new festiva?

[geezerstiva]

ok i may have the chance to buy a new stiva. its a 91 GL with a 5 spd. thats about all i know. except the guy who has it thinks the timing belt broke. now i know that some engines tear up when the belt breaks. does the festiva engine do that? if it does, doesn't it drop a couple of valves through pistons? i'll probably still buy it anyway, just want to make sure what i'm getting into.

[festivaWES]

Buy it anyway and save another festiva from the wrecking yards

[muscle_Car1]

festiva's & i think mazda motors in general are non-interferance engines. SO the valves should be fine.

from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazda_B_engine

The Mazda B engine family is a four cylinder SOHC and DOHC engine family ranging from 1.1 L to 1.8 L. It was designed for front-wheel drive economy car applications but was later modified for the turbocharged full-time 4WD 323 GTX and rear-wheel drive Miata as well as numerous other models. Unusually for a (relatively) modern engine, the B-series is "non-interference", meaning that breakage of its timing belt does not result in damage to valves or pistons, because the opening of the valves, the depth of the combustion chamber and (in some variants) the shaping of the piston crown allow sufficient clearance for the open valves in any possible piston position.

[neanderpaul]

^ yes this is a non interference engine. I dropped a timing key which made me jump time and I replaced the key, reset the timing and I was back in business. I love a non-interference engine. I would check the oil for water and the water for oil. What makes him think it needs a timing belt?

[geezerstiva]

no idea, it just quit on him and he said he thinks its the timing belt. idk. is the water/oil thing common? i know my dads car is like that (90 L) but mine doesn't even have rust in the water.

[stefan]

take off the dist cap and crank. If the rotor dosent rotate = broken timing belt. If it is broken no worries. Mine broke and i cranked on it several times trying to diagnose it before i realized it was the belt. I put on a new belt i was good to go. Its probably a good idea to replace the water pump while your in there too.

go for it!

[dahodges]

If you decide not to buy it let me know. I would love to have a 5 spd.

David

[geezerstiva]

oh i'll definitely buy it--if the guy calls me back. i'm not sure if he wants to sell it or not. it didn't have a for sale sign on it, but he's got my number so if he wants to he'll call me i guess. hope he does!!

[miami man]

pull the top of the timing belt cover towards the fender a little bit and have someone turn the moter over and see if the cam pulley spins.

[rotarykidd]

oh i'll definitely buy it--if the guy calls me back. i'm not sure if he wants to sell it or not. it didn't have a for sale sign on it, but he's got my number so if he wants to he'll call me i guess. hope he does!!

lol. i did the same thing with our 91 gl. it was at a shop and we walked in and offered the guy $650 for it.

[neanderpaul]

^ I do that all the time. Except I offer $50. Then get it for $100 or $150.

[geezerstiva]

well, its been a week now, i'm guessing he wont sell. any one else got a FI festy they want to sell? :lol:

[freshtiva]

Ask about it again. It took me three attempts to buy Redford with a couple of months in between. Then they finally sold it to me for the first price I offered of $200. Doh, I should have offered less. It sticks in their mind, " that guy came by and asked about the festiva again" Give them your phone # again. Tell them you were afraid they might have lost it. This time of year people get strapped for cash. Ask on the right day and it could be yours. Do some reverse selling. (aggressive buying. ) :twisted:

[neanderpaul]

That's what I do. Ask, ask again, and ask a 3rd time. Persistence pays!

[dahodges]

Or make a low ball offer while flashing him the cash.

David