[m3zoom]

I have read tons of threads about some of your cars having rough idle and almost to the point of stalling while at a stop. Well, I'm one of those guys also and it is pissing me off that the freaking dealership mechanics can't find the problem. I read about how the MAF needs to be cleaned and the ground wire fixed being one of the problems. DOES ANYONE in this forum have any pics on how to do those cleanups/fixings to the MAF? If so, please post it so I can check my 3's MAF sensor and ground wire. I know where the sensor is and how to take it off, but what am I looking for? The only thing is the wire, where is the ground connector everyone is speaking off and where is the rust mostly visible at?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

A pissed off 3 owner

p.s. everything is stock in my 3

:mj:

 

[bryan83taco]

I'm having the same problem with my wifes Mazda III. I'm going check the code today and see what it says.

 

[Nomanchez]

me too its very annoying when my peoples have to bring it up? why is da car shaking? uuuuuuuurghhhh

 

[Albi_33]

O2 sensor? anyone try? my dealer going 2 change it for me next week

 

[Mummyman]

Let us know if it works out for you, Albi

 

[Albi_33]

Sure i'll let u know what happen!!!! the funny thing i notice is that with the idle problem i have right now it seems that my car actually have a better fuel economy !!! anyone ?

 

[lucaspl88]

ok well ive had the same problem.. and i fixed it yay
i read a lot about EGR valve.. and it seems that if they are really clogged up with carbon, they will cause idle to be bouncy, which would result in car having vibes..
when i took EGR out.. i literally had to scrape the carbon off with a flat head screw driver.. and a lot of CARB cleaner... I also cleaned my TB, and intake Manifold since i already had the coolant drained....
well.... i went through 2 bottles of CARB cleaner.. but after I was done, everything was nice and shiny.. i cleaned the MAf aswell...
I put everything back together.. and now.. idle is between 645-660 which I would consider perfect oh yea.. lets see for how long

 

[youngun]

I think I might try cleaning my EGR valve today and see if that helps.

 

[manny]

subbing for sure.

 

[lucaspl88]

[quote author=Youngun link=topic=136163.msg3206585#msg3206585 date=1246464778]
I think I might try cleaning my EGR valve today and see if that helps.
[/quote]
just make sure to pick up some coolant, and FYI... EGR valve is a BITCH to take out !!!

 

[youngun]

do I need to drain the coolant to do this? I didn't do it yesterday.

 

[lucaspl88]

[quote author=Youngun link=topic=136163.msg3208148#msg3208148 date=1246546050]
do I need to drain the coolant to do this? I didn't do it yesterday.
[/quote]
yes you do... since EGR has a coolant line going to it.. and in order to get to the second bolt, the one further to firewall you need to take one of the "lower" bigger coolant hoses off

 

[youngun]

oh thats no biggie, I'll just pinch it off

 

[lucaspl88]

yea you also might want to get a new EGR valve gasket.. they are like $9 at the dealer..

 

[derdasf]

I will throw my .02 cents in on this topic. I have removed all parts that have come up within all the posts to check. EGR, PCV, MAF, Throttle body blade, Brake booster, vacuum leaks etc. etc., and nothing. All working correctly, cleaned, re-installed. new plugs, air filter etc. My idle RPM drops from 900 in Drive to about 600 in Drive with brake pedal depressed. Been doing this since new, now has 140K on it. When in park, nothing changes idle RPM, rock solid at 900. Depressing brake does not cause a change so stating that depressing the brake causes a vacuum leak in the booster is false because if that were true, anytime you actuate the brake pedal you are actuating the brake booster and if that action causes a vacuum leak in drive, it will do the same in park, no difference it's a mechanical action. EGR is EGR, if malfunctioning at idle, transmission selection does not have an effect. I have come to the conclusion this is inherent to the design of the system controlled by software. For some reason the Mazda Engineers chose to regulate idle when the engine is in drive and the brake is depressed. I have seen several posts about folks pulling the brake switch fuse which cures the problem. Did it cure it or just negate the function? To me it appears to be by design. As I said, mine has done it since brand spanking new. Exasperating yes, malfunction? No. Now I will say that all the remedies and the go check this and clean throughout the posts will in fact help for those who are seeing larger RPM drops into the 450 to 500 RPM range. Mine has done that and it was the MAF and throttle blade cleaning that corrected that. Replacing the three mounts will help the vibration aspect as i noted, that degraded over the years and finally replaced trans mount and both motor mounts at 130k and the vibration issues went away. Just my two cents. Thanks