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But even if I agree that all new model year cars do have bugs - I must totally disagree with you -it has EVERYTHING to do with the manufacturer standing behind the vehicle. Isn't that a main reason most people buy new cars in the first place? You expect less problems with a new car - and if problems do show up - the manufacturer will fix them at no additional charge.
mdaffron - So on one hand you are trying to say Mazda has great customer service - but then you go on to recommend taking Mazda to court and FORCE them to FIX or REPLACE a lemon car.
It seems to me that if Mazda has such great service after the sale no one would need to use the lemon law to get their car fixed.
As Forrest Gump said, "Stupid is as stupid does."
But perhaps more importantly, he also said:
"That's all I have to say about that."
I'm dropping this thread of discussion. Now.
Meade
So, if you're around Cincinnati, here's my ranking (best first) in terms of service: Jeff Wyler, Kings, Jake Sweeney. I've no experience with Kerry or Florence, though I've heard of some bad experiences with Kerry second-hand.
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Whitten Mazda.
Meade
http://community.webshots.com/album/229449960YkQeZd
Mazda is like a box of chocolates - you never know what you are going to get!
Personally, based on some seat time in a 3, I was impressed with the car as a big improvement over its predecessor, but not as a necessarily more desireable alternative to the current Corolla, nor the likely-much-improved Civic that will be out this fall. But I also believe that ownership experience is very much colored by dealer competence - if you have a good one, a car with solvable problems is still going to seem satisfactory, and if you have an incompetent dealer, nothing is going to make the car seem right.
It's both fair and reasonable for everyone with relevant experience to give the rest of us the benefit of their experience, both positive and negative. It's unclear to me why someone with positive views has to automatically be a "shill" who works for the company. Ease up.
I agree, and apologize to call him an employee of Mazda (actually I would feel very sorry for him if he was). Anyway, this was the 3rd Mazda in my family and my second. The second one a "second" year production Protege5', gave me trouble too, mainly in A/C and Transmission woes. I traded it even after Mazda Corp gave me a hard time with that one, because I did like Mazda Products and that car and felt I may have gotten a bad one. When this Mazda3 went down hill from the beginning, I ''did'' look into lemon laws, but they are very tricky in this state. The dealers after much "communication" would finally get it fixed on the 3rd or 4th try. And also, it was never in the shop for "consistent" days, they always managed to get it back to me on the 3rd or 4th day. And sometimes they would leave the ticket "open" so as to not have another repair 'logged' telling me to drive it for a week or so and bring it back. Long story, I did not qualify for "lemon" status because they always found a way around it because they knew I was looking into it. My lawyer said I really had no case because all of the problems were different from each other and the consistent days factor never came into play. Also, lemon laws do not cover rattles, noises and thuds in this state either.
And I would not even want an O5' model like he thought I should get after I met that couple trying to get rid of their problematic ''second year'' 2005 Mazda3. I am a busy guy, have to make a living and do not have the "time" to have to constantly haul a troubled car back and forth to the dealer to get things right. It was really ticking my boss off and it wears you out after awhile.
Look, I am sure there are good Mazdas out there, right now, I dont know where (at least for me). But to have two different models go bad on me and the company not back them up was more than I could stand. I had to tell the new-car seekers what is going on. I am in an area where I guess the dealers do not care. Our friend was in an area where they do care, hence why they worked so hard for him on that B2300 truck. But Mazda is simply "not" helping everyone in the way they helped him. Why? That is all I want to know. That "does" make a massive difference in the ownership experience. And if I had gotten service like that, I would not even be on here writing in this section. I would be in the other section sending worlds of praise.
But we have all said enough, let it rest. I am just living with the old saying...."Do me wrong once, shame on me. Do me wrong twice, shame on you." I sincerely hope everyone else loves their Mazdas, will keep them for years and years, buy em' again and again and never go through 'anything', not even a 'fraction' of what I went through. Trust me, if anyone has or does, then they will fully understand where I am coming from.
Take Care.
Lo
2. "Do me wrong once, shame on me. Do me wrong twice, shame on you."
I have an alternative to your No. 2 quote that may shed some light on your No. 1 quote:
"You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar."
Explanation:
Too many people in the world today want instant gratification. If they shell out their hard-earned money for something, then it darned well better work RIGHT -- or else! If the dealer can't (which is sometimes perceived as "won't") fix it right THE FIRST TIME, then it's gloves off!
My dealer admitted that I had a mysterious problem that would take some time to identify. (Turned out, it never WAS identified.) When my service adviser assured me that they had documented the problem, and therefore they wouldn't turn their back on it, I felt better that this long-term "teamwork" would go much farther than slinging arrows at him. And while yes, I did take the truck in for the next "whack" at the problem probably 15 times during the course of ownership, it was over a four-year period, which equates to less than four times a year. That's really not that inconvenient, since I usually took the opportunity to give it an oil change and tire rotation at the same time! Over time, I started finding my truck being returned to me fully washed and prepped as if it were a new car too!
Yes, some dealers may be easier to work with than others. Maybe my dealer was more willing to work with me since this truck was my third Mazda from them at the time, and I'd been a customer of that dealership for more than four years when my problem occurred.
To this day, I firmly believe that staying with the same dealership for 14 years has really been a successful move for me. Case in point: Back in January 2002, when I went there with my wife to purchase her 2002 Protege5 (which would be my fifth vehicle from the dealership), I went there armed with her current car's trade-in value and all the "fair market prices" and everything else I could get my hands on, ready to negotiate.
Their first offer beat everything I had in my hands, and we even got a few accessories (rear bumper step plate for one) thrown in at a 75 percent discount.
My service manager, who always greets me by name (and who let me take a brand-new Mazda3 home to play with for a weekend last May), has already told me what he'll sell me a new 3 for, whenever I'm ready. He's also advised me how far ahead of that time to call him with exactly what I want on the car so he can order it and have it at the dealership when I'm ready to make my purchase. He urged me to do that so the car will be on the lot and in their current inventory, so he can apply any offers pertaining to "limited to stock on hand" to the exact vehicle I ordered.
Sometimes it pays off in the long run to keep your temper in check and play the game in the short run.
Meade
When a Mazda3 owner posts about a problem and then someone responds with how great Mazda is it is an automatic conflict.
Your -dealer competence- remark is on target.
"Fool me once?" Twice?
I think the operative term here is "fool." I was never hoodwinked by my dealer. They shared everything up front and I knew the hand they were playing from the first time I had the problem. Seems the other guy's less-than-trustworthy dealer tried to mess with him from day one. If mine had done that, I would've gone *dealership* shopping (for a new service department) long before I went *car* shopping for a replacement car. By opting for the latter, you take a big depreciation hit in the wallet -- and it should be the course of last resort.
Short answer: Nothing says you have to take your Mazda back to the service department at the dealership you bought it from. If they're messing with you, take it elsewhere.
(My truck did visit Quality Mazda in Petersburg a few times when I first thought I was getting the run-around from Whitten, but then I realized Quality was a misnomer! It wasn't long before I was back at Whitten with my truck problems. Maybe that's part of what made them extend the helping hand, because they knew I wasn't afraid to go shopping!)
Meade
I will say that these bad dealers are not helping Mazda at all with improving their brand image. I will also say that this is not just a Mazda issue. I hear stories everyday about car company X and how they will not fix somebody's car. I personally think that if there is something wrong with the car then any dealer in their network should fix it, no questions asked. I had one dealer refuse to fix my rear brakes (common P5 problem) but the dealer I use now (this is why I switched to them) did it no questions asked. Actually they warned me of the issue before working on my car. For that, they will get my service and if we buy another Mazda, they will get my sale.
I guess buying a car today is more than picking the car you like but also finding the dealer that will support you. A lot of people are more interesting in getting the lowest price possible, I will pay a couple of bucks more to ensure I get good service. Should it have to be like this, no, but this is the world we are in today. Good luck to all of those with their new cars.
Mazda has great service - &
If they don't fix my car - take them to court and hammer them with the lemon law- &
Be nice - you can catch more flies with honey
Actually if you really want to catch flies there is something better than honey - and this substance can also be used to describe Mazda's level of customer service.
Your instant gratification remark is over the top - I have been dealing with these problems for OVER A YEAR NOW - Fix it right the first time you say - I have made 13 trips to the dealer for warranty problems in less that 12 months. Yes - I paid for a new car - but - shame on me for expecting a new car to - have an AC system that actually cools my car on a hot day - have a transmission that shifts smoothly - have brakes that don't make loud grinding noises.
But of all your half baked comments one stands out. You say "And while yes, I did take the truck in for the next "whack" at the problem probably 15 times during the course of ownership, it was over a four-year period, which equates to less than four times a year. That's really not that inconvenient"
Most people would see almost 4 trips to the dealer per year as a very bad thing - most would also see 4 trips to the dealer per year as VERY inconvenient. With your expectations for customer service so low I can now understand why you think Mazda provides good service. I on the other hand expect more and as far as Mazda customer service goes see nothing but flies!
Disparaging remarks about each others posts will quickly shut this forum down..
Just a little friendly advice..
regards,
kyfdx
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Meade
It's a car, and it's having problems. All car makers put out a lemon once in a while, and Mazda is no exception (I think we BOTH can agree with that!).
How much you let it affect you is the decision you alone have to make.
I hope you find something you enjoy, because after all, that's what's most important.
Meade
I really feel everyone on here is right in their own way. I do. There have been good points made by everyone....yes, everyone! You have good, you have bad. That is life.
I did take a major hit on getting rid of it, but only as the last resort as mentioned above.
But when I mentioned "much" communication, It was with a cool head believe it or not. I know anger with cars and dealerships gets you absolutely zilch. I knew them all by first name and they knew me by first name as well. Heck, I even brought them a bakers dozen of bagels at one point when they did finally fix one of the nastier problems after 4 tries. But still, they (my purchasing dealership) and "YES" the SECOND dealership I dealt with still gave me hard times on most of the other issues. And it took many, many tries to get problems acknowledged and "maybe" solved. Some of the times, the car would not duplicate the problem while at the dealership...Not their fault I guess, but still eventually a lot of the issues showed their ugly heads when I was nowhere near a dealer. It made me wonder, did they try or was that the easy way out? That gets exhausting...I know all of you know what I mean who have been in that situation.
I guess all in all, I ended up with two "haunted" Mazda cars that drove both them and me crazy. The only thing left to do, was get out. And I did. But I just cannot help the feeling that I was really and truly let down. And that is why I will not buy Mazda again. That is natural and that is life. But, on that note, I am glad to hear some of you have had a good time with your cars and dealers, that is good to hear that some of them are capable of it. But not all dealers are created equal no matter how much they may act like your buddy.
Time to stop this you all. Cant we just all get along?......
If your car is under the manufacturer warranty, the shop gets paid from the manufacturer. If you have a service agreement, they get paid by your carrier. If you have nothing, they get paid by you.
I mention this because a common thread I glean from some of these posts is that Mazda refuses to fix the problem you are having. It really doesn't work like that. There isn't a guy on the other end of the phone saying "no, no, no" like the commercial.
Generally speaking, the technician will call Mazda because it is an issue they haven't had at their store and the on board computer (black box) isn't registering a problem and they haven't been able to get the car to reproduce the problem. Please don't be surprised that they don't fix a problem they can't identify. If he doesn't fix your car...he/she does not get paid.
On the flip side I hear the frustration of those that have an issue not being resolved. It is a pain in the @*($^&#*. I agree. But to blame Mazda for poor customer service is not a logical conclusion.
The tech understands that if he cannot find something to fix, he does get paid.
The dealer understands that if they don't fix a customers problem, they don't make money, they lose the customer and they get a bad reputation.
The manufacturer understands that if they don't fix a problem, they get a bad rep and they don't sell cars. They don't get endorsements from consumer reports (and the like).
Put yourself if their shoes for just a moment and see how frustrating it must be to be given a problem to solve at your job, but every where you turn you can't figure out why the problem occurs. You can't fix it and thus you don't get paid.
Techs put their heads under the hood as a profession because they enjoy working independently and sadly aren't usually the best people to deal with customer service issues on a personal level.
My suggestion to anyone who is having an issue that cannot be replicated is to ask your shop to drive your car for a few days.
BTW, I was provided a nice, shiny, brand-new 626 ES to drive while my truck was there. Sure, it wasn't a Mazda6 (der, they didn't HAVE Mazda6's back then), but it was definitely a step up from my $10,500 B2300 5-speed!
Oh -- and I was about 15K miles out of warranty at this point.
Hmmm folks, maybe I found a real oddity in the Mazda dealership network. If you'd like directions to Whitten or a phone number, just ask!
Meade
We elected not to buy another of that brand for a while. Plenty of nice looking cars from other manufacturer's to try. Perhaps someday their reliability will return.
The manufacturer (Mazda in this case) must authorize the dealer to make the repair - if no authorization is given then the dealer will not get paid. The dealership does not have a blank check to make whatever repairs they want.
The Mazda3 had (maybe still has) problems with its rear brakes - so I will use this as an example. (IMO the AC system defect is in the same boat). I would bet Mazda authorized some repairs when the car first started being sold - brake pads and rotors were being replaced - but the problem returned. So Mazda stopped authorizing replacement of these parts. During this time - dealers would tell customers that the car is operating as designed and that the condition was normal. Mazda was working on a solution to the problem - but did not want to tell customers that - because they were not sure what they wanted to do about it. They did come out with a procedure to "FIX" the grinding brakes - I had it done to my car - the noise went away for a few weeks - but has now returned. The strange part is - I have been told that grinding brakes are normal - then told they had a fix for the PROBLEM - now I am told that the grinding noise is normal again. The fix did not solve the problem - Mazda has made a decision to NOT fix this condition - so if a dealer replaces these items on my car - there is a good chance Mazda will not pay for the work.
Now sometimes a dealership will agree to fix something even though the manufacturer will not agree to pay for it. It is - like you posted - a good business decision to keep a customer happy.
not as good as blizzak on ice but still acceptable and a lot less cash.
When I called they said I would have a loaner car and it would take 2.5 hrs including the sensor.
I showed up at OS Mazda in Ontario, Canada..
They told me it would be an entire day job as they were backlogged and were not sure they could give me a loaner.
I finally got one and spent the day in this city as I live an hour from it, and came back at the end of the day. Usually they make you sign a work order before going ahead, in this case they did not. They rang up the final bill for...285 dollars???
They had added a 116 dollar brake job plus 35 bucks for the kit...and when I had my snow tires installed less than 2 months ago the tire company had said my brakes looked brand new.
They proceeded at the mazda dealership to "clean and sand" my brakes that looked and worked like new anyways, and it drove the bill from 77.50 to 283.50...
Unless you are having any serious issues with your 3, i would suggest not agreeing to their 24k/12month service...
Total RIP.
I am mailing Mazda Canada a complaint as to them not going over the service order or having me sign it ahead of time or I would never have had this service done in the first place.
It should not take very much effort to pull it apart - I never took the part all the way off only moved it back a few inches.
just wondering...why did you have to get the purge control solenoid valve replaced? I will be approaching the 15K service soon.
Thanks.
68mpolo
waygrabow - The AC leak - did they tell you where it was leaking? Was the special order part the defuser?
I have noticed if I take the protective caps off (both high and low side) I get a small PSSST sound (just when I take the caps off - not continuously) - my valves have slight leaks - IMO the valve should not leak - the cap is in place to keep dirt out - not keep the refrigerant in. At one point I though this was the cause of my AC problems - but the refrigerant level is not low.
Never was told where the A/C was leaking. The special part was the difuser plate. The A/C has been my only disappointment on this car. I almost never use A/C here where we live. We don't have A/C in our home either. But if we go on a trip to lower altitudes, that could change.
I don't want to use K&N..
I noticed it for the first time about a month ago - but now I can hear it on ever bump.
Anyone else having any noise from the front suspension? Sounds like a bad strut - but if I push on the front of the car - making in rock up and down - it seems solid.
Daryl
I think I experienced the same problem as you. I would hear a clunking sound coming from the front suspension but only from the driver side and the noise was very prominent when I'd go over speed bumps or up my driveway. The only way I would not hear it is to go rrrreeeaaallllyyyy sssllllloooowww over the bumps. I brought it in to my mazda dealership and they diagnosed it as a malfunctioning right front bushing and control arm. Took them 3 days to get the part and fix the car...drove it around the dealership and still had the noise so I had to bring it back in.
The second time around, they had to replace all the rubber bushings/plates on the body side of the car, replace the front bush stabilizer, and also the control arm on the left side. Took them 5 days to get the parts and complete the repair. All under warranty though.
They did tell me that it has no affect on car safety.
I don't seem to have that problem anymore, I've just go over speed bumps and such a lot slower now.
Hope this helps.
68mpolo
Have you put this many miles on your Mazda3? Is your car running poorly? Or are you a maintenance freak?
I have not found an air filter either - even though I have tried - don't need one yet - since I just hit 12 months and 10.5K miles - but I like to keep one in inventory.
I have also tried to find new windshield wipers - I like to replace the whole wiper - not just the rubber blade. None of the auto parts stores even have the Mazda3 listed in their book. I measured them - drivers side is 21 and passenger is 19. I can't find anyone that has a 21 inch blade - But I took a 22 inch one off of my Tahoe and it fits great. I did find a 19 inch blade but since it is a little different set up it is about 1/2 inch to long - it would hit the windshield trim. So I guess I will have to go with 18.
Seems strange to use one blade that is an inch longer / and the other side I need to use one an inch shorter - than what originally came on the car.
I also have a creaking noise when I go over speed humps - but it seems to come and go - I don't think the two are related - but can't really be sure.
I plan to take my car in as soon as the weather warms up - hope to get my defective AC fixed - I will have them take a look at it then.
Glad to hear it is not a safety issue -
I have no complaints about the wipers, but will think about the quality of the speakers for a while and maybe upgrade them.
I can't get an answer about the wattage of the stereo. Anyone know? It's the radio with the 6 cd changer.
Thanks, Daryl
The other night the CD player just started not being able to track CDs during an hour-long drive home. The next day it was fine. It wasn't particularly cold out that night or anything, it didn't get better as the car warmed or anything.
Anybody ever have this happen? It has been fine since.
Thanks.
At 20,300K the rear brakes started to grind. I immediately brought in. I explained to them that i asked that they be checked at every service check and they always reported back 'no problems.'
I have now been told that Mazda is working on a fix and that the dealerships have been told not to replace rear pads/rotors until further notice. The service advisor has told me to hold on and wait until they get the go ahead from Mazda to replace the brakes with the proper parts, and that despite being over 20k my they will consider this a warranty issue.
In the meantime I move further away from the 20k full warranty.
any advice?
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