Comments: 1-15, 16-19
Nothing but a loose steering belt that was tightened in less than 10 minutes.
I love my truck. Despite negative things I hear about other Mazdas, I think I got a good one.
There is one thing I don't like about it though, the front seats have given me back problems. But I do love it.
I am gonna try to drive it to 400,000 miles like other Mazda truck fans said they have done. But I don't think that I will buy another one, because in 1994, Ford started making them for Mazda, and ever since then it has basically been a Ford Ranger and not a genuine Mazda truck.
I owned a Mazda before Ford took it over. I can assure you the quality of ALL Mazda vehicles has gone WAYYYY UP since Ford took over. My pre-Ford Mazda was the biggest piece of junk I ever owned. I've also owned three Ford Rangers and never had a second's trouble with any of them. I'd buy a Mazda truck now only BECAUSE it is a Ford!! The same is true of Jaguar. It went from one of the world's most unreliable cars before Ford took over Jaguar to a world-class luxury car after Ford started building them.
My God son owned a '91 Mazda truck at the same time I owned a '93 Ford Ranger. To compare the early Mazda to the Ranger is like comparing a Hyundai to a Lincoln. The Mazda trucks of the 80's and early 90's were VERY rough-riding, had poor seats and very cheaply made interiors. By comparison, the Rangers were solid, smooth riding by small truck standards, and had very plush and comfortable interiors. The quality of Mazda trucks (as well as the entire Mazda line) improved tremendously when Ford bought out Mazda. Since the new Mazda trucks are the same as the Ford Ranger (the best selling small truck in the world for 20 years) they are now very good trucks. Wanting a "genuine" Mazda is sort of like wanting a "genuine" Yugo.
My wife is considering a new SUV and we will be looking at the sporty new Mazda SUV ONLY because it is now made by Ford.
We owned an RX-7 (made BEFORE Ford took over Mazda) and it was the absolute worst vehicle we ever owned. We haven't even considered another Japanese made car since. Although the little Mazda trucks that were made before Ford took over Mazda were the best vehicles in the Mazda line, they were nowhere near as good in reliability or quality of construction as the Ford Ranger, which has been the unchallenged champion of small trucks for 22 years now.
Ironic that Mazda used to make the Ford Courier pickup before the Ranger came along, and now the tables are turned. The engines lasted longer than the bodies up north though!
I worked for Ford in '75 and '76, and the Mazda-built Courier was a great little truck. It was basically the same truck that was sold as a Mazda up until Ford took over Mazda.
And yes, of course both Jaguar and Mazda benefited greatly from Ford's much higher level of quality control, but the little Mazda trucks were some of the best vehicles Mazda ever turned out, and almost made up for the disastrous rotary engined R-3, R-4 and RX-7. I am wondering if the new RX-8 will be a hit, though I still feel the rotary engine is too fuel-hungry even if the quality of the rest of the car has improved.
I'm quite surprised you never had head gasket issues with that infamous 2.6 4 banger. Isuzu and Mitsubishi had it. Apparently it was because of warped and malformed heads during forging and assembly. I also hear that on HOW the mold is poured affects integrity. You must be one of the lucky ones.
I owned a Dodge Daytona that had the Mitsubishi 2.6 and it went 100,000 miles without a hitch. Our best friends, however, had a Mitsubishi with the 2.6 and it DID have the head gasket problem. They have a really bad reputation for that, but if you are very careful NEVER to let the engine overheat even slightly there is less likelihood of having a problem.
I bought a one year old Mazda B2600i with 35,000 miles in 1992. I have been driving and using it like a hard working truck for the last 14 years. That includes frequently pulling heavy trailer loads with full bed loads of building supplies all with an automatic transmission. I just recently passed 300,000 miles and on my last long trip into WV (hills) I averaged 27 mpg. It has always been the most comfortable vehicle I have ever had. I drove 14 hours from Richmond, VA to St. Louis, MO in one day a couple of years ago and never felt a minutes discomfort. Over the last 50,000 miles or so it has been using oil about 1 qt every 4-500 miles or so. Other than that it runs great. I was about ready to see about getting a re-manufactured engine so I could keep running it. I am not impressed with the way the manufacturers have constantly increased the size of the so-called compact trucks and have not heard anything very good about the Ford Ranger replacement for this vehicle. Other than expected maintenance items, I had to have transmission rebuilt at 100,000 and replaced computer several years ago - very unusual for these trucks per dealer.
I started searching eBay for another B2600i truck in the 1989-1993 with less mileage and better shape. I was lucky recently to find a 92 model with auto and 4X4 in a nearby city that was in practically new condition with only 97,000 miles. Now I can keep driving the truck that I believe is the right size for my needs and will probably keep it for as long as I kept the 91. I haven't decided what to do with the 91 yet - I may keep it on the farm and keep pulling loads with it.
I don't like the way "small" trucks keep getting bigger (and more gas-hungry) every year either. When I was ready for another small truck the only real choice was the Ranger. I've owned 4 and they are the best small truck on the road. You don't get to be the world's best selling truck for 20 years if you aren't the best.
I am not brand loyal to any manufacturer and I have to disagree that Mazda got better when Ford took it over. The little engine in the B2200's got double the gas mileage than they do nowadays and still did everything they needed to do. Kia uses the B2200 engine in their line of vehicles now because it is a great little engine. I suspect with the amount of Ford each poster has admitted to owning that they base it on brand loyalty which is just an opinion of theirs, that isn't based on anything else. You cannot tell me that anything in a Ford made mazda gets 40MPG and goes for 200,000 miles.
I own a 1991 mazda b2600i. So far so good for this lil truck. I now have 165k on it and it runs well. Needs idle work though. These trucks will run forever, or so I hear. Too bad they don't have much under the hood... just a little slow. Great truck overall though. I am a proud owner... for now.
I have a b2600 four wheel drive. I love it. however, I have only owned truck for two years. it has a gremlin. keeps cutting off. may work for two hour sometime two months and then all of a sudden it won't idle or crank. it smells of gas when it does this. truck is rusted underneath and have already had every sensible thing done to fix problem. (fuel filter, fuel pump, valve to gas tank, complete tune up, distributor cap and rotor button (?),). also, when it does this it may crank right back and go five feet or fifty miles. then sometimes it will not crank for days. most of the time it will crank again after about one hour. octane booster seems to help it crank and fuel injector cleaners seem to help, but problem still persists. please HELP!!!
I wish I could offer some help on your problem. Sounds like a definite fuel system problem, but I can't imagine what in view of all the stuff you've checked. Could you possibly have a leak that is allowing air to be sucked in intermittently by the fuel pump? I've heard of that causing similar problems.
I had the smelling gas and then the engine not cranking over problem. The issue was two fold:
1) My fuel injectors went bad. By them off the web, I found them for about $60 each (aftermarket) vs. about $400 each from the dealer. BE WARNED: I had to have the outer and the inner O-Rings replaced on my injectors.
2) My computer fried. Dealer cost: Over $1,000. Pulled mine sent it to a shop (In Florida, if I recall correctly) they rebuilt it for $135. Wala- back in business.
Good luck,
THanks for the replies to my comments. what a great website. the computer board could be an issue to have checked? I have not checked that yet. the leaks should have already been checked out on any hoses. After trying my sixth different mechanic and after asking around as to who is trustworthy, I have found someone to leave truck with and test drive and diagnose and fix problem. it is all I know to do or sell it as is (However it has stumped this mechanic for now as well). I have also had muffler work to make sure that wasn't it. ANY other opinions are greatly appreciated.