Hello from a new 2001 Mazda Protege Owner!

[Maryjane]

I'm not saying it didn't happen, I'm saying it's not normal for studs to just break out of no where unless extreme amounts of toque was used when tightening the breaking the 2 missing studs and striping the other 2. Just make sure that dealer doesn't fix it lol

I'm not a mechanic, or really even an enthusiast, but as far as I'm concerned it was totally a fluke thing. And, no, that dealer did not do the repairs, lol! I had the wheel initially repaired by the good folks at Monroe Muffler and Brake, and then I had my highly trusted local Ford service center double check everything. Last I heard as of yesterday the seller of the car was going to reimburse me for the repairs I've made already, as well as taking care of the body damage through his body shop. Of course, I haven't heard anything back form him today. What is really disappointing is I'm really beginning to like this car, despite the fact that it's already tried to kill me once, lol! It starts, runs, and drives well, it's a little stiff and fairly sporty, but so far seems to be doing well on gas, which is really what I wanted. If this guy comes through on the body repairs without giving me a hard time, I'll be really happy with the car. If he does give me a hard time, I believe the law is clearly on my side, and even if it takes some fighting I should be able to get the car fixed up nicely in the end.

Thanks again for your input, I definitely appreciate it!

-MJ

 

[tweety2300]

If he gives you any sort of fight threaten to sue for negligence and reckless endangerment. Lawsuits always change people's mind. If you get a decent lawyer you could walk away with more than enough to fix your car and pay for it. With a good lawyer you could walk away with enough for a new bmw

 

[Maryjane]

If he gives you any sort of fight threaten to sue for negligence and reckless endangerment. Lawsuits always change people's mind. If you get a decent lawyer you could walk away with more than enough to fix your car and pay for it. With a good lawyer you could walk away with enough for a new bmw

Yeah, I've already been in touch with the Attorney General's office, as well as my state's Lemon Law Unit, and both agreed the law was pretty clear. Forgetting about warranties and everything else, the dealer is by law required to provide me with a vehicle that is safe to operate on the public roads, and for whatever reason I think this car clearly was not road safe. If this went to court, and I started to testify about how the wheel came flying off the car mere hours after I picked it up, gravely endangering myself, my pizza, the guy next to me, the guy behind me, and any number of random pedestrians, joggers, and bikers, there is no way a judge won't see it my way. I'm not trying to get a head out of all this, but I do think I deserve to have the car repaired back to the condition it was in when I bought it, and I believe the law agrees.

But, I'm still hoping it doesn't come to legal action, I'm still hoping to work things out with the seller. Since my last check-in here, I have again heard from the seller who says his body guy can get me in and done early next week. If so, I'll be thrilled! We'll see, my guard won't be let down until it's done and over with, but it's looking positive. Boy, cars can be such a pain in the rear!

Thanks again for your input and time!

-MJ