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I don’t think my Mazda likes me anymore. Or maybe it wants more attention and is looking for it in negative ways. The Mazda is a 1993 MPV six cylinder 3.0 L rear wheel drive. For the last month or so, it has been draining its battery and basically becoming very unreliable to drive. The battery checked out OK at Part-source but their tester indicated something wrong with the charging system. After checking for loose wires, I pulled the alternator and had it checked. It checked out OK. The alternator belt was in bad shape, so I changed it as well. I also put a known good battery in from my truck to see if the problem might be a battery that can’t hold a charge. It was running fine for about three days. I kept track of the battery charge by taking a voltage reading every time the Mazda came back home. Things were looking great and it seemed that the problem had been solved. Yesterday, my daughter took the Mazda to school, about three kilometers away. When she went out to start it after school, it was dead. I assumed the battery had drained itself from the trip to school. ( The day before I had my head under the hood and noticed that the new alternator belt had loosened up. I was planning to tighten it up the next day). When I went to rescue the vehicle I first checked the voltage on the battery. It was 12.6 Volts. The battery posts were on tight, however, there were no lights and not a sound when you turned the key. To complicate things, I was unable to shift into neutral in order to tow it home. (Yes, the key was turned to accessories.) I have no idea why the gear shift is stuck. I need to get this vehicle back home before it is ticketed and prefer to avoid the cost of a tow truck. Does anyone have any idea why I can’t shift into neutral? Any suggestions as to where I should start looking for the cause of the no start problem? Thanks in advance for the responses.
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The shift lock is electric. If there is no power the shift lock won’t work. There is a manual override button under a removable cover on the top of the steering column behind the steering wheel. Open this cover, press the button, and you can then move the shift lever.
As for the electrical problem, first check the main fuse in the fuse box under the hood. Check your battery cables also, make sure they are tight and free of corrosion (both ends). Also check the electrical connections on the alternator to make sure they are clean and tight.
Sounds like you may have a problem with a connection somewhere, or a parasitic draw problem. I’d check for a connection issue first. If you had a parasitic draw, you wouldn’t have the battery voltage that you do. It sounds more like a connection at the battery or a ground somewhere.
More info here.
http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-automotive-electrical-problems
Good luck and keep us posted.
My daughter who drove the car to school didn’t notice the engine light on. I have an OBD reader but I don’t think it covers vehicles earlier than 1996.
I just wanted to post an update as to the progress of my vehicle problem, as well as thank those who responded with advice, especially cap 269 who helped me solve the stuck gear-shift problem, thus saving me from paying for a tow and a possible parking ticket. I did find the over-ride location at the bottom of the steering column. (If I had taken the time to read the Mazda owner’s manual like a responsible car owner should, I would have known about the location years ago. Lesson learned.) I had checked the tightness of the battery connections when the problem first arose and found them tight. After receiving your responses, I took your advice and checked the cables again but this time, I had my son with me who sat in the driver seat to monitor things. When I wiggled the positive cable, like magic, the instrument panel and heater fan came to life! There seemed to be a loss of continuity either in the cable at the post or along in the cable itself. I ended up replacing the positive clamp and this has seemed to have solved the problem so far. This is the first time I’ve come across a situation where corrosion has built up between the cable and the inside of the crimped end of the clamp. In the end, It was a great learning experience and I am grateful for all the assistance I received through your responses. I attached the pictures I took thinking they might help inexperienced guys like me who might have a similar problem and come across this post down the road. Thanks again!
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