1988 Mazda B2200 Cab Plus 2.2L

Summary:

Great reliability at minimal cost

Faults:

The only thing that has gone wrong with it was that it started overheating.

When it is cold, it idles fast.

If you don't run the engine every day it makes a tapping noise for a while. One person told my that it was a tap-it which means the engine is adjusting itself.

General Comments:

I bought the truck from my mechanic. I didn't like it at first glance, but after the test drive I decided to buy it.

My mechanic had rebuilt the engine just before I bought it. The reason that it was rebuilt was because it had a cracked head and it had very low compression.

The truck runs great. It's great on gas mileage and the oil consumption is moderate.

My only worry is that it idles fast when the engine is cold, but the idle does slow considerably after running about two minutes.

The seats are uncomfortable, but there's nothing a little foam rubber and seat covers can't fix.

When I took it in to get a chassis lube they told me that the suspension was sealed and that there was no way to get grease into the suspension. The lube tech told me that the suspension was greased at the factory.

Due to the sealed fitting, when the suspension gets too noisy for me to handle, I'll have to replace the suspension.

All in all, the truck has great power, it gets great gas mileage, and it is very reliable.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th July, 2002

27th Aug 2002, 11:35

I have just recently bought an 1989 B2200,and it is a great little truck. It is good on gas, and runs fairly well except for a stalling problem when it is cold. it does have the valve tapping as was stated somewhere on this page. The instruction manual says that this is normal for a few minutes when the engine is cold.

As to the few problems I have with it, The front passenger brake caliper sticks and causes the rotor to overheat. In fact, I just finished replacing it today. and as I said before, the engine doesn't always idle correctly. I intend to have the computer looked at.

My recommendation is that this is a great truck that wouldn't let a potential owner down.

8th Mar 2007, 16:02

I have a 1993 b2200 with only 87,000 k the valves make noises when I started in the morning; I saw white grease under the oil cap. I guess the additive that I used before clogged my lifters. How can I clean the inside of my engine without clogging my oil pump? Do you know and additive can help me with this problem? Thank You. icaliente@yahoo.com

1988 Mazda B2200 2.2L

Summary:

Rugged little truck

Faults:

Engine used to smoke a lot during warm-up.

General Comments:

If your Mazda Truck smokes a lot during warm-up, you might want to read my other article entitled "I like it so far and think it will be a great little truck".

I'm happy to report that it is a great little truck. The only problem I've had is getting it to pass emissions since I rebuilt the engine. The carbon monoxide output is over 6 percent, which is 3 times the limit. Hydrocarbons are also high, but just barely under the limit. The first time I tested it, though, the HCs were over by 10.

However, at that time I didn't replace the camshaft at the same time that I rebuilt the engine and I haven't had the emissions retest since I finally replaced it. Perhaps now it will pass the emissions test. I did rebuild the carburetor and it had no signs of being excessively worn or dirty or gummed up. In fact, the carburetor's interior was virtually spotless except for the floor of the float bowl, which is typical.

The new camshaft made a world of difference in the running quality of the engine. When my neighbor recently went to Home Depot with me and I started the truck as we were leaving the store, he asked me if it was running at all, which it was. If you stand 20 feet away, you can barely hear it running.

I'm getting about 20 mpg with normal daily driving which for me involves about ½ in-town and ½ highway driving. A recent trip across PA (Route 30) produced 26 mpg. It has plenty of power and I drove up the Tuscarora Mountains in PA with 800 lbs. of equipment in the bed, and that trip was driven with the old camshaft still in the engine. I'd like to see how it would do with the new cam.

I'm curious as to the mileage that other owners of the carbureted 2.2L engine are getting. Also, I'd like to know if others had similar emissions failures and what was the cause. Please email me at webmaster@cowpensvets.org.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 25th June, 2002

30th Aug 2003, 09:21

I am also getting around 20 MPG. I just bought the truck this year and the guy who sold it to me told me where to go to get the emissions done. I don't see how it could have passed emissions considering the Cat was hollowed out, and some of the vacuum lines were blocked or left hangin. The timing was also off in the dust. Naturally I found all this out during an inspection I did after I bought the flippin thing.

After replacing all the vacuum lines and doing the exhaust from the cat back, the truck runs great, except for a rough idle when its cold.

Excellent idle, fair pickup, and quiet that you think it stalled when your siting at a light.

17th Sep 2004, 12:37

I have a 1987 B2000 with a 2.0 engine. I cannot find an emissions routing lable for the truck, nor do any of the shop manuals have the routing for this year. My local dealer have been likewise unhelpful. "Bring it in at $125 per hour and we will have a look at it." My word, I only want to look at the emission hose routing of your shop manuals. Can any one please help me? My truck started running rough lately. I had "too much help" when I recently replaced some of the emission hoses. It was a "best guess" to put the hoses back in the correct port.

Thanx,

Doug.

17th Aug 2009, 21:36

I have a 1988 Mazda B2200. It's a nice truck, but when I accelerate it feels like it wants to stall out and it loses power. Once it completely turned off when I tried to go up a hill, and it wouldn't start again for a while. The previous owner said it sat for 2 years. I'm not sure if it's a fuel problem or not?