd gear pops out? never mine and i got 600 hp to jolt it

[@SvGTAPES]

Wow thats amazing, i bet 600hp is wild in it, keep your trans safe haha we bought it like that with the pop out

[@damienpritchard3702]

@@jenzim3639 is it only when you go to give it throttle? And is there any grinding?

[@jb6574]

I lost cylinder 3 last year

[@SvGTAPES]

Ahhh noooo,so sad to see another block gone in the wind, you do the rebuild?

[@jb6574]

@@SvGTAPES no, I just dropped in a new stock block. Its my daily so not planning on doing anymore than what ive already done to it which isnt too much. Been treating her easier this time lol

[@SvGTAPES]

@@jb6574 well thats just as good, yes gotta take care of er especially when its s daily

[@SvGTAPES]

@@jb6574 nice man yeah were gonna be picking one up as a daily eventually, just too fun

[@jb6574]

Them gas prices are killing me

[@SvGTAPES]

Thats a fact, getting pretty bad, up around 6 dollars for 93 in PA

[@crazycrab1324]

@@SvGTAPES what's the total price for a full tank usually for you? in what currancy

[@SvGTAPES]

@@crazycrab1324 We are in the states! Using USD, for premium a full tank it is probably $65 dollars is what were averaging

[@SvGTAPES]

@@crazycrab1324 other times it used to be like $30 usd give or take

[@crazycrab1324]

@@SvGTAPES wow! That’s per Gallon, correct? Thats about $100NZD( new zealand dollars) where I am from for premium which IS REALLY GOOD. Our premium is about $3.50 ( $2.40USD) PER LITRE! So a 60L (16 gallons) would be $210 NZD approximately $143 USD 🥲🥲

[@anthonycolella7927]

Zoom zoom

[@SvGTAPES]

Yessssir

[@princesssolace4337]

Zoom Zoom Kaboom!😂

[@Koss19]

My speed is at 160k

[@SvGTAPES]

That is awesome!! Wow

[@dannymartinez8522]

What do you maintenance do you recommend to keep the car going?

[@Epic-Gamer50]

Exhaust sounds horrible, no offense man. Lol. Exhausts that make the car sound like a lawnmower are rather icky

[@thrasha7992]

Sound rather icky🤦

[@Epic-Gamer50]

@@thrasha7992 Yes, problem?

[@aiidan6921]

New freedom drivers be like.

[@SvGTAPES]

YEAH YOU KNOW

[@finnworchurst6408]

in summary not very reliable but buy one anyways. that what i did lmao

[@aaronbritt2025]

I just have one question... Why do guys with front mounts install those massive airbrake scoops on the hood? If I install a front mount, first thing I'm doing is finding a hood with no scoop. @0:38... Shit, son, that's what I was paying for 87, and we don't even get 93, at any price. Quit yer bitchin'.

[@yystyyst1567]

Ehhh a focus even a fiesta st just look cooler.