Fleche

Well, I've had a bit trouble with CEL and car misfiring when starting cold. First time it was around 4000 miles, they replaced a couple of spark plugs. This time, they found coolant inside the 2nd chamer and had to replace the whole engine.

Dealer had my car for 2 weeks to get the whole thing done. I guess I'll have to do the break-in period again!

And no, I did not abuse the car, drove it normally and did all the proper upkeeping.

mysql101

that blows....

does anyone know what kind of time frame (if any) exists that a seal would fail? For example, is there any safe time - say, after 12 months / 24,000 miles, things are likely all okay?

Mr M

Err...pardon?

What seal?

rotten42

What has the dealer done to compensate you if anything? Have they given you a rental? My car has been in the shop for 5 days and they have snet the oil out for testing. This doesn't sound good. I might be in the same boat as you. I'm going to be all over them that If I am out my RX for any lenght of time, I better had something worth while to drive.

Fleche

Mr M: The problem with my engine was the seal that keeps the coolant outside of the combustion chamber leaked.


Rotten: Yeah, I got to drive a lovely white chevy cav for two weeks

rotten42

They gave me a nice 4 door blk Cavalier to drive. If my car is going to stay there any longer, that will have to change.

Fleche

so far, my loaners have been:

Mazda Protege
Olds Alero
Mazda6 wagon
Chevy Cavalier

nosubstitutec4s

dont take the cavalier. i know its what they give you, but driving in a death trap like that is a big risk. it has 1 star side impact rating with a high risk of pelvic injury.


you bought a car with side airbags, didnt you?

rotten42

Just received a call from the dealership today. Sounds like they are going to replace the engine...the car only has 3100 miles on it!

there is no way I'm going to be driving around a Cavalier for the next 2+ weeks.

rotten42

Do you have any more details on this...more specific? Did they compensate you in any way? I need have as much amo as possible beofre I go and talk to these guys at the dealership.

Fleche

I'm not sure what you mean by "compensate". By Mazda's warrenty, you get a free loaner while your car is being repaired, you should not have to pay for anything. As far as what kind of loaner, it all depends on what's avaiable at the dealer/car rental place.

As far as details to what happened to my car...well the dealer tech didn't find anything wrong at first, then they too observed the misfiring when starting the engine cold, after that, they found collant inside the engine. With rotory, once collant gets inside, the whole engine is ruined, so they had to get a new one from Mazda. The wait/install/testing took 8 business days total.

rotten42

I was just curious how well they took care of you. My feeling is that when I pay 40k (Canada) for a car that putting me into a 14k car for 2 to 3 weeks isn't good enough. In the industry I'm in how you service a client is even more important than the product they buy. How they handle this will show me if they a first rate or basement dwellers.

I'm pissed enogh about having my engine replaced after 3100miles, so then they expect me to drive around a piece of sh*t Cavalier that doesn't handle, doesn't brake and have one of the worst saftey ratings for new cars on the road?...no way!


Maybe I should start a class action suit?

BillK

Please - I know it's in the Mazda warranty, but paying what you did for a car doesn't guarantee you anything.

Spend $100K for a Porsche at my local dealer and you get a courtesy shuttle ride or you can rent from Enterprise on your own dime.

Mazda's warranty says they'll provide a car - it doesn't specify what so be glad you're not in a Rent-A-Wreck...

rotten42

Yes, I knoew that in the legal sense I don't have a leg to stand on but that doesan't mean that I'm wrong. I comes down to the reputation of the dealer for service. Do they want to be known as a dealer that takes care of their customers, or do they want to be known as cheapskates.

I'm curious if your Porsche dealer would handle it doifferently if the engine self destructed in 5 weeks.

I just expect more.

VTLC

I bought my 8 in Nov 03 and by mid Dec it was in the shop for ENGINE Change, Coolent Seals Leaking@1000ms. They got me into a 01 Ford escort, what a POS that was. I almost got broadsided 2 block away, so went back and said, hey I cant and refuse to drive this thing, I want something comparable to my 8. So after 15 mins and talking to the SrM I got into a Buick Regal. Not much but way better then the first thing. And after the Engine replace my car is nothing but trouble. Been in the shop 9 times, all sorts of stuff from broken buttons to wires arcihng in the engine compartment, now my shifter shakes from side to side about half an inch each way, my lights dim as the AC/Engine fans turn on, when I make a sharp corner I can hear a faint tick tick tick from the rear of the car. Took it to the shop and they said your car is normal, we cant do anything if there is no codes that shows up. Of course I have the AC cycling thing too even after the TSB fix. Do I feel Frustrated (NO).... Angry and Cheated (YES).

I expect more from a New car and even More from MAZDA.
The only way they are going to respect me is by giving them a taste of juice, Lemon Juice.

rotten42

Well I just got a call back from my dealer. They are confirmed that a new engine is on its way. He didn't go into full details over the phone but the main concern was that one of the rotors was knocking? I'm supposed to get more details on Monday. Mazda has requested that the engine be sent back so it can be taken completley apart. They also siad that they would have a Mazdz 3 for me to drive around on Monday rather than the cavaleir with wrapped brakes that I've been using.