Hi all, me again following on from my above post. The week following the turbo replacement I had to go in to mazda to get more coolent added as I noticed it was on the low mark. When they replaced the turbo obviously they (mazda) lost some radiator fluid so I assumed it just needed a bit of a top up. Another week later I checked the fluid level again at cold and noticed it was half way between high and low. I'm a bit of a diy wannabe mech so jacked it up, pulled bottom covers off, started it up and let it idle for 10 or more mins. What I was trying to do was see if there were any leaks. Note - also prior to starting the eng I also checked the dip stick and oil cap to see if there were any signs of rad fluid in the oil, thankful all looked good there. After 10 mins or warming the vechile up and looking for leaks - nothing seen. So I took it off the stands and went for a drive around block, came home and jacked it up and looked for leaks. Nothing.
I then assume this is because when I topped it up the week before the engine was hot, so this is just the fluctuation between hot and cold
Now also at this point in time i noticed the bottom radiator hose was stone cold. Top was hot. Alarm bells started ringing. No temp alarm on dash (It's a pain how there's no gauge). I took it for another drive in case eng still needed to get up to temp. Still same result (cold bottom hose). I'm now certain the thermostat is failed closed.
Any body have any advice or experienced the above on their cx5 . This one's a 2013 NZ new.

 

Sadly, there were no early signs. One day there was a smell of burnt coolant and it was coming out of the overflow of the expansion tank. The absence of a temperature gauge certainly doesn't make it easier to notice. Unless the early sign was really the previous issue, which was the diesel particulate filter problem. That problem seems to be one that starts small but affects other parts of the engine, or at least that's how I understand it.

 

I can't comment on the hot/cold pipes, but when mine went the pump was OK, there was no water in the oil, but the pressure was building up in the water system, pushing it out. The local dealer was not able to diagnose the problem satisfactorily. There was gas bubbling in the top of the radiator when run with the cap off.

 

Thanks for the information. Can I ask - how much was it to fix head gasket? Did you have any luck getting mazda to pay? And which mazda service center did you use?

Greatly appreciate your help

I'm thinking my issue is thermostat, not convinced \ very much hope it's not the head gasket.

 

Had Mazda put a temperature gauge in the vehicle (and I wish they had), it may not have helped much if the screwups they did with the MX5 are any indication. The gauge on it goes to normal and sits there in a dead spot. By the time it starts moving again, you have probably cooked the engine.

 

Its a real shame Mazda NZ isn't following Mazda Australia in there attitude on CX5 issues. Pretty much any cx5 diesel with turbo, coolant or engine issues are being covered under a extended warranty.

Mazda NZ need to pull their heads out of the sand.

 

For those of you who are interested. Following on from the above I spoke to two separate mazda service department's yesterday and both said the same thing. The thermostat will be fine, they advised that these engines take quite a bit of driving and \ or load until the thermostat actually starts to open. They mentioned with the way the AC system constantly has water circulating that this means the radiator only starts to get used after a decent amount of driving.

Also they mentioned the fluid level will be due to the system having a small air lock after turbo change.

 

I finally had a result! My car has been off the road for 3 months in the last year, first with the oil issue and then the head gasket. My local agents seemed somewhat out of their depth at times. However, MazdaNZ paid for both fixes, the first at 80k and the second at 125k, so well out of warranty. They then gave me a reasonable discount and a not very flash but OK trade-in price to encourage me to buy Mazda again. I had to go out of town as my local dealers didn't want to touch my old car and offered peanuts for a trade.

 

I just had Mazda pay for the cost of the head gasket as well (they paid for the oil problem a year ago also).

 

Interesting. Mazda Australia replaces the entire engine & turbo when the head gasket blows. Looks like Mazda NZ are tight *****.