Hi,

I'm brand new to the forum and have reviewed many of the listing to find the answer to my question, but thus far I have not. So, here goes.

Q: I do not have a very high opinion of dealerships, nor of their service departments; however, I've recently purchased a 2005 Mazda 6 sedan with 3700 miles on it. We absolutely love it. Well, this sleek machine has the complete warantee which is great. But understanding the "legalese" of the warantee is not my strong suit. So, could anyone help me understand this warantee better?

1. Must I take the 6 to the dealership where I bought it each time for something as simple as an oil change?
2. If not, does it have to be a Mazda dealership? Or can it be a Ford dealership?
3. Could I change the oil, potate the tires, and perform the simple tasks myself?
4. We want to add a spoiler. Can I take it to a third-party installer?

I have other questions, but that's plenty for now.

BOTTOM LINE: I do not like the dealership's work ethic, nor their pricing. However, I do not want to void this great warantee. Help me, please.

Sincere thanks for productive respondents,
drweng

 

I can't stand dealerships either. I have yet to find a truly good one (GM, Ford, Mazda, anything.)

1)You don't have to get the oil changed at the dealership, just maintain your records to show you have had the oil changed at the proper intervals.
2) Service should be done at a Mazda dealership (warranty work anyway)
3) Do simple tasks yourself, but don't hesistate to have the dealer perform warranty work required
4) The dealer will warranty a Mazda factory spoiler that they install. If you chose to install a different spoiler and have it installed anywhere other than the dealer, you may void a portion of your warranty (maybe the paint warranty for the trunk lid.) Personally the dealer completely rips you off. I'd do it myself or go elsewhere.

 

Couldn't have said it better myself. But I slightly disagree with #3. A dealer SHOULD be the one performing warranty work at ALL costs. Don't ever try to fix a warranty problem yourself. Think of it this way...if they screw something up, they're liable for it...at no charge to you. The prices the dealership I go to charges me isn't nearly as ridiculous as the prices Mercedes charged me for working on my Benz...hell, even Toyota charged more than Mazda. I've owned a lot of cars...Mazda has been the cheapest by far when it comes to basic maintenance costs and service costs.

But yeah, you're definitely capable of doing basic things like oil change, tire rotation, spark plugs, brakes, etc on your own. That'll save you the labor costs.

 

That was what I was referring to as simple things.

I take my car to the local Valvoline Oil Change place. For $25 (It's at least $15 in materials), I'll have someone else crawl under my car in the winter.

 

OUCH!!! Well, I am at least glad that not everyone hates the dealership or I would have to be flippin burgers at the golden arches.[sm=boohoo.gif]. The most important thing you can do as sstlaure pointed out is to change your oil at least every 5,000 miles and SAVE YOUR RECEIPT. Note the highlights. If thru no fault of your own, your engine throws a rod thru the block at 30,000 miles I can guarantee that you will be asked for service records. If you change your own oil then keep the receipt for the oil and filter and keep with the owners manual. That is considered sufficient proof for a warranty claim later on.
Look in the owners manual and it will give you the maintenance that is expected to be performed but not changing the oil is really the only thing that could get you in trouble. Any other replacement parts are not needed untill 60k (except air filter at 30 or when dirty) and you are out of warranty then anyway.
Install of an aftermarket spoiler also fine unless it creates a water leak which installer would be responsible for.
Your warranty covers virtually anything for the first 12mo or 12k miles and then after that wear items such as brakes, wipers, etc are no longer covered.

 

Sorry about that babyhuey, nothing personal. It just seems that every time I take my car to the dealership, they either don't fix what I asked them to fix, they break something else, or it takes an incredibly long time to get anything done.

Case in point...I recently had some paint work done on my Mazda3. My front fascia is a 2-pc unit, and to avoid having the rubber seal that rests between the upper/lower pcs painted, I took the bumper apart. I spoke directly with the Body Shop Mgr (3) times to make it clear that I did not want that rubber piece painted. He assured me that they would mask off this piece prior to painting. I should have gotten it in writing so that I could have jammed the paper down his throat. The day I picked up the car was nasty & raining, so I didn't inspect the car too close when I picked it up...But guess what????? They painted the damn seal. Not just that, but the mask job they did around the silver foglight openings was horrible and there is now an uneven line of blue running around the inside of the oval. I left multiple voicemail/email messages to the Body Shop mgr with absolutely no response. Very amateur work.(This was Gorno Ford, Sterling Mazda Woodhaven uses them as their body shop.)

I take my wifes Mazda6 in for some TSB work and a rattle that developed in the dashboard. (Again Sterling Mazda) Her car is one of the very first Mazda6 wagons produced. As such, there were some early build issues that have shown up in the car (I'm an engineer on the program for the interior and am familiar with what issues we had.) I give very clear instructions to the dealer on what needs to be done. (A fairly simple job), but instead all he does is jam felt tape between the windshield and the leading edge of the Instrument Panel. (The noise is coming from behind the IP, I think where the IP meets the firewall.) We pick the car up and of course the rattle is still there.

DO THESE PEOPLE EVEN DRIVE THE VEHICLES TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY FIXED THE ISSUE???????

Same deal with an F-150 I had. I brought it in to the dealership because of a horrible mis-fire. They charged me over $500 to change the spark plugs (I told them the plugs weren't the problem, but they insisted that it had to have the factory sparkplugs in there to work properly...I had installed a nice set of Platinum plugs only 3,000 miles earlier. I told them to go ahead and change the plugs but that if it didn't fix the problem, I wasn't paying for them.) They changed the plugs then told me my car was ready for pick-up. I go there, fire the truck up, and chuga-chuga-chuga, there is the mis-fire. The only reason I had taken to the damn dealer was so that it would be fixed right away as it was winter and I didn't have any other vehicle. Instead I got the run-around for over a week.

My friend took his 3/4-ton Dodge Cummins Diesel in for some work (this is a $40K truck...very nice.) He had a rattle from the shifter (Man trans) while he was driving. He gets the call that his truck is ready and the rattle is gone. When he hops into his truck, he fires it up and sure-enough, the rattle is gone....but the shifter boot looks funny somehow.......The jackass tech that worked on his truck decided that the way to get rid of this rattle was to take the shifter boot off, poke the shifter stalk through the SIDE of the shifter boot, and re-install the boot with the shifter jacked off to the side. (With the stock top of the boot just hanging off to the side like a colostomy bag.) What a joke.....

It's mainly dealer relations that make/break customer's viewpoints about a Manufacturer. If every time they take their car in for service is a nightmare, then the customers will go elsewhere.

 

I feel for you man and I hear you loud & clear !!! We all have horor stories like this , I know I do !!

To start with your last paragraph ....... This kind of nonsense has zero tolerance with me . What is needed to be done , instead of what everyone does (going elsewhere) ; is to report the dealer in question to the Mazda HQ ! Trust me it is the last thing they want you to do .... and expect you'll turn out to do (they expect you to go elsewhere at most - only the naive they're used to dealing with , stay and get screwed - their favourite kind of customer ! )

When I bought the car new at the dealer , the salesman notified me that I would be getting in the mail later , a satisfaction report of the dealer dealt with , to be returned to Mazda HQ . They seemed to take it to heart , in a special way when I was notified , just as I had learned on www.carbuyingtips.com (an awesome site to take time to read in its entirety) ...... anyways my point is this : this satisfaction report reflects on the dealer in the eyes of Mazda HQ who has complete authority over the privatetly owned dealer in question . It is in their best intention to please Mazda Directives towards customer service in order to reflect the name Mazda as it should ! Otherwise they lose big time in various ways .

So it is in our best interest to let 'em know we are aware of this and ready to take action if our simple demands are not met . To continue on this issue , as an example of to show how desperate they want you to put in a good word about them (when you send in to Mazda HQ , the Mazda HQ-sent satisfaction report ) ..... they have this promotion where you can win a car from them if you send it in with'in a certain elasped time ...... while you're still on a natural high about your car (this called infatuation) . I still haven't sent mine in !

Anyways , I wouldn't hesitate to have'em rework the whole job at their expense , or , at the risk of them being reported to Mazda HQ .

People like this need to get smacked a bit everywhere (not only in back of the head) pfff !!!

 

Nothing personal taken at all sstlaure. I have problems of my own with the dealership. Last summer the service manager decided to hire a new mechanic that had just recently been 'let go' from the toyota dealer because of too many comebacks. He was a "master tech" there. He is by far the worst mechanic that I have ever had the displeasure to have to work with. His solution to a check engine light being on is to clear the code and test drive for a mile or two. If the light does not return then the problem must have been an intermittent thing and out the car goes. Needless to say they are back within the week with light back on and is put on my list to look at for the second time in for the same problem. I hate that crap. He has destoyed three dashboards and countless door panels and other misc trim pieces in the four months that he has been employed here. All of which I had to replace. I have bitched and complained to no avail. Last month there came up the new training for the new diagnostic computer MMDS and I told the manager that he could either send him or me as I would no longer be working there if he were still employed. As of Feb 1 he will be at our branch tire store that handles most of our bodyshop work for things other than body damage. Imagine that. I already get 6 cars a month from the tire store because they could not figure out how to disconnect the air bag harness from a damaged vehicle and end up destroying the harness in the effort to do so. I get the vehicle in and has 14 air bag codes and mulitiple others from engine to trans problems that are usually generated from crappy repairs. I too am very frustrated but am sure not nearly as bad as you from the consumer side.

 

Forgot to say that you can find everything these freindly members have mentioned , and more , in the owner's manual . A lot of yours and everyone's questions can be answered in this booklet as it seves as a guideline to their rules (Mazda's requirements for your warranty) . If you didn't have one when you bought your slightly used Mazda , then make sure you order one for peanuts$ .