A few months ago my RX-8 would not start. Mazda replaced/upgraded the starter under warranty. They said my battery was OK however. Three months later, my battery is having issues and will not start when its cold. Mazda dealer says it has intermittant issue and needs replacement. They say not covered however (Mazda pays 25% of cost). This seems wrong, as I am certain battery and starter issues were related. Is there anything I can do?

 

I forgot how it works but it really depends on how old is the battery

If you have to pay outa your pocket I suggest you to get some aftermarket battery. If u dont mind the weight and I want the strongest possible. Optima is the one you want.(almost 200 bucks) or else get something with higher cold cranking temp will do (about 80+ bucks)

 

Hmmm. I've never had a battery with intermittent problems but I guess it's possible.

"Wear items" such as battery, brake pads, etc. are often pro-rated. For example, if you consider a reasonable battery life to be 3 years and someone comes in with a dying battery after 2 years then it's fair to say they got 2/3 of the expected life and charge appropriately for the replacement.

 

when they upgraded the starter they were supposed to update the battery.. a tsb is out for this..

beers

 

True, if it's an older car (build date prior to june 2004) with original battery. Otherwise, the TSB calls for replacement only if it fails testing.

Here is a link to the TSB

http://www.finishlineperformance.com...4-05-1448e.pdf

 

yes,

that is a tsb. more than one.. if they had to upgrade the starter. they would have to upgrade the battery... it was a triple play...

battery, plugs, starter...

my sisters late 05 build got all three..

beers

 

I beleive they should have replaced the battery when they replaced starter. Dealer says battery passed test when starter and plugs changed 3 months ago, so Mazda would not replace it. Battery dead now so I had no choice but pay and replace. I would love to complain to Mazda's national rep now, but don't have email address.

 

the phone # is in your owners manual..

beers