Mazda dealer survey

We had some good reports in the old forum, can we post any comments here please and I will add them to the faq, which is here

http://mx5oc.co.uk/forum/forums/t/440.aspx

One of our forum memberes–OneCruelBagel , has created a Google map showing dealer locations, together with comments, here’s the info

 

From:  OneCruelBagel

I’ve created a map now, it’s at http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=0&msid=
108565549869766850085.00046098a318d9549608d
and anyone should be able to edit it!

Editing this post to say that I’ve added all the reviews in this thread to the map.

Green marker: Good review(s) from forum members
Yellow marker: Mixture of good and bad reviews
Red marker: Bad review(s) from forum members

If necessary, I’ll pick colours for “mostly good” or “mostly bad”, but for now, I think this is quite enough!

Please add your own reviews to the map - there aren’t any near me (Surrey/West London) yet, and I’ll probably need a service at some point!

Leamington Mazda are absolutely appalling, I purchased a new special edition RX-8 from them this is a true account of what followed:

 The RX-8 was a special edition model and when I went to collect the car the build number plates were missing from the sill covers - I found them 4 days later in the glove box so I fitted them myself this was after Leamington Mazda had showed no interest at all in resolving the situation.

 I collected the car on 27th September and I had requested that the £400pa road tax was to start on the 1st October which they could do on a new car - in spite of my request they had taxed it from 1st September so it had cost me a months lost tax it then it took me 6 weeks to get the month refunded.

 I discovered that a blanking plate was missing from inside the centre console box leaving a hole - you could see by the scratch marks around the area that someone had removed the plate from my new car, the service manager denied that they would do this then to my disbelief he proceeded to try and remove the part from another new RX-8 in the show room to put in my car (but they wouldn`t do this!)

 The cars owner manual was missing it took me 3 weeks to get one after 2 further phone calls, the service book did not have the dealers stamp or any details of the car entered, the cars windows are etched with a security code which the dealer should send notice of to RETAINAGROUP as this company retains details of the vehicle in case of theft Leamington Mazda couldnt manage it so the etch code hadnt been recorded.

 Mazda had an offer that if you bought an RX-8 in September you would receive £1500 cash back you have to pay this amount when you pay for the car then it is credited back to your bank account by Mazda but after 6 weeks I had not received the money I complained to Mazda UK they said that Leamington Mazda had not raised the paper work so Mazda had not made the payment back to me.

 From day one I was aware that the catalytic converter sounded noisy (I have owned 2 RX-8s previously so I know what they should sound like) but I decided to monitor the noise but a week later while I was accelerating as I came off the M6 I heard a noise as if broken particles were rattling in the cat it did this twice the car was also back firing quite loudly, so I returned the car back to the dealer the following morning and explained what had happened they said they would keep the car for investigation which I agreed to with the proviso that they informed me what was faulty as the car was only 3 weeks old and I was not prepared to accept major parts being removed and replaced, they had my car for 6 days and I heard nothing, Leamington Mazda do not return phone calls so I went to the dealership to see what was happening I spoke to the business manager and the salesman but they could not tell me what was happening with my car so I handed the spare keys back and informed them that I was rejecting the car as I did not believe it was of acceptable quality, I confirmed this in writing the following day.

 Later that day there was a message left on my answer phone that my car was ready for collection so the following morning I called the dealership to enquire what was going on but no one was available to let me know what was happening, later that day when the dealership knew I would be at work 2 gentleman arrived at my house and parked my car on the drive and offered the keys to my wife, my wife asked what the position was with the car but they could not tell her so my wife explained that as the car did not belong to her and as there was an outstanding issue with it she refused to accept the return of the car as it was up to myself to deal with it, the gentleman then offered the keys again but my wife refused and closed the door - these gentlemen then pushed the keys through the letter box and left my car on the drive!

 As I had already formerly rejected the car I complained to Mazda about the bully boy tactics of their dealership but they just put it all down to human error on behalf of the dealer and they informed me that no fault was found on my car but they had changed the spark plugs (6 days?) as a precaution.

 The car still has a fault with the exhaust which appears to be deteriorating as it is getting noisier but I am stuck with the car and as I refuse to have any further dealings with Leamington Mazda so I have been left to sort the problem with another Mazda dealer.

In short if you deal with Leamington Mazda they will sell you a new Mazda and take your money but there the relationship ends, they do not return phone calls, they pay little attention to pre sale service, their after sales service is non existent, they do not tell you the truth, they totally ignore and disregard you as a customer and are prepared to ride roughshod over you using bully boy tactics when required.

The only part I played in all of this is that I purchased a new Mazda, it has since come to my notice from other RX-8 owners that Leamington Mazda are not unknown to behave in the manner which I have encountered from my own experience.

Avoid Leamington Mazda.

A quick thumbs-up for Perrys Mazda of Blackburn.
 Just bought my MX5 from there, and the sales staff were very helpful. Haven’t had any direct dealings with the service department, but the pre-sale service they did seems to have been very thorough.
I’m hoping there won’t be any issues that fall under the Mazda warranty, but if there are (at the very least, for a check-up before the warranty expires next year) I’ll be going to Mitchell Mazda in Chester as they’re my local delaership, so will report back as and when. Anyone had any experience at Mitchells? The sales manager at Perrys mentioned that the guv’nor at Mitchells was a bit of an MX5 fan …

Chris Allen in Poulton give good service. Never bought a car from them yet.

I experienced both the good and the bad in my recent purchase. 
I was undecided on whether to buy new or used and one of the cars I went to view was a dealer owned ‘demo’ car at Gates of Bishops Stortford. The car was advertised in several places and the price varied quite significantly depending on which ad you were looking at. The dealer is about 50 mile from me but I dont mind travelling to buy cars if it’s worth my while. I rang to check it was available to view and check spec etc. When I got there I discovered the car didnt have climate on it, which it clearly states in the ads, and still does! The dealers answer of ‘oh you dont need it’ was hardly what I was looking for and didnt seem too fussed by the incorrect ads. Confirmed by the fact that they are still wrong.
 I then went back to Romford Mazda who I had been talking to a few days earlier and bought a new car from them. I have bought from them before and once again I can speak very highly of them. I was treated well and were happy to get me the car I wanted, whether it be used or new, and ultimately I left happy with the deal we had come up with. 
Gates, however, were not finished as they phoned me a couple of days later apologising for the mix up, which was a start that came to a shuddering halt when they asked, after I had told them I had bought a new one elsewhere, how much I had paid. That in itself I though was bad but as I didnt want to be rude but also ndidnt want to tell them how much I’d paid as it’s none of their business, I made a figure up. To which he repsonded ‘oh we could have done better than that, but never mind’. Very unprofessional in my mind I’m afraid.

CANTERBURY MAZDA - Excellent customer service and very nice people, I have brought 7 Mazda cars including (Mazda 626, Mazda 6 Ts, Mazda 323 x 2 , MX-5 VT Sport, RX-8 and my latest model MK3 Launch Edition MX-5 99/300.
They are also donating a service of upto £200 for our South East Christmas meal raffle prize.
Living in the Garden of England brings some good perks I think.
So come to the Garden of England and get your new MX-5 Car.
Thanks
Sarah (Mazda Chick)

Mitchells Chester (Ellesmere Port).

 Rubbish. No parts department to speak of, did not have a sump washer in stock and took 15 minutes to locate a part number. Would order one for me at 90p plus £5 special order fee.  What on earth do they use when they service cars and do an oil change?

Damn! I’m sorry to hear that about Mitchell’s - they’re my local dealer. Haven’t had a need to do anything with them yet, but I have a 12-month Mazda warranty on my MX5 and was planning to take it to them for a pre-warranty-expiry check next autumn.
 I bought mine from Perrys Mazda in Blackburn … was chatting to the sales manager there when I was doing the deal, it turned out he was an MX5 fan so he came over for a chat, and when he found out where I was from he mentioned Mitchells in Cheshire Oaks and said that the guv’nor there (Mr. Mitchell - I forget his first name) also liked MX5s and that I should go and speak to him if I needed any dealer support.
Having said all that - one bad report does not a bad dealership make! Anyone else used Mitchells for anything in the past? Are they really that bad?

 

Shires Mazda (Taunton) sold me a wierd-shaped set of number plates that didn’t fit my mk1 properly until I cut the bottoms off (consigning their website address advert to the bin). 

Had they shown some enthusiasm, built a relationship, demonstrated they could supply parts that would fit my car, and seemed like they gave a toss…


 
 
 

Another thumbs down for Leamington Mazda. A couple of years ago we bought a used car (non Mazda) from them only to be told two days later before collection we couldn’t have it because it had already been sold to someone else and the salesman hadn’t realised!  It was a complete joke. I pursued the issue through Trading Standards but frankly got nowhere. Deposit was returned but frankly they didn’t give a damn…that’s what really irritated me. I have avoided them ever since and would encourage others to do so…

I’ll give a thumbs up for Ashleys Mazda in Southport. Have used them for fitment of Eibach springs (and no twisted bushes here), and earlier today for my first service. Car was ready exactly when they said it would be, and no waiting around.

Neil

Mazda Romford - Collier Row
I can’t recommond Mazda Romford enough, I haven’t actually bought any cars from them but the customer service in the parts department is superb, I try my best to source my parts from others places but when it comes to parts I cannot find, I just give Don a call and its sorted! No problems no fuss. Very friendly and always up for a chat.

Thumbs up for them!

Mazda - Rivervale Portslade. www.rivervale.co.uk

I can’t speak highly enough about them.  The staff were incredibly helpful - even bringing the car to my home address to test drive as I was car less!  A very honest approach, no pressure tactics (well if there were I didn’t feel like there was!)  Always kept in good contact with me as negotiations were being dealt with.  I feel confident using the garage for future servicing and would not hesitate in recommending them to anyone else! 

 

 Not quite on topic (sorry!) but does anyone else think that having these reviews on a map would be useful?
 If the idea appeals, I’d be quite happy to set one up, probably on Google Maps to go with the Greatest Driving Roads maps I did a while back. Let me know.  :slight_smile:

 

Great idea, I tried, in the post in the FAQ to indicate a county/town, but a map would be even better. You, would need to keep it up to date though

BTW OCB do you still have the roads map? If so maybe you could re post in the appropriate forun TIA

I would give a thumbs up to Torbay Mazda(Central Garages Torbay) [Y]
Very good service and helpfull with warranty cliam, The got a new set of alloys out of Mazda for my mk2.5 when it only had 4 weeks left to go and I did not even buy the car from them.
Took the mx-5 in for a service with them and it was cheaper than they quoted when I picked the car up from the service, great stuff.[Y]

 I’ve created a map now, it’s at http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=0&msid=
108565549869766850085.00046098a318d9549608d
and anyone should be able to edit it!
Editing this post to say that I’ve added all the reviews in this thread to the map.

Green marker: Good review(s) from forum members
Yellow marker: Mixture of good and bad reviews
Red marker: Bad review(s) from forum members
If necessary, I’ll pick colours for “mostly good” or “mostly bad”, but for now, I think this is quite enough!

Please add your own reviews to the map - there aren’t any near me (Surrey/West London) yet, and I’ll probably need a service at some point!
Geoff, if you think it’s a good idea, adding a link to the map in your first post in this thread would make it a lot more obvious, otherwise there’s a risk it’ll just vanish into the thread.

 Magna Mazda, Christchurch, Dorset.
 Brilliant service from the guys there, plus always happy to answer queries and give advice over the phone!!
[Y] 

I don’t see any value to this post.
In any business there are bound to be occasions when customers feel thay have been dealt with badly. That’s human nature.
If you have an issue with your dealer, write to the boss. Only then will the bosses know that they have an internal problem.
If you don’t complain, then they imagine their business is running well.
Everybody makes mistakes in business from time to time, talk to them to help them improve. You, the customer would be the beneficioniary in the long run.
Every dealer chastized here will have an army of satisfied customers as well.

But slagging off dealers by name on this forum doesn’t help anybody.