Mazda - Mazda3 :: Intermittent Vibration Mostly On The Floor But Sometimes Also On Steering Wheel


Jul 16, 2012

I have a 2008 Mazda3 (2.3L automatic, 34K miles), which has recently been annoying me.. The problem started about 4 months ago, when I got new tires and a brake job (pads + rotor resurfacing). Ever since, it has been having intermittent vibrations. I feel the vibrations mostly on the floor, but sometimes also on the steering wheel. Here's what I've done so far:

When the vibrations started, i thought it was a problem with the new tires. I had them re-balanced 3 times at two different places, with no improvement. I then took the car to the dealer, who replaced two of the three engine mounts (it appears these tend to break easily on this model). This seemed to improve the situation for about half a day, and then it went back to the same. I took it back to the dealer, who could not find anything wrong. Not being satisfied, I took it to a different dealer, who could also not find anything wrong.

So, I am now stuck with this vibration.. It is not always there, and not always of the same magnitude... it seems to be more likely to happen in the morning after a colder night (well, as cold as it gets in Los Angeles). It is most likely to be felt at around 45-50mph, but you can also feel it at higher speed sometimes. A couple of times I could definitely feel it at around 25mph. Also, I've noticed that the engine vibrates when the car is stopped, at around 1500-1800rpm (e.g. when I first turn it on). The dealer claims that this is natural for a 4-cyl engine, but I had never felt a vibration before.

My gut feeling is that this is something related to the engine, but two different dealers could not find a problem... since this is intermittent, it is hard to nail down I guess.

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: Vibration And Steering Wheel Jerk To The Left

I have a 2006 Mazda 3 Hatchback. We recently had new tires put on and an alignment both were needed pretty bad. Before the work the car had a pretty bad vibration to begin with. After the car ran smooth for about a week and then my described it having a vibration and thought something fell off. We took it back to the shop and they checked it over and rebalanced the tires and suspected that maybe a weight or two fell off.

The car ran fine again and then this past weekend I was driving and noticed that around 60-70 the car vibrated but not consistently, as it slowed from 70 to 60 it seemed to vibrate more. I also noticed around 25 that it had the vibration occasionally and could feel a slight jerking or tug to the left.

My guess is I have a broken or cracked motor mount since its not consistent at any speed. My reasoning is that at the lower as I accelerate the engine rpms are causing the jerking and as I slow down the decrease in rpms is causing the vibration.

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: Steering Wheel Vibrates A Lot

I have a 2006 Mazda3 with about 112K miles on it and what I have noticed recently is that the steering shakes a lot. I looked up online for a possible cause and have found that wheel balancing could be a reason. I got wheels balanced and aligned but still there is still some vibration in the steering, so what do you think could be the reason? I have got rotors machined once before, like a year ago.

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: Brake Pedal Goes Right To The Floor With No Resistance

First thing in the morning 2 things happen with my car.

1)When I press the brake the first time after turning it on the pedal goes right to the floor with no resistance. The brakes work, the pads move, but there's no resistance in the pedal.

2)Usually within first 15 minutes of driving there's a gap in braking. There's resistance in the peddle but as the car gets near to stopping there's a... whump where the car acts as though there was a gap in the rotors. It brakes smoothly til near the end then suddenly seems to release and then half a second later it bites again and the car stops.

I've had the pads and rotors checked and they found nothing.

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: 2006 Intermittent Failure To Start / Continues After New Battery

I have a very reliable Mazda 3 2006. For the last month I have had a problem with it refusing to start. I put the key in the ignition, turn it on and nothing. No start, no grinding, no clicking, no sound at all. Got a new battery and it happened again. The second AAA tow guy taught me to start the car by putting it in neutral ( with foot brake and hand brake on) and then start it, which does the trick when it won't start otherwise.

After the new battery and continued problems I asked my mechanic to check the electrical system. He did and said everything was fine.

I don't know whether this is a generator, alternator, computer or battery problem. And I don't know what I am doing to my car when I do the neutral set start. I don't know if I am hurting my car when I do that.

The problem is intermittent. There is no pattern: length of trip before I stop, length of time the car is not used, etc. What is causing this and what needs to be looked at/ fixed.

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Ford F-150 (2009-2014) :: Vibration In Gas Pedal / Floor / Steering Wheel

2009 FX4... Every once in a while, I'll feel a vibration in the gas pedal. It happens under acceleration, and typically if I'm pushing down and it has not downshifted yet. Then once it downshifts the vibration is less noticeable.

I have had the mechtronic unit replaced due to harsh shifting and the vibration was there before and after that was replaced. The drive shaft was also replaced due to a click/clinking noise and the vibration was there before and after as well. The harsh shifting and clinking noise was fixed with those repairs, but the vibration is still there. I notice it more when I am towing.

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Honda - Prelude :: 1994 - Intermittent Vibration Through The Steering Wheel

1994 Honda prelude vibration in steering wheel. When I drive the car on the highway there is an intermittent vibration through the steering wheel. It isn't speed sensitive. It is off and on even at the same speed. It will come in for about 5 min and then the car will drive vibration free even at the same speed. So I don't think it's a wheel weight. I checked the inner/outer tie rods, wheel bearing, ball joints and all are fine.

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2009 Mazda 3 Since a nasty cold snap in Northeast, instrument panel has gone crazy. The meter showing RPM's works but 0 on the speedometer- dead. Gauges have been all on for a couple weeks. Just noticed now the power steering is gone. All lights seem to work normally and heat/defrost works. Radio works. Haven't noticed if odometer is working or not.

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: 2004 - Clattering Sound Coming From Left Rear Wheel

I have a 2004 Mazda 3 with 90K miles. Brakes, rotors, and rear calipers were replaced about two months ago. About a month after, I started noticing a clattering sound coming from the left rear wheel whenever I drove over rough road. (It sounds like an aluminum pot lid dropping onto the pot.) The shop that did the original brake work took 4 visits to get everything done. Instead of going back, I went to another mechanic who said the left caliper was loose. He showed me how he could shake it. He said the bolts were tight so it wasn't a safety issue.

I went back to the original shop for repair but they could not reproduce the noise and said the brakes/calipers were fine.

The noise remained. I went to a third shop which checked the caliper and said it was fine, but said that I needed new shocks. The mechanic had the car on the lift and was able to reproduce a similar noise on both rear wheels when he hit them with a rubber mallet.

The first mechanic insists the caliper is bad. The second insists it's the shocks.

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: 2008 - Burning Smell Intermittently From Left Rear Wheel?

A few months ago I bought a used 2008 Mazda3s sedan, and ever since I get an intermittent burning rubber smell from my rear left wheel. I recently got new tires, brake pads, and had the rotors turned, with no change.

The smell does not always happen, it will be there maybe one out of 3 or 4 times, and it is more likely to happen after long drives (e.g., one hour highway driving).

The wheel well also feels very hot. The obvious answer would be that the brake caliper is sticking, causing friction, heat, and the burning smell. However, if I touch the rotor it feels the same lukewarm temperature as the other three.

One additional thought is that this is caused by the exhaust, which is right next to this wheel well. I have noticed that the area of the floor of the trunk right above the exhaust gets very hot, which I had not seen in any other car I owned.

Could it be that the exhaust is causing the rubber of the tire (or something else) to overheat and smell bad? Visually, it does not look like the tire has a different wear or different appearance, compared to any other one.

This may or may not be related: my handbrake seems to be useless If I leave it on I can easily drive with little to no noticeable slowdown... I guess the previous owner did not read the part of the manual where it says you have to release the handbrake before you drive.

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In my 2006 Prius, I just started noticing this recently, but whenever I turn my steering wheel, it makes a weird noise and I can feel something going on through the steering wheel. It doesn't impede my steering, the car steers just fine... It's just an add sound, I don't want to say a cracking sound... but it kind of is? I don't know. I'll have to put a video of it up. & it doesn't matter which way I turn it, it still makes the weird sound and the intermittent vibration... I know it has E-steering and occasionally you can here the motor whirring when you turn it but this is different, it's a loud... popping noise is the word for it! Popping, and I can feel it when it pops through the steering wheel. Again, it doesn't impede the steering ability at all, but something isn't right I'm sure... Or maybe it's normal.

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I have not had a chance to bed-in the new pads/rotors. I am driving and braking slow/easy last 2 days. Now, I get a slight vibration felt in the steering and driver floor pan area around 70, 75 mph. (NOT when braking, just cruising.) I don't recall having this with old rotors.

Are these signs that the rotor is defective/out of balance themselves? I did go to discount tire and got my tires re-balanced, it's somewhat better... but not perfect.

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In both cases the car just turned over and over and never sounded like it was going to start, resulting in a tow being needed. I've now found out that the dealer started the car by pushing the gas pedal to the floor, then cranking over the engine and then very slowly releasing the gas pedal until the engine started to fire. In the three months in between the non start days the car has started fine and it drives fine, lots of power, constant power with no surges or bogging down. The dealers have checked the compression, fuel PSI, and run computer diagnostics and everything appears to be normal. They also removed the value cover and say that as far as they can tell the fuel injectors seem to be functioning normally.

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I have a 2004 Mazda 3. I just had it inspected and cabin air filter replaced. Now, my car makes a loud noise when the a/c is on and I'm accelerating. The noise sounds like a fan is vibrating /something is blocking it or like a motor is rev-ing that shouldn't be. There definitely is something wrong that wasn't there before the filter/s replaced. I watched a Youtube video on it... a real pain to replace them, but it looked like the fithad to be pretty tight... Could the filters have been installed incorrectly or some part not put back together correctly?

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I hear a noise- what I can best describe as a metallic plucking sound - like a low metallic chord being plucked- when my automatic transmission 2008 Mazda3 shifts from first to second gear. It only happens the first time. I don't hear it after the car ihas been driving and is warmed up. Any thoughts on what could be happening?

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My mazda 3i is cutting out while driving. I added fuel injector additive to gas and it still cuts out. Battery check is fine. What the issue can be. RPM loss

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I've noticed this winter that my Mazda 3's heater is barely working using fresh air. It definitely gives out warmer air than the outside temperature, but not by a whole lot. If I turn on air recirculation, then the air becomes appropriately warm. What would cause the heater to work one way and not the other?

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Mazda - Mazda3 :: How To Test If Clutch Is Going / Slipping

I own a mazda 3 6 speed and im curious as how to test my clutch for slippage. I read on a old forum that to put the e brake up and put the car in 1st gear and release the clutch. When i did that my car tried to move but after a couple seconds i put it back in neutral. Another forum said to do the same but put it in 3rd as i released the clutch it stalled right away.

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