my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

dear babyhuey and support tech, i have read some of your replies to problems and it really sounds like you know alot and i was hoping you could help me out.
i have a 1988 Fuel injected 323 1.6 that i have driven to costa rica, my friend was driving it and it started to stall and run poorly and she took it to a mechanic and he supposdly cleaned the injectors along with replacing some vacuem hoses, it runs ok but now it is eating twice as much fuel,
the mechanic it was brought to said that it needs a new computer?
another says that whoever cleaned the injectors did a poor job and that the system could be bad.
tommorow i hope to locate a new oxygen sensor and start there.
what does it sound like to you???

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

I would first check to make sure that the engine is running at proper temperature. After running for a few minutes, does the temp gauge read about in the center or just a tick below? I ask this because if it is running cold it will give the engine extra fuel. Another place to check is the fuel pressure regulator. This is located on the nd of the fuel rail and has a vacuum hose connected to it. Pull the hose off and see if any fuel comes out of the regulator. Besides that how does it run? Is there black smoke coming from the exhaust?

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

hi bkey thanks for getting back to me.

it actually is running just a little cold just below were it usually does. the guage reads at about a quarter.
It wasnt me who brought the car into the mechanic and when i brought it back to ask him about the fuel consumption i remember him saying he flushed the radiator and maybe something else about the cooling system i dont remember. i beleive he said he changed the co2 sensor when i went to change it today it appears new.

also yes it is giving off black smoke.

and it runs good, has all its power it just eats gas. im barely getting 2.5 to 3 miles to the liter. its less than half of what it is normally.

you say to take a look at the fuel pressure regulator located at the end of the fuel rail?which is?
which i will look for. should some fuel come out of the regulator?

i dont want to get two far ahead of myself but i want to let you know a few other things.
it also appears that where there would be vaceum hoses coming out of the sides of the top of the injector housing there is only caps.
the vacuems that are capped is, on the left side one which is 1/4 inch,
and three on the right side 2x1/4 and 1x1/8inch.

i have an old chilton guide but there is very little in it on the 323, ive looked around a little online for a vacuem hose diagram, would you possibly have one that you could e-mail me or a place you could lead me online where i could view the diagram.

thanks so much for your help. jon

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

I would first install a new thermostat so the car runs at proper temp. If the thermostat is not operating properly or if it was removed with the coolant flush the engine computer will see that the engine is always cold and richen the fuel mixture.

The fuel pressure regulator has a diaphram and it controls fuel pressure and is controlled by engine vacuum. Sometimes the diaphram can rupture and allow un-metered fuel into the engine. There should be no fuel if the vacuum hose is removed. It is connected to the intake manifold with a short vacuum hose.

I added a vacuum diagram for your car too.

[IMG]local://upfiles/1828/1B85D51356904148B49735449CA9AF14.jpg[/IMG]

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

thanks bkey,

i took the car in thismorning and the mechanic went through the checked the injection system and air flow meter, i have left it there and he is going to continue to check, he said that right now he is looking into the grounds for the fuel valves? that maybe one isnt grounded right and its keeping it from sending the correct message to the computer.

how does that sound to you?

im going to walk back over there and talk to him and i will ask him to change the thermostat also, would the message that it is running cold cause it to use that much fuel?

i will keep you posted, thanks

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

I think you're on the right track...Black smoke is excessive fuel being burned (Blue - oil, White - coolant) Your Chiltons should tell you what the proper pressure is in the fuel rail (at the engine), there should be a fitting that you can hook a fuel pressure gauge to get a reading.

If something wasn't grounded right, that function wouldn't work (so if the function is to regulate fuel pressure, it would not regulate.... and would either dump any fuel available into the motor, or stop sending fuel altogether.)

My $$$ is on the Fuel Pressure Reg.

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

thanks for all the info so far, and now i must wait...
ill keep you guys posted!

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

well my car has been at the mechanic for over a week while i have been away, and it is still not fixed and so it continues to eat fuel.

the mechanic has said he has checked everything related to the injectors and is going to
check the timing belt to see if it is a notch ahead or behind.???

after all that he has looked at could it really be this?
is it possible that it could be the ECU? this is what the first mechanic told me, and everyone after has said it isnt.

also when i was in the capital i went to the mazda dealership and asked about the cost for a new fuel presure regulator, and the parts dept told me that the year of my car predates the models that are equipped with this?

i dont want the ride im on going on for ever.

bkey71 and sstlaure
thanks for any info or suggestions
sincerely jhons mazda

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

might be possible that the oxygen sensor needs to be cleaned or replaced

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

A timing belt off by 1 tooth can not cause it to run rich...it just would not run correctly at all.

I do not see how an ECU can cause it to just start running rich either. An ECU just responds to it's inputs. It might not hurt trying to replace the coolant temp sensor. It is fairly inexpensive. It is located on the thermostat housing.

If your car is fuel injected, it must have a fuel pressure regualtor. It is located on the fuel injector rail and has a vacuum hose connected to it. Here is a LINK to see what it looks like.

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

I spoke to the mechanic this morning and he told me that the ECU that is presently in the car is the wrong one. he says that after everything he checked that and the ECU in there is for a model that is 2 years newer.

as crazy as that sounds,
which if it were true i dont want to point at anyone but the only thing that would make sense is that the mechanic who had worked on the car before switched it out,(he was pretty confident in telling me that the computer was the problem when i brought the car back to him originally)i really dont know !! but i want to check what is in there against the sr#number of what should be in there.

do you know how i could go about getting the correct ECU sr#? an internet link? im in costa rica, i will try to call some dealers in the states and see if they will help me.

the vin# for the car is jm1bf2329jo153543

from what i understand that for the same year and model there is different ECU.s . concerning were the car was manufactured, climate, etc.
and that it isnt one computer for each model for the year it was manufactured.

any help you can offer me in getting the correct ECU#, you guys have been an incredible help already.

thanks jhonsmazda

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

I do not know how to look up the proper part #'s for the ECU on your car. Someone like babyhuey can help on this one.

On a side note I looked up your VIN and it came back with 18 records, Although I don't know what they are. I looked it up on CARFAX.com which you must pay to see the results. So your car must have come from the USA originally.

One other thing on your VIN, there is no lower case or upper case "o"'s , it is a zero "0".
EX. jm1bf2329j0153543

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

thanks bkey

i called the dealer and they gave me a part # b6b218880a for a california mazda
and b6b118880b for a federal mazda
and a car manufacture date of 11.24.87
is that the only ID number needed to match it up?

now i would like to locate a used one(what would you recomend about that rebuilt/aftermarket/used?) from a reliable place that will dhl it to me.

also on carfax you said that 18records came up? records about? should i pay to retreive them?

thanks for all of and any more help you can offer

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

All I can recommend about locating a ECU is to lookup salvage yards on Google. I have several yards where I live but I would have to go through the junk cars to find one locally. Being where you live I don't know all your options. I would have no problems myself purchasing a good used unit with a warranty.

As for carfax records , they do not indicate whether good or bad. You must pay to get the details of the 18 records. It's your option whther or not to pay to see the records.

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

Wow what a neat discussion and I seemed to have missed seeing the entire thing untill last night.[:@]. Would certainly agree on checking the fuel pressure regulator diaphram for rupturing as this is somewhat more common on older Mazda's. Would suspect it to be source of fuel consumption and black smoke before ECU. The dealer you called was incorrect on not having a pressure regulator. Perhaps they thought you had the carbureted model. Part number for pressure regulator is OE#B630-13-280B. Those are zero's and not letter "O". MSRP of $164.30 but online for $131.44.

How has this mechanic determined that the ECU on your car is for newer model???
There should be somewhat of a part number on the top. Will end in 18-880 but first four should be something like B6B1 or B6B2. If they are lettered B61K-, BP01-, or BP47 then would be an ECU for 89-90 model year. B6K1 and B6K2 would be later 88 ECU. Connectors look the same so would probably plug right in. What is the lettering on your ECU?

Parts computer does not differentiate between Fed or California emissions unfortunately. Your 323 was originally wholesaled by Pinacle Mazda in Renton, Washington State so would doubt that it is a California emission spec vehicle. If you still have underhood emission sticker then look at it. This is the stiker that gives idle speed and timing specs. At the bottom should be a phrase that begins " This vehicle conforms to all...blah, blah, blah... applicable to 1988 model year. If the word California is in there then is a Cali spec vehcile. If not then is Federal and would probably say US EPA. Hope is Fed as the CA ECU is no longer available at least thru Mazda. There are still two Fed spec remaned ECU's still available in the Irvine, CA warehouse. Part number is changed to B6B1-18-881R. Available thru onlinemazdaparts.com for $466.40 and a $200 core charge.
There are a couple of places that sell online aftermarket, used, ?? First one below did show that they carried a B6B1 for 88 323. Second did not.

http://www.ourecms.com/main.htm

http://www.foreignecurepair.com/

Would definitely want to make sure that indeed the incorrect ECU has been installed. Perhaps the mechanic shorted something out when testing and burned up your original?? There was a mid year production change for the ECU on 09-01-1988. Since your 323 was in fact buit 11-24-87, You would need the earlier ECU which the dealer did give you correct part numbers for. Later model 88 used either a B6K1-18-880 or B6K2-18-880.

Hope this helps if a little late.:eek:

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

HI bhuey.

well i finally got the new ECU sent via dhl which in the end with duty cost more than double the ecu price, and guess what! with it in the car, it sends no gas? im coming to new york this week and am having a new fuel pressure regulator sent so i can bring it back, just in case!! and since the ecu is used they are going to switch it out for a different one, i will stop by the car before i leave hoping the sticker is still there and take a look and see what it says. if i need to order a different ecu ill do that to.

?so your saying that it wouldnt matter if it was a fed or california ecu? if the car is a fed spec or california spec either one should work in the car?
but if it is a washington state emissions car it will be different to the california spec and the fed spec. im just trying to clarify.

like i said the car runs good, it eats fuel though. the mechanic could be wrong, im getting the fuel pressure regulator and am hoping with one or the other it will finally be allright, is there any way to look up through the Vin#jmibf2329jo153543 what the emmisions specs are? thanks for any info you can give me.

thanks alot you guys!!! jhon

RE: my323 is drinking twice as much gas as usual
 

the vin # i left is incorrect, if anyone can help get the emissions specs(what state or fed)
its jm1bf2329j0153543

thanks jhonsmazda