Never buy a Mazda

[RogerS]

Our RX8 53 plate just failed its MOT for rust in both sills. It would seem we are not alone as Googling suggests that Mazda cars are rust buckets.

Wafer thin metal + lousy design + zero rust-proofing = MOT failure



Our 1999 Honda has zero rust.

Our 150,000 mile 2004 Discovery also minimal rust

Would I buy another Mazda? What do you think !!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Ordinary run of the mill cars apparently now have a design life expectancy of seven years, and anything over that is deemed a bonus, according to the motoring journos in the Telegraph.

 

[RogerS]

Ordinary run of the mill cars apparently now have a design life expectancy of seven years, and anything over that is deemed a bonus, according to the motoring journos in the Telegraph.

Yebbut, I don't think Mazda marketed the RX8 as a 'run-of-the-mill' car.

 

[bugbear]

Our RX8 53 plate just failed its MOT for rust in both sills. It would seem we are not alone as Googling suggests that Mazda cars are rust buckets.

I guess "google before you buy" is the take home from this. You still have two other cars though.

BugBear

 

[RogerS]

Our RX8 53 plate just failed its MOT for rust in both sills. It would seem we are not alone as Googling suggests that Mazda cars are rust buckets.

I guess "google before you buy" is the take home from this. You still have two other cars though.

BugBear

Oh goodie...my own pocket troll pops up again.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I got the impression that run of the mill cars were things that weren't Rolls, Bentleys, Aston martins etc.

 

[Beau]

Amazed that someone has a 2004 Discovery has a car that causes more strife

 

[DiscoStu]

I love my Discovery and it's go no signs of rust (famous last words) mine is a 2005 Discovery 3.

 

[RogerS]

I love my Discovery and it's go no signs of rust (famous last words) mine is a 2005 Discovery 3.

I hope your turbo never blows (or is the complete body shell removal only needed on the Disco 4?). I think they are great cars. Yes, they can be a bit temperamental but they are so versatile. For instance, how many cars have an internal load capacity of a ton?

 

[Eric The Viking]

or is the complete body shell removal only needed on the Disco 4?

I've seen that done, on a really high end Range Rover:

Two man-days of prep work for two people, then the lift (which I was invited to watch). Really impressive.

In places there's less than 1/2" of clearance between parts of the engine and the bay. The entire body shell is lifted off the chassis and engine. The actual turbo replacement takes about an hour. Then the process is reversed, to put it all back together again.

Needless to say the whole thing is quite 'controversial'. On the vehicle I saw being done, both turbos were toast - on one the bearing had gone, on the other side it had eaten itself. Given the latter, it might well have taken a bit longer to do overall (I didn't stay for that bit).

 

[Cheshirechappie]

Ordinary run of the mill cars apparently now have a design life expectancy of seven years, and anything over that is deemed a bonus, according to the motoring journos in the Telegraph.

I seem to recall from somewhere that in Japan, a car must be taken off the road and scrapped at seven years old. That may be something to do with ensuring that there are no elderly dodgy rust-bucket safety-hazards-on-wheels cluttering their roads up. Consequently, the design life of most Jap cars is ... seven years. I don't know if they have seperate standards for cars destined for other markets.

Still, look on the bright side - anybody remember those 1970's Fiats that were sold pre-rusted from new?

 

[woodpig]

There are certain cars it's wise not to keep without some sort of warranty and judging by reliability lists I've seen recently I'd avoid anything German. Japanese cars on the other hand are extremely reliable. The most unreliable car on the last list I saw was Bentley, which is lucky really as 1) they are very expensive and 2) they are extremely ugly so I wouldn't buy one anyway even if I could afford one! :lol:

 

[graduate_owner]

I had a Mazda Demio, 1999 model from new. When I retired I gave it to my daughter, then she passed it on to another relative and it has just failed MoT after 16 years and about 160,000 miles. Only ever 2 problems - one was due to bad petrol (remember the Tesco petrol issue some years ago?) and the second was some rust ic the cills which cost about £60 to weld. Overall the car did extremely well. My old discovery however (R reg) well, what a rust bucket, and leaky too. Good for towing but regular welding for MoT.

K

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Ordinary run of the mill cars apparently now have a design life expectancy of seven years, and anything over that is deemed a bonus, according to the motoring journos in the Telegraph.

I seem to recall from somewhere that in Japan, a car must be taken off the road and scrapped at seven years old. That may be something to do with ensuring that there are no elderly dodgy rust-bucket safety-hazards-on-wheels cluttering their roads up. Consequently, the design life of most Jap cars is ... seven years. I don't know if they have seperate standards for cars destined for other markets.

Still, look on the bright side - anybody remember those 1970's Fiats that were sold pre-rusted from new?

I believe the Jap cars are taken off the roads because of failed emission tests - that's why we had so many 4x4s sold under other names.
I had a Volvo in the late 70s that was made apparently of exported British steel that was pre rusted. The tailgate totally delaminated - it just hung in two separate pieces, and the catch had long disappeared. I remember vividly being up on the cliffs one night, and in a moment of passion both of us going straight out the back without changing tempo.

 

[devonwoody]

A neighbour of mine purchased a Ford Anglia 1963 model a few months ago, he was proudly displaying pictures of the rebuild because of rust problems. When he told me what the car cost you could have purchased a new Asian car

So rust does not seem to trouble some people.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Many of the Pajeros were imported second hand from Japan (iirc). It was a name that slipped the net, as it has an unfortunate translation in Spanish.

 

[artie]

A neighbour of mine purchased a Ford Anglia 1963 model

My 1963 Anglia was a rust bucket in 1973, I wonder how much of it is left today.?

 

[JandK]

My first car was a Mazda 323 during my student days (1979 -1980) When I started working I had company vehicles 4x4's but kept the car. In 1992 I gave it to my sister's eldest son in 1999 he passed it on to his younger brother. The car was scrapped in 2009 after an accident.

One of the worst cars for rust must be the Vito's from MB they are proper rust buckets as for Range Rover they are not far behind and must be a blot on British engineering.

 

[Droogs]

Many of the Pajeros were imported second hand from Japan (iirc). It was a name that slipped the net, as it has an unfortunate translation in Spanish.

how is being the person who sells straw an unforunate translation?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Because nearly every translation gives "W*nker".