I had an issue recently where my car was at a body shop having a front and rear fender installed. (This was back when it was very cold here in Va.) The tech's started the car and drove it inside the facility to do the work, and shut if off. It flooded (the only time this has ever happened to me) and NONE of the recommended remedies worked to correct the situation, even with the dealer tech on the phone guiding me through everything.

I ended up having it towed to the dealership ($200+) where they diagnosed it as flooded, then told me I needed to have the TSB for flooding performed (new starter, plugs, etc.) When I asked if that was the only way to fix it, they said yes.

The next part is where I'm a little pissed off. Since my car was out of warranty (high mileage), I had to pay for the TSB service. This cost me $1258.16 on top of the towing costs.

Considering the fact that the flooding issue is considered to be design flaw (by some people), and the fact that Mazda issued a TSB acknowledging that it is a problem and must be fixed in all vehicles that present the problem, why was I charged for the service?

Can any of the dealers here explain this to me? My dealership was less than cooperative on the matter.

Thanks.

 

Very interesting, the tech flooded it, what an *******, I'd make him pay for it!! I'm guessing you mean the auto body tech. Make him pay, I would never have payed that.....I would not have left the auto body shop without making sure they were gonna pay for all repairs (towing,TSB) Man that makes me mad just reading that, I would have flipped out if it was my car. I have a short fuse. As for the warranty, I'm not sure that your warranty has anything to do with the flooding issue at all. I thought they were just supposed to perform the TSB for free.

 

Unfortunate but yes, I work for the car companies and TSB's are not recalls. They are to help techs diag the cars faster and right the frist time. I don't agree with it, but I deal with it everyday. Save the paper work though because if it becomes a recall you can get a refund.

 

Call the Mazda USA 800 number and ask to have the repair covered. The worst they can do is say no, and they might say yes.

 

I'd have to agree, TSB is not the same as a recall. I wouldn't expect them to do it free outside of warranty. The battery and plugs, especially, are consumables; if you're past warranty you've gotten decent life from them.

But it's the price that is freaking me out!

Sorry it cost you so much. Depending on what you mean by "fix", not all of it may have been necessary. And most of it could be done DIY.

The garage de-flooding procedure is outlined in one of the TSBs, I believe. It's something that could reasonably be done DIY.

Plugs and battery are straightforward DIY.

The upgraded starter is nice, but IMO it's the plug and battery upgrades that do you the most good. Figure around $200 for plugs (sparkplugs.com) and a good battery.