When I received my new RX-8 last week at the dealer, there were two rubber grommets in a plastic bag placed in the glovebox. It looks like these grommets were supposed to be installed in the bottom of the frame rails but the salesperson told me that they leave them out. Is there any info in a sticky or something on here about this? Has anyone else found these grommets?

 

I got my 8 back in 04' so I dont know if thats something new. I would just hold on to them. But if you post a pic that will help us tell you where they go.
-Gil

 

They actually have a picture on the plastic bag showing them going into holes in the bottom of the frame rails kind of below the passenger seats in front of the rear wheels. What confuses me is that they are not already installed. The dealer really didn't seem to know about why they weren't installed and seemed to think it wasn't worth putting them in. Maybe they aren't installed at the factory because they don't want to trap water during transit? But then why would I install them now?

I'll try to post a picture soon.

 

I never got any. Post a pic of what you have.
(some of the dealers sales dept don't seem to know a whole lot about the car)

 

Alright... here's the pictures of the grommets. Nobody at the Mazda dealer knows why these were in the glovebox instead of installed in the car.

 

Here's the bag they came in showing the placement under the rear seats in the frame rails (under the exterior). Apparently the manufacturer thinks these should not be in place until the car reaches the delivery point, or maybe they shouldn't be installed at all. The only issue I can think might be affected is drainage out of the rails.

 

maybe they are there to reduce noise when the seat rails hit bottom.

 

No clue what those are

 

Well, the dealer finally came back with an explanation.

" The plugs for the frame are recommended to go in. The reason that they are not in is do to shipping from over seas. They use the holes to tie down the car on the boats . On each side of the frame are several other small hole to let moisture and water out. They just re plug those two bigger holes. Did you leave them in the car. I will get them put in for you."

I suspect that these are usually supposed to be installed at the port when the cars arrive in country but it wasn't done on this particular model.

 

No they are supposed to be installed at the dealer as part of the PDI - Pre Delivery Inspection. If they didnt do those i wonder what else they failed to do?

Have you checked your tire pressure? or oil level? have you found that your driver side floor mat slides around? find any spark plugs in the glove compartment?

 

All good points! Indeed there were spark plugs in the glove box. Actually when I bought the car, there were a few little issues like this that needed to be addressed and the car is now at the dealer as I write this getting these things done. They are changing the plugs, installing the rubber plugs, changing out a headlight that was slightly hazed, and looking the car over. What did you mean about the driver's side floor mat sliding around?

There are/were a number of RX-8s sitting on their lot and some have been there for quite awhile (there was blue one there that's been sitting around for over a year). As one might expect, they get a little neglected. In another case, one car I test drove had a really stiff ride, and it turned out all the tires were still inflated to max pressure from the shipping requirements. Fortunately my salesperson has proven to be pretty good and is making sure all my issues are addressed.

Are the plugs always supposed to be changed, even on a freshly delivered car? I was under the impression that only cars that had been sitting for a few months were supposed to have this done.

 

every car gets fresh plugs as part of the PDI before being delivered to the customer.

as for the mat- one thing often missed if they miss the grommets is installing the hook under the drivers seat that holds the floor mat in place.

 

The hook was installed and the mat was hooked on.

 

well at least they got one thing on the list checked anyway

 

Wasn't all bad, I suppose. They did a good job of cleaning the car and all and they're making good on the rest of it. I'd have to say, I've had much worse experiences, and one of them was at another Mazda dealer.

 

When I took delivery of my 8, the salesman handed me a set of spark plugs.

The car was on the showroom floor, and had enough miles on the odometer that it had clearly had a few test drives. At the the time I thought the plugs were a gift. Now I realize that the car had good plugs in so it would run well, and they saved the PDI plugs. With the car running well, they gave me the plugs instead of putting them in stock or wasting them by putting them in anyway. Nice gesture on their part - still feels like a gift.

I wound up getting free leading plugs after 3K miles when I brought it in for 4206f.

FWIW, the floor mat hook was installed. Some dealers properly prep cars.

Ken

 

Just checked, looks like mine were installed. I guess I can assume that my new spark plugs were installed too. (build date 1/07 - purchased 9/07 - 7.5miles)

I asked the salesman at the time of the sale if the pre-dealer inspection was preformed (and specifically mentioned the replacement of the spark plugs) and he looked at me like my head was on fire.

 

Most dealerships fail to do PDI.

Mine ... they didnt even install the carpet hook I have to take the seat out myself to install it !