brothervoodoo

Shocking story Vegas... I would feel mad/depressed all at the same time. Sorry you are having such a shitty experience...

RedRotaryRx8

Closing in on one month since I took my car in to get the engine replaced, and the dealership still has not received the engine from Mazda yet. The dealership said one they receive the engine, give them a week to install it, test it out etc. So it is looking like atleast 6 weeks for me without my 8.

Vegas, I envy your Explorer rental. I am driving a 2005 Chevy Cavalier with 33k miles on it as my rental.

Sorry to hear about your new engine though. That sucks big time.

lbeagley79

Vegas, I'm feelin for ya bud. I just got my '8 back after 5 weeks without it. Initial tests are just like Vegas stated "smile from ear to ear". It definitely has that same brand new feeling like when I first bought the car; lots of power and acceleration. Maybe it just feels fast cuz I've been driving an 03 Nissan Sentra for the past 5 weeks....

Anyhow, I'll post more after a bit more driving. Service dept said "to ride it hard and rev it high" so that's what I'm gonna do!

vegas RX8

Zoom44 - I asked why and all I got back was that "they (service techs) ran all the tests that Mazda says to perform and that they must not have done it right so they have to do it all over again" "if it would've been a loose hose or cable then the engine light would come on". They will be replacing with a different reman. engine and that they will need more time to make sure they get it right. I told the service rep. to please take their time and that I didn't want to make them feel like I was rushing them, I just miss my car.

Yeah it stinks. I was so happy to feel the full Zoom of the car once again only to have it taken away AGAIN.

RedRotaryRX8 & Ibeagley79 - Sorry your rental cars suck. I guess that's something positive

I just hope they (and by they I mean dealership & Mazda) can fix it because I would definitely prefer to keep the car.

vegas Explorer .

zoom44

BS check you state laws- they have to tell you WHY they are doing something before they do it. they have to be able to tell why it stalled. if they cant why should they be the ones doing the work- they simply arent qualified

vegas RX8

Yeah I have to devote some time to check on the laws here in Nevada. I've just had a few other things going on right now (you know, life ) so I've been strapped for time. I'll keep on asking these guys what the deal is but honestly I'm limited to 2 dealerships here in the Vegas valley and they're both owned by the same people. And I don't want to **** them off because then they might just tell me that it's fixed when it really isn't and then I'll have to deal w/ Mazda USA which I imagine won't be fun at all. Thanks. vegas.

zoom44

yeah i know about the ownership deal there. its a bad situation

vegas RX8

Like I said since this all started for me, if they can fix it great. I'd love to keep the car but they are having such a hard time w/ it I'm starting to think it just isn't going to happen so I'll need to find something else that catches my eye. Sad but almost true. vegas.

vegas RX8

So this is what I found on a website today, this is for Nevada and is the section specific to repairs and attempts to repair.

NRS 597.630 Duties of manufacturer if motor vehicle cannot be conformed to express warranties.
If, after a reasonable number of attempts, the manufacturer, or its agent or authorized dealer is unable to conform the motor vehicle to any applicable express warranty by repair or correction and the defect or condition causing the nonconformity substantially impairs the use and value of the motor vehicle to the buyer and is not the result of abuse, neglect or unauthorized modifications or alterations of the motor vehicle, the manufacturer shall:


Replace the motor vehicle with a comparable motor vehicle of the same model and having the same features as the replaced vehicle, or if such a vehicle cannot be delivered to the buyer within a reasonable time, then a comparable motor vehicle substantially similar to the replaced vehicle; or


Accept return of the motor vehicle from the buyer and refund to him the full purchase price including all sales taxes, license fees, registration fees and other similar governmental charges, less a reasonable allowance for his use of the vehicle. A reasonable allowance for use is that amount directly attributable to use by the buyer before his first report of the nonconformity to the manufacturer, agent or dealer and during any subsequent period when the vehicle is not out of service for repairs. Refunds must be made to the buyer, and lienholder if any, as their interests may appear.


It is presumed that a reasonable number of attempts have been undertaken to conform a motor vehicle to the applicable express warranties where:


The same nonconformity has been subject to repair four or more times by the manufacturer, or its agent or authorized dealer within the time the express warranty is in effect or within 1 year following the date the motor vehicle is delivered to the original buyer, whichever occurs earlier, but the nonconformity continues to exist; or


The motor vehicle is out of service for repairs for a cumulative total of 30 or more calendar days within the time the express warranty is in effect or within 1 year following the date the motor vehicle is delivered to the original buyer, whichever occurs earlier, except that if the necessary repairs cannot be made for reasons which are beyond the control of the manufacturer or its agent or authorized dealer, the number of days required to give rise to the presumption must be appropriately extended.

(Added to NRS by 1983, 611)Ñ(Substituted in revision for NRS 598.766)

Sounds like I still have a couple tries to go. vegas.

knowledge1213

Hey guys....Trussville Mazda(Birmingham, AL) totally fucked up my car...I needed a clutch so i decided to go ahead and upgrade the clutch and flywheel.........something went wrong....when they drove it....a little washer or something from the set tool..came off and punched a hole in the engine.....so now i need a new engine. However they have been nice about it and replacing my act clutch and act prolite flywheel.........all free of charge.......I am nervous about them even able to do the work. I pray for better results this time around.

spieder

I guess my flash and plugs didn't work. I am taking it back in again because I started having extreme power loss again. Floored it would only do 75mph on the open highway. Will let you know what they say.

devious12

I finally have my car back last week after the 2nd engine was installed, the car seems like it runs very well, but the check engine light flashes and stays steady everyday, also the airbag light is still on. I'm going back in on Friday to find out what the issue is. Let's hope I don't need another new engine!

vegas RX8

Well I'm hoping to get my car back w/ its third engine tomorrow because I'll be headed out of town on Friday and I'd like to give it a test before the weekend. vegas.

devious12

Isn't there some type of law that protects us from getting 3 engines and not having the problem resolved. I know that the lemon law doesn't apply, (at least I don't think so), after 2 years or 18k miles we are out of the statue of limitations.

Does anyone know if there is any other action that can be taken if the engine has been replaced 3 times. Now I've had the car back for a week and it still seems as though it lacks power, even in the high rpm range.

I'd rather Mazda just buy the friggin thing back, I love the car and hate to part with it, but this is just rediculous! And now I'll need to fight with the service manager on the lack of power in order to find out if the engine needs to be replaced again. Last time the service manager said there was nothing wrong with the engine, and after fighting with them, finally they admitted that there was antifreeze in the engine!

poobah

2004 A/t had engine rebuilt at 45,000. The second engine lasted 1000 miles.
I am not sure if fault is bad parts or faulty labor.
(leaked coolant and overheated)
Now have 46,000 and the car is at the dealers getting another rebuilt engine.
I will go thru Vermont lemon law when the car is repaired.
Love the car But can't keep doing this. (two weeks without the car so far this time)

spieder

I wonder why so many second engines are failing so quick? It's tempting to blame the dealer for faulty install. I read on another thread I posted that quite a bit of oil is left in the coolers even when the engine is drained. Is it possible that debri from the chewed up engines is remaining in those coolers and then thrashing the hell out of the new engines? I wonder if the dealers should be flushing out those oil coolers as well?

Kinda off topic, but my friends Tercel overheated at 50k and blew the head gasket. After rebuilding the engine, the Toyota tech didn't hook the fuel pump up right and it blew fuel all over the engine bay. Thought the car was going to explode. I just don't particularly have faith in factory technicians because they are paid a flat fee to get the thing done no matter how long it takes them. They have an incentive to be fast.

vegas RX8

Where do I begin............... So if you've been keeping up w/ this thread then you know the saga that I've been going through w/ my 8 in regards to the loss of power/rough idle/stalling/dealer can't get anything right f'n sh*t someone just shoot me!!!!<------------(Sorry, that's me going nuts just trying to explain) Anyways, I get two messages on my cell phone around 10ish am this morning. First message "You're car is ready, I'll be here till 6........". Sweet, I'm happy as a mo'fo and proceed to press 7 and delete the message. Next message "Hey it's the dealership again and I guess your car isn't ready. Please give us a call."

"Holy crap, this can't be happening."

So I call them up and they tell me that the "engineers" had told them to release the vehicle because they had put engine #3 in and they test drove it for 30 miles and all checks out fine. Cool. But then when the service guy ordered the car wash and the car stalls, and stalls & stalls.

So now they don't know what the hell they're going to do, whether they have to replace the engine again or what. Service guy was really nice and even offered to switch me out of my Exploder into an Infinity but I'm used to the Expoder and don't want to drive 30 minutes across town just to wait in line for 15 minutes and drive back 30 minutes. I will call tomorrow morning to ask what they will be doing and how long I need to wait. My question is, Will this be the 3rd time attempting to fix the problem or is it still the 2nd because they never officially turned it over to me? I ask because Lemon Law kicks in after they attempt to fix it the 4th time.

A very, very, tired and frustrated vegas EXPLODER & the saga continues.....

zoom44

better check you lemon law- nevada has a time limit after which you cant lemon it

devious12

Went back to Mazda today and the check engine light flashing just needed to be reset, whenever a new engine is installed according to the service manager. We will see how long this one holds up, hopefully this is the last engine I need.

bleed gold

I've lurked on this board for a long time, particularly during my spell with new engine replacement...

2004 A/T w/ GT Package Velocity Red

Purchased used December 2004 w/ 9,000 miles

Current mileage: 47,000

Current MPG: 20-23 MPG (and no, I'm not granny-ing it)

Engine Replaced: about 37,000 (don't have paperwork in front of me)

Service Dealer for Replacement: North Park Mazda in San Antonio

Type of Replacement: Remanufactured

Length of Time Out: 3.5 weeks

Number of Times taken in before it was replaced: 3, advisor knew what would eventually happen, but had to rule out other fixes. He was totally cool about it though

Problems since:

No significant problems. Had a scare caused by a loose hose.

How I've changed my driving habits:

Once car warms up, I use the manual mode to bring the car over 6,000 RPM for about 15 seconds, regardless of where I'm driving. I repeat this same procedure about five minutes before I get home and don't plan any more driving for the day. (I do my fair share of stomping the accelerator between those two events) However, I'm quite thankful for the peace-of-mind of my extended warranty. We're finishing up a summer that was far hotter than last year, and the car has not so much as hiccuped.

Previous rotaries:

Drove my brother's old 7 a lot. He only had traditional car problems (i.e. starter fried itself at about 80K, AC work at 105K). Never a major mechanical failure... well, not until he cross-bred it with a chevy pickup that totalled it. The look on his face the first time I pulled up to his house in my 8 was priceless!

My take:

I think the factory may have had some quality control issues during the early manufacturing dates. This is common for most new-model vehicles. Our issue just happened to be engines. I don't believe there is any fundamental design flaw in the rotary engine.

Remember, this is a rotary engine... opposite in virtually every way of how a piston engine behaves. The idling will seem a bit rougher than we are used to (I think the 8 would have benefitted from some better engine mounts to combat complaints). However, anyone that rides in a conventional V-8 at high RPM vs. a rotary at high RPM will appreciate the smoothness and quiet.

I plan on keeping my 8 through the 100K warranty. At that point I will probably buy something else for daily driving and turn the 8 into a full-time plaything.

rotten42

yup.....X2

zoom44

vegas rx-8 ask them if mike allen had been around your car or one of his people. also check your pm's

vegas RX8

Zoom - just PM'd you back. Thanks.

vegas.

zoom44

no problem- just noticed you are a september 2003 build. i wonder if you first issue was th e"vegas" issue or something else. thre were a number of sept 2003 builds that had coolant seal failures caused by a casting issue. i wonder if yours was actually that instead!?

SOVINE

I looked at the date my rx-8 was built.... 09/03... erp.. My car has almost 55k miles on it but I haven't noticed anything wrong with it since I bought it with 49k miles... I also purchased an extended warranty. Do you think there is anything I should bring to the dealerships attention to "check" next time I bring it in for an oil change that they wouldn't normally inspect?... all these engine replacements scare me and I feel like I am jinxed with the 09/03 build. lol