Mazda Trying To Screw Me!

[staples187]

I knew this would end up happening. I come to a stop today in my driveway and the exhaust starts smelling like burning oil. This is the second time it's happened in a week. It starts puffing white smoke until I hit the gas and then it goes away, but smells very strong. I actually thought it was my clutch since I was spirited driving until I saw the amout of smoke coming from the tailpipe. I call Mazda, and what to my surprise, I have no powertrain warranty due to a turboback. I then proceeded to tell them they need to prove that the turboback was the reason for the turbo going bad (had the turboback on for 9 months). Service manger isn't in until Monday so I'm going to reem his ass when I call him for voiding my warranty.

Any recommendations? I really want to do the turbo rebuild anyway and I'm feeling like this is a kick in the ass to do so, but it's still extremely cold out and I don't feel like spending all day undoing nuts and bolts until it gets warmer.

The only two mods on there are the turboback and the cold air intake as of now.

[Ms3InMd]

Hey, I pmed you before about this. When I brought in my car to Mike he told me that two days before I had came there that mazda put out a service bulletin because the turbos are on back order and that every car with a shitty turbo must have pictures sent to mazda. SO he really could not help me out. As for proving that the mod was related to the problem they told me because it is stipulated in the warranty that the vechicle can not be modded it does not matter if the mod caused the problem or not. Mike even told me that he knew the mod did not cause the problem. Long story short mazda just gives you the run around.

[staples187]

So you're saying go back to stock in order for it to be warrantied? I don't know what's more worth while to me. I want to do the rebuild anyway, keep everything on and pull the turbo say screw it and rebuild it, or take the downpipe off and get the turbo replaced.

[mrlilguy157]

i've got a stock turbo for sale :D PM me.

[staples187]

Hold on to it until I get in touch with you please.

[dkswim]

ouch

[jaydubz]

Hey, I pmed you before about this. When I brought in my car to Mike he told me that two days before I had came there that mazda put out a service bulletin because the turbos are on back order and that every car with a shitty turbo must have pictures sent to mazda. SO he really could not help me out. As for proving that the mod was related to the problem they told me because it is stipulated in the warranty that the vechicle can not be modded it does not matter if the mod caused the problem or not. Mike even told me that he knew the mod did not cause the problem. Long story short mazda just gives you the run around.

Ok where exactly does it state any of this information. This is the third time that someone has mentioned "it states that in the warranty" of course it will say something to that effect. I would like to know, how it combats the magnusson moss act!

[dread]

I think mazda has a valid argument that a turbo back exhaust could have caused the seals to go bad. No offense but it won't be hard for them to say that a loss of back pressure or additional hp and torque caused the seals to go bad. Everyone acts like you can mod the shit out of your car and throw the magnusson moss act in the dealers face to get work done. It will cost you more to take them to court than to fix it yourself and you probably won't win anyway.

[staples187]

I think mazda has a valid argument that a turbo back exhaust could have caused the seals to go bad. No offense but it won't be hard for them to say that a loss of back pressure or additional hp and torque caused the seals to go bad. Everyone acts like you can mod the shit out of your car and throw the magnusson moss act in the dealers face to get work done. It will cost you more to take them to court than to fix it yourself and you probably won't win anyway.

Non taken, but the fact of the matter is they just warrantied someone else's car that had just an intake a little while back. That should be enough proof to say, "Hey, even with having a stock car there's still the same amount of chance of the seals going bad." People are saying it's a known issue, but why are they so reluctant to warranty this if that was the situation? Worst case, they don't warranty it and I have to buy another turbo. If that happens, then fuck it, I'll buy another turbo and have it rebuilt through PG. (rockon)

[dkswim]

They are reluctant to warranty it because a new turbo cost 600 or so dollars then they have to reimburse the dealer for the labor which is probably $50-100 an hour then throw in a flat rate time of 5-6 hours to remove and replace the turbo. Then reimburse the dealer a car rental and whatever else the dealer throws in to make sure you do business with them again. Its a couple thousand per car times so many cars (speed 3, speed 6, CX-7)


p.s. i dont work for mazda so not sure what they charge price wise on parts and labor.

[staples187]

Charges of $90 an hour, turbo at retail is about $1,000+. Of course Mazda doesn't pay those prices. I'm willing to go back stock (minus the intake that was a bitch for me to put on) if they'll cover it. I'm going to try and make a deal with them and see if they'll let me slide with just the exhaust and intake and go back stock for the downpipe.

[07speed3]

how come you took all your other mods off?

[Perro del Sol]

Looking at the post and knowing what I know about Mazda Corp., I am not surprised. You have a long list of mods, ETS TMIC, etc.....There was a bullentin issued a few months back about taking pictures of issues with turbo seals.

As far as the individual with the intake, was it a Mazdaspeed part? Even know, Mazdaspeed intakes, the customer has to sign a waiver when purchasing the part,actually know, it looks like that has been even been updated to where they are not going to even going to selll them anymore.

As another member posted, unless you do have a great deal of money, you will be in court for days. Also, if you review your owners manual, any mod will void your warranty.

Good luck to you, it will be a long uphill battle for you.

[07speed3]

Looking at the post and knowing what I know about Mazda Corp., I am not surprised. You have a long list of mods, ETS TMIC, etc.....There was a bullentin issued a few months back about taking pictures of issues with turbo seals.

As far as the individual with the intake, was it a Mazdaspeed part? Even know, Mazdaspeed intakes, the customer has to sign a waiver when purchasing the part,actually know, it looks like that has been even been updated to where they are not going to even going to selll them anymore.

As another member posted, unless you do have a great deal of money, you will be in court for days. Also, if you review your owners manual, any mod will void your warranty.

Good luck to you, it will be a long uphill battle for you.

lol ya even the mazdaspeed intake will void it...when they had to replace my turbo they tryed to give me shit about having the intake and i flipped cause they never made me sign any form sayin that so they screwed themselves on that one haha

[crossbow]

It really comes down to dealer. Some dealers will ask you what mods you're planning to do, and offer to help install them. Then if a proper crops up that might involve the mod, they'll ask you to remove it (or pay them to remove it) as part of the diagnostic process. Those guys generally won't void your warranty, and will warn you if they have to contact a rep to ok a warranty replacement.

Other dealers will blow the warranty horn if you aren't using a Mazda oil filter, battery, brake pads, etc.

But ya, I never understood the whole mazdaspeed parts being "warranty ok". They aren't! Read the warranty info! Only the part themselves is warrantied! Not to mention most of the mazdaspeed parts themselves are crap compared to the aftermarket...just look at the excuse for the mazdaspeed CAI by AEM...damn thing throws lean errors codes so often they had to pull it off the market till they could fix it. But if you had a CP-E CAI, where they took 6 WEEKS getting the R+D on the fuel trims exactly stock, you'd have absolutely no issues...

[jaydubz]

This is a joke and a downright scam if Mazda is not covering items with a known failure! I am perplexed by the fact that some of you can sit down here and validate that some dealerships are not covering these items, the term "pay to play" is some what valid, but its rather irresponsible of a manufactuer to put out a product and not stand behind it simply because the cost to cover poor workman ship is becoming to great. This community is downright selfish!

It is rediculous how many speed drivers are having problems with dealerships not completing work properly or not being consistant with parts or information, then turing around and blaming simple bolt on parts for major failures! I could understand if something like methanol or nitrous was used but come on, intakes, exhausts engine mounts?!?!? This is criminal and we should come together and fight this!

[builthatch]

This is a joke and a downright scam if Mazda is not covering items with a known failure! I am perplexed by the fact that some of you can sit down here and validate that some dealerships are not covering these items, the term "pay to play" is some what valid, but its rather irresponsible of a manufactuer to put out a product and not stand behind it simply because the cost to cover poor workman ship is becoming to great. This community is downright selfish!

It is rediculous how many speed drivers are having problems with dealerships not completing work properly or not being consistant with parts or information, then turing around and blaming simple bolt on parts for major failures! I could understand if something like methanol or nitrous was used but come on, intakes, exhausts engine mounts?!?!? This is criminal and we should come together and fight this!

contact SEMA. they have ALOT of money available for this type of thing...

really, SEMA has to be brought into this so they can compare and contrast the facts to see what, if anything, mazda is doing to circumvent the law. This evidently isn't a one or two person issue where individual law suits would be worth the money. a class-action type suit needs to be investigated if, in fact, they are voiding warranties illegally.

the bottom line is, MM is the rule. there isn't an exception, though there is some flexibility given to the corporations re: what they deem related, and what isn't.

http://www.semasan.com/main/main.aspx?id=60128

if i have a problem, i will certainly take action. i don't, so i certainly won't take the lead on something like this, but if someone does, feel free.

[Antonio DiMarco]

I was told that anything less than 5w30 would cause turbos to smoke because the lower viscosity makes it by the seals.

I did a search and could not find any info on this. Can anyone confirm?

[ProtoType5]

Any recommendations?
.

Don't modify a car under warrantee unless you're willing to pay for repairs...That's my only recommendation...Good luck with the repairs...

[Shane5425]

when i bought my car Brand new, the parts department put a MS cai and CBE from Mazdaspeed... i never signed any type of paper relating to that.. if anything does go wrong , there will be hell to pay..


Looking at the post and knowing what I know about Mazda Corp., I am not surprised. You have a long list of mods, ETS TMIC, etc.....There was a bullentin issued a few months back about taking pictures of issues with turbo seals.

As far as the individual with the intake, was it a Mazdaspeed part? Even know, Mazdaspeed intakes, the customer has to sign a waiver when purchasing the part,actually know, it looks like that has been even been updated to where they are not going to even going to selll them anymore.

As another member posted, unless you do have a great deal of money, you will be in court for days. Also, if you review your owners manual, any mod will void your warranty.

Good luck to you, it will be a long uphill battle for you.

[WagonMan]

This post is the first I have read about having to sign a special letter when you add a Mazdaspeed CAI. Maybe some dealers did this, but I don't see any indication of it being a Mazda policy.

The Mazdaspeed CAI does not void any part of the cars warranty. It is covered by a one year warranty but has no impact on any other part of the car from a warranty POV.

[ProtoType5]

The CAI issue was just released last week or so...Prior sales of it will not be affected, Mazda USA is probably gonna pull it off the shelf....Apparantly it causes issues....Again...The Mazdaspeed parts, sold and installed by Mazda service, will not void a warrantee, but any other Non-MS parts will.....It's just common sense that they will not cover the engine if you modify the parts...They have tuned the car to run within certain specifications...and outside those specs they cannot warrantee the powertrains...It's that simple..

[Darkhorse]

I knew this would end up happening. I come to a stop today in my driveway and the exhaust starts smelling like burning oil. This is the second time it's happened in a week. It starts puffing white smoke until I hit the gas and then it goes away, but smells very strong. I actually thought it was my clutch since I was spirited driving until I saw the amout of smoke coming from the tailpipe. I call Mazda, and what to my surprise, I have no powertrain warranty due to a turboback. I then proceeded to tell them they need to prove that the turboback was the reason for the turbo going bad (had the turboback on for 9 months). Service manger isn't in until Monday so I'm going to reem his ass when I call him for voiding my warranty.

Any recommendations? I really want to do the turbo rebuild anyway and I'm feeling like this is a kick in the ass to do so, but it's still extremely cold out and I don't feel like spending all day undoing nuts and bolts until it gets warmer.

The only two mods on there are the turboback and the cold air intake as of now.

Word to the wise. delete this post NOW before Mazda reps find you and definately void your warranty for good. All in total its going to cost $3,015 if they void your warranty and you have to pay for it. Close this now. Trust me.

[staples187]

My warranty was voided due to the cold air intake. So if you have issues with the car, go back to stock otherwise you'll be screwed. As for this thread, it remains as a reference tool.

[SPEED3TYPE2]

if its white smoke its just condensation, u said the smoke is white it would be blueish if the seals where bad

[staples187]

So I thought too, but when the car was warmed up and started smoking white and smelling like burnt oil that was the main indicator. I know the difference between condensation and oil.

[builthatch]

It's that simple..

it's not, though. the MM act specifically refutes what you've said. while i feel a case by case situation can be problematic for the average consumer due to time and financial (legal) constraints, the big picture in regard to mazda's stance is US law dictates you can add parts that replace their parts without automatically voiding the warranty and mazda has to understand this. furthermore, if you were allowed to add their intake designed by an aftermarket manufacturer, then you can add your intake, as long as it doesn't directly fall responsible for a warranty claim.

also, from what i know, it's not SOP to sign paperwork; maybe some dealers instituted that, but it's not SOP across the board from what i've seen.

whatever the case is, the burden of proof is on them to prove that the part was the direct cause of whatever issue in question, and i know this is a problem due to said constraints.

it's obvious that mazda/fomoco/whomever has incredible financial reach and the cream of the crop in terms of legal council, it might be prudent to familiarize yourself with the MM and like i said before, this should be run by someone at SEMA SAN...

i have no had a problem because i'm not diving deep into modifying my car past an intake, RP and small items, but god forbid i have a problem and they try to deny me on the basis of this fear that they are instilling in all of you...

[wisniaPl]

that why I have light mods that I can take of in couple mins /hours and go to a dealer stock(sssh)

[jred321]

the MM act specifically refutes what you've said.
from my interpretation of the MM act and its intent a part that enhances the performance of the vehicle is not applicable. it's my understanding that the MM act seeks to allow you to replace your parts with those manufactured to the same specs as stock but by other parts manufacturers, e.g. a fram oil filter instead of a mazda, not ones that increase performance as those explicitly void warranties.


furthermore, if you were allowed to add their intake designed by an aftermarket manufacturer, then you can add your intake, as long as it doesn't directly fall responsible for a warranty claim.
as far as i know mazda doesn't sell an intake. mazdaspeed does. they're different entities and mazda USA is the one who your warranty is through


whatever the case is, the burden of proof is on them to prove that the part was the direct cause of whatever issue in question, and i know this is a problem due to said constraints.
that's true at the legal level. problem is it costs money to get there and unfortunately the dealer you take your car to for warranty claims doesn't care about the MM act as the warranty isn't through them anyways so it's not worth their fight

if you want to keep your warranty keep your car stock and take it to the dealer for service. anything else leaves you open to the dealer's mercy. of course even then they can always claim abuse so warranties on the whole are pretty worthless

[jaydubz]

Ok so what about a CBE, do you think I will face the firing squad for that mod?

[jred321]

it depends on the dealer honoring your warranty. a CBE does pretty much nothing so they shouldn't make a big deal about it. on the other hand it is a modification that causes the car to perform outside of its intended specifications so they could decline your warranty claim

[staples187]

Ok so what about a CBE, do you think I will face the firing squad for that mod?

If you want to be 100% safe then you'll have to go with the Mazdaspeed Catback. Like I said before, my warranty was voided due to an INTAKE, not the turboback. I just bought a new turbo and I'm having it sent out to PG tomorrow to have it rebuilt. Fuck it, if my warranty is gone might as well make the best out of it.

I'm just saying if you have ANY mods on the car be prepared to pay the price. If something screws up then they can easily make up an excuse to blame the aftermarket part. I hate to side with them, but most of the smoking turbos are because of the aftermarket downpipe, but the turbo should be able to hold to those specs still. We'll see what happens in two weeks when I put the new turbo on.

In the future, I'm going to stick with a short ram intake due to the ease of going back stock in a matter of minutes rather then having to jack the car and get into the wheel well.

[07speed3]

If you want to be 100% safe then you'll have to go with the Mazdaspeed Catback. Like I said before, my warranty was voided due to an INTAKE, not the turboback. I just bought a new turbo and I'm having it sent out to PG tomorrow to have it rebuilt. Fuck it, if my warranty is gone might as well make the best out of it.

I'm just saying if you have ANY mods on the car be prepared to pay the price. If something screws up then they can easily make up an excuse to blame the aftermarket part. I hate to side with them, but most of the smoking turbos are because of the aftermarket downpipe, but the turbo should be able to hold to those specs still. We'll see what happens in two weeks when I put the new turbo on.

In the future, I'm going to stick with a short ram intake due to the ease of going back stock in a matter of minutes rather then having to jack the car and get into the wheel well.

so are you gonna do the turbo install yourself steve?

[edrive73]

This has been one interesting thread. So far the only problem I have had with my 07 MS3 was the Trans mount falling apart even after the recall was allegedly performed on my car. The dealer took care of all repairs and told me that they would not submitted to warranty since I have some mods on my car and they were looking out for ME. At the same time they were telling me that the cause for my mount failure was my after market stiffer rear engine mount. Later I found out from the manufacturer of my rear engine mount who contacted the Service Dept. at my dealer and told me that the recall mount was probably installed wrong. long story longer, the dealer told me they were looking out for me when they might have been looking out for themselves and their mechanic. In the end my car was fixed and my warranty is still intact.

[dkswim]

CBE dosnt efect emmisions and mufflers go bad exhaust goes bad rust through granted it should take longer then the tre years they warenty us.

[clos561]

Non taken, but the fact of the matter is they just warrantied someone else's car that had just an intake a little while back. That should be enough proof to say, "Hey, even with having a stock car there's still the same amount of chance of the seals going bad." People are saying it's a known issue, but why are they so reluctant to warranty this if that was the situation? Worst case, they don't warranty it and I have to buy another turbo. If that happens, then fuck it, I'll buy another turbo and have it rebuilt through PG. (rockon)

actually have never heard of this issue on a stock TBE, always upgraded dp or some sort of exhaust upgrade

[staples187]

so are you gonna do the turbo install yourself steve?

Depends on weather. I'm driving the car no more then 2 miles back and forth to work just because I have no choice. As soon as the turbo comes in we'll see. I'm not going to wait weeks just to have the privilege of installing the turbo myself lol. On the bright side the new turbo is going in right before the weather gets warm.

[staples187]

actually have never heard of this issue on a stock TBE, always upgraded dp or some sort of exhaust upgrade

07speed3's turbo went up and he doesn't have any exhaust mods.

[builthatch]

from my interpretation of the MM act and its intent a part that enhances the performance of the vehicle is not applicable. it's my understanding that the MM act seeks to allow you to replace your parts with those manufactured to the same specs as stock but by other parts manufacturers, e.g. a fram oil filter instead of a mazda, not ones that increase performance as those explicitly void warranties.

that isn't correct. no matter what the part does, if it offers a quantitative performance increase in some manner, increases efficiency, enhances appearance, whatever...you are allowed to add that part, provided that it does not directly contribute to the basis of a warranty claim. if the part is found to be the direct cause of a problem, then that problem is not mazda's responsibility, however, the mere presence of an aftermarket performance item is by no means, 100% NOT VALID GROUNDS FOR AN AUTOMATICALLY voided warranty. If you read the warranty information for your car, you will see that it summarizes this exact notion, something to the effect of "adding aftermarket devices that alter engine ignition timing, fuel delivery or boost pressure may lead to serious engine damage and MAY VOID YOUR WARRANTY". i have yet to find conclusive information in the Mazda warranty that dictates an automatic denial based on the presense of aftermarket equipment...

Again, the burden of proof is on them...accusation doesn't hold water here. They can say what they want, but without hard proof, you legally have the ability to counter that and win.



as far as i know mazda doesn't sell an intake. mazdaspeed does. they're different entities and mazda USA is the one who your warranty is through

i think this one is a misinterpretation of semantics on your end. mazda dealerships offer(ed) the intake, which was designed through a performance division for installation on their vehicles. From what i've seen, it's not SOP to require owner agreement to some sort of warranty addendum or disclaimer based solely on the installation of that part. There may be warnings about a correlation between it and potential issues, however, there is no legal addendum inferred. Maybe some dealerships instituted that, or there is some sort of card and accompanying literature that dictates some sort of warning, however, again, the fact that one can add that intake and forgo coverage, or at that one and not another style and forgo coverage is ridiculous. That is said without regard to the original fact that you can indeed add a part without automatic issue.



that's true at the legal level. problem is it costs money to get there and unfortunately the dealer you take your car to for warranty claims doesn't care about the MM act as the warranty isn't through them anyways so it's not worth their fight

possibly, meaning this type of mistreatment might occur with that thinking abound, but since the warranty isn't through them (it's ideally backed by Mazda USA), they they can't effectively void it. And moreover, they can't automatically do it based on what we've talked about (merely adding a part).


if you want to keep your warranty keep your car stock and take it to the dealer for service. anything else leaves you open to the dealer's mercy. of course even then they can always claim abuse so warranties on the whole are pretty worthless

that is obsurd (warranties are worthless)! how do you think the automotive aftermarket has become so big? because everyone risks warranties and/or modifies old cars? no! there is legislation to protect you. whether or not you want to engage in a battle and win, that is up to you, however, the laws are there to protect you, interestingly enough, not them! That isn't always the case, however, this time it is.

if you encounter an issue with a particular dealer and they overstep their bounds and/or are treating you unfairly according to the law and your rights, you certainly have to appeal to a corporate representative, and know your rights while doing so. Fighting a supposed Goliath (the dealer) isn't as hard as everyone thinks, and it's not necessarily an issue of cost. It's an issue of knowledge, rights, and effort. If everyone just let someone with more money push them around, we'd never be where we are today.

the bottom line is be sensible, and realize that the more you mod, the more ignorance and difficulty you will face. i'd be out of a job if adding intakes and similar items were deemed unacceptable under the eyes of new vehicle warranties. dealerships and at time, manufacturers, will obviously look for any means available to get out from underneath financial responsibility for a warranty issue. replacing turbos doesn't make mazda money, but just because they have an issue on their hands, doesn't mean the issue is directly related to and can be blamed on your intake, or your colored 'boost tubes'.

[07speed3]

07speed3's turbo went up and he doesn't have any exhaust mods.

haha you beet me to it

[jred321]

there is no real answer to this and clearly you place a lot more faith in dealers/warranties than i do and we can go around forever because it's all hypothetical. if you go talk to some evo owners on the other hand they'll laugh at you if you mention warranty if it is any sort of real problem that needs to be addressed


that isn't correct. no matter what the part does, if it offers a quantitative performance increase in some manner, increases efficiency, enhances appearance, whatever...you are allowed to add that part, provided that it does not directly contribute to the basis of a warranty claim. if the part is found to be the direct cause of a problem, then that problem is not mazda's responsibility, however, the mere presence of an aftermarket performance item is by no means, 100% NOT VALID GROUNDS FOR AN AUTOMATICALLY voided warranty. If you read the warranty information for your car, you will see that it summarizes this exact notion, something to the effect of "adding aftermarket devices that alter engine ignition timing, fuel delivery or boost pressure may lead to serious engine damage and MAY VOID YOUR WARRANTY". i have yet to find conclusive information in the Mazda warranty that dictates an automatic denial based on the presense of aftermarket equipment...

it's pretty easy to show that a power enhancing device caused a drivetrain part to fail. so what you're saying is true, aftermarket parts are not automatic grounds for warranty denial. you are however opening yourself up to an easy out for the dealer to take. if they were voiding your warranty on your stereo because you put on an intake that's another story but modifications to anything in the powertrain to increase performance can cause parts and seals along the way to be exposed to conditions outside of their initial design and thus the warranty on the related part that failed is void



i think this one is a misinterpretation of semantics on your end. mazda dealerships offer(ed) the intake, which was designed through a performance division for installation on their vehicles. From what i've seen, it's not SOP to require owner agreement to some sort of warranty addendum or disclaimer based solely on the installation of that part. There may be warnings about a correlation between it and potential issues, however, there is no legal addendum inferred. Maybe some dealerships instituted that, or there is some sort of card and accompanying literature that dictates some sort of warning, however, again, the fact that one can add that intake and forgo coverage, or at that one and not another style and forgo coverage is ridiculous. That is said without regard to the original fact that you can indeed add a part without automatic issue.
as far as i know the entity that your warranty is through (mazda usa) is a separate legal body than the entity that made the intake (mazdaspeed, of which dealers are distributors) and the entity that sold it (the dealer). the letter is irrelevant. my point was that just because it came from a seemingly mazda entity does not mean that it is endorsed by the company that holds your warranty (mazda usa) but instead the exact same as if you bought a different brand


possibly, meaning this type of mistreatment might occur with that thinking abound, but since the warranty isn't through them (it's ideally backed by Mazda USA), they they can't effectively void it. And moreover, they can't automatically do it based on what we've talked about (merely adding a part).
as far as i know a mazda dealer can NEVER void your warranty. they can deny warranty work and they may tell you that it is void but only an employee of Mazda USA can actually void your warranty as the dealership has no right to do so based on the fact that they are not an entity in the contract. they file your warranty claim just like a body shop files your insurance claim after an accident, just mazda gets billed instead of the insurance company. the body shop can't cancel your insurance and the dealer can't void your warranty. either entity (body shop or dealer), however, can bring suspect acts to the attention of the paying party (mazda or ins co)

[jonscapri]

It really comes down to dealer. Some dealers will ask you what mods you're planning to do, and offer to help install them. Then if a proper crops up that might involve the mod, they'll ask you to remove it (or pay them to remove it) as part of the diagnostic process. Those guys generally won't void your warranty, and will warn you if they have to contact a rep to ok a warranty replacement.

Other dealers will blow the warranty horn if you aren't using a Mazda oil filter, battery, brake pads, etc.


It is against the MM act to blow the horn on OEM replacement parts. If the Mazda dealer is doing that it's illegal. You can, and are allowed by law to use after market parts such as batteries, filters, and bake pads if they are direct oe replacements. NOT PERFORMANCE ALTERING. Just because the Mazda brand parts are more expensive doesn't alway mean they are better. Just the the MAF for one. It's a denso MAF not Mazda made. But anyways. If it's stock under warranty keep it stock, and use parts that aren't going to raise eyebrows. You don't have to use a Mazda oil filter. Just an equivalent part by fram or puroilator.

Y only advice if you want a go fast car buy one that is reasonably used for a decent price, and if you break it you won't be so pissed off when it does. I'm really wishing I kept my Firebird. Yeah the car nickeled and dimed me but for pats the only expensive things were the engine and trans. Used trans $200 B&M overhaul kit $180 (seals clutchpack servos etc...) Labor $350 total $730 for a trans that can safely handle most anything.

[JDM-P5]

That's the reason you should keep all your stock parts.
It's in the owner's manual (even in my 02 P5)...it states that warranties may not be honored if the vehicle is modified etc. Luckily for me, my situation was a bit different and the day my motor blew I was at Mazda. They checked my motor for a nasty tapping/rattle, said it was caused "bad gas" due to Katrina and let me go home in the morning (I convinced them to put that in writing). In the afternoon is was 'zoom zoom boom'. If I didn't have that paper, who knows....?
Thanks again MazdaUSA for hooking me up with a new motor :D


The first thing they said was "We're not sure if Mazda will cover this because..."as they looked at my:
Suspension
Intake
Cat-back
17's
Etc.


Even though I had just been there a few hours prior and they gave me the "all-clear"....

[ProtoType5]

They have tuned the car to run within certain specifications...and outside those specs they cannot warrantee the powertrains...It's that simple..


it's not, though. the MM act specifically refutes what you've said.




You all are so damn BONE-HEADED it makes me laugh...The Magnuson Act refers to "Aftermarker" OEM parts...not modifications...You're still outside the realms of common sense if you think a car company, or any other company will honor a warranty if you modify their origional products.

For example...Should Dell pay for repairs on my motherboard under warranty, even though I decided to install a different processor, and said processor fried some circuits...or Would you expect Toyo Tires to honor a treadlife warranty even if you decided to use winter tires for race tires...

[Mazdaspeed2oo35]

They are reluctant to warranty it because a new turbo cost 600 or so dollars then they have to reimburse the dealer for the labor which is probably $50-100 an hour then throw in a flat rate time of 5-6 hours to remove and replace the turbo. Then reimburse the dealer a car rental and whatever else the dealer throws in to make sure you do business with them again. Its a couple thousand per car times so many cars (speed 3, speed 6, CX-7)


p.s. i dont work for mazda so not sure what they charge price wise on parts and labor.

$ 600 for the turbo ?, you got to be kidding here, a MSP turbo at the dealer retails at around $ 2400 or so if not mistaken. how can a MS3 turbo which is bigger, and better will cost $ 600 ? no way in hell that´s the price for it brand new and i really doubt you can rebuild one for that amount neither !!!

[dkswim]

mabe you missed my disclamer at the botom stating i dont work for mazda and i dont know what the prices are for the parts. but in looking around ive seen the stock turbo goes for a little over a $1000 i dont know if thats new or remanufactured.