First time I have seen this particular problem reported, second one the repairing dealer had done recently too:Ā
Ā
https://www.mx5life.com/forum/index.php/topic/48611-attention-all-nd-mk4-owners/
Now that IS worrying!Ā Letās hope Mazda treat any/all cases the same.
Thanks for posting that Ian!
PS:Ā Iām more than a little surprised that Rodders hasnāt come across/mentioned this problem.
Rodders is having a long weekend at Cadwell, no doubt he will comment when he returns to Sheffield
Mental parts prices.
Yet another unwelcome ND āfoibleā.
There was a complete unit unused on Ebay for around Ā£150.00 but that seems to haveĀ been a one off oddball originally meant for a Fiat.
Find it a bit of a stretch that they cannot be rebushed, but Iāve no idea about the techical metallurgy robustness of them.
Perhaps being light alloy, the unit cannot take the potential brutality eg a torch & malletā¦or a pressā¦ as steel ones can.
I hope for ND userās sakes some enterprising Engineer ( capital E) will effect a workaround.Ā
To scrap good wishbones due to duff bushesā¦it smells a bit of throwing the baby out with the bathwater.Ā
Hmm, if the alloy is too soft it might be being hammered so the hole securing the bush is growing.
Maybe replacement bushes with oversized outer dimension could be an answer, or maybe a sleeve - but only if no cracks in the carrier.
Cue for another cottage industryā¦
I emailed Auto Express a about this issue steve_fowler@dennis.co.uk is the editors address.
I want to create awareness in the subject I mentioned rear hub bushes for the ND and the Fiat 124, which are the same in this regard.
We have to raise awareness of this this issue people tend to do low mileage in these cars, so the problem in a large number of cases wonāt raise itās ugly head (or hub) for years to come.
Itās a good point.
Does anyone know if there has been a design change and if so when it was applied?
If you mean the ā Pillow Ball Suspension Bushing Setā shown there it shows two āOEM bushesā in the diagram. I think they are the ones that are failing. 
The new replacement bushes are a long way down and the descriptions were in Japanese on my machine.
All good stuff, thank you.
As an aside it appears from all the addons available to ācorrectā design flaws on our NDs they must be a truly horrendous car to drive and own in āstandardā form!!!
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Make your own bushings (English)
Hardness, Shore : A60 eBay
Spherical bearings are relatively cheap too, just need dimensions?
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If this becomes a big enough problem then the aftermarket will step in and manufacture a replacement solution as the market conditions will exist. I donāt see home made bushings being a viable or reliable alternative for most owners.
Moog, Meyle and others may find a way to increase longevity with dimensional and or material changes.
just go to Mazda uk and complain which is what i did and as long as the car has been looked after by Mazda they normally replace the faulty parts on a goodwill basis .
my car had full Mazda service history and 55k mileage Mazda quoted me Ā£1600 to replace both hubs after Mazda paid 70% of bill leaving me a total of about Ā£300 to pay .
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Thatās fine if you have full Mazda service history and while the model is current but less likely to be the case for longer term ownership or diy servicing enthusiasts. It seems like Mazda want to keep people sweet while they are still selling the mk4 without the expense or negative publicity of a proper recall.
Mazdaās Goodwill Policy will offer a contribution to repairs that would have been covered by the New Vehicle Limited Warranty up to 7 years old for the first, second and potentially subsequent owners as long as they have a full Mazda Dealer Service (their are some other caveats too). Amongst other things, this offers piece of mind to owners and promotes brand loyalty. Paying for main dealer servicing during this period is a bit like an insurance policy.
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Dead right! Thatās why I needed to have a second one, just to prove to myself how really bad they are! 
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Weāre all gluttons for punishment but you take it to a whole new level. 
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