Please Tell me it will be ready by Xmas so I will have something to do ...

WOW ! HOLY SHIT LOL !!!!

I got a call from the dealership, and guess WHAT. here is what I heard

Service Adviser : "Mazda will cover the Clutch Bracket, but they do recommend you to replace the clutch, because its a worn clutch that causes the problem, if you dont replace the clutch now, Mazda will put a notation on that and will not cover the clutch bracket again in the future"

Me : "So if I want to replace the clutch, how much would it cost ?"

Service Adviser : "Including Parts and labor, that would be 1275."

Me : *got a heart attack* "well, I dont have the money right now, so I'll just save it for later"

Service Adviser : "Ok no problem, your car should be ready by tomorrow."

LOL ! What a load of bs, and 1.2 K to replace a clutch only!? WOW that clutch must be made of Gold ! WOOOOO

Yeah, I will replace my clutch, but NOT @ YOUR PLACE. LOL !

CRH? come again ?

I want to work for a dealership. Jeeze

its funny that they're trying to blame it on the clutch for their own failure (weak ass Clutch bracket), I didnt even bother to say anything, I just ask them how much would it cost to replace the clutch (I wanted to replace it anyway), after the numbers(1275) I was like wooo forget it. if its 800-900 I'll think about it.

Im not sure if its really Mazda who said it or what. but I have a feeling that those shit came from the service adviser's ass only.

My stock clutch burned out shortly before my pedal fell off, but I think their rational is backwards. Couldn't a loose clutch pedal possibly cause the clutch to never fully disengage when the pedal was depressed, causing excess heat and premature clutch wear?

That is kinda true. but I aint paying 1257 to replace a clutch.

I mean its only around 300 something for a nice clutch setup. if Its not too cold I'll try to replace it myself. if do it outside its about 400 labor.

This story is a prime example of how Mazda handles this stuff these days, IMO. They have replaced a lot of transmission and clutches and my hunch is that it is all from a crummy pedal. If the pedal fails to transmit all of its motion to the plunger/slave cylinder, there is a chance that the clutch will not fully disengage. The result is all that we have seen; burned clutches and grinding synchros.

that would explain why my clutch is almost dead at 10k, not to mention half my pedal is held on with proxy/silicone glue and stainless steel braces =.=

I was quoted about the same price when I got my clutch replaced. My car was undrivable and at the dealer so I was in a bad situation. I ordered an ACT clutch and flywheel, had them drop-shipped to the dealer and installed for under 1100 all together. IIRC, they were trying to charge ~850 for the OEM clutch alone.

Ray, you should've seen the dealer's face when I blamed my clutch's early demise on the faulty pedal and asked my dealer for a reimbusement on the labor:icon_no2:
I figured it was a long shot.

It wasn't a long-shot at all, it was a solid argument you had presented them. I hear you on the political side, though, and the reason I decided to just rebuild my engine myself was partly based on the nonsense I would have to go through versus the benefits I would have in doing it all myself. My choices were to argue with the dealership and get a questionable reman paid for by Mazda or do it myself and know that it is done as correctly as I wanted or was capable of. Even though I would have to guess the total cost to be near $3K I would say that I fared better on many fronts.

I didnt even bother to ask them *how much is labor, how much are parts?*

I forgot exactly how much it was but I think my dealership charge at least 100 an hour. Im not quite sure, when I was there I saw that *picture* somewhere ... OH YEAH I remember, its 115 per hour.

sheese so lets say it should take them NO more than 5 hours for this work so .... 500 something for new clutch ? wow, no thanks.

Got my car back and .... I'll type what they wrote on the invoice later.

this is gonna be cinteresting

oh oh, this should be good...

Just wait till I get home, its friday, u know, PARTY TIME ! :rock:

Why should it take 5 hours to replace a clutch? RWD car, open driveline. Not like a FWD car where the suspension has to be dismantled, or one of the British sports cars in the 60s where you had to pull the engine.

Last time I changed a clutch (admittedly a long time ago - car was a '53 Chevy) the work itself was just a couple of hours. That was working outdoors, car on blocks, laying on my back. Indoors with a lift - and a real mechanic - it should be pretty straightforward.

Ken

Well, I was just *saying*, its a really really *rough estimate*, so rough that its actually the time it takes for a newbie tech to do this job.

I have yet to try to replace a clutch(or FW, whatever) myself, I probably gonna take MORE than 5 hours, but hey, Im just some newbie u know.

and if I put it 5 hours it makes me feel better .... cuz seriously I have no idea how much he was planning to charge me for the parts alone, cuz he told me parts and labor = 1257.

nothing really *that* interesting really, but I just have a question about the stuff that the Mazda tech line told the dealership. Is it even legal to do so. (Yeah I know all those Mag. Act thing, just wait a bit, I need to shower)

Here you go :

Customer states Clutch Bracket broke away $115.00 Diagnostic Charge If not warranty concern
Found Clutch Bracket Broken
Clutch Application is Hard // Possible Aftermarket Clutch
Advise Customer of clutch issue // contacted Mazda tech line ref ##### //
Tech line authorised replacement of pedal assy
Replaced Clutch Pedal Assembly
As per shop Foreman Contacted Mazda tech line Ref ###### Advised tech line clutch operation was hard // cannot verify if clutch is aftermarket // advised customer to replace clutch assy // Customer declined work // tech line updated ref file //
Clutch pedal assy is a one time repair (!!!!!!!)

Clutch Pedal is a one time repair because of WHAT ? Because Mazda being a cheap ass about it ? I mean seriously this sound like they gave me a very generous offer or something. when I saw this I was about to curse. The service adviser was a pretty nice guy, he just told me lilke you should replace your Clutch ASAP, then I said I prefer to do it in my garage, then he go on and say well if thats the case just keep your receipt for the clutch. he is a nice dude. which is why I keep my clam down.

Come on, the clutch bracket itself cost less than 200 bux, I can get one from Jason no more than 170 shipped. Is it such a costly item for Mazda to *repair* ? maybe Labor? but I will give this replacement 1 hour of labor MAX. if they're so concern about warranty repair cost, how many times that I have to go back and get my rear lights replace cuz of the stupid condensation ? EACH of those light assy cost MORE than the clutch bracket.

Mazda, if you're reading this, trust me, I have ALOT of friends in the market for a Brand new car. I trust your brand before this has happen. thats why my father got a BRAND NEW 2008 CX-7 Fully loaded. but unless you change the way you treat your customer, you, Mazda, or MNAO to be exact, will NEVER,EVER get a single business from me and my friends and my family member EVER again.

Do you have an aftermarket clutch?

The bracket should have been designed with enough of a safety factor so a stronger aftermarket clutch would not matter, but a non-OEM clutch does give them an edge to wriggle out of the warranty.

The writeup does not say there's anything wrong with your clutch. The way it reads to me, they want to replace it because they don't know if it's OEM. Now that your bracket is fixed, you should be able to test whether the clutch is OK.

FWIW, an OEM clutch is $420:

http://www.finishlineperformance.com...n&key=RX8M1015

Ken

I have the same question as ken-x8, is your clutch stock? A stiffer pedal could be enough wiggle as it might violate the FOS of the bracket design.

I find it funny that they wrote a $115 diagnostic charge on the sheet. If anything, it feels like they're trying to charge Mazda the $115 for the few seconds it took a tech to look at the bracket and see that it's broken. I've been to dealerships that have signs saying they charge diagnostic, and really I've never had a situation where they actually did. It seems as long as you give them the repair business they don't.

somewhere selling it for a bit less than 400 :)

my clutch is still fine, but I just dont like the way it feels. maybe I got bored I dont know. and Im already in market to do a 2nd clutch replacement.

most people who've read my post should know that yes I do have aftermarket clutch.

but my point is that, I mean, is clutch bracket suppose to break ? Is the clutch Bracket even a *wear* item ???????? this is *clearly* a design defect (cut corners to lower cost?) more than user error.

So does that mean, if I use a aftermarket brake pad (which MOST people would/will do), one day Im driving and the brake bracket breaks off and I got seriously injured(or die on scene), Mazda does not have to responsible for their design ? or one day my wheel just flies off because Im using aftermarket tires. or one day my engine overheats and blew up because I use aftermarket coolant ?

of course they cant tell if its aftermarket or whatever. they have to open it up to be able to tell. but what does a clutch have to do with a *weak* design in the first place? these bracket breaks even with stock clutch setups. so whats Mazda's tech line point ?

so what exactly are you making? A stronger clutch bracket? Will that prevent issues such as the clutch not disengaging fully?

damn right you haven't.... or maybe I haven't been reading enough and am interested because I'm getting a new transmission shortly due to syncro grinding.

I'll try to take a look at the clutch and flywheel when they pull it from my car. If my clutch bracket is causing issues leading to the transmission issue - is it a given that the hardware will show signs of abuse (from heat), or is that taking place for just a few people?

Your credibility is bought at $1 per day. That is, for every day you don't deliver we get a $1 discount on the part. Now get cracking, you don't want to pay us to get your bracket!