2009 MAZDA MAZDA6 Complaints

IN AUGUST 6TH, 2018, I WAS DRIVING BACK FROM WORK WITH MY 4Y OLD SON IN QUEBEC CITY AT 50 KM/H. WHEN I WANT TO STOP AT THE RED-LIGHT I SENSED A SIGNIFICANT LOSS OF STEERING CONTROL TO THE RIGHT AND I WAS COMPLETELY SHOCKED BECAUSE I WAS JUST ABOUT TO HIT A CYCLIST. AND MY SON WAS FRUSTRATED TOO. LUCKILY NOTHING BAD HAPPENED. BUT FROM THERE I WASN'T ABLE TO DRIVE CORRECTLY, I HELD THE STEERING WHEEL TO 60 DEGREES TO THE LEFT WHILE GOING AT 25 KM/H TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE STRAIGHT AND GET BACK TO MY HOME. THE FOLLOWING DAY I DROVE MY CAR TO THE NEAREST GARAGE, AND TO MY SURPRISE, THE GUY TOLD ME THAT THE SUBFRAME AT THE RIGHT NEAR TO THE WHEEL IS COMPLETELY CORRODED AND THE STEERING RACK WAS SEPARATED FROM ITS MOUNTS CAUSING THE STEERING LOSS. THE GARAGE OWNER TOLD THAT HE CALLED MAZDA TO ASK FOR A NEW SUBFRAME FOR ME, BUT THEY TOLD HIM THAT THEY DON'T HAVE IT IN STOCK AND THEY HAVE ALREADY 5 MORE PEOPLE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM WAITING FOR THAT. KNOWING THAT I DO RUST CHECK AND TREATMENT BEFORE EVERY WINTER. I AM VERY THANKFUL TO GOD THAT NOTHING BAD HAPPENED WHILE I WAS TRAVELING WITH MY FAMILY DURING OUR HOLIDAYS. MAZDA SHOULD RECOGNIZE THIS AS A SERIOUS AND VERY DANGEROUS DEFECT SINCE IT IS HAPPENING FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MAZDA 6. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH, THE VEHICLE STARTED PULLING TO THE RIGHT. IN ADDITION, THE TRACTION CONTROL AND DYNAMIC STABILITY CONTROL OFF WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN TO THE CONTACT'S RESIDENCE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 148,500.

MAZDA DEALER WAS PERFORMING A COUPLE OF RECALLS. THEY FOUND THAT THE SUBFRAME WAS SEVERELY RUSTED. SAID THAT IT NEEDED REPLACED BEFORE IT FAILED. SAID THAT ENGINE COULD DROP OUT OR PROBLEMS WITH STEERING IF THE SUBFRAME FAILED. 9 YEAR OLD CAR WITH 100,000 MILES AND NO OTHER RUST PROBLEMS IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE BECAUSE OF PROBLEM WITH THE SUBFRAME. I CONTACTED MAZDA BUT HAVE NOT HEARD BACK FROM THEM.

DURING A RECENT ALIGNMENT, FOR MY 2009 MAZDA 6, I WAS INFORMED BY A MECHANIC THAT I COULD HAVE A SERIOUS PROBLEM IF THE "SUSPENSION CROSSMEMBER-ENGINE CRADLE" IS NOT REPLACED. AFTER BRINGING THE CAR TO A BODY SHOP, I WAS INFORMED IT WOULD NOT BE WISE TO DRIVE THE CAR UNTIL THIS PART IS REPLACED. I WAS QUOTED $1,800 DOLLARS FOR PARTS AND LABOR. FOR A WELL MAINTAINED CAR WITH LESS THAN 100,000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER, I CONSIDER THIS AN EXTREME AND UNREASONABLE REPAIR.

SUBFRAME RUST THE FRONT PASSENGER SUBFRAME IS SEVERELY RUSTED TO THE POINT THAT TMY LOCAL MAZDA DEALER (ALDEN MAZDA IN FAIRHAVEN, MA) DIDNT WANT TO PERFORM ROUTINE MAINTENANCE DUE TO THEIR CONCERNS OVER THIS VERY SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE. THEY TOLD ME THAT THE CAR IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE AT THIS POINT. I DRIVE APPROXIMATELY 150 TO 200 MILES ON MOST DAYS AND I'M VERY CONCERNED FOR MY SAFETY. I PURCHASED THE CAR ON FEBRUARY OF 2018 WITH ONLY 68,000 MILES ON IT. AS OF JULY 30TH 2018 IT'S AT APPROXIMATELY 79,000 MILES.

MY COMPLAINT IS REGARDING EXCESSIVE RUST/CORROSION OF THE SUBFRAME OF MY VEHICLE THAT WAS RECENTLY DISCOVERED DURING A ROUTINE OIL CHANGE. I AM AT JUST UNDER 113,000 MILES, AND THE CAR IS OTHERWISE IN GREAT CONDITION. I EXPECTED A GOOD FIVE MORE YEARS OF USE, BUT NOW, DUE TO THE DANGEROUS CIRCUMSTANCES, I AM IN SEARCH OF A NEW CAR. I PURCHASED MY MAZDA NEW IN MARCH OF 2009, AND OTHER THAN ROUTINE MAINTENANCE THERE HAVE BEEN NO MAJOR ISSUES. THE PASSENGER SIDE WHEEL BEARINGS WERE REPLACED JUST OVER A YEAR AGO, AND THE CAR STILL HAD A NOISE COMING FROM THAT AREA IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING. WE WERE TOLD AT THAT TIME THAT IT MUST BE SOMETHING LOOSE IN THE WHEEL. THE NOISES SEEMED TO WORSEN AND MULTIPLY RECENTLY. AT TIMES THE CAR WOULD SEEM TO FEEL A WOBBLE (BEST WORD I CAN THINK OF) AT HIGHER SPEEDS. LUCKILY THIS WAS NOTICED BEFORE SOMETHING TRAGIC HAPPENED. NOW I AM LEFT WITH AN INOPERABLE CAR THAT I WILL NEED TO PAY AN ESTIMATED $1,600 MINIMUM TO REPAIR WITH A WAIT TIME OF AT LEAST THREE MONTHS. THE SHOP TO WHICH I TAKE MY CAR SAID THEY HAVE SEEN THIS BEFORE IN MAZDAS AND SOME HONDAS. THEY SUSPECT IT COULD BE AN A/C DRAINING FLAW. I LIVE IN NORTHEAST OHIO, BUT THERE IS NO OTHER RUST ON THE CAR. I AM GLAD I DID A SEARCH AND DID NOT JUST ACCEPT THIS AS NORMAL. HOWEVER, I AM WONDERING HOW MANY OTHERS OUT THERE HAVE, AND HAVE NOT PLACED A COMPLAINT.

BOUGHT 2009 MAZDA 6 BRAND NEW. CAR HAS 140,000 MILES WELL MAINTAINED. I HAD TO SLAM ON MY BRAKES TO AVOID A COLLISION WITH A TRUCK PULLING A TRAILER. THE TRUCK WAS AT A STOP SIGN FACING WEST, I HAD RIGHT OF WAY DRIVING NORTH, TRUCK DRIVER PULLED OUT IN FRONT OF ME TURNING LEFT TO GO SOUTH. MY SPEED APROX.40MPH TO DEAD STOP.. MY VEHICLE NEVER LEFT THE ROAD OR NO IMPACT WITH OTHER VEHICLE. AS I STARTED TO DRIVE STRAIGHT, I HAD TO KEEP MY STEERING 20-30 DEGREES TO LEFT BECAUSE MY CAR PULLED HARD TO THE RIGHT. I PULLED OVER TO CHECK FOR FLAT TIRE. THAT WAS NOT THE ISSUE. I WAS ABLE TO TURN AROUND AND PROCEED TO A MAZDA DEALER APROX 2 MILES SOUTH . I LEFT THE CAR THERE FOR MAZDA TO INSPECT. THE SERVICE ADVISOR CALLED ME AND TOLD ME THE FRONT SUB FRAME HAD SPLIT/CRACKED DUE TO RUST CORROSION--"THATS NORTHEAST OHIO FOR YOU". REPAIR ESTIMATE $2000-$2500. REPAIRS ARE NOT DONE. DEALERSHIP HAS ALLOWED TO LEAVE THE VEHICLE IN THE PARKING LOT FOR A SHORT TIME. MY CAR CAN NOT BE DRIVEN. THE DEALERSHIP OFFERED TO WORK WITH ME TO "PURCHASE ANOTHER VEHICLE " .

I WAS DRIVING AND MAKING A TURN WHEN A LOUD CLUNKING NOISE OCCURRED AND I LOST STABILITY OF THE CAR. IN ORDER TO MAKE IT TO THE DEALERSHIP (WHICH WAS WITHIN A MILE), I HAD TO TURN THE WHEEL TO THE LEFT AND DRIVE 10MPH TO MAINTAIN STABILITY. OVER THE 2 DAYS PREVIOUS TO THE EVENT I HEARD OCCASIONAL CLUNKING NOISES WHILE DRIVING. THE MECHANIC FOUND SIGNIFICANT RUST THAT HAD GONE THROUGH THE SUBFRAME ON THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE, RENDERING IT UNDRIVEABLE. THEY INFORMED ME THAT THIS WAS A COMMON PROBLEM THEY HAD BEEN SEEING AND THAT THE PART IS BACKORDERED MONTHS. THE REST OF THE UNDERCARRIAGE WAS MOSTLY RUST FREE EXCEPT FOR THE SUBFRAME.

ENGINE CRADLE/CROSSMEMBER IS SEVERELY DETERIORATED ON THE PASSENGER SIDE. EXCESSIVE RUST AND HOLES IN THE STRUCTURE. MY CONCERN IS A SAFETY ISSUE IN DRIVING THE CAR AND HAVING IT STAY TOGETHER.

THE DASHBOARD IN MY CAR IS MELTING AND IS STICKY AND SHINNY. THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE TO CLEAN AND IF TOUCHED IT RESULTS IN BLACK PLASTIC FRAGMENTS COMING OFF. THE DASHBOARD REMAINS LIKE THIS NO MATTER THE WEATHER AND EVEN IF IT IS NO LONGER HOT INSIDE OR OUTSIDE THE CAR. THE MOST IMPACTED AREA IS ON THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THE DASHBOARD. THIS ISSUE APPEARS TO BE GETTING WORSE THIS SUMMER.