Mazda Problems

This sounds like a potentially very dangerous fault. Any car that wanders across the road or doesn’t go where the driver points it is an accident waiting to happen. A serious one, at that. At this point, the first piece of advice is to not drive the vehicle any farther and have it towed to a workshop for it to be inspected.

There’s one other possibility here. And that is that what you’re feeling is the car’s lane-keeping assistance program. This can often feel as though the steering it trying to plot its own course (which it is, in a way) in order to keep you centred in your lane. It only works up to a point, beyond which driver input will overcome it. I wonder if that’s what you mean by 'unsticking' the steering.

However, as far as I can tell, this model Mazda didn’t some with lane-keeping assistance (it has lane-departure warning only) so I think you’re back to square one and a tow-truck. Either way, this should be a warranty issue if there’s anything seriously wrong, so don’t be afraid to try a different dealership.

This is a relatively simple diesel engine you’re dealing with here, so the first thing to check is the fuel supply. A dud or worn out fuel pump can mean the engine isn’t getting any fuel to the injectors, at which point it will never fire up. Even if you had a single injector playing up, you’d expect at least the odd cough from the engine as it tried to start on three cylinders, but from your description, there’s nothing going on under that bonnet.

The other common thing that stops a diesel starting is non-functioning glow plugs. These are designed to pre-heat the combustion chamber so that the fuel burns when it’s compressed by the pistons (a diesel has no spark plugs, remember). Without this pre-heating process, the fuel may refuse to ignite and the engine won’t fire. But don’t rule out the simple stuff like a blocked fuel filter that is preventing the fuel flowing from the tank to the injectors. A split or damaged fuel pick-up inside the tank can also lead to a lack of fuel at the engine, as can an air leak anywhere along the fuel line.

A squeak when taking off from rest could be anything from a brake problem to a wheel bearing fault, a noisy engine drive-belt, bent axle, a dry suspension bush, worn universal joint or just about a hundred other things, including the driveshaft you already suspect.

Of potentially greater concern is the cut-off exhaust system or, more correctly, the previous owner. Anybody who cuts up an exhaust to make more noise is also a likely candidate to have driven the vehicle hard. It might be better to find a vehicle that hasn’t been messed with and potentially abused.

A sawn-off exhaust system shouldn’t harm the turbocharger or engine, but it can make a difference to performance due to reduced back-pressure. It also makes me wonder what else has been changed of fiddled with in the name of more power. Sometimes the performance will actually be improved, but you also open a can of legal and insurance worms by changing things like factory exhaust systems in what is a fairly agricultural way.

The sluggish performance and the erratic tachometer needle may not be related at all. That said, they could very well both be symptoms of the same problem. A lot of mechanics, when shown an erratic dashboard gauge, will start by checking for a bad earth point. A poor earth can lead to all sorts of problems, as a healthy flow of electricity is vital to the basic functions of any modern car.

But before you rush out to find an auto electrician, bear in mind that this sounds very much like a problem that would be covered by Mazda’s factory warranty. Provided you have had the car serviced correctly and it hasn’t been submerged in a flood or something equally drastic, the first step is to take it back to Mazda and allow the dealer to tackle the problem.

It’s odd, but some cars just don’t like some brands of phones. Toyota, in particular a few years back, had all sorts of trouble connecting certain phones to its factory Bluetooth system and, even if you could connect, sometimes the reception was so poor that it wasn’t worth the effort.

All the alternatives you’ve listed have their pros and cons, and bear in mind that a Skoda uses VW technology. The main concerns over the years have been failures of, and problems with, dual-cutch transmissions. If the VW tech scares you (or your mechanic) put the Skoda in the same basket. Beyond that, it comes down to your personal driving preferences and what sort of deal you can squeeze out of the dealer.

Don’t forget, either, that we generally upgrade our phones every few years, so if your phone is already an older one, maybe your next mobile will pair with the Mazda perfectly. Or, make it the Mazda dealer’s problem: If they’ll throw in a compatible phone as part of the deal, maybe the CX-3 is for you after all.

If the car still has drive in the forward gears, but refuses to drive in reverse, it’s a reasonable bet that there’s wear or damage to the transmission’s intrinsic bits that select or control reverse gear. If the transmission was simply low on fluid or had a bad pump or torque converter, it wouldn’t go anywhere in either direction.

A transmission specialist will probably have seen this problem before and will be able to advise of the extent of the damage. Either way, don’t drive the car any farther as you may do more damage.

A lot of modern transmissions don’t have a dipstick at all, particularly as manufacturers move towards transmissions that have very long service intervals and are considered sealed systems. Which is fine until it’s not. And that’s when you need to check the level and condition of the transmission fluid.

The good news is that the BT-50 in question does have a dipstick. The bad news is that’s mighty difficult to get to. You need to be under the car (so safety is the key here) and then locate a 19mm fitting on the driver’s side of the transmission. By unscrewing this fitting, you can withdraw the dipstick and check the level. The other catch is that you need to do this with the engine running (to get an accurate reading) and the dipstick is located close to what will therefore be a hot exhaust system.

All of this means it’s really a job for a specialist with a hoist and is a great example of a carmaker saving a few cents per car in production at the expense of the greater running costs for the owner over the life of the vehicle.

The fact that the fuel economy average seems to be creeping up can have a lot to do with the fact that you’re becoming more familiar with the vehicle and using more throttle as a result. But remember, too, that until you reset the average on the trip computer, what you’re seeing is the full history of your consumption from when the trip computer was last zeroed, not just the most recent trip you’ve done.

It's true that engines often start to use a little less fuel as they 'bed in’ after a few thousand kilometres. And for a modern turbo-diesel like yours, I reckon 10,000km or even 15,000km might be the magic number. However, don’t be too disappointed if it doesn’t come down a whole lot. I reckon for that vehicle, driven the way you’ve described, 10 or 11 litres per 100km isn’t a bad average to aim for.

Other factors play a big part, too. Does the vehicle have a bull-bar or roof racks? Both these add weight and aerodynamic drag respectively, and can easily make the car consume more fuel. A roof rack at 100km/h can be worth an extra litre per 100km.

There have, indeed, been issues with this transmission with Mazda authorising a service bulletin to attend to some vehicles. However, it‘s generally thought that affected vehicles were built between 2011 and 2014, after which point, the problems were fixed. Which is not to say your 2015-built car doesn’t have the same problems.

The best way to proceed is to ignore the dealerships and go straight to Mazda Australia’s customer service department. Unfortunately, your car is now 10-years-old and well and truly outside its warranty, but I agree that 120,000km is not an acceptable lifespan for a component such as a modern automatic transmission to fail.

You say the battery is okay, and it’s possible for it to show 12 volts on a multi-meter, yet still be ready to be replaced. The trick is to load test the battery. That is, measure the voltage across the terminals while the battery is trying to crank the engine. Sometimes, a battery that seems okay with no load will turn to jelly once you apply the starter-motor load.

Cars (and batteries) don’t like sitting around doing nothing. The car’s alarm and even things like the clock in the dashboard will all continue to run, slowly draining the battery. A drained battery, if sat long enough, will often not recover even if you try to recharge it. Beyond that, an auto electrician will be your best first stop.