NHTSA Complaint #10278965 — 2005 MAZDA RX-8

I OWN A 2005 MAZDA RX8 WITH 35,000 MILES ON THE CAR. IT HAD TO BE TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP RECENTLY FOR A ROUGH IDLE AND HARD START PROBLEM. AFTER MUCH COSTLY INVESTIGATION (COSTLY TO ME 590$), IT WAS FOUND THAT MY RENESIS ENGINE IS LOSING COMPRESSION AND COULD POSSIBLY FAIL AT ANY MOMENT. AFTER CONTACTING CORPORATE HQ ABOUT THIS PROBLEM THE DEALERSHIP TESTED THE ENGINE WHICH PASSED BY A MINIMAL PERCENT, JUST ENOUGH NOT TO REPLACE THE ENGINE UNDER WARRANTY. AFTER SOME PERSONAL RESEARCH ON THIS MATTER, I'VE FOUND HUNDREDS OF OTHER RX8 OWNERS HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH LITTLE OR NO HELP FROM MAZDA OTHER THAN REPLACING THE DAMAGED ENGINE WITH THE SAME MODEL OF FAULTY ENGINE. REPORTS FROM OWNERS OF ENGINES DYING IN THE MIDDLE OF DANGEROUS A INTERSECTIONS AND SUCH ARE VERY UNSETTLING BEING AN OWNER MYSELF HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM. THERE HAVE BEEN OWNERS THAT ARE NOW ON THEIR SECOND AND THIRD ENGINES AS WELL WITH SEEMINGLY NO END TO THE REPAIRS. IN MY CASE, THE DEALERSHIP GUARANTEED THAT MY ENGINE WOULD FAIL WITHIN SIX MONTHS SO TO "BE CAREFUL" AND "KEEP AND EYE ON IT". THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. OBVIOUSLY THERE IS SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH THESE ENGINES AND I THINK THEY ARE UNSAFE. MAZDA HAS ADDED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY TO THESE ENGINES FOR UP TO 100,000 MILES BUT THAT DOES NOT SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF THESE ENGINES FAILING WHILE IN MOTION OR IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION. IT ONLY REPLACES ONE BURNT OUT BOMB WITH A BOMB WITH A NEW FUSE. I SERIOUSLY THINK THIS SHOULD FALL UNDER THE "LEMON-LAW" AND I WOULD LIKE MORE TO BE DONE ABOUT THIS ISSUE BECAUSE IT SEEMS RX8 OWNERS ARE BEING LEFT WITHOUT OPTIONS HERE EXCEPT TO MAKE LEMONADE FROM THEIR 30,000$ LEMON. ME INCLUDED.*TR