[Ramos]

Hi peeps,

I am a happy owner of a Mazda CX 3 since June now and so far I have no complain about it.

But recently I have noticed something weird.

The thing is when I push the accelerator paddle I feel like the car is heavy and it takes 2 or 3 second to respond

i have noticed while I am driving the iStop green light is always on, when before it was on only when I stop in the traffic or red light.

I tried to turn off/on the iStop thinking it will fix it but nothing still the same.


Does anybody faces the same thing ? is it a problem or I am just confusing?

Many thanks
Cheers

 

[santa]

Welcome to the forum.
Where are You located?
They are slight differences depending on where in the world You are.
This is taken from the manual:
The i-stop indicator light (green) turns on under the following conditions:
 When engine idling is stopped. 
(Except European model) Engine idling stop conditions are met while the vehicle is being driven.

So in Europe, the light comes on, when iStop is activated, at a stop light for example.
Outside of Europe, the light comes on when iStop conditions are met, but the car is still being driven.

 

[PeterTwoMeter]

When does your car feel heavy? Is it when youre for exampel driving in highway and suddenly press accelerator pedal down? Or is the car heavy when you stand still and start accelerating from idle?

 

[Ramos]

When does your car feel heavy? Is it when youre for exampel driving in highway and suddenly press accelerator pedal down? Or is the car heavy when you stand still and start accelerating from idle?

The heavy feeling usually comes when im driving like you said in highway and wanna push it more by pressing the accelerator
it taks 2 or 3 seconds to respond

Welcome to the forum.
Where are You located?
They are slight differences depending on where in the world You are.
This is taken from the manual:
The i-stop indicator light (green) turns on under the following conditions:
 When engine idling is stopped. 
(Except European model) Engine idling stop conditions are met while the vehicle is being driven.

So in Europe, the light comes on, when iStop is activated, at a stop light for example.
Outside of Europe, the light comes on when iStop conditions are met, but the car is still being driven.

Thank you mate for the welcoming message I really appreciate
In fact im living in Thailand and bought it brand new from here last June

 

[santa]

So You should see the light when driving and the conditions for iStop are met.
Why You only saw it when iStop was actually in function, I have no idea but it seems to be working as it should.

There shouldn't be delay when You press the accelerator.
Is it an auto or manual?
If You have an auto, is there any difference if You activate the "Sport" button?

Either way, I would take to the garage and have them look at it.

 

[Ramos]

So You should see the light when driving and the conditions for iStop are met.
Why You only saw it when iStop was actually in function, I have no idea but it seems to be working as it should.

There shouldn't be delay when You press the accelerator.
Is it an auto or manual?
If You have an auto, is there any difference if You activate the "Sport" button?

Either way, I would take to the garage and have them look at it.

yes the iStop is working normally but as far as I remember I think the light wasn't on while driving but im not sure cant remember exactly

I have an auto haven't tested it with the sport activated lately I am not able for now to say if this delay also occurs on sport mode. I will activate it and see.

So if it's not due to the iStop (I just guessed it was that) what do you think might be the reason ?

Maybe Gas ? I am always using E20 mostly from the same Gas station

 

[santa]

yes the iStop is working normally but as far as I remember I think the light wasn't on while driving but im not sure cant remember exactly

I have an auto haven't tested it with the sport activated lately I am not able for now to say if this delay also occurs on sport mode. I will activate it and see.

So if it's not due to the iStop (I just guessed it was that) what do you think might be the reason ?

Maybe Gas ? I am always using E20 mostly from the same Gas station

If iStop is working as it should, then I don't think that's the problem (but only the garage can tell You for sure).
I'm not sure about gas and how the quality will affect the engine response.
But I wouldn't think it should hesitate because of it.
You could try filling it up at another gas station and see if it behaves differently.

 

[PeterTwoMeter]

I dont think there is nothing wrong. If you already drive in high speed and want to accelerate more, it will take maybe 2 seconds for the hole system to process all data. Recognize how much you press the throttle, shift down etc... our engine in cx3 is not for "racing" so to say, unfortunately.

 

[Ramos]

I dont think there is nothing wrong. If you already drive in high speed and want to accelerate more, it will take maybe 2 seconds for the hole system to process all data. Recognize how much you press the throttle, shift down etc... our engine in cx3 is not for "racing" so to say, unfortunately.

it's not about racing cause even tho Im driving at low speed and try to accelerate a bit it has this heavy feeling
for exmp im driving in the city at 40km/h and want to accelerate it takes 2 3 scd after i pushed the pedal to start increasing the speed.

so im just wondering wether this is normal or not

 

[santa]

it's not about racing cause even tho Im driving at low speed and try to accelerate a bit it has this heavy feeling
for exmp im driving in the city at 40km/h and want to accelerate it takes 2 3 scd after i pushed the pedal to start increasing the speed.

so im just wondering wether this is normal or not

Mine doesn't feel like that at all.
There is a slight delay if it needs to change down a gear, but it's not 2-3 seconds (maybe half a second).
And if it doesn't need to shift down it will accelerate without delay and this is even in town with the engine running 1200-1300 rpm (around 50 km/h).

But I'll try it out later today and keep a closer eye on how it perfoms, just to be sure

 

[Sarah]

I'm in the US (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) and have a 4WD Touring with an automatic transmission. I have definitely noticed the lack of response when pressing the accelerator. If I'm driving along at 60 mph and want to pass, my CX-3 takes a long time to decide if he's up for it. I sometimes use the slap shift so I can say "okay, I'm tired of waiting for you today, I'll downshift myself to 5th gear and we'll pick things up" and it STILL is sluggish. Very strange. But I assume that's what happens with automatics (this is my first one).

Things definitely improve in Sport Mode, but mostly as you're accelerating up to speed. I don't see a huge difference if you're already in 6th gear and trying to go from 65 mph to 70 mph quickly, at least not that I've felt. Maybe I'm just being too gradual/gentle on the accelerator, as I'm used to achieving swift but gentle transitions from my manual transmission cars.

Maybe an automatic needs a firm lead-foot now and then to wake it up?

Bonus info: I do not have i-Stop on my car.

 

[greaseman85]

The CX-3 lacks the necessary power for that kind of highway driving, I don't believe it has anything to do with the automatic transmission. I actually find it to be much more responsive than any other car I've driven previously in city driving. Pressing the accelerator is almost instantaneous, while in other cars I've driven (Kia Optima, VW Passat, Nissan Altima) there seems to be a half-second or so delay which I find not only annoying but dangerous, especially when I'm trying to start going from a stop.

 

[Sarah]

Howdy!
It never occurred to me that the CX-3 lacked power for highway driving. It's got a more powerful engine than my super-responsive 2003 Jetta, from what I understand. I want to learn what you mean, though.

Stats:

2017 Mazda CX-3 Touring (automatic 6-speed)
Horsepower: 146 hp @ 6,000 rpm
Torque: 146 lb-ft @ 2,800 rpm

2003 VW Jetta GL (manual 5-speed)
Horsepower: 115 hp @ 5,200 rpm
Torque: 122 lb-ft @ 2,600 rpm

 

[greaseman85]

I'm certainly no expert in how exactly the amount of horsepower/torque affects driving, but my understanding is that simply having more power doesn't necessarily mean faster or more responsive. And the rate of acceleration is not linear, at least from what I've noticed with the CX-3. The US spec supposedly goes 0-60mph in about 8.5 seconds. I've not done a 0-60 test myself but I did a 0-30 and it did that in about 3 seconds, that means it will do 30-60 in 5.5 seconds, and I'm sure it will struggle even more over 60mph. Am I making any sense? LOL

EDIT:
Just found some info from Edmunds on this:
https://www.edmunds.com/mazda/cx-3/2016/road-test-specs/

As you can see they have 0-30 at 3 seconds, 0-45 at 5.3, 0-60 at 8.5, 0-75 at 12.6! So great city car, but really struggles at highway speeds.

 

[santa]

I haven't noticed any lack of power when driving on the highway.
Mine quickly accelerates up to 130 km/h. Sure acceleration at 130 km/h isn't mind blowing but I easily follow traffic on the highway.
Oh and mine is "only" the 120bhp version with auto transmission and it reacts virtually instantly when I press the accelerator (less hesitation than I remembered) ;-)

I haven't tried it at top speed yet, so I must go down to Germany when it's summer and try it out.

 

[greaseman85]

Perhaps the two engines are tuned differently? I suppose in Europe you don't deal with as much stop-and-go city driving we do here in the US. Someone with more knowledge on this needs to get over here and tell us what's going on

 

[santa]

Perhaps the two engines are tuned differently? I suppose in Europe you don't deal with as much stop-and-go city driving we do here in the US. Someone with more knowledge on this needs to get over here and tell us what's going on

There is slight difference in max torque, but that's mainly due to a slightly higher compression rate (here it's 14:1) and higher octane fuel.
But if there's a different feel to the engines I couldn't tell You.
I'm coming to the states next week, but I'm pretty sure my rental car isn't a Mazda (unfortunately) ;-)
I was in the states two years ago and had Kia (something) as a rental car.......that's was a boring car, with a dull engine and a terrible auto transmission.

 

[Ramos]

Hi guys,

so I have made a couple of testes those last days and I pretty sure that this lack of power is related somehow to the iStop.

so first try to drive as usual in the city and traffic and getting from 40km/h to 60 or 70 with the istop light on ---> heavy and responding time is around 3 scd and has this effect like you Suddenly accelerate and you feel your whole body more forward

Same feeling and effect on the highway with higher speed

So I turned off the iStop, and here the magic happens, It has become again exactly as before when I bought it (jun 2015), means high responds time very smooth accelerating with this great driving sensations

I am lost now dont really know what to do

 

[jtonline]

... So I turned off the iStop, and here the magic happens, It has become again exactly as before when I bought it (jun 2015), means high responds time very smooth accelerating with this great driving sensations

I am lost now dont really know what to do

You can demonstrate the problem, so take it back to your Mazda dealer and get them to sort it out under warranty.

 

[matt]

?..I suppose in Europe you don't deal with as much stop-and-go city driving we do here in the US.

Hahaha... You're joking right??