For the past 6 weeks, my 8 had been getting progressively worse gas mileage and poor engine ideling so I decided to take it into the nearest Mazda dealer. This dealer is different than the previous one I was using because I moved recently.

To give a little history – 6 weeks ago I moved and had some boxes in my car. It was a really hot day and I had the AC on. I smelled a burnt electronics type smell for 1 minute, but it went away. Well, since then my mileage average went from ~18 to ~16 mpg (with the last fillup at 13.5mpg) and my idle has been rough. My thought was that I might have inadvertantly fried my ECU somewhat because the box that was in my front seat when I moved was blocking the AC vent there. So I made an appointment at the new dealership, IRA Mazda in Methuen, MA.

I handed the service department lady the keys and I explained the problem to her. I wasn’t sure how it would go because when you know so much about the car (because of this site ) – it’s hard not to come off as bossy or pushy. Well, after an hour I went to her desk and she told me the car had a misfire code. She gave me a loaner car because the technician was trying to figure out the problem and she would call me when they had an answer.

They called me back and told me the car was ready 4 hours later. She asked me where I had the car worked on before and I told her Mazda Gallery in Norwood, MA….. First off, the trailing plug to one of the rotors was hanging loose. It had somehow fallen off and I believe that was the burnt smell I got from 6 weeks ago and that would account for the rough idle. She also told me that I have 4 leading spark plugs in my car. I had Mazda Gallery install the hotter firing spark plugs a couple of months ago and they mistakenly put 4 leading plugs in there. They were all fouled up so they replaced them for free.

I am now going to change my rating of Mazda Gallery as a NEGATIVE in the Good Guy/Bad Guy forum. Thanks for listening to my rant.

 

Ah the "Good Guy/ Bad Guy" forum. I heard of it before. Time to visit that site.

 

They replaced the plugs for free? Sounds like you left some real idiots behind and found a great new dealer.

Hmm... that could be a good reason for us all to move to Methuen. You may end up with a lot of RX-8 owning neighbors!

 

Know what your saying, I can't seem to get a straight answer about anything. I'm not sure anyone has been trained to work on these cars! I'm about ready to buy a shop manual for my Ford mechanics who took such good care of my Mustang and let them take care of my baby! They 've already agreed to do it!

 

When I first got my 8 in August, 2003, I flooded it (it stalled during startup) and could not get it started. I thought the problem might be some dampness in the ignition, since it was pouring down when I drove it the night before. It was running fine when I got it home and shut it down. The car was very new and I was not aware of the flooding problem.

I tried to start it for 3 days. I had the car in the garage with the hood open and a fan blowing on it to see if I could dry it out. After the car continued to refuse to start I had it towed to the Mazda Gallery in Norwood. I mentioned to them I thought there might be some dampness in the ignition because of the rain the night before the starting problem occured.

They called me back and said they poured at least a quart of water from the intake and that I was lucky the motor was not ruined. I said the car was running fine when I put it in the garage. How could there be water in the intake? They again said I was lucky to have not ruined the car and I should be careful not to go through any puddles deeper than 3" or I will ruin the engine. I did not go thru any deep puddles, and the intake is at least 2 feet from the ground.

The kicker of this story is they charged me $300. I argued with everyone there, but they insisted they took a quart of water out of the intake. I had to pay the money to get my car back. I then learned of the flooding problem and since I had started the car, then stalled it, that it was a fault with the car. I knew the water in the intake was complete bull, but I needed my car back.

I wrote them a letter complaining, but they did nothing but stand by their ridiculous story. I said I would never be back, and I now go to another dealer in Attleboro. I hate being lied to and ripped off. Mazda Gallery did both and I would advise everyone to stay away from them. Their incompetence installing plugs in Fonzie's car only confirms my belief that Mazda Gallery in Norwood is a dealer to stay away from.