Hi Guys,

I made the discovery that my rx8 still has another year left in its manufactures warranty. I've got some mild condensation in my taillights from time to time, so I called up lee johnson mazda, to inquire about getting them replaced. They wont do it unless they have standing water in the taillights. The TSB for this issue specifically talks about condensation in the taillights, so that angered me a bit.

Who has had good experiences with NW mazda dealer service departments getting warranty work done? Any dealerships to avoid?

 

If you want to cheat take the light off fill it with some water than take it down +solved

 

i always had good service at University Mazda.

 

Hmm, after seeing this new TSB:

http://www.finishlineperformance.com...6-09-2086a.pdf

I doubt I'll be getting new taillights from anybody anytime soon. What a load of crap.

 

Hands down University Mazda

 

That TSB sucks!

 

yeah it does suck but i've been learning how to fix it. tried once and failed - the condensation came back, but i'm gonna try again!!

 

+1 I concur. I've taken in a couple of TSB's and they treated me well. They listen and they do what you ask for without a hassle. I live closer to Lee Johnson and Renton Mazda, but I like U Mazda much better.

 

how is this dealer for purchasing a car?
anyone have any ideas?

 

University Mazda?


Great dealership.

Lee Johnson and Renton Mazda were a-holes.

Service and Sales at U Mazda were great. Sales were no pressure, and Service were always on time, and performed multiple TSBs w/o a hassle, even performed some w/o me having to ask.

 

Thank you Cam, I will give them a shout once I am in town.
If I can find 2009 stock, I'd be part of the family!

I will be new to the states, how is insurance with aftermarket mods?
Its 5K more for the R3, I can probably do better if I spent the 5K on aftermarket things I want.

 

progressive is the only one i know that'll cover stated mods. i'd check them out.

 

thanks for all the information guys.

 

If that's your goal, you may well be better off with an '07-'08 if you can find one. The suspension mounts are significantly different between the '04-'08 and the '09-'10 and you'll have more options for body kits. I haven't kept up with it, but has the AP been updated to work with the '09-'10 ECU's yet?

That said, the R3's come with some bitchin' seats and the suspension has been upgraded. I haven't had a chance to drive an R3 somewhere that I could put it through its paces and compare it to my setup or stock.

Maybe go test drive this car? http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...er_id=63299237
Or this one, actually: http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...ealer_id=75412
They're both the 40th Anniversary edition even, so they come with the '09 style wheels and a unique # plaque somewhere.

 

thanks. I'll call up that dealership!

 

Has anyone used University Mazda for engine repairs? I'm trying to find a good mechanic that knows rotaries for real. I figure if I take the time to find an awesome mechanic I won't need him. :P

-Alex

 

University Mazda 20 years ago was great. I guess they still are.

 

Avoid that one in Puyallup....they lied about replacing my engine, and when I went to go pick the car up they had just ordered it the day prior.

"Milam Mazda & Jeep"

 

i don't know how well he works w/ Rx8s but Rob at Pineapple Racing did wonders w/ my 2nd gen Rx7 so u can check him out (pineappleracing.com) i think he's in troutdale now

 

Just recently had my car worked on at University Mazda. All I needed were new tires swapped on (got in on the cheap Advan AD07s from TireRack.com) and an alignment. Only had two gripes.

1) Called on the 11th to make an appointment for the 22nd. Showed up and they said I wasn't on the books, but I had missed my appointment on the 11th... What was supposed to take 2-3 hours was now to take 4-5 hours (ended up being 4).

2) Got a call from UMazda that my car was ready. Showed up, paid the ~$226, inspected the car and found that the tech had mounted the AD07s on the left side backwards. It was another 30 minute wait for him to correct the mistake.

The experience had me doubting about the dealership, but for my troubles the Service Manager did offer a free oil and filter change. I am, however, willing to give them another shot in the future (oh, say 10k miles from now). They did perform a quick inspection of the car and she checks out. Other than tramlining from the tires, the car tracks straight.

One last gripe. My car is 3,000 miles away from its 30k service. UMazda quoted me $1064 for the service. Yeah, no.

 

Thanks Gripen, good review on your experiences with them. Thank you everyone else as well. Sounds like they are worth a shot but not the perfect mechanic/dealer I was hoping to find.

-Alex

PS: RedBeard, thanks for the link. Didn't see that until just now, also very helpful.

 

Get a list of items on the 30k list, some you won't need. They charge to balance and rotate (you won't need) I took it in and canceled a few items from the list and it came out to be around $500

 

FYI,

Im a tech, (not Mazda), and while I mount/balance tires every once in a while, its usually done by our lube techs, because we are usually to busy doing work more advanced that like (like the cylinder head rebuild I was doing last week).

My point... Dont rule out a dealership based on tires mounted incorrectly (still shouldnt have happened), but if youre looking for engine work its going to be a totally diffenent tech with way more advanced skills performing your engine work than the tire install.

 

Over the phone when I inquired a while back I couldn't hear the full list of what was involved for the price (I did know that there were some unnecessary work added), but even after declining the oil change for the engine, tranny, and diff, air filter change, and sparkplugs, they still quoted me +$800.

Come mid-April, I'll be doing the service myself. Got parts coming in and am looking foward to the task.

I understand that. I wasn't upset that the two tires were mounted incorrectly. Really, the incorrect appointment date and my schedule going out the window from that point on was more upsetting. However, the Service Manager did try to make amends. That does count.

I'm not used to going to dealerships for service. Most of the time I can do the work myself (after doing plenty of research on here).

 

I'll need to do mine soon too, probably around June or July.