I’m getting a 2008 Mazda3, going to go buy it tomorrow, the lady selling the 2011 one literally just removed it out of nowhere a few days ago but maybe it’s better if I got a slightly older car. Here’s the link to the car if anyone wants to check it out 2008 Mazda MAZDA3 For Sale in Virginia Beach, VA - Best Choice Auto Sales. My brother test drove it today, he checked everything out like the mechanic he is to his best ability and said everything seems good. The check engine light is on because of the o2 sensor but other than that it seems good for 140k miles.
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Hope you have good luck with it.
I would have asked for the Check Engine Light problem fixed before I bought it . Lets hope your brother is correct .
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You could tell me if I’m just completely naive or not, but I had asked him like could he show me that that 100% is only the o2 sensor and he sent me a picture of the scanner with the code and it only showing the o2 sensor so I’m assuming it’s true? He said he told my brother he’d give me a $450 “discount” because of it. I’m going tomorrow so is there anything I should ask one more time before purchasing?
Sounds like you’re getting a good car, O2 sensor isn’t a huge deal to replace and I know folks with around the same vintage Mazda3 with over 200K miles with normal services.
It’s possible a bad catalytic converter could be the problem. How does he know that’s not the problem?
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As I said earlier and I hope someone can enlighten me. He sent me a picture of the scanner with the code and it only showing the o2 sensor so I’m assuming it’s true. I’m sure people can clear stuff from the computer though right but if so is there a way to see even cleared codes?
If you live in a state which requires emissions testing, I would not take a seller’s word for this. In fact, unless I was buying a very cheap car, priced as a project, I would never buy a vehicle with the check engine light illuminated and/or any trouble codes stored. Sellers are known to lie, and there is no way for me to drive the car legally if for some reason I cannot fix the problem, or the repair(s) cost too much money.
The stored DTC’s may point to an O2 sensor problem, which is a cheap repair, however the actual cause could be something very expensive to repair, such as a defective PCM, wiring harness problem, inefficient cat, etc.
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There are dozens of oxygen sensor fault codes, you need to be specific with this for a reasonable guess.
You don’t need to see cleared codes. There is no way to delete trouble codes individually. Of course, a dishonest seller can clear all codes using a scan tool, or by simply disconnecting and reconnecting the battery. A savvy buyer would bring an inexpensive scan tool when looking at a vehicle to purchase, and would connect the scan tool to see how many monitors, if any, show “not ready”. Remember that in order to pass a state-required emissions test, vehicles from model years 1996 through 2000 are permitted to have up to two monitors show “not ready”, and vehicles from model years 2001 and newer are only permitted to have one monitor show “not ready”. And of course, there can be no stored DTCs, and the CEL cannot be illuminated.
When the seller clears all codes with a scan tool, or by disconnecting the battery, every monitor sets to “not ready”, and it will take several driving cycles to get all of them to set as “ready”, and that assumes no tampered components or malfunctions. If your scan tool shows more than one monitor as “not ready” on a 2001 or newer model, be prepared to either test-drive the vehicle long enough to get the monitor to run, or walk away from the deal.
BTW, a low-cost scan tool such as the one I have–Konnwei KW850–can be purchased online for well under $100. It is available on Ebay for about $80. The first time you use it, it will pay for itself.
Can’t I go to like auto zone or advanced? There’s one down the street from them. I plan to test drive the car myself when I go and check everything out as well.
Also it’s a P0043 code
No, their proprietary scan tool is designed to do one thing, and one thing only: identify any stored DTCs. It does not tell you if the seller already cleared the codes or disconnected the battery (and therefore, too many monitors are set to “not ready” so the vehicle will not pass an emissions test).
The Konnwei scan tool that I mentioned above can do a lot more than just tell you if there are any DTCs stored or if the monitors are set to “ready” or “not ready”. It can also display live data from the various sensors, which is useful for troubleshooting.
Does the fact it passed inspection the first of this month help any? I know you mentioned stuff about passing emissions. Sorry if I seem so dumb, I’m not that knowledgeable when it comes to this kind of stuff.
What type of inspection? With the check engine light on it would seem that this vehicle has not yet passed though “recon”, it has not been inspected for resale.
It’s showing here emissions and then safety inspection
Also, I had planned to ask them to check it when I get there in front of me. I’m sure what they use shows everything that would need to be shown right? It looked like some big tablet that plugged in.
Edit: it’s called a Modist Ultra Tablet?
You can’t find a vehicle used for sale that does not appear to have problems ? I kind of wonder just how good of a mechanic your brother is. I might by something that needs work but I would never tell anyone to buy something that shows problems or even has the CEL on .
Also why would the used lot give a 450.00 discount for something that they might fix for a lot less than that.
Well he’s been doing it for years. He works for Toyota. It’s very subjective. Some people are telling me it’s okay, some are telling me to not even waste my time. So…
I’m going to ask him about it deeply and also see if we can arrange some agreement in writing or something incase that isn’t the fix for it.