My 04 is in the shop right now for the fourth time w/the flooding issue. It has 62K miles on it now and the dealer told me I would need to call Mazda (he called also) to see if they would cover the repair. After reading some of the stories here I wasn't very optimistic that they would do anything for me. I explained the problem and they agreed to cover the cost - including the tow. I hung up and called the dealer and by the time I got through Mazda was already talking to the service manager. This is my first time dealing with Mazda USA and I am pretty impressed.

 

Very nice to hear! Probably because you didnt automatically threaten to get a lawyer and sue...

 

What surprised me is that I told him what happened and he said "OK - we can take care of that" - not even a discussion. I then asked about the tow and he told me that would be no problem either. I wonder if they have adopted a new policy on this. I have read other threads where people were told the fix would not be covered outside of warranty.

 

I have to say I had a great experience with MazdaUSA! Had less than 400 miles on my 06 RX8 GT AT when my right front tire blew out on the freeway. There was no defect on the tire, I had just run over something on our wonderful LA freeways! Ended up having to buy a brand new tire, but spoke with customer relations at MazdaUSA and they ended up sending me a check for the cost of the new tire. They weren't obligated to do this, but they did.

 

As usual, nice positive attitude...

 

Gotta love the American way of life.

"Sue first, questions later".......................

 

For some, very true indeed...

 

I hate to be cynical, but you my be right. On the other hand, the damage - if any - is already done done whether they pay for it or not.
I was also wondering - I have had the flooding problem 4 times. The first time was my bad, I moved it to shovel some snow and flooded it before I knew it was an issue not to let the car warm up. Last year they said it was the starter issue. The other two times the car started with a very high idle for about 10-15 seconds. It sounded like the idle was just going to kick down - I didn't touch the gas - but the engine just shut down by instead. Has anyone else had this problem? The dealer says they haven't had that complaint before.

 

How cold was it outside?

 

yes, because at that point what they should do is refuse to take any of your phone calls and just transfer you directly to their legal dept.

We have had people threaten to sue us at my work before, ALWAYS over the phone, and we just tell them that our legal dept will be contacting them, and then terminate the conversation. They can't seem to figure out why we don't want to help them as much after that.

 

Yep, screaming "lawyer lawyer" to me just makes me want to hang up the phone

 

I've never sued anyone and have never gotten angry and threatened to sue anyone. I'm not really sure I would sue over this issue, although I think Mazda really should be responsible for this problem. I understand - now - that this problem is inherent to the rotary engine, but that was not made clear (or mentioned at all) when I bought the car. But all things considered I love the 8 and would probably still have bought it. Anyway, so far Mazda and my dealer have been great about the whole thing - so I have no complaints.

 

zzum-zum:

"The other two times the car started with a very high idle for about 10-15 seconds. It sounded like the idle was just going to kick down - I didn't touch the gas - but the engine just shut down by instead. Has anyone else had this problem? The dealer says they haven't had that complaint before."

I haven't experienced that problem with my '04, but I did have the flooding issue taken care of once under warranty...somewhere in the 20,000 mile range. I did understand when I bought the car about the flooding issue and bought it anyway. It is not my primary transportation and I can afford the luxury of babying it regarding the warm-up needs. I guess I sort of get a perverted pleasure in having to humor the quirk. I agree, the car is well worth it.

 

Our '04 just flooded for the first time. We had always babied it, never turning it off cold. On Sunday, I moved it out of the garage, revved it to 4k for ten seconds, then turned it off. I figured it was about time to see if we might have a car with the problem, despite the flash updates, etc. Monday, it wouldn't start. I called the dealer, who gave me the number for Mazda USA.

They picked up the car on a flatbed within 90 minutes, hauled it to the dealer, where they did the TSB (new, more powerful starter and battery, new plugs and wires) and had it back to me by the end of the day. No charge.

While I think Mazda had no business releasing a car with this issue, I am quite satisfied with how they responded this time.

The bigger issue, IMO, is what will happen as cars go off warranty, and continue to have the problem. I have no reason to think that the TSB changes will make a large difference, so I suspect that the problem will continue. People are somwhat understanding if it doesn't cost money, but when it starts costing us big bucks for a design flaw, people won't be so understanding.