NHTSA Complaint #11325370 — 2002 MAZDA TRIBUTE

DRIVING THE VEHICLE DOWN A CITY STREET THE STEERING BECAME EXTREMELY LOOSE. UPON INSPECTION WE FOUND THAT THE FRONT SUBFRAME HAD RUSTED/BROKEN AND THE LOWER CONTROL ARM HAD SEPARATED FROM IT. AFTER A SEARCH WE DISCOVERED THAT THIS ISSUE IS COVERED UNDER THE 7514D RECALL. A VIN SEARCH CONFIRMED THAT THIS WAS AN OPEN RECALL ON THIS VEHICLE. WE TOWED THE VEHICLE TO THE NEAREST MAZDA DEALER TO HAVE THE RECALL COMPLETED. AFTER ABOUT 1 WEEK, THE SERVICE ADVISOR CALLED AND TOLD ME THAT MAZDA WAS REFUSING TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE. I CALLED MAZDA CUSTOMER SERVICE TO GET AN EXPLANATION AND WAS TOLD THAT THE RECALL ONLY INVOLVES INSTALLING A "REINFORCEMENT" BRACKET, NOT REPLACING THE SUBFRAME. I INFORMED THEM THAT I HAVE COPIES OF BOTH THE OWNER LETTER AND THE ENTIRE RECALL PROCEDURE WHICH BOTH CLEARLY STATE THAT IF THE LOWER CONTROL ARM HAS BECOME SEPARATED DUE TO CORROSION THE SUBFRAME MUST BE REPLACED AT NO COST TO THE OWNER. THEY TRIED TO TELL ME THAT "CORROSION" DOES NOT MEAN "RUST" AND THERE IS NOTHING MORE THEY COULD DO FOR ME. THE VEHICLE IS STILL AT THE DEALERSHIP, MAZDA OF WOOSTER IN WOOSTER, OHIO. *TR