hello all I am new to this forum and need help. I have a kid on the way and was given a 2002 mazda 626 from my sisters friend to get a me around. Now it need mechanical work off the back i noticed it needs a alignment and that the belts squeek when i turn on the car. Also besides the accessories belts and most likely timing belt being that the car has 108,000 miles. what other parts should i repair being that the car has trhis many miles? spark plugs? spark plug wires? distributor cap? what is extremely neccesary? I am going through tough financial times. I am located in nj and will need to have someone to do the work for me. Any information i can get will be appreciated. Thank to all agian!

 

I would see if there are any service recordsfor the car first.Try to find out what's been done before replacing unnecessary parts.
Having to pay a mechanic for atiming belt can cost some money and if it's been done within the last +/-40k miles it should be OK for a while. But it will cost a lot more if it breaks, so be sure about that one.
1) One of the most neglected maintenance items is often the fuel filter.
2) Coolant/Anti-Freeze is another often neglected area.Winter is coming.
3) Brake fluid absorbs moisture over time (hygroscopic is the term.) No matter how well sealed the system is so the entire brake system should be bled and the fluid completely replaced.
4) How about the automatic tranny, ifit has one?Has it been serviced/fluid changed recently?
5) CV joints and axle boots?
6) Suspension and steering components? Ball joints? I know the roads in NJ and if some of these parts are worn out could cause an accident.

I would worry more about some of these things first, many of which are safety issues,over spark plugs and wires.Even drive belts. Better to break down w/a bad hose or belt than to cause, or involve yourself inan accident, right? That would cost you a lot more time and money, even your life or the lives of any passengers than a simple break down.

 

It's hard to say what your car needs without seeing it in person. However, probably the more pressing matter IMHO would be the timing belt IF the timing belt had not been replaced when it should have (I think it is supposed to be done at 90,000 miles but check your manual). Squeaking belts isn't necessarily a bad thing, but check the condition of the accesory belt anyway. Look for cracks, dryness and so on. If a belt goes when you are driving, you're dead in the water. New spark plugs help the car run better but aren't as crucial. Again, it depends on the condition of your current plugs. Pull one and check it. If it's only dirty, your plugs can be cleaned off and reused. NGKs make good plugs for the car and aren't that expensive. New wires would be nice but it is rare that old wires would cause serious running problems. Check the oil and run good oil. That's huge.If you can afford it, I recommend running full synthetic, but it is spendy. If you can't afford it for now, go with the high mileage blend. When you can, switch over to a dual cone filter and get rid of your restrictive black box. it'll help you r gas mileage. Of course, you may want to check to see if this is legal in NJ. I don't know your laws. The alignment is not crucial although it will make the car steer funny and wear your tires out faster. If you tires are close to needing replacement. I'd wait to get an alighnment when you get new tires. From the sounds of it, I wonder what maintenance was really done? You should ask them. If they didn't do regular maintenance, you'll need to do it as soon as you can afford it. It could be a nice, reliable daily driver if you take good care of it. Mazda makes a pretty good product. I know.... my 323GT has 251,000 miles and going strong!