dreamfrog

My recall "work" was done per my dealer, when I took my 8 in for an oil change yesterday.
They replaced the leading plugs.
That is the extent of it.
When I read the .pdf's it seems there is quite a bit of testing done so they can determine if the other recall steps need to be performed. That one document is 19 pages long. AND, of course, I am concerned with regards to my catalytic converter & my engine. The converter because the leading plugs were replaced & the engine because I HAVE HAD difficulty starting the vehicle. Dang, I wish I had read this BEFORE I took the car in.
Now, I called the dealer, explained to him that I wanted to know how my catalytic converter did on the test, he said all he gets is whether it is "within range"or out of range. Now, after reading that 19 page doc. I know that is BS. So, how do I know if they even performed the tests & how do I know that my ENGINE does not need to be replaced?!!! Okay, I am slightly freaked out about this. My svc. advisor is an older gentleman & when I ask him simple questions, I get the impression that he doesn't take me seriously. Anyway, should I push this more with him & ask him to provide me with the results of the tests? Including the engine diagnostic test on pg. 7, with datalogger PID results? Dang. I am such a sucker I feel. And, of course, I only feel this way because of the way they respond to me & because I didn't read up on & become aware of the details of this until after the dealer had "performed the recall". So my fault for not being prepared. But, I had no idea about this recall until he said "We did the recall work". I even said to him "What?" & he said "We repaired it per the Government instruction" what the heck does that mean? I asked him exactly what needed to be repaired & he did go further to explain that it was an emissions recall. Most of what I learned about the recall, I learned here.

VOODOO8

Did you have the recall letter when the dealer did this "work"? If you still have the recall documentation, you might be able to use it with another dealer, hopefully one you can trust. Dealers are limited in what information they can see on the service history of a vehicle from another dealer.

RevTo9K

The part he told you about testing the Cat for values in/out of range is correct. If you did not complain about idle issues/loss of power, they should have replaced the leading plugs and reflashed the ECU. If you DID complain about idle issues/loss of power, they were supposed to test drive it per the instructions.

Did you report idle issues or loss of power? Also, can you check your paperwork and see if it shows an ECU flash?

Rodlucci

Please be advised:
The old phrase, "don't fix something that is not broken" applies!

If you have received the warranty extension and the recall letter, you may want to consider the following.

If you have a Mazda dealer perform the recall inspections and they do not find any issues other then the PCM or ECU recalibration and you have engine issues later, the recall may not apply to your car. If you do not have more then 25,000 miles on your car, you should potentially wait until there is an issue with your engine.

Please be advised to inform any dealer that does service work on your car to NOT PERFORM these recall inspections until you authorize the tests to be performed. This may enhance your position later if you have engine failure issues under the warranty.

Please inform as many RX-8 owners as you can to consider this!

RW

dreamfrog

THAT'S what I am pissed about. He did the recall without even mentioning he was going to do it to my car. Ran the tests, no problems, your recall is DONE. And, he didn't fill the tank or wash the car.

My car only has 20K miles.

I am so totally pissed about this.

Rodlucci

If I were you, I would contact the Service manager @ the dealer that performed the work in writing. Have him respond that if you experience issues within the 5 years or 60,000 miles pertaining to this recall, your car will qualify for warranty repairs.
RW

dreamfrog

Thank you.
I will do that.
I want to have my car WAY past 60K.

Okay, called dealer, spoke to svc. mgr. He was sooooo different than my dang advisor. Of course, that's his job.
Once I told him my concerns with the recall work, he suggested I call MNA & get them to put it in writing that they would re-visit it the recall if I have problems in the future. I guess because MNA is who pays the dealer to do the work, then I would have to have the authorization from MNA.

He also mentioned an "SSP", special service program, which involves the starter. I explained that I have had the car for ten months & it has given me cranking issues a few times & now that it is a daily commute, I am even more concerned about that. He asked me how & where I purchased my vehicle, explained it was used & gave him my VIN so he can check to see if it has been done.

WOW! Like night & day. He also said that they will take care of the tank of gas & the washing it needs once I explained that to him. And, it didn't take much convincing of him, where I felt as if I were leaning pretty heavily on my svc adv & he didn't BUDGE.

It pays to go to the top.

altiain

iTrader: (3)

Paranoia will destroy ya.

Dunno what line of work you're in, but in my line of work (large drilling and mining equipment) - if we recall a piece of equipment in order to update something so that it won't fail (like changing the ECM calibration), and you refuse to let us update the equipment, we'll void your warranty, since you've consciously chosen to not be in compliance with the manufacturer's design update. You wanna run it that way? Fine by us... but don't come crying when it blows up, 'cause we tried to change the cal to prevent that and you thought you knew better than we did.

If your engine fails under warranty, you'll be covered. If you have the recall work done and the tests performed and then the engine later fails due to low compression, my guess is that you'll be covered. Low compression due to insufficient lubrication of the apex seals is pretty easy to spot on a teardown, and the symptoms don't look anything like a sudden loss of compression due to detonation or anything else. If you've got oil in the sump and low compression, my guess is Mazda is going to cover you, regardless of whether the symptoms turn up at 10k or 50k, or whether you've had the recall work performed previously or not

But then again, believe what you want. It's not paranoia if they really are out to get you, right?

Rodlucci

My original post was a suggestion that I posted moments after a conversation with a Mazda representative. However, you do not have to agree with my suggestions. Please consider your car, your position and your mileage.
I believe everyone is entitled to consider all of the variables.
The words in my post were all words that were spoken to me by a Mazda representative.

I own a very low mileage 2005 and I was advised not to make a special trip to the dealer to get this recall performed for the reasons given in my original post.

Please consider the variables with your car, your confidence with your dealer and most of all your personal preference.