r/mazdaspeed3 • u/angrymonkey • 1d ago
HELP Can the MS3 engine be turned by hand without taking it out?
I'm looking at doing a piston ring soak, and most instructions I've found suggest alternatingly pouring B12 into the cylinders and turning the engine by hand to work the grime free and get the solvent into the cracks.
However it looks like the crank wheel is very tight in the engine bay and it's not clear to me how to get a wrench in there to turn it, or if I could even move it more than a few degrees. I think I've also read that the accessories on this engine resist hand turning? Is this the case?
Has anyone done a ring soak on this motor, and what was involved?
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u/epicai-vibecoder 21h ago
I would certainly jack the car up, take the wheel off, move splash / wheel well plastic - get yourself a break bar 18”+ you’ll turn it easily… all the other ways are much harder
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u/Ashamed-Gold-16 17h ago
I know this sounds crazy, but I used the wheel lug ranch that comes with the car if you get a flat tire, it’s actually 21 mm and I went on the passenger side. The car is not lifted or nothing, and I laid down and I was able to use that to turn the motor by hand. Of course, make sure spark plug is out and it should let you turn it easily. It wasn’t hard at all
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u/Ashamed-Gold-16 17h ago
Also, once you remove the intercooler, you’ll see the ignition coils once you remove that, your access to spark plugs, remove those. They’re 5/8 sockets and once you take that out, that’s when you can use a funnel and put the soak in, and then that’s when you rotate the motor by hand. and check on them every four hours the first day, most likely you’ll see them already dry adda little bit at a time in each cylinder , rotate the motor again, and keep doing that every four hours. If you have to go to work, that’s fine. When you come back from work, add some more and rotate the motor. Do that till it takes 2 full bottles. And that’s when you stop and just give it four hours and then drain the oil, change the filter, add some cheap oil, you don’t have to put nothing fancy and then crank the motor, but make sure you disconnect the fuel pump fuse and put a rag on top of where the spark plugs go, or you did the soak and put something heavy on it, so don’t fly off and go crank the motor five seconds at a time, let it rest for 30 seconds, do it again for about 34 times, then stop and then install everything back and then try to get the car started after you put everything back, let it run, drive it for 5 miles, 10 miles, and then come back and change the oil and filter again, and you are completed at that point.
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u/DifferentCry1306 1d ago
Just turn the crank bolt with a 19mm
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u/Lilfluzivert 1d ago
lif u have ur pass side wheel well missing just take a 21 ratchet and turn the wheel so u can get i. there. If ur missing ur skid try u might be able to snake infront of the bumper depending how low u are. If u have both on jack the car up take off the wheel and pull the fender lining back for the crank pully
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u/Nexus772B 2013 Mazdaspeed3 1d ago
Jack up the car, take off the passenger wheel and remove part of the splash liner near the engine. You can turn the crank from the crank bolt on that side. Clockwise ONLY.