Hi All,

I took my car in for an oil change at Good Year Tires back in March and 2-3 months later, my oil starting leaking ever so slowly.

I brought it in this afternoon to get it checked, and they told me it's a common problem among Mazda 3 cars and how they were built... they have poor rubber seals and it's just due to wear and tear.

They told me they replaced the seal (with another Mazda seal) and charged me again for another oil change after having replaced the stuff they put in it the first time.

I've tried searching on Google if this really is a common problem among Mazdas, but I haven't been able to find anything really. Were they just bull****ting me because they didn't want to admit their guy didn't screw the cap on properly the first time around in March, and just wanted to charge me more money?


Last year, same thing happened with another mechanic... the oil was leaking maybe 2-3 months after they changed it. I took it to a better mechanic and they cleaned it up for me and replaced the oil. They said the former mechanics did a bad job and just didn't screw it on properly... that's why it was leaking a slight bit. They never said anything about a worn out seal...


Hence the confusion! Help!

I'd appreciate your thoughts and experience!

 

Well I wish I knew which seal they were talking about, but if referring to the drain plug seal it's aluminum and I have only ever changed mine once! It's only about $1.00 ea but I never remember to buy one.
After 55k miles on mine no oil leaks. I change it myself most of the time and use full synthetic every 10k miles w/a filter change @ 5k which is prone to find small spaces to escape from, and no leaks... EVER.

Good Year.... ? HMMMMM. I have had many issues with their service and their tires in recent years and my personal suggestion about BadYear is, STAY AWAY FROM THEM!!!
I had a similar experience a few years ago when I took my wife's car to Firestone for an inspection and A/C recharge. I heard them taking unsuspecting customers for a ride, but when they tried it on me ("You need $1150 in parts and labor for us to recharge your A/C.",) I was OUTTA' THERE!! I fixed and recharged the system for under $300 and 3 hours of my own labor, less if I hadn't had to "feel" my way through the job.

I hope that answers your question?