Gold Coast Mechanic?

[suzi]

The baby is due for her 30000k service.
Can anyone recommend a good mechanic on the Gold Coast or are Southport Mazda ok?

Kim

[kitkat]

well alot of the GC members use southport mazda so i think they can be trusted. also they are very fond of the mx5 club so im sure they will treat you well.

[suzi]

great - thanx for that - good to know who to trust.

[SPy vs. SPy]

Mazda Southport have recently resolved a bug in my SP to my satisfaction.
and they do all the service work on the 2.

Chiptorque Nerang, they normally do all servicing on my 5.

Auto Leaders which are all over the place also do excellent work.

[suzi]

Thanx guys, booked into Southport Mazda next week.

[SPy vs. SPy]

Also,

make sure they CHANGE, not check, both the Coolant and Brake Fluid.

this may be scheduled at the 40K service but I'm pretty sure the book also says every two years

This is the biggest gripe I have with dealership servicing, they seem to be unable to read their own service schedules.

[JBT]

Agree completely.

[suzi]

Ok thanks for the heads up - would have just dropped her off & trusted they did what they are supposed to. Now I know to make sure I get onto them.

[JBT]

Suzi, just to clarify, even though your car has only done 30,000km, it is still 4 years old and some stuff time expires with potentially expensive consequences. I think the NB is the same as the NA in that the normal interval is 10,000m or 6 months. The service should be done at the number of months or kilometres, whichever comes first.

Have a look in your owner's manual for the car and look in the maintenance section. There is a table there that lists what gets done at each service interval. You'll see that things like the oil and oil filter get replaced every 10,000km/6 months but brake and clutch fluid are replaced at 40,000km/24 months. You'll also see that it says that the engine coolant should be replaced every 24 months.

I would be asking for them to do a 30,000km service plus change the coolant, brake fluid and clutch fluid. Obviously, it'll cost a bit more but should save you from future engine internal corrosion and brake and clutch hydraulic problems.

[suzi]

JBT -

You'll see that things like the oil and oil filter get replaced every 10,000km/6 months but brake and clutch fluid are replaced at 40,000km/24 months. You'll also see that it says that the engine coolant should be replaced every 24 months.

OOOPS - I guess I should've been aware of the need to have stuff like that done.
When I bought the car it had done 22700k's but had only had (according to accompanying paperwork) 1000 & 10000 services. The 1000k service was done in May 02 & the 10000 in April 03 but since then it had only done 12000ks and showed no other servicing in the book.

The first thing I did after picking up the car was take it to Mazda for the 20000k service. Thought that was the right thing to look after the engine etc.
They changed the oil & filter then but I guess I should've had them change the other fluids then too based on what you were saying about months/k's. Maybe they could've suggested that after seeing the service intervals in the book??

Oh well that was only 4 months ago so at least will have it done this time (and inthe future).

[JBT]

Maybe they could've suggested that after seeing the service intervals in the book??

That's exactly what they should have done........the majority of them are not very good in that regard IMHO . Now that you're aware of the 'gotchas', you should be fine from now on.

[SPy vs. SPy]

further info

schedule says the all of the following @48 months

replace
oil filter *3 more often if dríven short distances frequently
air filter
fuel filter

oil *3 more often if dríven short distances frequently
coolant
brake fluid *5 change anually in humid climates
manual transmission fluid
rear differential oil

@ 30K service
spark plugs unless done at 18 month service (doubtful)

[suzi]

Ok - just to confuse things a bit more;

Checked the manual & there are a few small differences between the 30000k service & the 48 month service.
Which one do I get them to do or should I just discuss the history with them & see what they recommend (maybe a combination of both)??

Glad you guys are patient - thanks

[JBT]

Which one do I get them to do or should I just discuss the history with them & see what they recommend (maybe a combination of both)??

IMO, get them to do a 30,000km service plus completely change the coolant, brake fluid and clutch fluid. That should cover all bases.

You could then delete those items (coolant and hydraulic fluids) to save a few $$ at the 40,000km/24 months service if you get the car serviced every 6 months or 10,000km whichever comes first. My reasoning being that they would be due again anyway in 30 months from now or at 80,000km (50,000km from now) whichever comes first. Going over the specified period by 6 months or 10,000km shouldn't hurt it........after all, it survived the last 4 years.

The reasons behind time expiry are:
1. The coolant has a reliable 2-3 year life. If it breaks down, your engine could start corroding internally. Plain tap water and engine alloys are not good companions.
2. Car hydraulic fluid is hygroscopic (attracts moisture). This reduces the effectiveness/boiling point of the fluid.....not good for braking......and can cause corrosion in the clutch and brake internals......more expense for repairs for things like master cylinders, slave cylinders, calipers.

Having said all that, I change our MX-5's hydraulic fluids every 12-18 months anyway because of the humidity.

[SPy vs. SPy]

The reasoning behind why I suggested doing the 48 month service:

your sig says it's a 02 NB which means somewhere this year it's 4 years old
you do very few kms per year.
the last recorded service was more than 3 years ago

I know which service I'd be doing