2006 Mazda 6 AC and autolock issues..

[Skel]

First and foremost, I am not the most car savvy person on the planet. I know the basics about how it all works together, but the last time I got really greasy was on old 70s Mopars. I'm also broke as hell due to medical bills so just taking my car in isn't the best thing for me right now.. having put out my disclaimers I ask for help..

Issue 1. The AC. It works great on the drivers side. On the passenger side it's blowing warm. Not overly hot, but definitely not as cold as the drivers side. I figured if it was simple like the freon being low, then it would be warm on both sides. You can definitely feel the difference when you put your hand in front of the vents.

Issue 2. The passenger lock doesn't always work with the Key-Fob. The rest of the doors work great, but when you press the button on either the Key-Fob or the "lock all button" on the door it works about 50-60% of the time. Makes for great nights as I have to reach over to unlock the door when it fails. While not that bad of an issue, it's something that I'd really like to have solved.

I love this car, it's paid for, only has 70K miles on it (I work from home full time) and has done me very proper throughout it's life with me. The only other thing wrong with it is the ceiling is starting to sag here and there, but that's very minor (though probably costly to have redone). These other two issues on the other hand are effecting the woman so I really liked to get them solved quickly and cheaply as possible. Thank you for any and all help in advance.

 

[mindless1]

Issue 1: Probably a failed blend door actuator. Might be accessible if you take the glove box out - just a guess.

Issue 2: Could be one of several things. See if you can hear the solenoid moving when you try it. If it's trying to move it is getting power so we can rule that out. If dead silent then you could have a break (fray) in the wiring in that door hinge area.

Could also be silent if the solenoid is seized but would tend to stay seized, while a frayed wire could intermittently make contact.

Could be that the mechanical mechanism is jamming up, has a broken piece or needs lubed, or there is a tension spring on it, or in the latch itself that is broken. You may need to pull the interior door panel off and have a look around.

Wait. Did you mean that the passenger lock does work if you hit the interior button, just doesn't work with the keyfob? If so then I would suspect the remote receiver module has damage or a bad contact or wire coming out of it, though these issues are less common than what I wrote above when the interior switches also won't lock it.

 

[Ketchup]

Issue #1 is the same on our 07 Mazda 6. It actually gets worse when levels are low. It has a refrigerant leak, which 3 different places can't seem to find, so I just fill it every so often, as it isn't driven much anymore anyway.

 

[Yuriman]

#1 also sounds to me like a blend door actuator, or whatever equivalent Mazda uses. There's almost certainly only one evap core and if you're getting hot air out of one vent, somewhere along the ducting from evap core to that vent, it's mixing with warmer air.

#2 I'd bet is that the door lock actuator is on its way out. You might also have some corrosion or something causing a weak (electrical) connection, which may or may not be at the actuator itself. RockAuto doesn't appear to carry this part for your car, but in most cars I can find an actuator for <$25.

#3 is not a difficult fix, I had my headliner out a few weeks ago for a project, and it only took maybe 10 minutes to remove it. What you do is peel the old fabric off, pick out a new piece of fabric, spray the headliner shell with headliner glue, lay the fabric over it and let dry, and then trim to fit. You can do some really cool things with them:

Borrowed from Google Images

 

[Skel]

First and foremost, I really thank all the responses I've gotten on this. It's a big deal to me as I love this car and want it to live as long as possible in my life. I really appreciate the guidance on what to do as I'm pretty clueless on these kind of issues.

Issue 1: Probably a failed blend door actuator. Might be accessible if you take the glove box out - just a guess.

Issue 2: Could be one of several things. See if you can hear the solenoid moving when you try it. If it's trying to move it is getting power so we can rule that out. If dead silent then you could have a break (fray) in the wiring in that door hinge area.

Could also be silent if the solenoid is seized but would tend to stay seized, while a frayed wire could intermittently make contact.

Could be that the mechanical mechanism is jamming up, has a broken piece or needs lubed, or there is a tension spring on it, or in the latch itself that is broken. You may need to pull the interior door panel off and have a look around.

Wait. Did you mean that the passenger lock does work if you hit the interior button, just doesn't work with the keyfob? If so then I would suspect the remote receiver module has damage or a bad contact or wire coming out of it, though these issues are less common than what I wrote above when the interior switches also won't lock it.

So I played with the door lock this morning. Some times the lock (from what I could see sitting in the driver's seat) would work as normal, and the lock would move back and forth depending on if i locked or unlocked it. Other times it would start to move but stop half way, which would then just be whatever it was before when someone would attempt to open the door. So to be clear, if it was locked and went half way it would move back to locked if the door was attempted to be opened, likewise if it started unlocked and got half way it would move back to unlocked when the door would be attempted to opened. If no one tried to open the door it would just sit there in the half way place. I could then attempt to lock it and it might move, or do nothing. I couldn't really see a pattern or anything. It would also do the same maybe it'll work, maybe it won't if I tried to use the "master" door lock button on the driver's door.

Issue #1 is the same on our 07 Mazda 6. It actually gets worse when levels are low. It has a refrigerant leak, which 3 different places can't seem to find, so I just fill it every so often, as it isn't driven much anymore anyway.

I got one of those cans with the gauge on the can and the Freon was low. I filled it per the can's instructions and it *seems* like it's working as expected. I say seems as I haven't taken it for a drive in the Phoenix heat with the woman that's.. let's say hyper sensitive to it, so I'll know for sure later. I wouldn't have thought low Freon would cause it as it's cool on the driver's side. It's currently blowing cold in the garage, but I'm not sure how good a test that will be.

Again, thanks for the help with this.

 

[Ketchup]

I know exactly what you mean about the love. We just passed 200k on ours. So much fun to drive!

 

[KentState]

My 2003 Mazda 6 had one of the hoses go bad and it was leaking refrigerant. Had those same problems and they went away once the line was replaced and system recharged.

The headliner in mine also started to fall down. I just got out my staple gun and tacked it back up. Don't really care about aesthetics at this point since the car is near 15 years old.

Like you, mine is right around 83k which is nothing for a modern car and plan to drive it until it blows up. Even tires only run about $400 for a decent set and pretty much the only ongoing maintenance besides brakes and oil change. I would also recommend draining the transmission fluid and refilling a little more often as the 5 speeds are known to have issues.

 

[mindless1]

RE: Locking, one thing I'd try first, just because it's easy, is spray a ton of WD-40 in the latch mechanism (from outside) and immediately try locking and unlocking to work it into that mechanism. If that helps, follow up with some spray grease.

Otherwise it seems a mechanical bind . You could look into the latch opening with a flashlight and try to see if there appears to be any broken springs, compared to the driver's door latch. Otherwise I'd pull the interior door panel off and look at what's there. Look at the bottom of the door cavity for a piece of spring or clip broken off and again compare operation against the other, working door lock mechanism.

 

[Yuriman]

In some cases, the lock actuators just get weak over time, and need to be replaced.

 

[mindless1]

^ True, and some are serviceable while others aren't. If it can be opened non-destructively then you can check the gears and lube it.

 

[Skel]

Stupid question time.. if it is the lock actuator, is that something that's tied to the keyfob? I ask because I was looking to see how much they'd run me and I'm seeing some come with keyfobs and some do not.

^ True, and some are serviceable while others aren't. If it can be opened non-destructively then you can check the gears and lube it.

From what I've seen, I need to take apart the door to get to it on the Mazda.

 

[mindless1]

^ Yeah at a minimum it is usually necessary to take the interior trim panel off, then if you're lucky it is bolted on instead of riveted, otherwise you'll need a drill and replacement fasteners, meaning I'd go with bolts and locknuts instead of new rivets.

You might find something on youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYWrknzxsKg

No the lock actuator isn't tied to the keyfob, not separately from the rest when talking about passenger's door, which is why I previously asked something to the effect of if it works with the interior lock switches, or only didn't work with the keyfob.