Topic: A baby lemon?

[saint11]

So my parents have a mazda6 I4. Bought last November.  

3 days after we bought it. Alternator blew up.  

Last Saturday. The check engine light turns on. We turn in the car on monday. Turns out the throttle body is jammed and they fix it. They unjam it and return the car to us on the same day saying the part will come next week and it is totally safe to drive the car.  

Wednesday. Check engine light goes on. Same symptoms before! My dad pulls over and calls me to drive it home. He was on the highway going 100 all of the sudden the car shifts gears and does all this funny stuff and he ends up in first goin 20km/h. I would say he was lucky that he made it to the side. How could mazda send the car back to us like that! I'm going to call them tommorow. Anybody got any interseting things i should say or ask? Also...they're courtesy cars are booked till next week. They said you must book a courtesy car. HOw the hell do I know if I need a courtesy car in advance if my car breaks down. Totally ridicolous. Now i have to take the bus!

Signature mazda in the richmond automall - Don't go there. They also lied about replacing a battery for us after the alternator blew.

[inco]

Maybe that car was built on a Friday. Maybe on the 13th?

[davidm]

Best Mazda dealerships in the lower mainland are Wolfe on Boundry and Morrey in the North Shore Automall.  If you want to go for non-dealership service check out www.eunos.ca .

Seems like the 6's and 3's have been having a bunch of problems recently.

[Shnak]

Seems like the 6's and 3's have been having a bunch of problems recently.

Ford influence possibly...

Or it might just be first-year problems... Let's hope 2005 models won't have as much problems...

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Why does everyone bring up Ford? Frig, Ford's given Mazda capital, and if anything Mazda's been the one giving Ford know-how.

The C1 platform was a collaborative effort: Volvo did the safety and body, Mazda did the tranny and engines, and Ford did the suspension and dynamics. Most of the work was done in Europe, and we pretty much all agree they have superior vehicles there - even the Fords are pretty friggen great. They're built in Japan - the only small cars besides the Echo and Impreza (that I can think of - where's the Lancer made?) that still are.

I don't know what's up with the Mazdas, but certainly something is. Hearing things about transmissions, and the autos have always been a question mark in them. Time will tell, but it's certainly not Ford's doing. Maybe they're bringing them to market too fast? Maybe production was ramped too fast? Hope they get to the root of it fast, as I was thinking about one!

[Snowman]

I am starting to hear more complaints about the Mazda 6 and 3. I’m sure the problems are compounded by the new model releases and high demand. I hope that Mazda can resolve these issues….if it is an issue. We should check other sites for back up before we fire shots.
Not sure about the Ford relationship causing problems….quality of parts and assembly are influenced by Ford…I believe.  

[S60]

You will see a higher percentage of complaints on a forum, then people praising their vehicle.

Alot of the high tech going into new vehicles  
is testing the service departments, when things go askew.Hopefully the service departments can keep up with the technology, and keep the customers happy.

Like Snowman says,high demand on new models =a rushed product.

Mazda usually reacts quickly.

[saint11]

David- those dealerships are little far for me beceause i live in richmond. but I might switch soon if anything else stupid happens. I am very unimpressed about the current service provider. They lied about replacing a battery for us after the alternator blew. The 6 is on its third battery now. I don't think it is mazda's R and D thats the problem. Its more the service. They are unprepared to deal with a lot of the problems and they never have the parts on hand. I have to go back next week for a new bracket that holds the battery together. But atleast they speed order the parts to you which is good.

[davidm]

Mazda aftersales service has always been poor.  Even the guys in the Miata club will tell you that dealer service is awful.  Unfortunately, while under warrenty you kind of have to use them, but I would bail to an independant for anything you actually have to pay for.

[pikacha10]

dont be surprised that the dealerships dont have the parts on hand

i worked in a repair shop for a short time and every time they needed something that was out of the normal(timing belts air filters ect...), they would have to order it in. for things like oil filters they can order plenty of because everyone is bound to get an oil change sometime and having the supplies on hand will benefit both the customer and the company.

chances are the dealerships wont have a certain part because either they ran out or its a part that is barely replaced, as for the alternator chances are they probably ran out of it.  

if the dealership or any repair shop for that matter were to keep partsin stock constantly they would end up with alot of unsold merdchandise. not everbody needs an intake manifold replaced, chances are barely anybody needs their ecu replaces, so it makes more sense to order the stuff in when it is needed because alot of the parts are expensive and sometimes their not sold for months or even years.

you shouldnt blame the dealerships just because they give you crappy service or dont have the parts on hand, chances are its not their fault