2006 MAZDA RX-8 Power Train Problems

THE BRACKET FOR THE CLUTCH PEDAL HAS BROKEN 4 TIMES. THE MILAGE IS CURRENTLY 81,000. I'VE CONTACTED MAZDA CORP AND THE DEALER I BOUGHT IT FROM NEW. THEY'RE SAYING UNLESS THERE'S A RECALL WE HAVE TO KEEP BUYING A NEW PEDAL/BRACKET ASSEMBLY. THE METAL THEY USED IS SOFT AND WEAK CAUSING YOU TO LOSE CONTROL OF THE CLUTCH. PEDAL GETS STUCK TOO. IT HAPPENS WHILE DRIVING AND AT IDLE. DANGEROUS GOING UP OR DOWN HILLS EVEN AT INTERSECTIONS IT'LL DISABLE YOUR ABILITY TO MOVE. WHEN MAZDA DOES A REPAIR THE PUT THE SAME WEAK JUNK NOT BOTHERING TO REINFORCE OR EVEN FIX THEIR PROBLEM. LOOK IT UP ON THE WEB. JUST ABOUT EVERYONE WITH A MANUAL RX8 HAS THE SAME PROBLEM.

Mileage: 11,000

THE CLUTCH PEDAL BINDS UP,OR STICKS DURING RELEASING FROM THE FLOOR,WAS REPLACED BEFORE AND STILL HAS THE SAME ISSUE AND MY LOCAL MAZDA DEALERSHIP DOES NOT WANT TO HEAR THE COMPLAINT,NOW I WILL PAY OUT OF POCKET FOR THEIR REPEATED DEFECT!

Mileage: 117,891

I WAS DRIVING TO WORK ON THE EVENING OF FEBRUARY 21ST. I WAS STOPPED AT A STOP LIGHT AND THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN SO I PRESSED ON THE CLUTCH TO GET THE CAR IN GEAR, WHEN I PUSHED DOWN HOWEVER, THE CLUTCH MADE A LARGE SNAPPING SOUND AND MOVED DOWN A LITTLE FURTHER THAN USUAL. I WENT TO PUT THE CAR BACK INTO GEAR ANYWAY AND NOTICED THAT THE CLUTCH WAS MUCH LOOSER THAN BEFORE. IT WAS WIGGLING FROM SIDE TO SIDE AND HAD MUCH MORE DEAD SPACE BEFORE IT CAUGHT ON THE ACTUAL CLUTCH. I ALSO NOTICED IT WAS MUCH MUCH HARDER TO GET MY CAR INTO GEAR. I HAVE TO PUSH AND SLAM THE STICK INTO GEAR IN ORDER TO GET IT TO FIT. I DID SOME RESEARCH AND THIS WAS ACTUALLY A VERY COMMON PROBLEM FOR THE 2004-2007 MAZDA RX-8'S. THE CAR CAN STILL BE DRIVEN, HOWEVER I BELIEVE THE FULL CLUTCH SHAFT COULD SNAP OFF IF PRESSED TO HARD.

Mileage: 50,000

CLUTCH PEDAL SNAP OFF ISSUE WITH RX-8 OWNERS CONTINUES TO BE A SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERN, AS THE WELDS HOLDING THE PEDAL TOGETHER CAN AND WILL SNAP, LEAVING THE DRIVER UNABLE TO CHANGE GEARS OR USE THEIR VEHICLE, EVEN IF IN OPERATION AND AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. THIS ISSUE HAS OCCURRED WITH MY VEHICLE AS OF 11/20/17. THE WARRANTY MAZDA HAS ISSUED SIMPLY IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH, AS THE WARRANTY SIMPLY REPLACES THE BROKEN CLUTCH PEDAL BRACKET WITH ONE OF THE SAME DESIGN & FLAW THAT WILL LEAD TO THE SAME FAILURE. MY VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AND I WAS ATTEMPTING TO CHANGE GEARS ACCELERATING WHEN THIS OCCURRED.

Mileage: 135,180

CLUTCH PEDAL ASSEMBLY SNAPPED IN HALF AT WELD POINT, WHILE SHIFTING AT NORMAL SPEEDS ON HIGHWAY.

Mileage: 134,000

WHEN I WAS DRIVING DOWN WARD AVE. I PRESSED IN MY CLUTCH PEDDLE AND IT WAS STUCK ON THE FLOOR I COULDN'T SHIFT OUT OF GEAR I HAD TO STOP THE CAR AND LET IT STALL OUT. AFTER I PULLED OVER AND LET THE CAR STALL OUT I PULL THE CLUTCH PEDAL WITH MY FOOT AND PRESSED IT IN TO START THE CAR. THE CAR WOULD START BUT I COULDN'T MOVE AT ALL BECAUSE EVERY TIME I PUSHED THE PEDDLE IT WOULD STAY STUCK ON THE FLOOR. AND I HAD TO TOW IT TO THE MAZDA DEALERSHIP UP THE ROAD. THIS IS NOT SAFE AT ALL. *TR

Mileage: 71,000

I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AND AS I WAS PUSHING THE CLUTCH IN WITH MY FOOT, I HEARD A LOUD POP. I WASN'T ABLE TO CHANGE GEARS BUT LUCKILY I WAS GOING TO THE OFFRAMP SO I PULLED OVER AND LOOKED AT THE CLUTCH. THE METAL CLUTCH PLATE HAD BROKE. *TR

Mileage: 139,435

I WAS GOING TO PULL OUT OF THE PARKING LOT WHEN THE CLUTCH PEDAL BENT OVER TO THE SIDE (BRAKE SIDE). BECAUSE OF THE BENT, I CAN NOT PUT MY CAR INTO GEAR OR TURN IT ON. *TR

Mileage: 70,000

AROUND 07/04/2013, MY CLUTCH START TO GIVE ME A FEW PROBLEMS. THE MAJOR ONE WAS THAT THE CLUTCH PEDAL WOULD NOT RESPOND HOW IT NORMALLY SHOULD. I WOULD STICK AND EVENTUALLY MADE IT VERY HARD TO SHIFT INTO FIRST GEAR AND REVERSE. SINCE IT WAS A HOLIDAY WEEKEND, I HAD TO WAIT TILL 07/08/2013 UNTIL MY NORMAL MECHANIC WAS OPEN. WHILE INSPECTING IT, HE FOUND THAT THE CLUTCH PEDAL WOULD SHIFT AND WIGGLE SIDE TO SIDE, WHICH IS VERY ABNORMAL. WHEN I WENT TO INSPECT IT MYSELF, I HEARD A "SNAP!" AND THE PEDAL SHIFTED ALL THE WAY TO THE BRAKE PEDAL.UPON FURTHER INSPECTION, IT WAS FOUND THAT THE PEDALS BRAKED, CONNECTING IT TO THE CAR'S FIRE WALL HAD SNAPPED APART. I HAD HEARD THAT THIS WAS A KNOWN FACT BY MAZDA, AND THEY HAD SENT OUT A RECALL ON THE PART. I WENT TO THE MAZDA DEALERSHIP AND WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS NOT A RECALL, BUT A WARRANTY EXTENSION, AND MY CAR IS NOT COVERED BY THE EXTENSION AND I WOULD HAVE TO BUY A NEW PART, AND PAY THE LABOR. THE CAR IS NOT DRIVABLE NOW, AND I NOW HAVE TO PAY FOR A KNOWN PROBLEM THAT MAZDA REFUSES TO FIX. EVEN IN THE MOST EXTREME SITUATIONS, THIS PART SHOULD NEVER BREAK. IT IS STILL A VERY DANGEROUS AND POSSIBLY FATAL DEFECT, THAT IS STILL KNOWN BY THE MAKER, AND THEY REFUSE TO FIX A PROBLEM THAT IS STILL HAPPENING TO THIS TYPE OF CAR. *TR

Mileage: 120,000

I WAS DRIVING AROUND 35MPH ON THE CROSSING OF DEMPSTER AND GREENWOOD. AS I PRESSED IN THE CLUTCH TO SWITCH GEARS THE PEDAL SNAPPED. I DID NOT SLAM ON THE CLUTCH PEDAL OR ANYTHING. I WAS UNABLE TO SWITCH GEARS. I HAD TO DRIVE ON 2ND GEAR HOME WHICH WAS LUCKILY LESS THAN A MILE AWAY. I THOUGHT THIS MIGHT BE A SIMPLE DEFECT IN MY CAR, HOWEVER AS I DID MY RESEARCH I FOUND OUT THAT QUITE A FEW OWNERS OF THE MAZDA RX8 6SPEED MANUAL HAVE THIS PROBLEM. I CALLED MAZDA DEALERSHIP IN EVANSTON AND ASKED THEM TO REPLACE IT SINCE IT IS A FACTORY MISTAKE AND MY CAR IS UNDER WARRANTY. THEY TOLD ME THEY WILL NOT REPLACE IT. NOW I CANT DRIVE MY CAR TO THE MECHANIC , AND THE CAR IS SITTING IN MY DRIVEWAY DUE TO BEING UNABLE TO SWITCH GEARS AND DRIVE. *TR

Mileage: 45,079

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 MAZDA RX 8. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH WHEN HE SHIFTED INTO FIRST GEAR AND THE CLUTCH BECAME STUCK. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON TWO OCCASIONS FOR THE IDENTICAL FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED UNDER THE SERVICE WARRANTY. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE SECOND FAILURE WAS NOT COVERED UNDER THE WARRANTY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND RECOMMENDED AN EXTENDED SERVICE WARRANTY. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED FOR THE MALFUNCTION AT THE TIME OF THE COMPLAINT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 47,000. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 56,000.

Mileage: 47,000

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 MAZDA RX-8. EVER SINCE THE CONTACT PURCHASED THE VEHICLE, THE FOURTH GEAR HAS NEVER WORKED. THE CLUTCH WAS REPLACED AND THE TRANSMISSION FAILED. THE TRANSMISSION WAS REBUILT, BUT FAILED AGAIN 4,000 MILES LATER. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT NOTHING COULD BE DONE TO ASSIST. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 44,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 32,000.

Mileage: 32,000

I AM A MEMBER OF A MAZDA RX8 WEBSITE. 25% OF OUR MEMBERS HAVE HAD THEIR CLUTCH PEDALS SNAP OFF AT A WELD POINT. MNAO HAS TOLD ALL OF US THAT THIS IS NOT SOMETHING TO WORRY ABOUT AND IT HAS ALREADY BEEN FIXED WITH A NEW BRACKET. THE PROBLEM IS THAT THESE NEW BRACKETS ARE ALSO SNAPPING AT A WELD POINT.*CN

Mileage: 9,800