During the installation of my MS cold air intake I noticed some corrision on my battery hold down clamp which upon closer inspection I saw major corrison in the engine compartment. I was surpised to see this much damage to my RX-8 considering that the dealership has performed the starter & emission recall service on two separate visits. The damage included corrosion on the radiator which expect to be a concern in the near future. I spent the last two days cleaning and painting the corroded frame. Apparently the OEM battery leaks acid and should be replaced asap. Has anyone experienced the same situation? Any suggestion on how I should address this with Mazda. My car is a 2005 model with 8000 miles on it.
Thanks for any input you might have.

 

Copy of e mail I sent to the dealer

Greg/Gary,



I have attached a few photos of the damage that a leaky battery caused in the engine compartment of my 2005 RX-8. The photos show corrosion on the radiator and the frame. It appears that this occurred over a period of time. I have had the car in for service on numerous occasions. The starter was replaced and battery checked out of one of the visits. The car has 8,000 miles on it and is garaged kept. I have ordered a gel battery ($160.00) that is leak proof in the hope of preventing further occurrences of this problem. I spent a lot of time over the holidays cleaning up this mess.

My concern is that the radiator and other components will fail prematurely and that rust will be a problem.

What can be done to address my concerns? Should the radiator be replaced before it fails causing potential overheating and engine failure?

Please let me know if you need and additional information or photos.



Mike Darnell

 

If I were you, I think I would talk to someone at the dealership directly, instead of sending emails. If that doesnt help, go to another dealer, if it still doesnt help, talk to Mazda.

Directly, not thru Electronic words.