Advice needed...
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 729
Likes: 0
Originally Posted by SpudRacer,Aug 3 2010, 10:01 PM
Do what I did with Ford. Sell the car and never go near a Mazda store for 25 years. Voting with your cash is the only way to make a statement.
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 19,734
Likes: 247
Look at it this way: if the dealer knew YOU had only put in 1/4 of the oil in the motor and then driven it, what would they do? They'd void your engine warranty right then and there. Why? Because it definitely caused damage and will eventually show up.
So, since they did it, what is their obligation? In my opinion, it is either a 150K mile engine warranty (ie, what an engine could generally be considered to last, at a minimum) or else a new engine right now. There is zero chance that the engine was not damaged in some way with the oil level that low.
If they want to prove that the engine is still good, they should pay to have an independent shop tear it down, inspect the motor, and give a report back to the both of you. Or, if they so choose, they could tear it down but they pay to have a mechanic of YOUR choice there to inspect the motor as it is torn down (to ensure that they actually tear it down and to make sure that there is no actual damage).
So, since they did it, what is their obligation? In my opinion, it is either a 150K mile engine warranty (ie, what an engine could generally be considered to last, at a minimum) or else a new engine right now. There is zero chance that the engine was not damaged in some way with the oil level that low.
If they want to prove that the engine is still good, they should pay to have an independent shop tear it down, inspect the motor, and give a report back to the both of you. Or, if they so choose, they could tear it down but they pay to have a mechanic of YOUR choice there to inspect the motor as it is torn down (to ensure that they actually tear it down and to make sure that there is no actual damage).
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 4,742
Likes: 211
Ouch, sorry to hear this. The same sorta thing happened to my friend a long time ago with his brand new GSR. He brought it to the dealership for an oil change, well, they drained the oil, probably changed the filter, and never put oil back in.. 
They had it washed as well, so the car was sitting idling/running w/o any oil for 15-20mins easy. We were waiting for the car this whole time. Went to drive the car off and saw the f-ing oil light on.. I was livid for him.
The car had <10k miles on it, but he settled for free oil changes for life. He got an apology letter from the general manager, and that was it. He was all things considered way too nice about it. If it was my car, I'd settle for at MINIMUM a long term extended warranty.
How long did your brother drive it for? When you say it was 1/4 full, are you sure it's just low, not completely empty? Was it just showing up low on the dipstick (the dipstick generally just measures the last quart or so). Realistically, the engine should be fine if it was just a little low on oil.
They had it washed as well, so the car was sitting idling/running w/o any oil for 15-20mins easy. We were waiting for the car this whole time. Went to drive the car off and saw the f-ing oil light on.. I was livid for him. The car had <10k miles on it, but he settled for free oil changes for life. He got an apology letter from the general manager, and that was it. He was all things considered way too nice about it. If it was my car, I'd settle for at MINIMUM a long term extended warranty.
How long did your brother drive it for? When you say it was 1/4 full, are you sure it's just low, not completely empty? Was it just showing up low on the dipstick (the dipstick generally just measures the last quart or so). Realistically, the engine should be fine if it was just a little low on oil.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post