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Any seasoned Mazda Techs on the board

dadsbee

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I hate asking for help, but I'm about done beating my head against the wall on this 2016 CX-3 AWD of my Daughters and the BS of where wheel speed sensor connections are etc!

History = her traction control light and tire pressure lights came on simultaneously and the AT light, engine revs up like it's been thrown into neutral and then goes back to normal. Shut the car off, start it back up and the warning lights are all gone and NO codes !

First thing I did was get my one arm down through the engine mess and get the dip stick bolt out, then spent 20 minutes carefully trying to get the plastic POS stick out of the case. Transmission fluid full ! Transmission shifts flawlessly thru all 6 gear in D or running it manually.

I knew her back hubs were done, so I installed two new Mazda rear hub assemblies figuring that maybe the wheel rock was moving the sensor wheel away from the sensor triggering this mess. Thought we were good and then she drove 20 minutes, went grocery shopping and on the way back after turning left this happened again.

Original battery looked like **** and only showed 12.13 volts after me driving it the 25 minutes from her place, so figured I'd put a new battery in her and the troubles would go away as it seems to be a common sensor "fix". I ripped around a traffic circle and it happened to me about 10 minutes into the drive. Again, as soon you shut it off and turn back on codes are gone. I then drove the **** out of it for another 40 minutes without issue yesterday.

This morning I cleaned all the rust scale off the rear drive shafts beside the sensor wheels, thinking maybe it was throwing rust at the sensors. I then drove the **** out of it for over 30 minutes, around the same traffic circle nadda, then down a 5 mile road full of pot holes at 60MPH hammering the **** out of it and still nadda. Starting to grin like a repair guru and then 35 minutes in I turned left hard after a stop sign and ffs, on come the two lights, the AT light blinks, transmission hammers and then off I go just fine. Drive it for another 15 minutes and brake hard at a stop sign and see the AT light blink again. Drive up our laneway and then go around and around in circles and can't make it do it again. Shut it off, start again and warning lights again gone.

I just finished digging through the back to see if the mice chewed the speed sensor wires on this stupidity called a car. You have to damn near remove the rear seat if you wanted to actually change the sensors and run the wire. Nothing looks chewed. Yesterday I checked the front wheel wires and connectors, again in the worst f'n location a designer could find.

Pulling my hair out and I don't have much left and she has my truck. I bought her new Summer tires for this thing for Christmas or at this point I'd be telling her to trade it in. That said she can't afford car payments and I'm trying to buy her time with her on maternity leave and her Husband spending what little they have coming in on smokes and other **** he doesn't need.

Only thing I can think is front right hub is moving enough to trip the speed sensor... but they have no wheel rock or noise that I can feel or hear.

ANY help would be MUCH appreciated! Thanks, Wayne
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Well as a tech that has been working on imports for the last 38 years I can say that intermittent ABS sensors are the most difficult to diag. The only real way to tell what it is without a scanner is to ohm check each sensor at the connector of the ABS actuator. The easier way is with a really good scanner so you can isolate each sensor and somebody can watch the data stream when it actually happens. You will be able to see what sensor is reading slower or faster than the others.
This is how I would diag a Toyota as that is what I've been working on for the last 34 years.
I wish I had a solid easy repair for you. I will ask a few of the Mazda techs that work next door to the dealer where I work.
Gus
 
I missed the one "history". 2 days after Christmas it happened enough times to her that the engine light came on. That one I managed to scan on my old unit and got CO101 which = speed sensor. I ordered a new scanner this morning on Amazon, that does ABS / AT / etc, should be here by Friday so I guess the Wife and I will do some cruising! LOL Just praying it actually lets me bring up 4 streams at once. Also hoping it's not some transmission solenoid or sensor...

It's the AT light flash and trans leaving you a sitting duck that scares me the most..
 
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Are they running toothed sensor rings? You have to look close , the rust can literally break them. I actually did one a couple weeks ago , it was on an 08 tribute of all things .
I was at a place that brought in Ontario cars for quite a while and have seen most of the Easter bunny issues.
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Are they running toothed sensor rings? You have to look close , the rust can literally break them. I actually did one a couple weeks ago , it was on an 08 tribute of all things .
I was at a place that brought in Ontario cars for quite a while and have seen most of the Easter bunny issues.View attachment 1583493
Ya, rears are on the axle like that. Front's appear to use the same bolt on sensor and the sensor ring I can't see with the steering knuckle in the way. Considering just ordering a pair of hubs for the front as they're probably due anyhow seeing the rears were toast. Fortunate I got the pair for the back when I did, today they show Zero stock at Mazda.
 
You're looking into the Right rear area.. which is what I saw as well just googling around..
Dumb question but assume you tightened the axle nut?
 
You're looking into the Right rear area.. which is what I saw as well just googling around..
Dumb question but assume you tightened the axle nut?
YA.. 220 foot pounds. Picture was pre tightening...

Knowing that she had mice that made a nest in her spare tire a couple years ago I thought I'd check if they chewed wires.. what a cluster f to put the sensor connection in there. I think the rear seat needs to come out to actually get in far enough to change a sensor and harness.
 
The rear seats usually come out fairly easy like the old cars
 
So,
ABS
Tire pressure sensors?
Auto Trans light (AT?)

Have you considered nothing is wrong with those things and the BCM is failing?
 
Traction control and tire monitor on a Mazda are somewhat a farce. They don't run TPS units, they detect that the "soft" tire is smaller in diameter and that makes that sensor have faster pulses than the others. Now how it determines which light it should put on is the mystery. It's the AT light flashing and going into neutral and then hammering back into gear that scares me.

Probably turn out to be a bad ground or chewed wire somewhere, but at my wits end.

As far as I know a BCM cannot effect transmission operation, but a PCM can. Guess I should dig that battery back out and the battery box as it's under there of all places!
 
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The computers all talk to each other and will put on any light that it needs to , to show it disabled that system. Very common, that's where we get the " dash lit up like a Christmas tree" syndrome.
 
I guess what I'm hoping for here.. someone else has had the AT light flash and the trans go neutral and then hammer back into gear and go... and knows how it was fixed! AH... to Dream.. LOL
 
Wayne check ALL grounds as there could LITERALLY be nothing wrong other than a ground. If you find it. Clean it and put Dielectric grease on it and should last awhile.. DAMHIK
 
is that salt? sand? holy crap!

looks like she was wheelin' in the jersey pines
 
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