Not sure where to put this but…
I’ve just bought a brand new MX5 and it’s got two issues. First, the bonnet has multiple patches where the paint has been etched by bird $h1t. These don’t come out with a bit of a rub and wax. Secondly there’s something odd going on with the i-eloop. When I first started it at the dealer no issues, second time, just before driving off it came up with i-eloop malfunction. Don’t worry they said turn off, restart and then just drive it and it will clear. Well second day and it comes up every time from cold and spontaneously when warm. Also i-stop doesn’t work and no internal courtesy lights. Evidence of water splashes under the bonnet by the look of it, certainly not sparkling clean.
I really need a reliable car for work and this is not very confidence inspiring. Any advice? Is this a common issue?
Cheers.
You’ve got a warranty, over to the dealer me thinks.
The paint problems, evident when you collected the car or since you’ve been in ownership? A difficult one that but worth mentioning to them.
Someone may have advice on how to get it sorted, re the i eloop who owns the ND.
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The etched paint was noticed on the day of collection. Now day 2. It’s clearly from bird poo not washed off. The last thing I want is something unreliable and not cared for. It within the 28 day window for return.
Hi urowho, sorry to hear about your issues.
For the paintwork damage perhaps this product from Autoglym might help? I haven’t used it but perhaps it’s worth looking into.
If the car is brand new the electrical or mechanical gremlins should definitely be covered under warranty. You may have to be insistent but they should eventually sort things out.
Since you are the first owner it is up to you to keep the car in well loved condition now. It may have sat in storage up to this point which could be where the bird lime etched the paint.
I don’t believe Mazdas are inherently unreliable generally so once sorted you should have many enjoyable miles in your new car.
Good luck and please let us know how things work out.
All the best, Guy
Unfortunately Mazda paint seems very susceptible to bird droppings. My wife had 2 Mazda2s. After the the first car we learn to clean bird mess immediately or it would etch the paint. Never had this issue with the 5 VW group cars we’ve had.
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We had a similar problem on our ND with iStop not working and a persistent ‘malfunction’ message. This was after a winter of very little driving and was solved by fully charging the battery. As a brand new car I would be straight back to the dealer telling them that they need to sort all of the issues.
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You need to raise these issues with the dealer immediately and back it up in writing. Look into your rights for rejecting the car. It sounds to me like something has gone on with this car before delivery. See if you can find out when it was made. Has it been sitting somewhere for months? These are not things you should be accepting on a brand new car.
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Yes, I would suspect low battery too.
If the car has been sitting around for months, it could be that the battery has got low enough to cause permanent damage, you need to get it checked out.
For the interior light check that the switch is in the correct position.
For the paint ask the dealer to sort it out.
For the stop start check on the centre display which of the three criteria are causing the none function. If it is the battery and a good 30 mile run does not remove it then disconnect the negative battery terminal for 5 minutes then reattach. (Worked for mine on three occasions)
For the i-eloop you could again check the centre display to see exactly what if anything is happening. The battery disconnect may help but if it persists go straight back to the dealer.
Hopefully these are just teething issues and will be resolved quickly so you can start to enjoy the drive. It will be worth it honest.
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I would fully agree with the above. The first thing is to inform the dealer and that if the items are not 100% sorted to your satisfaction, you will reject the car.
As far as the 2 problems are concerned:
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The paint will NEVER be brought back to as new. I have had my car only a couple of months and the paint marks soooo easily. I had some cherry tree petals land on my car in the wet and after 24 hours (as I did not notice they were there) the paint has marked. This was after I had polished it properly as soon as I bought the car. There may be specialist products out there, but you will also find that any slight rubbing on the car will further damage it. This is a problem that will not easily be fixed. The only realistic fix is to respray the bonnet, or for them to put a new one on. You do not want a spray job on a new car, so I would be looking for a new bonnet at the least.
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The i-loop is an issue many people have had. mine works perfectly, but I may be lucky. As an electrical issue, the dealer should be able to fix it, but if they cannot, then the car could be rejected.
There are procedures in place that the dealer must follow before you can reject the car - mainly to give them the opportunity to fix the issues. But communication is the key here and to try and maintain a friendly nature with them - after all it is probably not their fault and if you want another car (and being an ND of course you do!!) then you want them on side. If you wind them up, you are less likely to get help, but also do not be given an unsatisfactory solution. Be clear with exactly what they should do, and this should be seen as a fair solution.
If you reject the car, then you may have to wait a long time for another. Also the dealer should give you a loan car whilst they are sorting out yours. If you end up rejecting the car, then you may have to negotiate (and get it in writing) that you keep the current car until the new one arrives.
Unfortunately someone will end up with this car, which is a shame for them.
Good luck.
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What error message are you seeing that makes you think it is malfunctioning?
The system has a very precise set of criteria coded to determine when the stop / start operates. Many people don’t know this because they can’t be bothered to read the owners Manual
There is big difference between a “malfunction” and the “acceptance” criteria being met. Battery condition is one of many, including ambient temp, use of other accessories such as heated seat, lights, water temp, oil temp…
As others have said familiarise yourself with system and navigate to the screen which identifies which of the 3 main criteria have or have not been met before concluding it is malfunction
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Thanks everyone. The message is mostly just i-eloop malfunction. Mostly on starting cold but also I’ve seen it come on during driving. My guess is it was where I was in a start stop situation and it realised the capacitor didn’t have enough energy.
I’ve popped the bonnet and have it connected to my car charger and will put some juice in during the course of the day and see how it goes. Disconcertingly the engine bay wasn’t clean and had splashes all over the engine of white splashes that look like salt. Nothing on the body but central components. Not a good look. I was expecting pristine.
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I thought the i-eloop in my mazda6 was playing up when I first got the car. I had a couple of instances of the i-eloop icon flashing but that went away after the car had had a good run. As others have said full, or near-full, battery charge seems to be required for it to work correctly. On the odd occasion I’ve had the icon flashing again it’s always been after the car has been standing for a week or so.
Also, the i-eloop doesn’t cut the engine if the air-con is set to minimum. This isn’t a fault and is stated in the manual. You can get round this by using air-con in the eco mode and setting the temp one stop above minimum (15.5deg).
And at the risk of stating the obvious, the car needs to be in neutral with the clutch disengaged for it to work.
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I have exactly the same paint issue with bird poo residue, unfortunately mine has been life shined so they have sealed in the issue. The garage did try and pass it off as a warranty claim and sent me to the Mazda approved paint repairers for a warranty report. They instantly dismissed the warranty side and passed it back to the dealer as they are responsible for the poor preparation. The paint specialist did assure me that the problem can be fixed and they did get out the polishing machine whilst i was there and did remove the largest mark about the size of a 20p coin. I still have 11no small marks that need dealing with. So i will update what progress is made. I have pointed out to the garage that the paintwork is unacceptable for an new car and i will not accept paint swirls in the finish. I will be rejecting the vehicle if it is not returned to as new condition. The annoying thing is this could have been avoided had they just cleaned the car properly and the new car buzz has been lost with anxiety and regret, so much so i have put the car under a cover as i cant bear to look at it. Luckily the i eloop works ok though but as the others have advised untill the battery and system are fully charged they dont work correctly. I have mine connected to a smart charger and the ieloop always seems to work ok.
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Thanks Crystal, is yours red? I was wondering if that hid the issue better but sounds like not. I completely agree with the buzz kill. I’ve only bought one new car before, a boxster and the whole thing was just utter joy from the moment I picked it up until about 90,000 miles when the expensive air con and suspension bills started to come in!
Yes mine is red and you can only see the imperfections agaist certain lights so dont feel bad for not spoting them at hand over. Hopefully they will sort things out. My dealer was Cambridge where wad yours
I’m going to withhold that for now as if gets sorted out it’s not fair to do any ‘naming or shaming’
A brand new car?
Straight back to the dealers. Ask them to provide you with a loan car and to let you know when the bonnet, engine compartment and electronics have been completely sorted out. If it means that they have to respray the bonnet to fix it, that’s their problem.
Do not connect the charger to the battery neg post, that is a voltage monitor or something similar. Connect the neg charging lead to the engine or bodywork elsewhere. If you charge to the neg post (even a battery Minder) I found it will upset the stop/start.
If resetting the stop/start, there is a specific reset procedure and I have put it on my Google Drive share
Stop Start Reset
I “lost” stop/start for months until I used the instructions above.
Thanks Jeff
It’s going back. I’ve now found a hologram on the bonnet from some botched previous ‘correction’.
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