mandy24

My husband purchased my new 2004 rx8 on Valentines day for me :p We had the dealship put in aftermarket leather and a sunroof 1 week later. We were supposed to get factory design leather and sunroof. The leather was not done correctly and the sunroof is a slide in, not a spoiler one like I requested. They were fine with fixing the leather, I thought I could live with the sunroof, but I don't like it and can't use it. It makes a horrible helicopter noise when I open it, even with the windows cracked, you have to let them down all the way, to get the noise to stop. Plus, I really like the spoiler look, not the hole in the roof look.

Today when we dropped off the car to get the leather redone, we told them about the sunroof. They first said they couldn't replace it with the factory like one, but now they are looking to see if they can get one to fit. What a mess.... We basically left with the understanding if they couldn't fix the sunroof then they need to find me another car..... I have searched on line for another 2004 left over winning blue 6 speed.... can't find one.. what if they can't find one..any suggestions on a reasonable compromise... am I being unreasonable.....any suggestions???? HELP>>>>

sidekick

They said they will get you another car? or do you plan to selling the car... I think they might not charge for the sunroof that is the best they can do. I doubt they will take the car back since u had it for over a month. Also did they show you another car with an after market sunroof or did you ask...

dazygirl415

I don't think you're being unreasonable. If you asked for spoiler-type and you were told that's what you would get, that's what you should get and I wouldn't take any less. You gave this roof a shot, but don't like it. At least you tried. Compromise? Maybe money back? Or see if they can look in a different market. I'm sure there's one out there and they need to pay to get it to you.

beachdog

Have no suggestions to offer, but you are not being unreasonable. If you ordered and paid to have the factory style sunroof installed, that's what should have been installed.

If the dealer made an honest mistake, they should be willing to replace the car since now there's no going back. It seems that they were planning to install exactly what they installed however since the factory sunroof is exactly that, a factory sunroof.

PPen131

isn't it more expensive to put in the sunroof and leather after buying it? it seems lthat you would have saved yourself much more money and hassle had you bought a model with all that to begin with. congrats on getting your 8 though....i just got mine as well, and i love it

mandy24

Thank you for the responses...

To answer your question...

When we looked at the RX8, they did show us one with a sunroof and told us ours would look like it. When the service manager talked to the sales manager he told him that was correct and he expected it to be a factory type sunroof. The service manager admits it was a communication error on their part. He said if the sunroof company could not find a spoiler type sunroof to fit, we would be probably be meeting with the general manager and sales manager. I love my car, but I don't want to settle.......this is my dream car (although my friends are convinced it is my midlife crisis car) I don't know what to do..... I just want my car the way I ordered it.......I hate this. My biggest fear is they will say we will give your money back or take the car, the way it is.....

snap-on

Have they tried a wind deflector to help with the noise you are hearing?

mandy24

to PPEN131

You are so right! That would be the way to go but our choices were limited because we got a "new" left over 2004. We looked at the 2005's, which they did have a better selection, but got a better deal on the 2004 with the leather and sunroof added.

mandy24

I hate to sound so picky but I don't like the wind deflector on top of the car. I know I am going to have to settle.......They offered that. Along with telling us the sunroof that was installed is the "top of the line" and the factory type is a much cheaper than the one we received. If that is the case why in the world would they put in a more expensive sunroof we didn't pay for?????

PPen131

yeah, i understand how that goes. i got an 04 myself, but it wasn't the gt like i wanted due to the dealer's remaining selection

LawFitz

Go to Mazda.com and use the inventory search feature to find the EXACT car you want (GT/winning blue) at the closest dealer to yours. Then demand that they take your car back and trade it for that one (you will have to pay the cost difference of course since the GT is more expensive).

I bet if you present this demand, they will swap out the bunk moonroof you got for the one you wanted or at least give you some kind of other concession.

I doubt they'll actually swap your car for the one at the other dealer, but this demand should scare them enough to placate you some other way. Compile as much leverage as possible before confronting them again. If you have to use the dreaded "law suit" threat, do it.

Good luck and take care.

BTW, I hope you get 19-20 MPG on yours!

mandy24

Thank you for the reponses and letting me vent....

I was getting around 20 mpgs. When I got it back from having the sunroof and leather installed, I am now lucky to get 14 mpg. The service manager said the check engine light was on when they got the car back and said the reason was the battery cable was not put back on tightly after they installed the sunroof. I have concerns with it being half on and them driving it back to the dealer ship. Could that freak out the computer and the reason I am now getting such crapy MPGs. The service manager said there is nothing they can do about the low MPG, that it is NORMAL.

snap-on

If you don't mind me asking.

How does the sunroof look in contrast to the roofline?

And I don't buy the loose battery cable deal but thats for another discussion..

Mazdax605

I am sorry to say this but they will never just let you swap with a new car straight up.This is the exact reason why you never have a aftermarket moon/sunroof installed in a car.They are never like a factory unit,and there is no way it is a better unit than factory.My guess is they may take your car as a trade-in,and try to find you the properly equipped model,but they won't just trade straight up.I agree with what some of the others have said about getting the factory unit to begin with.It is so much better to invest the money in a welded-in properly drained factory roof that was with the car from the begining.I actually had a salesman at a local dealer try to tell me that all imported cars have the moonroofs installed at the port.What a crock.If he would have only pulled his head out of his %^$,and looked at the construction of the roof of any car equipped with a factory roof he would have seen that he was just blowing smoke up my %^&.He didn't get my business,and I decided a moonroof wasn't that important to me so I got the base model.

I bet the best you will be able to do is get a refund for the roof.Good luck.Buyer beware.

mandy24

OF course I dont mind, but not sure what you are asking, it fits and is even from what I can tell. I think it did take up head room, my husband complains, I didn't notice. OMG, what a mess.

Okay what do you think, do you think the battery cable was loose or was there another problem and they are not telling me? Or do you think the lose cable did have negative effects on my car.

I just want to be a happy member of the rx8 family, and not end up with a problem car. Thank you for your time this group has more knowledge about these things than I do.

beachdog

Snap-on already answered this. Since you're new here, FYI, he is a credible source.

dwynne

I am afraid it is way too late for that. You should have asked here BEFORE you agreed to have an after-market sun roof and after-market (or even factory) leather to your car. I am pretty sure everyone would have told you then not to do it and recommended that you find a car more suitable to what you wanted.

There is no way the roof will be as nice as the factory one, and ditto for the leather (but there is a better chance they might get that right if they used OEM materials).


The only thing I can think of is to try to un-wind the deal, but since you have been driving the car for a month I don't think they will go for that. Rule #1 is dealing with car dealers is get all promises in writing. If they charged you and promised you a factory leather interior and a factory roof then you should have that in writing - and they really have no recourse except to provide it or refund you. If your contract just calls for a sun roof and a leather interior, then you are pretty much at the mercy of whatever the dealer decides to do.

They wanted to sell you the car they had, you wanted a car they did not have. You should have just walked away and used the car search at MazdaUSA.com to find the right car.

I am sorry, but what the heck where you thinking?

Dennis

mandy24

You are right!! Dennis, I wish I would have done more research before and found this site before I brought itand decided on after factory equipment! I still love my RX8 and hope they can resolve it, so both the dealership and myself will be happy with the results.

I hope by posting my issue it might save someone else a headache.

VmanX

hey, just wondering but how much did it cost you for the aftermarket moonroof install? parts and labor?

snap-on

The dealer obviously payed someone to install this sunroof..have you spoken with this company to see if they can retro-fit to a sliding roof?

Are you willing to let them fix this even if it takes welding new sheet metal?

mandy24

The service manager first said when he talked to the company that the factory sunroof was smaller, so it wouldn't fit. Then he came back and said they were going to pick up the car and try to find a spoiler type sunroof with the same size glass.

I don't know about letting them weld new sheet metal.... trying to make it fit. What do you suggest? Would you let them.....I have a feeling I should just chalk it up to lesson learned and accept the one they did. Maybe just get a refund for the sunroof.

mandy24

I am scared to say how much the sunroof was. I did no research on the cost of the sunroof or leather. Please don't tell me I am stupid, I feel dumb enough as it.......it was $1500 sunroof and $1000 for leather.

Outlaws eXtreme

Wait a second, so you had to pay it as an extra fee on top of the car? 1500 + 1000 more? Wow.. that sucks... go back there and get what you want specifically. Deal with this soon, otherwise the longer you wait, the harder they will want to work a deal with you.

Go48

A sad story, indeed. IMO there is no truely satisfactory solution to your current situation. You are probably better off taking what you have, getting a refund on the sun roof and living with the car until you can trade for another RX-8 a few years down the road. Learn from the experience, drive the car and enjoy the incredible driving experience this car provides. As "they" say in NJ, fagetabadit.

bluesunlion

What was your total OTD (out the door price)

I won't have any idea until you give us that figure, but I think you got ripped.