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05 Mazda3 engine seized?
My 2005 Mazda3 sport's engine recently seized on a trip from Edmonton to Calgary. I bought the car 3 years old with an extended warranty that expired last May. On the trip the oil light started flashing. I planned to pull over at the next town and check it, but not even 20 minutes later something under the hood made a loud pop and started smoking. I pulled over and turned off the car to check under the hood. The oil tank and the dipstick tube (my dipstick is not in the cap) were smoking really bad. Needless to say my car wouldn't start again and I had to have it towed to a garage.
There they told me that a seal or a gasket blew or leaked causing the oil to spew all over the car. There was no oil in it at all. The engine was so hot when I turned it off that all of the pistons melted together and will not turn on, even when they tried to turn it over manually. It had not been burning or leaking oil at all. I had an oil change done about 2 and a half months ago and was due for one on Dec 29. I was slightly over the kms but not by much at all. They said it will have to be replaced at a cost of $5,000. I still owe $10,000 on it. Does it make sense to have it fixed? What can I do with it besides getting a new engine? I also feel extremely ripped off that only six and a half months and 9,000 kms outside of my warranty it needs a whole new engine. Do you think anything could possibly be done about this? I think a partial re-embursment would be fair, but I might be biased.
Micheal S thank you for recognizing my sarcasm. The quote I got was for a new engine installed. I had no idea before now that a warning light comes on just in the knick of time.
7 Answers
- Who is Jack....Lv 71 decade agoFavorite Answer
Oil light = No pressure and stop IMMEDIATELY! It is NOT for oil level. It will tell you that in the handbook.
By continuing to drive the car and not stopping immediately you did all the damage to the engine. No one has ripped you off.
Your warranty wouldn't have covered you anyway as it was continuously driven with zero oil pressure allowing the engine to literally grind to a halt.
- 1 decade ago
Sammie,
I feel for you, not a nice experience to go through! It's really hard to get any warranty if your mileage is over by that much and the engine melted down. You lost oil pressure and that creates a major problem. You owe 10 grand on the car and need 5 grand to replace the engine.
I would park it and get the cash for the engine, even if you have to save up for a while. If you want to sell the car it will be tough to get your original investment out of it. Shop around and see if you can find a good used engine with a warranty. (it may only be a few months but it will cover any glitches that occur off the bat).
Good Luck!
Source(s): I Googled 2005 Mazda 3 used engines and found the link below. Depending where you live it's worth a shot to shop around. http://www.used-auto-engines.com/usedenginesales/m... - 1 decade ago
Now you know... when your car displays a warning light, pull over immediately to ascertain the problem..but I guess it is not appropriate for me to rub it in...
Well, since you still owe the finance companies, it would be a good choice to get it fixed by swapping in a new USED engine...the try to sell it off to get your money's worth. To rebuilt the engine would entail costly overhaul with many new parts to the internals of the engine.
A contract is a contract and even if it expires one day after the warranty period, say 12.01am after the expiry, then its null and void... You could however try to get some discounts on the engine components should you decide to rebuilt the engine.
So sorry for the experience that you have to endure. BTW, the Mazda 3 is a real sweet vehicle.
- ?Lv 71 decade ago
$5,000.00 sounds high for new engine, I'd suggest a re-manufactured engine. I could drop a new V8 in a Corvette for that. I'm afraid you can't blame anybody but yourself for blowing engine, that's what light is for WARNING. If you owe that much I'd say fix it, you'll never re-coupe that money if you let car go. I really suggest you check around for another estimate, the place you're at knows they have you over a barrel. Warranties are like that they always run out before you need them.
Source(s): ASE master auto tech ret. - How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
- 1 decade ago
Check with your insurance, they may be able to help you if you have comprehensive...
Its worth a try Ive seen insurance companies pay for a new engine... If something broke and caused the engine to blow... It sounds like the seals started leaking on the trip and got worse without your knowledge... You did check the oil before you left on the trip I assume...
- Michael SLv 71 decade ago
You're definitely bias and if you learn anything from this, when you get the oil light coming on it means you have to check the oil.
When the oil light starts flashing, it means you have to check the oil NOW.
You and your neglect and not having knowledge caused the engine to seize.
Sorry but those are the facts.
