Smoke from Mazda MPV 1996 Passenger side - Mazda Forum

hitechseeker · #1 02-28-2009, 07:53 PM

I have a 1996 MPV, 3.0 L, V6. It leaks oil near the back of the engine on the passenger side. The leak is at the base of the oil seperator and from the small black cover just below it. The oil leaks from the base of the Seperator and flows down to the engine area near the transmission dip-stick. After about 5-8 miles of driving the oil starts to burn and produces smoke that is quite visible and smells of burning oil. I was told that there are two O-rings that need to be replaced. One of these is at the oil separator. There is a black hose from the oil seperator to the PCV valve. The oil spepator is not very accessible. I have the Chilton repair manual but cannot figure out how to remove the oil seperator from the engine. Is this part screwed in ? or just pushed in ?
Has anybody replaced this O-ring and if so, what hints can they pass-on.
Do I need any special tools ? Can I replace this without removing other parts of the engine ?

Thank you for your time and expertise.

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hitechseeker · #2 03-02-2009, 06:30 PM

The dealer can sell me an O-ring for the part under the black cap. This is easy to change. However one of the dealers wants to sell me the complete oil seperator at a cost of around $85. Its at the base of this that the oil is coming out of.

Can anybody tell me if I can replace the oil seperator without taking off all of the parts on top of the valve cover gasket ( these are the air intake manifold, various vacuum tubes, spark plug wires etc. ). Does the oil seperator pull out or does it screw out ? Any pictures/diagrams around ?

Thanks,
Mazda 1996 MPV

hitechseeker · #3 07-27-2009, 11:05 PM

All done. Not terribly difficult but time consuming. Thanks to those who tried to help !

j_chu · #4 11-08-2009, 01:18 AM

Hi Hitechseeker. I think I have the same problem now and I would like to ask how you resolved the problem. I read about the O rings you replaced but I have no idea where they are and how to replace them. Basically I would see oil on the floor of the garage and on the area of the passenger side of the engine towards the rear where there is a black rubber covering. Hope you can help me out. Thank you.

hitechseeker · #5 11-15-2009, 02:34 PM

Hi,
There are two O-rings that need to be replaced. One of these is at the bottom of an "oil seperator", it costs around $8. Another is at the black "blanking plate". both are about the same size, but are NOT the same size. Make sure you get the right ones from Mazda. Some dealers want to sell you the oil seperator with the oil ring at about $85. Anyway the seperator just pulls upwards when the bolts are removed. It may take a little bit of force as aging has taken its toll. Once these O-rings are replaced you should not see any smoke from burning oil on exhaust manifold. Look through this forum, there are some great pictures to help you. The O-rings are at the back of the engine near the firewall, so a little tricky to get at. just take your time to not mess up any other fittings around the area. Good luck !

j_chu · #6 11-19-2009, 05:28 AM

Thanks for the response. I'll see what I can do based on what you explained here and update the thread. I'm sure I'll be posting some more questions, hehe..

denverrum · #7 05-10-2010, 11:52 AM

We bought a 1996 MPV for my son's first car. I tracked an oil leak down to this exact same place. Just wondering if anyone was able to find a diagram or pic. I've scoured the net and haven't found too much. I definitely want to change these rings myself. Any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

hitechseeker · #8 05-11-2010, 07:29 PM

Please visit this site for some pictures of the blanking plates and the O-rings that must be replaced.

http://forum.mpvclub.com/viewtopic.p...tributor+blank

Best Wishes

denverrum · #9 05-12-2010, 04:09 PM

Thank you for your response. The link you sent was perfect!
I found this info on another site that may be helpful to someone. We've been to the Mazda dealer twice already and they were useless. We now have part #'s and I'm sharing.
Have a good day!

JF01-10-235A Pass. Valve cover gasket $26.11
JF01-10-237 Valve cover washer (qty. 7) $4.00 ea.
JF03-10-483 Blank distributor plug o-ring $9.99
9954-10-3207 PCV or oil sep. o-ring $8.45
JE96-13-135 Intake plenum gasket $17.77
J503-13-655 Throttle body gasket $13.00
JE96-20-661 BAC valve gasket $12.00