My wife has an 05 RX-8 that recently started having hot start issues, so I took it to my local mazda dealership and requested a compression test. It failed miserably as I suspected. They then offered to do a "zoom zoom" service and retest, on mazda's dime to see if anything improved. I knew it wouldn't, and it didn't, so they called today saying they were going to get a replacement engine for it. I was surprised I didn't even need to take in my service records and receipts, but hey...I won't complain.

The dealership told me that in order for the replacement engine to be warranted, the intake manifold needed to be replaced, $2200 in cost.

I am not here wondering if I should pay that or not, because I am going to refuse it. I just can't seem to find in my searches here any reference to this. If anyone can confirm this, I would appreciate it.

 

Why would it need to be replaced? Unless the upper is portion is cracked or something. There is a lower intake manifold that is aluminum and there is an upper intake manifold that is plastic.

 

I was wondering the same thing...

The one on there is not defective, they even told me I can decline the manifold replacement, and they will still go ahead with the replacement engine. Will the replacement engine come with some specific warranty information that is universal to all replacement engines or is my dealership trying to keep me from coming back if the new one fails... knowing that I am not going to shell out 1/4 of the value of my car for an unneeded part.

 

Mazda warranties the engine, so you could take it to any dealership of your choosing.

i would suspect that instead of cleaning the intake, they are just replacing it, i've worked at dealerships before, and sometimes mechanics are lazy like that.

i would ask why the intake manifold is bad. the service writer won't know, and when he goes and asks the mechanic, you'll find out if its dirty or broken.

there actually are moving parts in the intake, so its possible, after all Mazda has sold cars with muffler bearings

 

The new engine does not come with a specific warranty, it is still under the 100k 8 year. I got a new engine at 96,000 so the warranty on it was up at 100k so I got 4,000 miles worth of warranty on it. If you were to buy the engine from Mazda and have them install it you would get a 12 month 12k warranty and that is it. I don't see why the intake manifold would need replacing unless it was physically broken and that could only be caused by the dealer screwing up the removal. It really would need a cleaning but that it not part of what the dealer does, they juts take your dirty parts and put them on the new engine.

 

Ok, so if any issue were to arise with this new engine, I should be fine to take it to a different dealership, just to avoid this intake manifold stuff?

I am certain there is no issue with my intake manifold. As a matter of fact, before they ever touched my car, I asked them about the engine replacement process (before I got the first compression test done), and they mentioned that intake manifold replacement would be required to warrant the newly replaced engine. So what they are telling me is what they are telling everyone it seems.

I have 1 yr left on my engine core warranty. I will certainly not come anywhere near the 100k miles by the end of the warranty.

 

Well it sounds like they are trying to scam you and you should report it to Mazda North America.

 

So I called them at 4 to let them know that I would not be purchasing the intake manifold and that I did want to move forward with the replacement engine. They made sure to point out once again... "Sir, I just want to be very clear, Mazda will not warrant this engine as soon as it leaves our facility if you do in fact choose to not replace the intake manifold"

I knew that, warranty or not, I was not going to replace the intake manifold, so I told them to do the engine only.

They also told me that total out-of-pocket cost will be $130, which covers fluids. I wasn't sure if that was supposed to be on me, but it is worth $130 to get the car back.

I will get my engine replaced, but then I will need to get in touch with Mazda North America regarding the warranty confusion and I would like to request reimbursement for the $200 compression test. Should I just call Mazdas customer assistance center for both of these issues (800 222-5500)?

 

They should not charge you for fluids either, that is part of the engine replacement. Geesh man you really should advise the guys to read the warranty on the engine replacement and the repair procedure. Search for the pdf, it's here somewhere. I would report their asses either way. I got two reman engines from Mazda and never had to pay for ****, including a rental car.

 

Rental car too?!

I didn't get offered a rental car, and this mess is going to screw up at least a week of work schedules for my wife and I.

I am going to call mazda tomorrow and get to the bottom of this. From what it seems, I shouldn't be out of pocket one cent, I shouldn't be getting pressured to buy several thousand dollars in parts, AND I should have a rental car for the whole time (which was not offered).

 

Yes sir, both times I had a rental for a couple of weeks. All courtesy of Mazda. I know quite a few others who also got the same treatment. Seems you have a shady dealer.

 

So I just spoke with Mazda, got a claim number and they are "looking into things".
The issues I brought up were:
1) Why am I being pressured to replace a perfectly good intake manifold and being told my warranty is void as soon as I drive out of the service center?
2) Will I be reimbursed for my compression test, which was overpriced at $200.
3) Will I be charged for fluids?

Immediate responses were:
1) We need to look into this and get back to you
2) We will look into getting you a refund of $200 and get back to you.
3) Typically fluids and shop supplies are at your expense, but we will talk to the dealer and get back to you.

I can survive paying for the fluids, although I think that is insulting to charge me for fluids after my engine was defective.

I was very specifically told I am not eligible for a rental car

This is quite frustrating...

 

The compression test is used to verify that the engine replacement is needed and that is not your responsibility, it's part of the diagnosis. Again, all of this should be outlined in writing in the service repair procedure and warranty info sheet. Fluids are part of the replacement, if not then tell them you want all your old fluids put back in. It really is ridiculous that they are jerking you around this way. It is possible that my dealer is awesome and covered the rental all those times but I have heard from others that they were also provided with a rental from other dealerships.

 

One has to be careful with the intake manifold. The welds will bust and you floor will fall off. Maybe this dealer is looking out for you.

JK. in all seriousness good luck!

 

they OBVIOUSLY trying to scam you

Compression test : if you are within B2B warranty, no cost no matter what

if you are out of warranty, if it fails its free, if it passed, not free.

Why would they need to replace the intake manifold in order to get a engine replacement ? tell them to go f themselves. It's just ridiculous. they wonder why they're getting less business ? Cuz they ALWAYS try to scam people.

Engine replacement covers rental, because the car is obviously not functional due to manufacture error.

and they screwed you over the fluids that cost no more than 10 bucks. 4 qts and an oil filter WOW.

 

What you should have done at that very point is say "I would like that in writing, and I want you to sign it, and put your title underneath your signature."

Then, fax or email a copy of that document to Mazda North America as part of your claim.

After that, you just sit back, and wait for someone higher up the food chain at your dealer to call you, and tell you that they fired that person, and they would love it if you would come back, and get everything taken care of, with a free loaner car.

BC.

 

Yea, I tried to keep things via email communication for a while, but they take days to get back to an email... So I don't have it in writing. Although, I do think mazda records customer service calls, so if they had to reference it, they can.

Unfortunately, I don't think there are many people higher up at the actual dealership. I have already refused to talk to the original person handling the issue, because when I went in for my first compression test, that person called me to tell me my engine was healthy and the car was ready to be picked up. When I picked it up, the compression sheet read high 400s kpa...

So I have been dealing with the service manager. I got a call this morning from the dealership, but was unable to take it at the time. I called back and the service manager wasn't there, so I will have to wait and see what they have to say. I am sure they aren't going to be too happy that I sounded perfectly content with their scam on the phone yesterday, only to turn around and ask Mazda USA to look into it...

What concerns me is that Mazda should be the authority, but when I called them, they made it sound like they need to consult with the dealership about their warranty "recommendations". Either the engine core is warranted and will be replaced without cost (or sale of additional items) or it isn't. Why wasn't a mazda representative able to tell me that immediately on the phone? I should have received a "Were sorry sir, but the intake manifold is not a requirement for our engine replacement policy. Your engine will continue to be under it's engine core warranty." Now I am stuck in the middle of this mess between me, the dealership, and Mazda USA.

Thanks for the vent at least!... this is irritating.

 

Mazda does need to do its due diligence and get the dealerships side of the story, having been on both sides of this, i can tell you Mazda probably called the dealership right after you hung up.

Mazdas course of action is usually to tell the dealership what they need to do, as you are actually the dealerships customer, and not Mazdas.

you will get a phone call back from Mazda explaining what they did, and what they agreed should happen, and then shortly after that the dealer should contact you and say the same thing.

i don't know why you didn't take the car somewhere else though?

 

I guess I could take it elsewhere, but I feel as if engine replacement policy should be universally known and accepted amongst dealers. I spoke again with the dealer, they want me to pay for the first compression test and said they will cover the fluids. I agreed, simply because I think it isn't the end of the world to pay $200 to get my car back fixed. Do I think it is right? not really... but life isn't always fair.

They again insisted on the intake manifold, lowering the price for it. I denied it again and asked that they provide written information regarding this requirement, or have Mazda USA send me the exact location in the warranty information booklet where this requirement is stated. I suppose I will hear back at some point.

Overall, I am somewhat pleased that it was not terribly difficult to get the replacement engine. BUT, knowing that I have that warranty for another year will give me some peace of mind.

 

It would be very helpful to us, and any future forum members, if you were to state the name of this Mazda dealer, just so that we can either avoid them in the future, or have knowledge that whenever someone deals with them down the road, that they will have to deal with unneeded bs.

BC.

 

The reasons dealer do this type of stuff is because people give in because they feel lucky to be getting the warranty work covered. The sticker on my 8 was over $30k and and by the time I hit 96,000 miles I was on my 3rd engine. So I never requested anything, I politely demanded it.

 

Final (hopefully) update:

Dealer: Towson Heritage Mazda
Diagnosis: Engine Failure
Solution: Replacement Engine
Cost to me: $200 USD
Additional Service: Mazda agreed to cover a full cleaning of the intake manifold, which will allow me to have the remainder of my 8yr/100k mi. warranty.
Loaner Car: Nope

I think a bit of pressure was put on them to work with me a bit when I brought Mazda USA into the mix. Ultimately, I think the end result is fair enough that I am satisfied. I am frustrated how much of my personal time and effort was required to get a reasonable solution to my problem, and I wouldn't return to that specific dealer for service after this.

That being said, I am happy they eventually were willing to do the correct work and respect my warranty. Now I just hope that the car runs great when I pick it up and they don't ask for another cent!

 

Man I really wish I had seen this before taking my car in but just as an update, they are still doing this. I just got off the phone with them for the exact same situation. They want to charge me $700 for all the diagnostics they did and they're telling me I have to replace the intake manifold for another $1300 or it will void the warranty. I told them I'd wait to make a decision until they got all the info as far as extending the warranty (I'm almost at the 8yr mark so it's about to end anyway). It smelled a little fishy so I figured I'd check if anyone else had to do this and lo and behold, Towson Heritage Mazda. Think I may have a chat with Mazda about this.