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1. Rattle in instrument cluster. This occurred at all speeds, but was most noticeable at highway speeds. The dealer removed the cluster, secured some wires and added foam padding.
2. Rattle behind/around glovebox. The dealer removed the glovebox and added padding.
3. Noisy brakes on cold mornings, during the first or second applications. The dealer replaced the saddles on one set (I can't remember if they were F or R). I hear that a new TSB is coming out soon. In any event, the squeal is gone.
4. Stiff, creaking clutch pedal. One dealership tried greasing the spring/assembly. This lasted for only 3 days. My hone dealership (I believe) had to replace the entire clutch pedal assembly. The clutch is much softer now than it was on delivery.
That's about it...it's taken about 8 trips to the dealership to get the car in good condition...I knew that I took a risk when I purchased a car during it's first model year....
In any event, I'm pretty happy. This is my third Mazda; I've previously owned a '95 Protege and a '96 626 V6. When I was on the new car market last fall, I test drove the Civic EX, Corolla, etc. I also test drove the Mazda 6 V6 twice. The 3 blew the Civic and Corolla out of the water. Although the 6 was more luxurious, the 3 was much more fun to drive....
My noise was coming from the plastic part of the dash that sticks out over the gauges. I tried stuffing foam under it - noise would go away for a week or two - but would always return.
If you pull on this piece of plastic it will - without much effort - come part way off - this will leave about a 3 inch gap and you will see the 3 little notches that are designed to hold this piece in place. I stuck a small (about the size of my little finger) piece of foam directly into the notch so that when the parts snap together it makes for a much better fit.
I have seen plastic toys from the dollar store that had better quality. This thing was designed to rattle.
I was going to glue it in place - but maybe this part needs to come off if you ever need to replace a burned out light bulb. If my rattle comes back I will replace the foam with double sided sticky tape.
I bought my 2004 Mazda3 (with an automatic transmission) back in late June. About a week ago I started noticing a hesitation when I would try to accelerate. Each day the problem got worse and by Wednesday of this week it was almost undrivable. I could only get it up to 50 or so on the highway, unless I was going downhill and could get pick up more momentum. The more I would try to accelerate the more the car would jerk around. The day it broke down the RPM jumped up to around 6, almost in the red and stayed there for probably 10 seconds while I was on the highway. Later that night, the automatic transaxle light came on so I pulled over and had it towed to the dealer. The dealer is telling me it needs a new transmission already and it doesn't even have 9,000 miles yet. Of course they are replacing the transmission at no cost, but my biggest concern is if I caused any permanent damage to the car while I drove it that week under those conditions, especially the strain I put on the engine when it almost redline for that short period of time. I would like to hear anyone's opinion on this and also what would cause a transmission to go bad so quickly. Sorry this was so wordy!
This sort of failure, while rare, is not unheard of for any make. I work on Toyotas at a dealership and on very rare occasions even this paragon of reliability lets a bad engine or trans through. It's no doubt a manufacturing defect, somehow a bad part got into your transmission during assembly, rather than an inherent design problem as was the case with some of the Ford and Chrysler automatics.
Since there are no widespread reports of trans troubles with the Mazda 3 you can without doubt put this down to a fluke and should have no concern about any ongoing problems.
I asked the service manager what was going on and was told that Mazda had found a problem with the 3 and were replacing the parts when they came in for service.
I asked if there had been a recall issued and was told that it wasn't a safety issue and that it was easier for them to do it this way.
I don't know what parts were replaced but I am concerned.
Anyone else know what is going on???
I was in to the dealer yesterday to buy an extra key (that will work in the ignition as well as open the door) that I always keep wired or magnetted to my cars for emergencies and was surprised to find out that the key costs $28, and the programming of it costs $97 and takes over an hour! Does this sound right? Are there aftermarket companies making and programming them?
I'm seriously looking into buying KN's air filter and cold air intake system for my '04 Mazda3. The prices quoted are $300+. Sounds high according to a friend who is very familiar with KN products. Has anyone made this switch yet? If so, what did it cost and how easy was the installation.
Thanks, Daryl
I read on a different forum that Purolator was marketing the wrong filter and causing major damage in some cases. Fram doesn't list them in their catalogs or website at all, even tho the Mazda3 has been out for a year and a half.
I have paid through the nose for keys with chips in them before - thinking I needed a spare set and never even used them once.
If you ever loose your keys you can use the key code to have Mazda make a key. This code should have been included with your keys when you purchased your car - it is a small metal thing about 1/3 the size of a wooden match. It has the code stamped on it. If you did not get this you should find out from your dealer what the code is for your car.
I would not waste any $ on a K&N filter - I have known several people who have put them on cars and trucks - they make your engine sound "COOL" (if you like a loud sucking sound coming from your engine) but as far as helping performance they did nothing. They are also (IMO anyway) a major pain in the rear to clean and re-oil - at least compared to a regular air filter.
Why not spend your $ on something that has a better chance of improving the performance of your engine - like one of those big foam cowboy hats - or maybe some fuzzy dice to hang from the rear view mirror!
With all due respect to z71's post, this is something I'm just looking into, and wouldn't do until spring when it's warm enough to do it outside (Illinois) and I have a friend to help.
Daryl
But, when filling up, I've found that I really don't care as much about mileage because the cost difference at fillups isn't big enough to get worried about. If I went for high mileage everytime I drove the car, it wouldn't be as much fun. Actually, it wouldn't be the same car.
Daryl
I bought a production date 01/04 Mazda 3Hatch on April/04. I love the car but I've lately had to bring it in for a few things.
1. A creaking noise cming from the front wheels when I go over speed bumps at 5 mph--Ive brought it in to get it checked out and it took them 3 days to repair the control arm on the right side(that's what the repair guy told me)....drove it over some speed bumps in the auto mall and the noise was still there so I had to bring it back a few days later...NOW its going to take them 5 days to get the parts and repair some "bushings."
I'm thinking I need to slow down more when I go over speed bumps.
2. There is a clicking/tapping noice coming from the shifter console when I depress the brake while the car is idling in park- dealer told me that is a "characteristic" of most 3's and the noise is just a little louder in mine.
Has anyone had the same problems. Thanks.
That's a nice claim, but it's not true! You "might" get a small boost in HP, but nowhere near 10%. They couldn't make enough of them if that were true. You would be lucky to get 10% from a cold air intake and a high performance exhaust at a cost of several hundred dollars.
I put a K&N panel filter in my 2002 Protege and it does sound a little better and maybe gave me a 1% HP boost.
Daryl
--i just bought it, and don't have 600 break-in miles on it yet
--it's been cold and snowy with lots of crap on the road
--i've had to use the defog a lot because of the wet weather
i expect it will improve dramatically once i get over 1k miles and have an oil change.
I tried to find a place to put jack stands under the Mazda3 but did not have much luck.
.
Thanks for the reply. This is my first new car and I appreciate all the info I can learn about it in this forum. I'd just never heard that clicking sound before (and if it was there it wasnt that loud). The 04 Neon loaner that I got doesn't seem to have it. Anyway,I am hopefully going to be able to pick up my Mazda3 today after 6 days in the shop.
You can truly appreciate driving a Mazda3...as they say "absence makes the heart grow fonder."
Thanks.
68mpolo
The combination of relatively short gearing, 75 mph average, and lower-energy winter fuel means less than optimal mileage. Same conditions in the summer would bring you up maybe 1-2 mpg, which again, would be well within my expectations for this car at these speeds.
The only info I have been able to find is on the 05 Focus, and it appears it has not been fixed in that platform.
My husband works for Bridgestone/Firestone and gets a discount so as soon as I can get to their store i'm getting something new.
One question though, would it be better to just get 4 new all-season tires or just find 4 rims and get actual snow tires? We dont have a garage so I dont really know where I would store them. (I had 4 All-seasons on both of my previous cars and they were fine.)
I have 3 S sedan with the dreaded 10/2003 build date. So I have had more than my share of problems. The big problems that are still not resolved - grinding rear brakes, hard shifting (1st-2nd gear) automatic tranny and the biggest pain - a defective AC system.
I had thought about taking a test drive in a 2005 model on a 95+ degree day - take my thermometer along and see if I get any colder air out of a 2005. Then see if I can get Mazda to also recognize the problem (if my air temp is like 10 degrees warmer) and fix my AC system. The second option would be to trade my lemon 2004 off on a 2005 Mazda3- but that just does not seem like a very bright solution. I have looked at almost every car on the market (under $30K anyway) and really don't see any that I would rather drive - but since Mazda has treated me so poorly it would be hard to jump into another Mazda. Kind of like - cheat me once shame on you - cheat me twice shame on ME. I now know for a fact that - once Mazda gets your money you are on your own - they could not care less if you have a good ownership experience.
Since the temps are kind of cool - I will just have to wait.
14 different interior rattles affecting the dashboard, passenger seat, rear seat,clutch arm, sunroof glass, sunroof sunshade, headliner, rear hatch, rear cargo management system, door panels and all 4 windows...
It went in (many times) mechanically to have....
all rear brakes replaced, front brake calipers replaced, entire hydraulic system replaced on the clutch (and it was still messed up), replaced clutch switch,all rear shocks and springs replaced, rear hatch struts replaced, replacement of drive shaft bolts-they just "fell" off for no apparent reason according to the dealer, front suspension work, front left hub work, a/c work and more....
When i sold it a few days ago(at a "loss" of course...I did not care, just wanted to get away from this piece of junk), the transmission was screwing up, the clutch was still nuts, and the power steering was acting erratic like it was "not" power steering and more groans and creaks and rattles out of the front end.....
I dealt with two different Mazda dealers and they either would not or could not fix it and the Mazda 1-800 Customer Service Number Reps were absolutely "rude and nasty" to me....It is true about Mazda Reps,,,they dont care...They kept telling me..."you need to take it up with the dealer sir"....What a joke. What good is a warranty if they will not or cannot fix it? And what good is a 1-800 Customer Service number if all they do is rudely tell you to take it up with the dealer?
I will "NEVER , EVER" buy a Mazda product again.
Good riddance and anyone considering Mazda Products???....Run for your lives and do not even give them one penny for anything they sell. I obviously have gone with another manufacturer for my automotive needs.
And also, when you look at this website and other owner websites, I am "not" the only one with issues on Mazdas.
Good Luck''
My experience:
1992 Protege LX: 28,000 miles, no problems
(Until it was totaled, that is, LOL)
1992 Protege LX: 83,000 miles, no problems
2000 Protege ES: 87,700 miles, no problems
2002 Protege5: 42,000 miles, no problems
I did own a 1994 B2300 pickup which was plagued by engine pinging, BUT: (a) Mazda extended the bumper-to-bumper warranty for the life of the truck after not being able to diagnose the cause, and (b) I drove the truck 114,000 miles and it never had any problems other than a constantly pinging engine, which I later found out was a trait of the poorly designed 2.3-liter, 2-spark-plug-per-cylinder, SOHC piece-a-you-know-what Ford engine that was in it. (Same engine that was in the 1980s-1990s Tempos -- go do some research and you'll see!) Live and learn, but it never left me stranded in more than five years and 100K miles of driving.
But as for the Japanese-built Mazdas I've owned, I've had zero problems with any of them in a combined quarter-million miles. Yep, I gave them another chance after the pickup, and I've had almost 130,000 miles of impeccable quality as a result.
I'm sure everyone could tell you a "never again" story about one bad apple ruining the whole barrel. But there are lemons, and you kind of got what you asked for ... you purchased nearly the first off-the-line of a totally new vehicle with a totally new engine. I hate to say this, but go back and look at my postings from a year ago. OK, you ready? Here goes.
I TOLD YOU SO.
Meade
P.S. BTW, what do you have now?
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But yes, the B2300 was a rebadged Ranger, right down to the 4x6-inch Blue Oval Ford logo embossed in the metal front suspension to the Ford part numbers on all the engine parts, to the MOTORCRAFT parts, hoses, wiring harnesses, battery, spark plugs, shocks, and nearly everything else in, on and under the vehicle! Heck, I even had to replace the oil filler cap once ... and I had to go to a Ford dealership to get it because Mazda wanted a couple of days to get one ... I guess an oil-filler cap ain't exactly a common replacement, but, er, well, when ya need one, ya really can't drive without one, ya know?
Yep, for me, I guess it's "never another Ford product." But I will say that Mazda North America not only accommodated me; they sent a rep out to my dealership TWICE to meet me and talk with me about the problem, and once my warranty expired at 50K miles, they kept on meeting with me every few months to try yet another "fix" -- at one point keeping the truck for two weeks and spending more than $2,000 on a remachined head, all new sensors, new catalytic converter, etc. (I still have the receipt) -- all at no cost to me. (This was at about 65,000 miles.) And of course, every time they kept my truck, I got to test-drive another Mazda product as a loaner!
Why did they not just give me a new truck? Well, for one thing, the symptom (pinging) was never enough to cause a driveability problem, and I was more satisfied with a "warranty for life" than with taking a chance on the same problem all over again. Besides, by the time I really got upset about it, I was already looking at a zoom-zoomy, Hiroshima-built, Japanese-all-the-way Protege ... and I didn't want to be in a Ford product for another five years!!!
Would you?
They are Dunlop Graspic's and the improvement is noticeable. I was surprised when I took off the Goodyears and noticed there is a M&S designation.(mud and Snow) on them. I think that means they consider them all season tires. So based on this and various other comments I think the way to go is with genuine snows like Blizzaks. Good luck finding rims. Tire Rack is sold out for the season and won't get any until next winter.
I know that there are major differences between a refrigerator and an auto AC system - but the basics are the same. My new refrigerator keeps my freezer at 5 degrees - and it is not even at the lowest setting. Many times last summer when the temps in Houston were close to 100 degrees + very high humidity - the AC in my Mazda3 would be blowing 58 degree air - sure it felt cool - but no way are you going to cool a car - on a 100 degree day with 58 degree air.
mdaffron
You are completely missing the point - again. Seems like we had the same conversation last summer. So you have had 4 Mazda car that gave you no problems - so back in 1994 Mazda tried many times to fix your lemon PU. This is 2005 and Mazda will not fix MY car. I don't care what they did 10 years ago and really no one buying a new car today should care much about what they did 10 years ago. What people should care about is what is Mazda doing to help its customers TODAY.
Ford purchased a larger stake in Mazda back in 1996 - at the time I think Mazda was bleeding so much red ink that they almost did not survive - do you think that maybe they (Ford) changed a few things - like maybe trying to cut back on the expense of caring about your customers.
One more thing - your comment about not buying a new first year model - in some strange way it sounds like even you accept the fact that Mazda will not stand behind the warranty on their cars - like - better wait until they get all the bugs worked out because once you buy it Mazda will not be giving you any support.
Well "mdaffron", you really should know something; "first year model" or not, does not work if the company will "not" help you with "any" year they make and are robot-like in always saying "we cannot duplicate the problem" or it "is normal" or "take it up with your dealer sir". Also, when I traded my car in, there was a couple there trading their "second year production 05' Mazda3". They told me they have owned it only two months and it has been in the shop 9 times. They got the same treatment. They have "had it" with their "sub-par" product and they have "had it" with Mazda Customer Service. Luckily, they were in a financial position where they could afford the loss of value to get rid of it,,but what about all those other poor souls? So quit taking up for Mazda or people on here are really going to suspect that you "are a employee of Mazda".
Regardless of "year made", Customer Service is Customer Service, and if you treat people rudely, you have to "pay the cost". "Thank-you" internet. Before, the car companies got away with it,,,not now thanks to websites where future owners can see the "real picture" and the car companies still have not realized it. They better because......
I personally work for a major university on the East coast. I have sent out a massive group email about my problems with Mazda to staff, faculty and students. It worked! I have received dozens and dozens of e-mails back "thanking" me for the information and now I (last time I counted) have stopped two-dozen Mazda sales and have prevented many of them from even considering Mazda now. And the number of sales I have stopped continues to climb. Mazda owes me an apology, and until they give me one, I will continue to tell my story and stop future sales.
I am glad you like your Mazda, I liked one I owned a few years back as well(and it "was" a first year model). But they have changed and we can all probably thank big money and greed for that.
Isn't the Town Hall allowed to present both sides, or are we only allowed to present the negative?
All I'm saying is, it's hard to believe that Mazda is slamming the door on one owner when they opened it wide to help another with his problems.
No, my friends, I don't work for Mazda. (I wish I did.) I'm just a lowly management-level employee at a business in Central Virginia. I happened to fall in love with the Protege back when I left college and needed a small "econobox," and was about to settle for a Civic when I happened to pass by a Mazda dealership. I'd driven everything else and couldn't believe the features and performance the Protege had for the price. It's still a leader in those categories, and I'm sorry some of you have had problems with the 3. I don't forgive Mazda for its first-year woes, but I have seen Mazda make things right and I do believe they are capable.
Just don't think the grass is greener everywhere else. We had a 1995 Chevrolet Cavalier with a known, published head gasket problem that was acknowledged by GM with a recall. Little did we know it wasn't the head gasket that was the problem, but a poorly designed head that didn't seat correctly on the block. Yes, GM replaced the first head gasket (a $600 job), but when the car started leaking coolant like a sieve another 8,000 miles later, GM Customer Service flat out told me, "The warranty was good for ONE head gasket replacement." We paid for the next one. Another 5,000 miles went by and the car blew its THIRD head gasket in less than 50,000 miles. We decided to trade the car for the Protege5 at that point.
If anyone else is having these kinds of unresolved problems with their Mazda3s, I wouldn't give up so easily. I would've taken Mazda to court with a Lemon Law case back in 1995 had the troubles with my old pickup started within my state's lemon law time criteria. They didn't, and so the lemon law was no option for me. (In Virginia you have to have had the same problem at least three times in the first 18 months of ownership -- mine's problems didn't surface until it had 8,000 miles on it, and its third visit for the same problem didn't happen until it was almost two years old.) If your 3 has had the same problems repeatedly since Day One, you've got a textbook Lemon Law case in any state.
I would highly recommend visiting:
http://www.nationallemonlawcenter.com/
Taylor, it sounds like you may have had a lemon-law case that you should have pursued. I actually talked to a lemon law attorney way back in 1995 about my Mazda, at length -- to the point that we explored taking Mazda to court on a Magnuson-Moss Breach of Warranty Act case. (Still sound like I work for Mazda, btw?) But unlike a lemon-law case, that kind of case would've cost me more than I had in the truck and the outcome was uncertain. So I decided to take Mazda up on their "Till Kingdom Come Warranty" offer.
Did you talk to a lawywer before you gave up? You might have wound up with a problem-free 2005 model and a refund of the payments on your 2004 up to this point.
Ooops! Guess I sound like I work for a law firm now.
Meade