Garage charges?

Question

I had a battery failure on my Mazda 3. My car is less that two years old and the battery Warranty is 36 months (Printed in the Handbook).At the dealership, I asked for a replacement under Warranty, refused. The General Manager said that the new cars in his showroom, all fitted with a battery, did not have a Warranty and that he could not obtain a replacement from Mazda in the event of failure.
Need I explain the stupidity of that statement?

I did get a new battery from them, after eight attempts with documentary evidence of battery failure from attempt 1.

My car is now (as I write) being serviced at a private garage for £75.00 compared with £165 at the local Mazda dealership - with all replacements needed from Mazda UK.
I did make a Case to Mazda UK who, in their final letter to me said "We understand that you now have a new battery supplied free of charge. We hope this will give you confidence in the Dealership and continue to use their services"
What do you think?

It is no longer necessary for services to motor vehicles to done at the franchised garage. The warranty items can only be carried out by the franchise. I wouldn't go there for anything ever again.

Answer 1

I think that the makers of a good car have just lost a potential customer.

Answer 2

This dealership is a joke.If you have documentary evidence that the battery is covered for 3 years then they do not have a leg to stand on.What really gets me is the fact that the dealership just bills the maintenance and the replacement to the warranty company and they get the money for it,so its a nice little earner.It makes me laugh that Mazda has written to you because of the problems that you have had,you should tell them the problems and how dissatisfied you are and you never know you might get that service for free!Obviously check that the warranty is not invalidated by having the service done in a non franchised garage though!

Answer 3

It sounds as if the registered Mazda dealer is dragging his feet on their responsibilities of warranty service. In some instances batteries are considered to be a non-warranted item through the car manufacturer per say. Generally speaking the batteries are covered by the companies who made them. Case in point: My daughter purchased a used Toyota when she graduated from college and landed her first job. It came with a Panasonic 12V car battery. Believe me, there's no place in America who advertises or sells that brand. An exact replacement would have been out of the question. In America the standard new car batteries are marginal at best. For instance AC Delco batteries come standard in all General Motors products. AC Delco makes three grades of batteries. The GM. cars come standard with the middle grade, and they're made in Mexico. The Professional (best) grade Delco batteries are made in the USA. Personally I enjoy digging into specifications and the true manufacturer of car batteries. There are two companies here that sell direct replacements with an unlimited time and month warranty. Exide and Dynacell are their names but the cost is double compared to the middle of the road car battery. They cost from $130.00 - $150.00 depending upon application. You are most likely too young to remember this but in the 1950's - 70's when we ordered new cars options were broken down so that a person could add: A heavy duty battery, radiater, suspension, tinted glass, gear ratios, engines, 2 door or 4 door, convertables, power steering, power brakes, telescoping steering columns, full analog gagues, heaters, multiple tire sizes and wheels, transmission choices, combinations of colors etc. I guess what I'm getting at, the coustomer could litterally order his or her choices when ordering a car. Sorry to unload on you but as you have guessed I dislike "packages" when ordering a new car.

Answer 4

my advice is buy a mazda and save money cos one day you will need a repair and mazdas are the most expensive. never go to the dealership find someone you can trust its the only way with this car trust me my 323 has had 2 repairs costing 1000 pound saving me 2000