I bought my 04 RX8 from Potamkin Mazda last year in June. Really good experience.

The people were freindly and knowledgable but the best thing about everything was that THEY WERE DESPERATE TO SELL!

I went in there just to scope out prices and I had acidentally gotten into a conversation with the dealer to actually buy.

After realizing I hadn't even been to another dealer, even though I had a great price, I decided to leave. I told the guy it was a great offer, but I was gonna shop around first....

Then as I was leaving, I got into my car and I was talking to my GF about the car out of nowhere the Dealer comes outside to my car and taps on the window.

He told me that he talked to the owner, and the owner was wiling to drop $1k from the price and the dealership fee, only if I took it today....

I discussed it with my gf and family and I was like alright. Lets do it ( I knew I was gonna get an Rx8 anyways, so whatever)....

So in all I saved around $1500, which was sweet. :D

:cool:

DarCars Mazda in College Park (Maryland)
 

Hey Everyone,

I purchased my 2004 Winning Blue RX-8 6-speed w/ GT package and Navigation last week from DarCars Mazda of College Park http://mazdacp.darcars.com/

I must say that this dealership is the best dealership I have delt with so far. I have bought cars from a BMW and an Acura dealership before. The sales representative was nice, understanding, and actually knew a little bit about the car, but would tell me if he did not know something (most just lie and act like they know everything.). There was not too much haggling over price, they came out with an already good price, they did not have any problems applying the Gerber rebate (even without the ad) and were a pleasure to deal with.

There was a fuse blown on the radio the day after I got it, so I took i to the dealership and they put me in a 2005 Mazda6 for the day, and promptly had my car waiting on me when I got there later that afternoon.

After a few days of driving (believe it or not I had not given a full look around the car yet -- when I bought the car it was pitch black dark.) and I noticed some pretty bad knick marks on the rear bumper. I took the car to the dealership and pointed this out to the Sales Manager. The sales manager said it could have been backed up into the fence they keep the cars in and told me to bring it in the next Thursday and he would have the bodyshop fix the problem.

I brought the car to the dealership on Thursday and gave them the spill of what they needed to hear to also replace my battery with the new battery recommended in the TSB -- they did so without even asking a question. They also gave me a 2005 Mazda6 S 5-door Hatchback as a loaner car (which is not that bad of a car and the VVTI kinda feels like the i-vtec that was in my old RSX Type-S).

I would give this dealership an A+++ rating so far for both the sales team and the service team.

Gem Mazda, Tallahassee Fl.
 

Service is outstanding, fast, efficient and they are honest about things.
Takes time to explain things in detail. Always get follow-up calls

Tyrone Square Mazda
 

Got to give kudos to the service department at Tyrone Square Mazda in St. Pete, FL. Been there three times, first for a cracked temperature knob, next for a nail in a tire, and lastly for a number of TSB and warranty issues on my '04 8 with 12k miles. The first two times they did the work immediately as I waited. The third time they provided a rental for the week they had mine. Everything was handled very professionally, with no hassles or discussion. Marla, my service advisor, was great to work with!
By the way, the warranty work on my third visit included replacing my foggy headlamps, replacing my squealing front brakes, replacing my battery with the more powerful version and boosting the a/c with the new a/c amplifier unit. all this was done with no questions asked, and no need to show them the TSBs.
Highly recommended!

Rosenthal Mazda (Arlington)...I can not say enough good stuff about these folks, mainly the service department! Those guys rock. While I have been in there from the front break noise to just joining the "Flood Club" yesterday, they have provided 110% satisfaction in getting the problem. Super Great guys to work with!

Ed Morse Mazda - New Port Richey, FL......I live 3 hours from there and was more than willing to do business with them than any other dealer around here. Sales dept. is TOP NOTCH and will bend over backwards to sell you a car. They'll beat out any other dealer with price as well.

Personally I had a great experience buying my car from Capital Mazda in Cary, NC. Good salesman, friendly treatment from everyone, didn't try to push me hard on anything.

Positive - Pugi Mazda, Downers Grove, IL

Brought them the RX-8 to chase a couple of squeaks and rattles and do the air bag TSB now that the parts are in. They were able to take care of everything except one of the rattles - and get this: they've asked that the next time I'm in, I take the technician for a drive so they can find the last annoying rattle.

Gotta love it. Wish they could all be like this. They're getting a big box of Krispy Kremes next time I'm in.

Russell Mazda of Clearwater.
100% A++ rating all the way around.
Internet sales department gave me below invoice pricing.
Sales staff was no pressure, they let the Shinka sell itself!!
Service department has been awesome.
My Serius receiver had to be replaced, and they installed the spoiler on the Shinka.
I have received 2 personal letters from the owner of Russell Mazda making sure that I was happy with all aspects of the dealership.
I am tough on dealers when I buy a new car. I highly recommend these guys!!

Positive: Stevenson Mazda in Wilmington, NC. Their internet sales guy, Bruce, really took care of me. He knew the car, answered every question I threw at him (most I got from this board :) ) and knew his stuff. I drove 195 miles each way to get this car, that's how much I liked them over the local Charlotte dealers.

Negative: See https://www.rx8club.com/good-guy-bad-guy-74/negative-bad-mazda-dealerships-28916/#post833308

POSITIVE: Pacifico Mazda, Philadelphia. I've taken my car there a total of three times, once for MSP04 (they put a hold on the flashes at the time, no biggie). Once for state inspection - they gave me a discount that I didn't have a coupon for, and did MSP04 M-Flash without me even asking. Today, I took the car in for the headlight film, squeaky brakes, and center console clasp. They gave me a rental with no hassle, replaced the brake (I didn't have to mention the TSB), ordered a new console lid, and after finding out that the headlight film was on the outside instead of the inside, buffed and waxed my headlights to look like new (at no charge).

Very highly recommended service department (I didn't buy from them).

-arattle

Kudos to Brandywine Mazda (Brandywine/Concordville area, Pennsylvania) Not far from the DE/PA State line on 202....

I could go on and on, in 14 years I've had 4 Mazdas, three from Brandywine, 'nuff said.

North Penn Imports
 

North Penn Imports of Colmar PA (suburb of Phila) is, in my opinion, a great dealer for both sales and service. I've been dealing with them since 1991 and have purchased or leased an MX-5, Protoge, Mazda 3, RX-8, VW Beetle, VW GTI. Sales and service are both competent in the extreme.

Mazda of Oakland Service Department
 

I've got nothing but good things to say about Ken & especially Rick at Mazda of Oakland.

Rick always tells me what I have to ask him to get the PCM re-flash. Also, they didn't rip me off on repairs after my run-in with a curb.

Mazda of Oakland is good. They told me that if my AC condenser ever gets damaged by rocks they could alter data in their computer and claim it was *cracked* and get a new condenser under warranty. Now THAT is good service right there for ya.

Bluegrass Mazda Great service / no hassles

uh, i bet they dont want you posting this here....MNAO reads this stuff.

Here is my story about Darcars Mazda in Silver Spring MD. Copied it from another post. Good for parts and Collision Repair, bad for Mechanical Service...

Took it in.
When I checked in, the guy who took my info had no clue about RX8s. I think he was a Chrysler guy. I had him put down 'check on recall' on my service check-in sheet.
When they pulled my car in, I stood outside the side door and watched the tech. While draining the oil he read my sheet and called the service manager over to check on any recalls since I had written it down. Kind of surprised me as I thought he would know being a RX8 tech. Yes, they are specialized at Darcars. They even come in at 8:00AM, vs 7:00AM, unlike the others. One of the techs even kidded me about that as I dropped my car off at 6:45...hehe, 'you have to wait till 8:00 when the RX techs get in'. I mentioned about the recall for the heat build-up concerning the cat and gas tank and they went to check. Talking to the tech he mentioned some cars get it and others don't. I told him I thought I was in group 1. I told him about reading up on it and was expecting a letter soon about the recall in August.

After they checked, he didn't do anything except get in the car with the big computer reprogrammer and hook up. He didn't check the bushings, harness, gas tank etc.

I also noticed he didn't check my control arms.

I was left with the impression the shop wasn't on top of it as far as the RX8s are concerned.

Some things I did notice though. While sitting in the lounge and watching a couple of techs work on a Lexus, they replaced the master cylinder. One tech walked over with the new one filled and dripped brake fluid all over the side of the front quarter panel. The other tech wiped it up. Even though their hands were dripping in brake fluid they had no concern about touching anything inside the engine compartment or anywhere else for that matter. They did try to wipe it off but I would hate to see the paint in a few weeks. While bleeding the brakes, they didn't hook up a drain hose to the bleed valves. He just opened the valves and let it spray everywhere under the car and run in rivets off the inside of the rims and tires. Totally unprofessional as far as I am concerned. I never saw ANY tech, of the couple dozen or so, use a protection blanket.

When I got my repair statement they never mentioned about bringing it in for the next service. Funny thing is, it was posted in the waiting lounge to expect to get told about the next service and about 30 other things concerning my car. I wan't told anything except where to sign. Unfortunetly I was handled by a cashier who was interested in money vs my car.

On my service invoice the only thing it says, concerning the recall, is 'Performed Recall 33056' Anyone know what that entails? I suspect it is only a reflash as that is all they did. What level...I haven't a clue. The cashier made me feel like I would be asking too much if I pressed the issue.

I will say this though. The parts department was very professional and on the ball. He knew immediately who I was as soon as I started rattling off the dealer installed options they had promised me. He said...'oh you're the Shinka guy who has all those parts on order? I said yea and he surprised me by saying... well Mr. Graham we have all your parts. We got them in just last week.' Come to find out they were even using a few of my options as displays in the parts showroom. They even had my name on them. He then helped me drag all my boxes out to my car.

I next went to their body shop to see about getting the spoiler installed. The service guy there, told me it would take most of the rest of the day...about 5 hours, and I told him I would wait. He seemed surprised but I assured him I had nothing else to do. After taking my car to the back, he came up and told me he would put a person on it right away and it would take 2 hours at the most. 40 minutes later they delivered it to the front after washing my car. Outstanding service there. He never even checked to ensure it was suppose to be dealer installed. He took my word for it. I could have just bought it and lied to him to get them to install it for free.

All in all, I will DEFINITELY go to another dealer for mechanical service. I hear Frank at Anderson's (I believe this is the right dealer), in Virginia is great.

Overall, I like a service department that interacts and can tell you more about your car than you know. They should treat you like your vehicle means as much to them as their does. Make sure you are treating it right, just like they treat theirs. I am use to that type of service on my ZX-6. I expect nothing less. I hate to feel like just another customer, even though that is what I am. I want the tech to come to me and tell me about my vehicle, what shape it is in and what he would do etc..., not just get a page to come to the cashier to pay my bill.

The service department at Darcars was too generic for my RX8 tastes. All of their dealers, go to the same service department. Everything from Toyota, Lexus, Chrysler, Ford, Mazda, Kia, and a dozen others. Not specialized enough.


I will go elsewhere in the future.

Heritage Madza of Bel Air
 

So far, my experience with the service department at Heritage of Madza has been superb. They have been patient with me and have offered free rental for any repair over a day (which I've luckly have had none thus far).

They also gave me my first oil change for free and washed my car for me each time I have gone in for something (warranty or not).

I have gotten detailed explanations for each repair done and have been extremely professional and courteous. At least the impression I have gotten is an honest and dependable service department that would like to see you back and will go out of their way to make you feel satisfied. :) :D

(warranty or not) May i inquire as to what would not have been a warranty item on a car this new, (other than oil changes.)

Whitby Mazda near Toronto, Canada.

Replaced some things others would probably consider not covered by warranty....hint-condenser. I have since used black galvanized gutter guard WITHOUT taking off the whole bumper to protect the condendser. Just take off the lower plastic pan and forward front wheel well plastic and go to work. I did notify them about the opening to the rad/condenser area before this and they think it is a design fault.

Great bunch of guys and worth the drive in the Toronto area.

Wayne NJ Mazda
 

Full kudos goes out to Ben Rosario, Service Consultant at Wayne Mazda. Bought my 1 year old 04 8 into the shop today and requested they do the following under warrenty:


1-Squeal front breaks
2-CEL
3-Oil changes and Tire rotation (not under warrenty)
4-Rusting of left/right rear wheel hub
5-AC cooling problems

No questions...took the car in and had a Mazda 3 ready as a loaner.

Greg

Sentry Mazda - Shrewsbury - positive
 

These guys are great. Service writer Jim Kelly knows his stuff and is a rotary fan. Fixed my squeaking brakes and replaced my clogged cat a few months ago. Just had the recall done with R flash and car runs sweet. Couldn't be happier with the service.

Positive: Capitol Mazda – Petersburg, VA. I’m happy with the sales staff, especially the management. Service center made me feel at home.

Naperville Motors / Naperville Mazda - Chicago Area
 

Naperville, IL
Have been very happy with the service manager John. They are a good bunch of folks .... and always have a mazda car for a loaner.