Are the 3s still rusting?

[speedblue88]

Hey all, current Protege5 owner here debating on picking up a new 3 sometime soon.

(sidebar: does anyone know if the 2.5L will be available w/ the 6MT anytime soon?)

Ok, back to my main issue......I really like the new design and the i Grand Touring has every possible option I could want and more.

The only thing that's making me a bit hesitant is the rust issue. Like most P5s mine has terrible rust problems in the real wheel well/fender areas and it looks awful. I live in IN as well, so our winters can be rough w/ a ton of salt to deal w/.

I've read that owners of 3s as recent as 2012 have still been having rust issues and I'm just wondering if anyone has heard any concrete info from Mazda or the dealerships that they finally have this issue under control.

Really hope they have because that's the only reason stopping me from getting one of these.

 

[threeigt]

How often and how well do you wash your vehicle?

I just bought a new 3 2014 iGT a couple weeks ago. When I went to change the license plate the screw holes had surface rust in them. They used metal screws which is terrible... I do sure hope they have it fixed since I love this car.

I live in IN as well. Bought it from Tom Roush. I liked the salesman I had.

 

[Chibana]

I had terrible rust issues with my 2005 Mazda3s sedan. It was also my biggest concern with buying my 2014 Mazda3s GT hatchback, but I loved my previous Mazda3 so much, and now love this one so much, that I went for it, anyway.

 

[threeigt]

I had terrible rust issues with my 2005 Mazda3s sedan. It was also my biggest concern with buying my 2014 Mazda3s GT hatchback, but I loved my previous Mazda3 so much, and now love this one so much, that I went for it, anyway.

How anal were you about bathing your Mazda 3? Did you use a rust prevention product or company like ziebart or krown?

 

[Chibana]

I am extremely anal about my cars, and always keep them well waxed (or whatever the product actually uses), and I've owned quite a few cars, all the while living in this area. None of my Fords ever had even close to the rust issues I had with my 2005 Mazda3, even after more miles and more years. I'm really hoping that my '14 is better in this regard. I seriously love this car.

 

[threeigt]

Yea my previous car a ford 1999 taurus had no rust problems at all... though it had other problems...

 

[WildMidwest]

Same concerns as everyone else here. My wife's 2003 Mazda MPV has lots of rust on door panels and around wheel wells. My 2000 Prizm has no visible rust. Same roads, similar miles. Mazda has a rust problem. That said, I will continue driving my Prizm on salty-slushy days and drive my new MZ3 iTouring MT-HB on fine weather days. Hopefully that will buy some time. Just got my first zero-friction carwash today (no brushes), so I hope to keep the undercarriage relatively salt-free.

I'm getting amazing MPG out of this vehicle already and it's not even up to 1000 miles yet. This beast will be a Prius-killer for MPG once I'm past the break-in, and it's got plenty of zoom-zoom unlike that horrid penalty box.

 

[bonsai500]

I just ordered a new 2014 Mazda3 i GT HB (white) and am having serious 2nd thoughts because of this. I feel like I got a good deal on the car ($22100), but even at that price it is too much if the car ends up rusting on me. I would love some input here....

 

[Bowman]

I cannot speak for other people's experiences obviously, but I have not had experience with rust issues on Mazdas cars. My previous car was a 2003 Mazdaspeed Protege. I sold it mid February and it did not have a spot of rust on the car. I did keep up with washing and waxing and maintained the vehicles exterior quite religiously. My brother on the other hand has a 2010 mazda3 sedan. He's the original owner and he has not really gave his mazda the best attention or care and still to this day going on 5 years later his car looks great. I have always read that mazda does a great job with their cars when it comes to corrosive protectants and overall exterior durability. From my experiences thus far it has been true. Keep in mind that I do live in central Florida so I dont have to put up with the harsh winters up north. We have the blistering heat and suns UV rays that I'm more concerned about. I'm not too worried about rust on my new mazda3.

 

[bonsai500]

I cannot speak for other people's experiences obviously, but I have not had experience with rust issues on Mazdas cars. My previous car was a 2003 Mazdaspeed Protege. I sold it mid February and it did not have a spot of rust on the car. I did keep up with washing and waxing and maintained the vehicles exterior quite religiously. My brother on the other hand has a 2010 mazda3 sedan. He's the original owner and he has not really gave his mazda the best attention or care and still to this day going on 5 years later his car looks great. I have always read that mazda does a great job with their cars when it comes to corrosive protectants and overall exterior durability. From my experiences thus far it has been true. Keep in mind that I do live in central Florida so I dont have to put up with the harsh winters up north. We have the blistering heat and suns UV rays that I'm more concerned about. I'm not too worried about rust on my new mazda3.

I live in Utah, so we do get snow and the salt on the roads that come with that snow.

 

[2.0_Mazda]

The new 3's are completely different than the 1st Gen 3 or Protege. Those rusted quite badly as either paint quality was bad, fender design was prone to rust, or sheet metal was bellow par quality. With the new 3's, I can't see why they would rust any quicker or slower than any other Japanese car in the same segment. Mazda now offers an 8-year rust warranty (was previously 5), which shows that they have put much more effort in keeping their cars rust free for longer. They wouldn't increase the warranty period knowing they'd have to fix & respray many cars that are 6-7 years old at their own cost.

 

[Chibana]

The new 3's are completely different than the 1st Gen 3 or Protege. Those rusted quite badly as either paint quality was bad, fender design was prone to rust, or sheet metal was bellow par quality. With the new 3's, I can't see why they would rust any quicker or slower than any other Japanese car in the same segment. Mazda now offers an 8-year rust warranty (was previously 5), which shows that they have put much more effort in keeping their cars rust free for longer. They wouldn't increase the warranty period knowing they'd have to fix & respray many cars that are 6-7 years old at their own cost.

I sure hope that's going to be the case. I've seen a lot of first-gen Mazda6 cars around Michigan that don't seem to have a spot of rust on them, and I spoke to someone a while back who swore that Miata owners have had great luck with their cars holding up well.

 

[speedblue88]

The new 3's are completely different than the 1st Gen 3 or Protege. Those rusted quite badly as either paint quality was bad, fender design was prone to rust, or sheet metal was bellow par quality. With the new 3's, I can't see why they would rust any quicker or slower than any other Japanese car in the same segment. Mazda now offers an 8-year rust warranty (was previously 5), which shows that they have put much more effort in keeping their cars rust free for longer. They wouldn't increase the warranty period knowing they'd have to fix & respray many cars that are 6-7 years old at their own cost.

Thanks 2.0_Mazda, I was hoping to hear something like this. Makes me feel much more confident with my prospective purchase.

 

[cxpmaz]

I sure hope you are correct that Mazda has improved its rust protection.

Where did you see that the warranty is 8 years currently?

I know for one gen of mazdas they went to 8 years because the issue was so bad but it my understanding that the current gen are 5 years.

I hope you are right but I do not see that it is 8 years on the specs.

 

[cxpmaz]

Kind of tough to find on the web site but if you compare mazda to competitor it shows the rust warranty to be 60 months.

http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/keyCompetitors.touch.action

Not sure if this link will take you to what I saw but it posted it any way.

 

[RG_Flyer]

They wouldn't increase the warranty period knowing they'd have to fix & respray many cars that are 6-7 years old at their own cost.

Actually, manufacturers that increase their warranties are out to regain consumer confidence, not because they think they resolved a problem. Think about it, who has 5-year/100K power-train warranties? The Koreans (Kia/Hyundai). They do it (and eat warranty repair cost) because they have to due to market perception.

If that were not true, Toyota, Ford, and Honda would offer 7 year 150K warranties. But they don't have to, so you get 3-year/36K.

 

[2.0_Mazda]

True, but they don't want to be dishing out loads of money to repair rust. Repairing rust is very costly and the total benefits of cheapening out on paint and sheet metal (example of 1st gen 3) won't over-weigh the cost of fixing ~15% of the cars and building a bad reputation.

 

[2.0_Mazda]

I sure hope you are correct that Mazda has improved its rust protection.

Where did you see that the warranty is 8 years currently?

I know for one gen of mazdas they went to 8 years because the issue was so bad but it my understanding that the current gen are 5 years.

I hope you are right but I do not see that it is 8 years on the specs.

"Body sheet metal perforation for 8 years and unlimited mileage (on 2013 model year and newer)" written under Factory Warranty, 3rd line

http://www.mazda.ca/MciWeb/displayPage.action?pageParameter=partsWarrantyFactoryWarranty

 

[RG_Flyer]

True, but they don't want to be dishing out loads of money to repair rust. Repairing rust is very costly and the total benefits of cheapening out on paint and sheet metal (example of 1st gen 3) won't over-weigh the cost of fixing ~15% of the cars and building a bad reputation.

Hopefully, they have improved. I agree that it is market suicide to put out a shoddy product in today's market.