preston@fortune.UUCP (Carol Preston) (01/10/85)
In November I received a notice that the "emission control system" on my '82 Mazda 626 was being recalled, due to a chemical reaction with the metal and road salt (Before moving to CA, I lived in MI and MA). The notice was also for the '81 model year, and I understand from a friend who owned an '82 GLC that these were recalled also. I posted an article to net.auto in the beginning of December to get some information from other Mazda owners. Some people had receive the notices, some hadn't. Nobody had actually had the recall work done yet. I said I would post after all the work had been done, so here are the results. Almost everybody I had talked with (or e-mailed with) said that the entire exhaust system was rusted out. This was the case with my car. I took my car to the local Mazda dealer for an inspection, which is what the recall notice suggested. They confirmed that the entire exhaust system needed to be replaced. The manager told me that only the catalytic converter was under recall, and that I would have to pay for the rest of the exhaust system. Well, I live in the Bay Area, and the labor charges are $52.50/hour, so I would have to pay about $150 to have the rest of the exhaust system installed. On my recall notice was a telephone number to call at the EPA if I had any questions. When I called the EPA, the man I talked with also said that only the catalytic converter was covered under recall. He did say that there had been numerous complaints about the rest of the exhaust system, but that it was not under recall. I am saving my receipt, just in case. I brought my car in today and got it fixed, for about $150. I don't feel too bad though, since replacing the catalytic converter would have cost $400-$500. If you have any questions or comments, you can contact me at the address in my .signature. If you have not received any information about the recall, I suggest you contact a Mazda dealer. By the way, the EPA number that is listed on my notice is (202)382-2495. -- Carol Preston {hpda, ihnp4, allegra, ucbvax|dual}!fortune!preston (415) 594-2891 Fortune Systems, 101 Twin Dolphin Pkwy, Redwood Shores, CA 94065