I have been driving a 2013 Mazda 3 for a couple years, bought it new with only 9 miles on it. It has been slipping out of 3rd gear a couple times a week since I moved to a city 9 months ago. I cannot determine if it only happens when going up hill, if it happens at higher RPM vs. lower RPM, etc. It has 31k miles on it, and I just had it in to a shop for the 30k checkup and they say that everything looks great. I took the car to a Mazda dealer in town (not the one I bought it from, that’s in a different city) and they can’t get it to repeat the problem after driving it several times, so they are not inclined to dig any deeper like taking apart the transmissions to look at the inner workings. I’m not impressed with this dealer, since I had to ask to even get a loaner vehicle while my car was in the shop and all they wanted to do was give me a courtesy ride somewhere (I live alone and have no family in the area, it’s not like I have extra cars just laying around to get to work!). I have read that transmissions are extremely expensive to replace and want to get this figured out before my warranty expires. Should I just deal with the problem? Will it get worse? Should I take it to the original dealer? Any advice would be helpful!
@cruehle
Did The Mazda dealer do any specific checking of things like the shift linkage for wear or adjustment and engine/transmission mounts ?
This problem will get worse as more damage to the transmission occurs. How many miles do you think you have to drive to get it to slip out of gear? You may have to get somebody to go for a long test-drive or trade cars with a dealer employee (dealer demo car) so that they can experience it.
Is there another Mazda dealer anywhere nearby that might be more willing to help you?
Perhaps you could set up a video recording of the shift lever and capture the moment that it comes out of third. Keep trying to figure out conditions that will cause it to happen.
CSA
Is this vehicle/transmission described as a SkyActiv 6-speed manual transmission?
I found a 3 page Mazda Service Bulletin (#05-008/14) written to help Mazda Technicians that addresses a problem found on some 2012 - 2013 Mazdas equipped with a SkyActiv 6-speed manual transmission.
Creating the symptoms
The problems are hard shifting into 3rd gear and/or (?) the shifter jumping out of 3rd gear while accelerating and going over a road bump, after decelerating.
The problem is caused by a faulty 3rd/4th clutch hub inside the transmission and Mazda says it needs to be replaced with a revised part (and a list of several other parts needed to accomplish that).
Mazda dealers should have this bulletin.
I can’t say for sure that your car is included in cars covered by this bulletin or if that is what’s wrong, but a good dealer can check your VIN (vehicle identification number) and see if your car is a candidate.
CSA