Auction mazda

[GSB]

Hi Gents ,New to the forum ,new to computers,new to Mazda!, I was at the local car auction waiting for a Ford Mondeo to come through ,when I saw a 2004 Mazda 6 estate in the hall ,due to some body work damage ,front bumper ,rear valance ,etc the car seemed to be going quite cheap,however it was is such an attractive car that I deceided to bid ,I am now the happy owner!!.

Fortunately for such an instant purchase the car drives very well ,relatively low mileage for a company car and full Mazda Service history helps, just a few things fellow Mazda enthusiasts may be able to assist with ,

1) The car makes a slight screeching noise when turning to the right (only) similar to a fan belt type of noise.

2) The factory supplied alloy wheels are corroded and chipped,I would like to refurbish them ,or if I have to replace them ,but I would like to stick to the similar rather understated style of the current wheels,as they suit the car ,incidentally I did notice that all the other Mazda 6's at the auction had a similar problem with alloy wheel corrosion.

3) Any suggestions on where to obtain a front bumper ,I have looked at a couple of Spare part web sites and have found a front bumper to fit ,but I am a bit concerned as to the quality of fit.

4) The vehicle has come suppled with a space saver spare wheel is this normal ?

Sorry to blast you out with such a large first posting but I am keen to get the car back in shape ,and enjoy the vehicle ,which as I have mentioned certainly lives up to the hype and Is a huge improvement on my Renault Laguna. Many thanks

[JimMS6]

Hi GSB, welcome to the forum.

Congrats on the purchase.. the Mazda6 is a great car. I take it we're on other sides of the pond? don't hear the word estate used around here to often

Lets see...

#2, Mazda seems to have trouble with thier wheels, and I've seen more then a few with the same corroded look you mention. Mazda has been pretty good in taking car of replacements, or at least taking care of the refinishing. If you have a decent dealer in your area, give them a shout and see what they can do for you.

Otherwise, wheel refinishing is a pretty easy process, and ( at least here ) there are lots of shops that can do it. Cost's usally around 50-75 USD per rim. Still alot cheaper then replacing them all.

#4, likewise here the cars come with a space saver spare, so that shouldn't be a concern to you. It's half assed in my opinion, but for how often you use it, might as well save the space and weight.

I'll let some of the other more tech minded guys handle 1 and 3

[BrickTop]

Nice choice!

I would check local wreckers first off to see if you can find a bumper, it would be the cheapest.

Otherwise, if you get an OEM bumper, you should have any issues with fit. The aftermarket ones are hit and miss

[XRRX76]

Nice, I think you'll be happy with your choice.. they are pretty easy to work on as well, and parts are reasonable.

As said about, try a wrecker, if not, I have had pretty good luck with aftermarket parts over the years, just check with who ever you buy from that they have a decent return policy.. doesn't take much to test the fit before paint.

[Johnny Drama]

Hey GSB! welcome to the forum

The screeching noise could be a few things, have you taken a look underneath there to see that nothing is touching?

The other thing could be a wheel bearing, if you're driving straight, there is no noise, if you saw the wheel back and forth does it screech, then stop, then start again? does the screech change in pitch depending on how fast you're going?

[blahblah]

Best of luck GSB!

[GSB]

Hi Guys ,


Many thanks for all the very useful advice ,which I have taken up on ,as suggested I found a good local Mazda service center not by the way the main dealer in our local city who turned out to be very snooty and abrupt when I tried to discuss with him the known problem regarding the alloy wheels. We have a situation in the UK that under EU law a vehicle can be serviced by a competent service center or garage ,as long as the manufacturer's part's are used,so no great loss there.

Based on the Forum's suggestions I have also found a good local repair shop who reckon they can repair the front bumper ,so at the moment my impulse purchase is working out just fine,obviously because our fuel is so much more expensive there has been a steady increase in the number of diesel powered cars ,in Europe for example diesel cars out number gas cars by 2 to 1, It is getting the same way here in the UK,my vehicle is the 136 diesel that has dispelled any doubts I had about converting to a diesel car ,the mid range torque ,and general drive ability of the car is superb coupled to truly excellent fuel economy and you have an ideal vehicle for urban or long distance driving.

The other point I picked up on in the Forum is the value for money aspect to owning Mazda's,as one poster mentioned it may be no Lexus but then it's certainly not Lexus money either,compared to the other vehicles in its class I would say that Mazda does seem to offer you a number of advantages and benefits some of which may not be immediately apparent but reliability and good residual value are two aspects that come to mind.

The local Mazda service center checked the car over ,and confirmed that all appeared OK ,the mechanic confirmed that he will keep an eye on the wheel bearing when the car comes in for service as he had replaced a couple of bearings in the past on other 6's,thanks to Johnny for that suggestion .The car goes into the shops next week for the body work repairs,and I have found a web site where they have an offer on some Alloy wheels ,which are similar to the existing ones for $400 for 4 so will go with that .Once again many thanks for all your valued input which I have already put to good use,I will report back on progress once the wheels and body work has been completed ,I have tried to log on to the Forum but I seem to be blocked .so apologize to all posters who have replied ,this may of course be due to my lack of computer knowledge which I am rectifying

[JimMS6]

Great to hear it's working out for you. Great deal on the rims, how can you go wrong?

Definatly keep us updated on your progress!

[06Mazda6]

Excellent.. when you get it fixed up, you'll have a great car on your hands. I'm been extremely happy with mine.

I wish we had more deisels here.. they're starting to offer more and more, but nothing like the UK. I watched an episode of Top Gear once where he was driving a deisel Audi A8, the range he got out of that thing was mental! tonnes of torque, quiet, etc. It's a better way to go, unless you're full out racing imo

Good luck with it!

[GSB]

Hi guys ,The diesel thing is really growing here now ,with some makes offering high performance diesel versions ,now with no equivalent gas engine !,I think It will come to the US simply because you get similar performance but excellent fuel economy,especially now that diesels are becoming cleaner too.As you mention torque output is a plus and makes overtaking that much safer.

[Mindcore]

Starting to come around here in Canada as well, but not nearly enough.

Sounds like you have a nice car there GSB, post up some pics when it's its finished!

[GSB]

Hi Gents, Well more good news I collected the Mazda from the local repair shops and the repair is excellent ,I got lucky again as he charged me $900. to carry out the repairs as opposed to the $2800.!! quoted by the Mazda main dealer,to be honest I was amazed at how well the front bumper came out considering the dent and scrapes it had, color match is superb, next job will be to change the corroded Alloy Wheels ,but for now I still remain very impressed with my on the spot buy,I would not usually recommend this route of purchase but it was the only way I was going to obtain a late registered Diesel Mazda as they normally command a premium even at auction.

We have here in the UK a trade price guide book called Glass's guide ,I am sure your dealers in the US will have a similar trade guide price book which gets published monthly and gives the Trade ,Trade in price ,and Retail price for 99% of cars on the road ,in my case I was able to buy the Mazda at a little more than $2600.below book price which is some $3600. less than the retail figure,so as you can see even allowing for the repairs and the wheels I am still in front,for a change!!!.

Incidentally I also had to replace one of the tires this being a 205 x16 x55, I stuck to the Michelins already on the car ,the cost came to £69. how does this compare to to prices in the US? .Any how thanks for your interest ,next update will be with the Alloy wheels replacement

[06Mazda6]

Great score, nothing like saving some money to make your day.

We have the black book and the blue book which gives us the figures on cars, sometimes they are pretty accurate, sometimes they aren't even close to real world numbers. But it's a good base line.

Didn't you order your rims already?

69 pounds is what, about 120 usd? I'd say that's about the same for tires here. The stock Michelins are pretty crappy tires though, they don't have much grip, and a little noisy. For the same money you can get better tires.

[GSB]

Hi 06 Mazda ,Thanks for your tip regarding the tires ,I ordered the Michelin because it was the tire recommended for the car as they are T rated which I think is about 136 mph or so ,it is interesting to hear of your comments as Michelin are marketed as a premium brand over here,what tires would you recommend ? as I have also heard that Michelin can give a harder ride and perhaps are not the best for handling of the car.

As far as the rims are concerned I held of from ordering just yet ,until I got the car back from the shops ,but I will be ordering them next week ,as mentioned I am so impressed with the car,that I am already plotting as to how I can obtain one of the later upgraded 2005/2006 model year Mazda 6's ,this model received a glowing accolade in the UK motoring press,and Mazda have even managed to obtain more power and torque for the Diesel motor without sacrificing the inherently good fuel economy and added a 6 speed box and refined the ride quality,however this will be a project for next year ,in the meantime I intend to enjoy the current model ,thanks once again for all the tips

[MazdaRick]

Sounds like you got a great deal there, and are doing well in the repairs. I agree with 06 on the tires, I put on a set of bridgestone turnazas. ( I don't remember the model number offhand ) and it was a huge improvement over the stock michelins. MXXV4's I think they were, I remember because I swore I would never get them again. Down right scary in bad weather.

Do you need snow tires in the winter? if so I would go with a good summer tire, and and a sperate set of snows, and use your old rims for that. Best of both worlds.

[06Mazda6]

I went with summer tires, Bridgestone Potenza S03's. Speed ratings don't really matter as much, as long as it's not something silly like 90mph.

Look at treadwear ratings vs traction ratings and find a happy balance.

[GSB]

Rick & 06, Thanks for the info ref the tires,the type of Michelins fitted are from the Primacey Range ,which I presumed were a preminum tire ,so I have learned some thing new. Coincidently Bridgestone are seen as a middle of the road brand in the UK ,although they do supply tires to some top of the range cars here in the UK .The rims I have ordered are 6.5 j 16 inch alloys similar to the original wheels for £270 . delivered incl all taxes .Tell me how does this compare to US prices ?.Many thanks, Gary

[Mindcore]

Sounds good vs. Canadian prices Gary.

[GSB]

Mindcore, Good to know ,as we are always moaning here in the UK about how expensive every thing is compared to Europe and the USA ,however I think the internet has proved to be a bonus for those able to shop around, there are some very good deals out there,also like every where else e bay has helped to keep prices down.However my new buddy the guy who repaired the Mazda has quoted £40 each to repair and respray the existing wheels.Which I think is quite good and would save about £120 on replacement alloys. I'm thinking about it.
Thanks for your interest , Gary