2004 MAZDA RX-8 Complaints

I OWN A 2004 MAZDA RX8. I HAVE 24,700+ MILES & NO PROBLEMS UNTIL NOW. 8 MONTHS AGO, I CAME TO MARIN, CA. TO WORK ON CONTRACT. AS THIS CONTRACT IS LONG TERM , I BROUGHT MY VEHICLE FOR TRANSPORTATION. 2 MONTHS LATER, I BEGAN TO NOTICE THE ODOR OF CLUTCH BURN, RARELY & WITH NO REASON. I WAS DUE FOR AN OIL CHANGE, SO I MADE AN APPT. WITH MARIN MAZDA. THIS WAS WHEN I MET JOHN LAUSTER, MARIN MAZDA'S SVC. MGR. DURING MY 1ST VISIT THEY WERE UNABLE TO FIND A PROBLEM, AND SAID EVERYTHING WAS OPERATING. 3 MONTHS LATER, I EXPERIENCED IT AGAIN AND BROUGHT IT IN. AGAIN, THEY COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING. ON SEPT. 20 '05, IT HAPPENED AGAIN. THE CLUTCH BEGAN TO SLIP A LITTLE, & WITHIN 20 MINUTES THE SLIPPAGE WAS TO THE POINT WHERE I COULDN'T DRIVE IT WITHOUT POSSIBLY DAMAGING THE TRANS. I CALLED MARIN SERVICE TO BRING IT IN, & TOWED TO THE DEALER. JOHN CALLED ME FRIDAY STATING THEY WOULD HAVE TO REPLACE CLUTCH, BEARINGS, FLYWHEEL, & THAT MY TRANSMISSION WARRANTY HAD EXPIRED, SO COST WOULD BE PASSED TO ME. $1300.00. HE PUT IN FOR APPEAL TO THE FACTORY REP FOR COVERAGE DUE TO EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES & TOLD ME HE WOULD CALL ME BACK WITH THE DECISION. I CONTACTED MAZDA USA- I WENT THROUGH THE MOTIONS, THINKING THAT THEY WOULD COVER IT AS THE PROBLEM WAS OBVIOUS & RELATED TO A RECENT RECALL INVOLVING THERMAL DAMAGE. I GOT THE CALL FROM JOHN. HE STATED THE FACTORY REP CLAIMED IT AS "NORMAL WEAR" & MAZDA WOULD NOT COVER IT. I TOLD JOHN THAT THIS PROBLEM WAS BROUGHT UP 6 MONTHS AGO. HE STATED MAZDA HAD MADE ITS DECISION. I DID RESEARCH ONLINE- & WAS SHOCKED BY THE NUMBER OF SIMILAR EVENTS I FOUND WITH MAZDA PRODUCTS. ALL EXPERIENCED WHAT I AM GOING THROUGH INITIALLY- THE DEALER & MANUFACTURER WOULD NOT RECOGNIZE THIS AS AN ITEM THEY WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR, & PUSHED THE COST ON THE CONSUMER. I CALLED JOHN BACK. BUT HE WAS FIRM; MAZDA FACTORY REP'S DECISION WAS FINAL. *JB

CONSUMER CONCERNS REGARDING THE APPOINTMENT GIVEN BY THE DEALERSHIP FOR VEHICLE INSPECTION REGARDING THE FUEL TANK AND FRONT LOWER ARM BALL JOINTS RECALLS.*MR THE CONSUMER RECEIVED RECALL 3305G ON THE FUEL TANK. THE CONSUMER CONTACTED THE DEALER BUT THEY WHERE NOT ABLE TO GIVE HER AN APPOINTMENT UNTIL TWO WEEKS LATER. THE CONSUMER FEELS THAT SINCE THE RECALLED COMPONENT COULD RESULT IN A VEHICLE FIRE THAT THE DEALER SHOULD HAVE REPAIRED IT IMMEDIATELY. *NM

DT: THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 MAZDA RX8. THE CONTACT STATES THAT WHILE DRIVING WITH CRUISE CONTROL SET AND HITTING THE BRAKES TO SLOW DOWN OR STOP , AND IF PRESSING THE RESUME BUTTON ,THE CAR WILL ACTUALLY SET ITSELF 5 MPH MORE THAN WHAT ORIGINALLY HAD THE SPEED SET FOR. ONCE THE CAR GOES TO 5 MPH OVER THE SPEED THE CAR WAS SET FOR THE CAR WILL ACT AS IF IT WAS TRYING TO MAKE ITSELF GO BACK DOWN TO THE SPEED THAT WAS ORIGINALLY SET ,AND THE VEHICLE WILL JERK VIOLENTLY. THE CONTACT WAS TAKING THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALERSHIP ON THURSDAY TO SEE IF THEY COULD DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM BECAUSE THIS HAS BEEN OCCURRING FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS. THE ONLY WAY TO MAKE THIS PROBLEM STOP IS TO TURN OFF THE CRUISE CONTROL AND RESET IT AND THEN IT WILL STOP. THIS PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WILL HAPPEN AT ABOUT 60% OF THE TIME THAT THE CRUISE CONTROL IS SET. ALSO, THE ENGINE FAN WILL STAY ON ALL THE TIME. THE DEALERSHIP IS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THEREFORE , IT CANNOT BE FIXED AT THIS TIME. THE ELECTRIC FAN WILL ACTUALLY STAY ON WHILE THE VEHICLE IS TURNED OFF. THEN BY TURNING THE IGNITION BACK ON AND OFF IT THE VEHICLE WILL STOP RUNNING. THIS MOSTLY OCCURS IF THE VEHICLE IS DRIVEN FOR ABOUT 30 MINUTES. *AK

AROUND THE MIDDLE OF JUNE I STARTED NOTICING STRANGE BEHAVIOR IN THE PERFORMANCE OF MY ENGINE IN MY MAZDA RX-8. WHILE MAINTAINING A HIGHWAY SPEED OF ROUGHLY 65MPH I WOULD HEAR A RATTLING NOISE IN THE ENGINE, LIKE MARBLES BOUNCING AROUND INSIDE. THIS WOULD BE FOLLOWED BY A SIGNIFICANT LOSS OF POWER IN ANY GEAR. AT NO TIME DID THE TEMP GAUGE NOTIFY ME OF OVERHEATING. THE PROBLEM WOULD GO AWAY WHEN I EASED OFF THE GAS TO A DANGEROUSLY SLOW HIGHWAY SPEED. ONCE GETTING OFF THE HIGHWAY, THE CAR WOULD ACCELERATE, BUT WITH NOTICEABLY REDUCED PERFORMANCE. AFTER THE THIRD OCCURRENCE OF THIS PROBLEM IN MID JULY, I DECIDED TO TAKE THE CAR IN FOR A DIAGNOSIS. WHILE EXPLAINING THE PROBLEMS TO ONE OF THE SERVICEMEN, I WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE FUEL TANK OF WHICH I WAS UNAWARE. I WAS ALSO TOLD THAT THE ENGINE PROBLEM I DESCRIBED WAS A SERIOUS ISSUE THAT THEY JUST STARTED HEARING ABOUT ON MANY OF THE RX-8''S, AND THERE WAS NO KNOWN FIX. HE MENTIONED THAT MY CAR COULD BE THERE FOR SEVERAL DAYS, NOT THE ONE DAY I WAS EXPECTING, AND THAT THERE WERE A LARGE NUMBER OF CARS WITH THE SAME ''MYSTERY'' ENGINE PROBLEM, AND THAT ONE CAR HAD ALREADY BEEN THERE FOR 35 DAYS. THIS CONCERNED ME, BUT I WAS ASSURED THAT MAZDA ENGINEERS WERE WORKING ON A FIX SO IT WOULDN''T BE A LONG WAIT ABOUT 2 WEEKS LATER I RECEIVED A PHONE CALL FROM SANDRA, MY SERVICE REP, INFORMING ME THAT MY CAR WAS READY. SHE TOLD ME THAT THE KNOCKING I WAS HEARING IN THE ENGINE IS DUE TO USING THE WRONG GAS. I TOLD HER THAT I HAVE ALWAYS USED 93 OCTANE AND NOTHING LOWER, AND THAT THE NOISE WAS NOT THE REGULAR KNOCKING YOU GET FROM BAD GAS. SHE TOLD ME SHE WOULD HAVE TO CALL MAZDA CORP BACK TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT MY PROBLEM. THE NEXT DAY SHE CALLED ME BACK AND TOLD ME THAT MAZDA WAS GOING TO REPLACE MY ENGINE. FROM WHAT SHE TOLD ME, NO ONE REALLY KNEW WHAT WAS CAUSING THIS PROBLEM, BUT THAT REPLACING THE ENGINE SHOULD FIX IT. I WAS TOLD THAT MY CAR WOULDN''T BE READY FOR ''A COUPLE OF WEEKS''.

WHILE DRIVING, THE CENTER CONSOLE GETS EXTREMELY HOT. THE AREA BEHIND THE SHIFTER AND ALSO INSIDE THE CUPHOLDERS ARE EFFECTED. I LEFT MY WATCH IN THE CUPHOLDER AND WHEN I GRABBED IT WHEN I WAS GETING OUT OF THE CAR, IT WAS SCALDING HOT. MAYBE THAT WOULD BE GOOD IN THE WINTER TO KEEP MY COFFEE WARM, BUT IT IS DEFINITELY ABNORMAL.

I JUST BOUGHT A 2004 MAZDA RX8 AND A PIECE OF ROAD DEBRIS HIT MY AC CONDENSER CAUSING ALL THE FREON TO LEAK OUT. THIS HAPPENED DUE TO THE GAPING HOLE IN THE FRONT AIR DAM OF MY VEHICLE. I LIVE IN SOUTHERN TEXAS WHERE TEMPS CAN CLIMB WELL OVER 100 DEGREES. (HIGHER INSIDE THE CAR) I WORRY MY 3YR OLD SON IS AT RISK OF HEAT STROKE OR WORSE FROM THE TEMPS. MAZDA WILL NOT COVER THIS IN THEIR WARRANTY YET THEY DO NOTHING TO PROTECT THE HIGHLY VULNERABLE CONDENSER, OIL COOLER, AND RADIATOR FROM BEING PELTED FROM ROAD DEBRIS. AS A MATTER OF FACT THE AIR DAM IS SO POORLY DESIGNED THAT IT ACTUALLY FUNNELS ROCKS INTO THE AC CONDENSER ITSELF. I AM NOW WORRIED THAT A PIECE OF ''ROAD DEBRIS'' MAY HIT MY OIL COOLER AND SPILL OIL ALL OVER THE HIGHWAY. THAT IS DEFINITELY NOT CONSIDERED SAFE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. MANY PEOPLE ONLINE I HAVE SPOKEN TO HAVE HAD THIS SAME PROBLEM AND THE SERVICE PERSON AT THE DEALERSHIP STATED, ''WE SEE CARS IN HERE FOR THIS ALL THE TIME''. THE TOTAL REPAIR COST IS OVER 800$. EVEN HAVING TO PAY MY DEDUCTIBLE IS ASKING A LOT FOR THIS TYPE OF ''MALFUNCTION''. MAZDA ADVERTISES THIS CAR AS A 4-DOOR COUPE AND SELLS THE CAR ON ITS ''PRACTICALITY''. HOW PRACTICAL IS IT TO HAVE ''ROAD DEBRIS'' DESTROY YOUR AC A WEEK AFTER PURCHASE? I PURCHASED THE CAR FROM INGRAM PARK AUTO CENTER HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, TX. FROM A GENTLEMAN NAMED JUAN LEON. THEY WERE OF NO HELP IN THE MATTER.

I BOUGHT AN RX-8 LAST YEAR, AND HAVE HAD NOTHING BUT TROUBLE SINCE THE DAY I BROUGHT IT HOME. THE ENGINE LIGHT AND TIRE PRESSURE GAUGE HAVE BEEN RANDOMLY GOING ON AND OFF FOR A YEAR. I HAVE HAD THE CAR INTO SEVERAL DEALERSHIPS, NONE OF WHICH COULD FIGURE OUT THE PROBLEM. I HAVE EVEN REPLACED TIRES BECAUSE I COULDNT TELL THAT THE TIRE PRESSURE GAUGE WAS SHOWING A PROBLEM, DUE TO THE FACT THAT IT WAS GOING ON AND OFF SEVERAL TIMES A DAY. MORE RECENTLY MY CAR DIED ON ME IN THE LEFT LANE OF I95 IN SOUTH FLORIDA, AS I USED THE ACCELERATOR, THE CAR DECELERATED FOR NO REASON THEN DIED. IT WAS TOWED BACK TO A LOCAL DEALER WHEN IT WOULD NOT RESTART. AFTER 5 DAYS SAID THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND SAID THE CAR WAS FINE. SHORTLY AFTER PICKING UP MY CAR, I NOTICED THAT THE INDICATORS WERE NO LONGER RANDOMLY LIGHTING UP. (I THOUGHT THAT IT WAS WEIRD SINCE THE DEALER SAID THEY DIDNT DO ANYTHING TO THE CAR) JUST THIS PAST FRIDAY, THE CAR DIED AGAIN THIS TIME IN THE MIDDLE OF A MAJOR INTERSECTION IN SOUTH FLORIDA. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO ANOTHER LOCAL DEALER WHO CALLED ME TODAY TO TELL ME THAT THEY ONCE AGAIN COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND THE CAR COULD BE PICKED UP. THIS IS NOW A SAFETY ISSUE FOR MYSELF, MY PASSENGERS AND ANY OTHER CARS IN THE VICINITY WHEN MY CAR DIES. WHAT IS MAZDA GOING TO DO WHEN I HAVE A MAJOR ACCIDENT OR GET KILLED BECAUSE THEY CREATED A CRAPPY CAR?

MY 2004 MAZDA RX8 WAS PURCHASED IN OCTOBER OF 2003. SINCE THE TIME OF PURCHASE, THE ENGINE HAS MADE LOUD KNOCKING NOISES ON ACCELERATION AND OTHER UNACCEPTABLE NOISES WHEN IN IDLE. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS COME ON NUMEROUS TIMES, AND ON CHECKING THE CAR ON AT LEAST 5 OCCASIONS, THE MAZDA SERVICE DEPARTMENT HAS MADE ONLY MINOR REPAIRS OR DONE NOTHING AT ALL. THIS PROBLEM HAS WORSENED OVER TIME AND RECENTLY THE CAR STALLED AT A BUSY HIGHWAY INTERSECTION AND WOULD NOT RESTART FOR 20 MINUTES - THIS WAS A HIGHLY DANGEROUS SITUATION NOT ONLY FOR MY DAUGHTER WHO WAS DRIVING AND STRANDED IN THE CAR WITH VEHICLES SPEEDING BY AND BARELY MISSING HITTING HER, BUT FOR THOSE VEHICLES APPROACHING FROM BEHIND. MAZDA SUDDENLY DETERMINED THAT THE PROBLEM IS THE OIL PUMP - SPECIFICALLY "CODE P209 POST CATALYST FUEL PUMP TRIM TOO LEAN." THIS CODE HAS COME UP ON THE DIAGNOSTIC PREVIOUSLY, WITHOUT REPAIR. THE CAR IS NOW JUST OVER 50,000 MILES AND THEREFORE, MAZDA REFUSES TO HONOR THE WARRANTY - DESPITE THE ON-GOING NATURE OF THIS PROBLEM. I BELIEVE MAZDA HAS ACTED FRAUDULENTLY IN THIS MANNER. THEY HAVE BEEN AWARE OF THE PROBLEM SINCE NEAR THE TIME OF THE PURCHASE DATE, FOUND NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR, AND WHEN OUT OF WARRANTY, SUDDENLY ACCURATELY DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM AND REFUSE TO PAY. IN ADDITION, I WAS INFORMED BY MAZDA THAT THE FUEL PUMP WHICH IS NEEDED TO REPAIR THE PROBLEM IS ON BACKORDER WITH THE MANUFACTURER AND UNAVAILABLE. I HAVE TO WONDER IF THE DEMAND IS EXCEEDING THE SUPPLY OF THIS PARTICULAR FUEL PUMP BECAUSE AN ENORMOUS NUMBER OF RX8 OWNERS ARE ALSO BEING AFFECTED BY THE SAME PROBLEM. *NM

THE VEHICLE FISHTAILED ALL THE TIME IN INCLEMENT WEATHER. THE CONSUMER WAS MAKING A RIGHT TURN AND THE VEHICLE DID A NINETY DEGREE TURN ON THE ROAD. THE TRACTION CONTROL WAS NOT WORKING PROPERLY. THE DEALER FOUND NO DEFECTS. *AK *SC

THIS IS THE SECOND COMPLAINT IN 3 MONTHS REGARDING MY NEW 2004 MAZDA RX-8. IN DECEMBER 2004, IT WOULD NOT CRANK DUE TO THE ENGINE COOLANT PROBLEM. SUPPOSEDLY, THIS ISSUE WAS TAKEN CARE OF FOR THE SECOND TIME. NOW, TODAY, 3/21/05, THE CAR SITTING IN THE GARAGE WITH 55 DEGREE WEATHER WILL NOT CRANK AGAIN. I WOULD ADVICE ANYONE INTERESTING IN PURCHASING THIS CAR - DON'T. AFTER TALKING WITH THE DEALERSHIP WHERE I PURCHASED IT AS WELL AS THE MAZDA CORPORATION - I GET NO WHERE EXCEPT TO SAY THEY WILL SEND A BOOK TO TELL ME THE CORRECT WAY TO CRANK IT. I HAVE BEEN DRIVING DIFFERENT VEHICLES FOR 26 YEARS - I DON'T NEED A BOOK TELLING ME THIS.*AK