2018 CX-5 - A few questions

Where's a picture?^^^

I accidentally scratched my instrument cluster clear cover in accidentally when cleaning with a dirty towel. Does not bother me though. Can't really see it unless you're looking for it.
 
nuggstein said:
Thanks for everyone's responses!

So...I spoke to my Mazda dealership, finally. Corporate at first declined to repair the instrument cluster, but my dealership fought, told them it was a defect, and corporate agreed to pay for and replace the part. The part will have to be ordered once I approve it. The entire instrument cluster has to be replaced.

Here is the issue:

1. It will appear on the CarFax report. I can't even imagine how labor intensive this repair would be.

2. Since it's a new instrument cluster, the mileage will be at 0. They will have to manually increase the mileage, and I was told that it might be off a few miles.


What do you suppose I do here? The scratch is not that noticeable...I'm sure most people won't notice it, but in the right lighting, it can definitely be seen. Thoughts on asking for reimbursement of some sort? Maybe free service? I mean this repair would have to cost at least $2,000-$3,000 including labor and parts...

I don't want the value of my car to decline because of it, nor do I want incorrect mileage.
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Without a pic it is hard to judge, but sometimes you may just have to be reasonable, and live with a defect or beauty mark. I do not think the dealer owes you any free service or reimbursement beyond the instrument cluster it agreed to replace. I doubt that parts and labor are greater than $1000
 
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CX-5um said:
Where's a picture?^^^

I accidentally scratched my instrument cluster clear cover in accidentally when cleaning with a dirty towel. Does not bother me though. Can't really see it unless you're looking for it.
Click to expand...
Same thing happened to me.
 
mazdadude said:
Without a pic it is hard to judge, but sometimes you may just have to be reasonable, and live with a defect or beauty mark. I do not think the dealer owes you any free service or reimbursement beyond the instrument cluster it agreed to replace. I doubt that parts and labor are greater than $1000
Click to expand...
I wouldn't want the dealer responsible, but I think getting a brand new car, and I have something in writing that the dealership was aware of it...along with Corporate's approval, that maybe Corporate can pay for that. It's not the dealership's fault.
 
nuggstein said:
What do you suppose I do here? The scratch is not that noticeable...I'm sure most people won't notice it, but in the right lighting, it can definitely be seen. Thoughts on asking for reimbursement of some sort? Maybe free service? I mean this repair would have to cost at least $2,000-$3,000 including labor and parts...

I don't want the value of my car to decline because of it, nor do I want incorrect mileage.
Click to expand...

Assuming you mean asking for reimbursement in lieu of the part replacement, it doesn't hurt to ask. Just know that you won't get a reimbursement/service equal to the cost of the part replacement - that would be solely up to the dealer as far as what they choose to offer you, if they give you the option. Also, given that you were promised a resolution and have it in writing, all they really have to do is replace the part, and you'll just have to deal with the outcome. If they offer something in lieu of that, the dealership is going slightly above and beyond IMO.

As far as what to do, that's really up to you. Can you live with the scratch, knowing that its there and that you'll see it every time you look at the cluster? If you can, I'd go with a reimbursement/service. Unless you're selling/trading the car in the next few years, I wouldn't worry about the value declining due to a scratch or a cluster replacement. Anyone who buys a used vehicle probably won't mind a minor scratch here and there, and I'm sure the CarFax would show when the repair was done, and possibly what the mileage was before the part was replaced.
 
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I thought they could take the cluster out, replace the glass and put it back in again..... (scratch)
 
sm1ke said:
Assuming you mean asking for reimbursement in lieu of the part replacement, it doesn't hurt to ask. Just know that you won't get a reimbursement/service equal to the cost of the part replacement - that would be solely up to the dealer as far as what they choose to offer you, if they give you the option. Also, given that you were promised a resolution and have it in writing, all they really have to do is replace the part, and you'll just have to deal with the outcome. If they offer something in lieu of that, the dealership is going slightly above and beyond IMO.

As far as what to do, that's really up to you. Can you live with the scratch, knowing that its there and that you'll see it every time you look at the cluster? If you can, I'd go with a reimbursement/service. Unless you're selling/trading the car in the next few years, I wouldn't worry about the value declining due to a scratch or a cluster replacement. Anyone who buys a used vehicle probably won't mind a minor scratch here and there, and I'm sure the CarFax would show when the repair was done, and possibly what the mileage was before the part was replaced.
Click to expand...

Judging from what I dealt with from having work done on my VW at the dealership (and most likely the reason I had to get rid of my 6 year old car)...and with this labor most likely requiring the technicians gutting part of the inside of the car, I'm worried it may never drive the same again. I'm okay with keeping it if I get reimbursed somehow. I bet corporate would rather offer some sort of reimbursement/service deal vs. paying for the part and performing the required labor. I will have to discuss with the dealership.
 
If you*re worried about the dash coming out, don*t be. I could have the instrument panel out in no more than 10 minutes - it basically just all pulls apart.
 
Anchorman said:
If you*re worried about the dash coming out, don*t be. I could have the instrument panel out in no more than 10 minutes - it basically just all pulls apart.
Click to expand...

I've only done this to one vehicle, but yeah, a few pieces of trim and smaller bolts, and out it comes as a sealed unit. I'm not sure the legalities of this though as the odometer situation may differ?
 
Anchorman said:
Well I guess a Lotus or McClaren with a very steeply raked windscreen might carry dust and pollen over the screen but any SUV is going to cop anything heavier. It*ll also get wet in the rain.
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My Jeep as I recall wasn't anything special at dodging stuff either. I'm inclined to agree, but dunno what other SUV's are like, so I won't make the blanket statement.
 
nuggstein said:
Thanks for everyone's responses!

So...I spoke to my Mazda dealership, finally. Corporate at first declined to repair the instrument cluster, but my dealership fought, told them it was a defect, and corporate agreed to pay for and replace the part. The part will have to be ordered once I approve it. The entire instrument cluster has to be replaced.

Here is the issue:

1. It will appear on the CarFax report. I can't even imagine how labor intensive this repair would be.

2. Since it's a new instrument cluster, the mileage will be at 0. They will have to manually increase the mileage, and I was told that it might be off a few miles.


What do you suppose I do here? The scratch is not that noticeable...I'm sure most people won't notice it, but in the right lighting, it can definitely be seen. Thoughts on asking for reimbursement of some sort? Maybe free service? I mean this repair would have to cost at least $2,000-$3,000 including labor and parts...

I don't want the value of my car to decline because of it, nor do I want incorrect mileage.
Click to expand...

You chose a strange hill to die on. My instrument cluster looks like an acid bomb exploded inside of it. I really don't care.

The hill I died on? Mazda ate the entire cost to replace my rear diff when it got flooded with water when I crossed a stream.
 
Just to provide an update...

I reached out to Corporate for a possible solution. They know about the entire situation and still want to honor the replacement instrument cluster. I told them about the negative impacts of this...devaluing my car, and the mileage being inaccurate. The Field Manager was spoken to by the Corporate representative...and they came up with the price of a $75 e-gift card, if I do not go through with the replacement instrument cluster. I find this to be outright ridiculous. The Corporate representative I spoke to said this a very unique situation, that she's never heard of before. I asked to speak to the Field Manager, and she told me that he is not "customer facing." After discussing the information again and my thoughts on this situation, she offered to speak to the Field Manager again. I still would not be able to speak to him.

I was emailed back saying the number is final...the Field Manager still is saying $75. This isn't right. It's a brand new car with a defect. By not going through with the repair, I am saving Mazda a bunch of money, and saving the dealership time and possible lost money. $75 is a big "FU" to me. I will still fight this.
 
nuggstein said:
Just to provide an update...

I reached out to Corporate for a possible solution. They know about the entire situation and still want to honor the replacement instrument cluster. I told them about the negative impacts of this...devaluing my car, and the mileage being inaccurate. The Field Manager was spoken to by the Corporate representative...and they came up with the price of a $75 e-gift card, if I do not go through with the replacement instrument cluster. I find this to be outright ridiculous. The Corporate representative I spoke to said this a very unique situation, that she's never heard of before. I asked to speak to the Field Manager, and she told me that he is not "customer facing." After discussing the information again and my thoughts on this situation, she offered to speak to the Field Manager again. I still would not be able to speak to him.

I was emailed back saying the number is final...the Field Manager still is saying $75. This isn't right. It's a brand new car with a defect. By not going through with the repair, I am saving Mazda a bunch of money, and saving the dealership time and possible lost money. $75 is a big "FU" to me. I will still fight this.
Click to expand...

What is it that you would like to happen? They offered to fix the issue? Or give you $75 cash for the damage.

Do you feel that the mark devalues the car more than $75? If so, how much then?
 
Odd hill to die on. They offered to fix it, so fix it. How much can that possibly devalue your car?
 
mazdadude said:
What is it that you would like to happen? They offered to fix the issue? Or give you $75 cash for the damage.

Do you feel that the mark devalues the car more than $75? If so, how much then?
Click to expand...
No, but repairing it causes the value of the car to decrease more than $75...it's a weird situation.
 
nuggstein said:
No, but repairing it causes the value of the car to decrease more than $75...it's a weird situation.
Click to expand...

Unless you can provide some real world proof that a report of an instrument cluster replacement, due to a manufacturer defect or whatever, can devalue the car AND provide a $ value for how much the report would devalue the car, you're not going to get what you want. Like I said before, either get the cluster fixed or don't. If you end up selling the car, the report/scratch will have a negligible effect on price.

It's a cluster replacement due to a cosmetic defect, not a front end collision.
 
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Agreed. Replace the damn thing. This will not effect resale by a dime.
 
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