Problems with 2004 Mazda RX-8 POWER TRAIN

Clutch pedal broke driving down the road

Driving down the road and came to a stop light, engaged the clutch heard a pop and haven't been able to get into gear since.i was in the middle of traffic and was nearly rear ended cause the couch wouldn't disengage to but it in great cause the bracket had broken completely.

As i pressed my cars clutch to change gears (6 speed manual ) while driving on my regular sunday drive in a city street, i heard and felt a very loud explosion and noises of metal pieces ejecting from under my car. i was in the 60km/h zone so was not speeding or going fast such as on a freeway etc. i was able to pull over safely while rolling as the engine had been disabled in the explosion. i could feel my left foot was in extreme pain. my car would not start. i feared that the engine had blown up. my car is very well maintained and serviced regularly with no modifications. what i discovered was that the transmission had detonated, the gearbox bell housing was torn apart (got pictures to prove it) and i found parts of the clutch in many tiny pieces all over the roads. the clutch was replaced by mazda 30,000kms ago and at a mazda dealership using oem clutch kit. the force of the gearbox explosion was so great that the clutch pedal impacted my left foot and shattered the bones of the left foot in pieces (yes i was wearing thick soled sneakers) and caused severe trauma to my foot in general. at the hospital, the surgeons words were " it looks really bad". i was operated on and titanium plates and 4 screws were inserted to try to hold my shattered bones in place. 8 months and a lot of hospital visits later, i am still recovering from the day. i had further surgery few weeks ago to perform a bone graft because one break wasn't healing. i have approached mazda regional head office. initially mazda contacted me via phone asking for details of the crash. i sent them photos via email. i have not heard from them since. i then also contacted the dealership. they promised to ring back and they too, have stopped. it's been difficult to find a lawyer who can see the obvious problem, that a vehicle should not blow up, or catch fire etc no matter what age it is. help!

Vehicle in motion (3rd gear). slowed to make a left turn. depressed clutch pedal to shift into neutral. pedal stayed on floor. i pulled it up with my foot and attempted to pump it in an effort to build pressure. with clutch depressed vehicle could not be shifted into gear unless pumped multiple times, then clutch would engage less than 2 inches of travel from floor. pedal moves back and forth side ways as well..

I was driving down the road and i went to slow down at a light and when i pressed the clutch pedal to engage the brake i heard a pop and my clutch felt like it was shifting to the side and it barely cuts off enough to come out of gear. i inspected the the assembly by looking under the steering wheel and i found that a weld had snapped.

Takata recall my power stering goes out all the time doesnt matter if im sitting still or im going down the high way. it does eventually come back on but does go back off. it also will cause my stering wheel to jurk left and right by itself cause me to swerve in an out of lanes. it got to the point now where i have the power stering unplugged so that it doesnt jerk my wheel while driving. i just need to know if there is a recall that will pay to fix this cause its getting dangerous. please contact back with any info

The clutch pedal assembly broke where it attaches to the vehicle. this is the second time this has happened. when i bought the card 21 months ago it was broken. i had it replaced by a mechanic with an oem replacement and it has now occurred again but in a different position.

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 mazda rx-8. when the ignition was started and the accelerator pedal was applied, the gear shifter was activated and the clutch pedal assembly bracket snapped. the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. the manufacturer was notified. the approximate failure mileage was 160,000.

The clutch pedal (already a known problem by mazda, but no recall has yet been announced) cracked while i was driving last year. i was on hwy 13 in minnesota and barely got control of my speed (was barely able to maintain use of the clutch) it sat until i could get it repaired, the same pedal is now craking in another spot, working on getting it repaired before it breaks again, this time will reinforce it.

I was slowing down at an intersection and pushed in the clutch pedal to put the car in neutral and slow down. when i did this the clutch pedal snapped and went all the way to the floor. i was unable to use the clutch to shift at this point. i was lucky enough that i was on a downhill slope so i was able to shift into second gear and get enough momentum to drive the rest of the way home, but i was stalled in traffic until i did get the speed i needed to get into gear. *tr

The clutch pedal assembly broke as i was driving in the freeway. *tr

Power steering stopped working when i was turning on to the high way. making it stiff and hard to turn. clutch peddle collapsed making it had to shift gears and the clutch ratio is off, *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2004 mazda rx-8. the contact stated that while driving approximately 65 mph, the catalytic converter became inoperable. in addition, the vehicle stalled without warning but was able to be restarted. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnosis or repairs. the manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 61,000.

Was driving normal conditions down a 35 mph road when i went to upshift gears and depressed the clutch pedal, i heard a loud pop and the pedal went to the floor. the clutch pedal bracket cracked and popped off due to poor quality and bad engineering, in my opinion. this could have caused the transmission to lock up and cause an accident through loss of control. i was not abusing the vehicle/ have not abused the vehicle.. this item should not break in the manner it did. *jb

i purchased the car in 5/14/2013 after a week or so it started to lose power and misfiring , popping noise, transmission warms up. the gear that i hold and shift just warms up all the time it feels like it might fire up. then i took the car to a mechanic they couldn't do anything. i took it to mazda mechanic they charged around 900$. then it didn't fix anything i went another one and they told me loss compression it was 115 that time. i kept driving it and they said i need to rebuild the transmission too.. i paid this car 6500. and now it s all bad. and apparently i need to buy new engine and transmission. i believe it will cost me about 6000$ .now its on 129,000miles. *tr

While shifting from 4th to 5th gear, i heard a snapping sound come from the clutch pedal, followed by the inability to shift gears because there was no pressure coming from the clutch pedal. the clutch pedal bracket had snapped, causing the pedal to move at an angle and the push rod that leads from the clutch pedal to the clutch master cylinder punctured the clutch master cylinder causing it to fail. *tr

2004 mazda rx-8 touring with 6-speed manual has a broken clutch pedal. the aluminum clutch pedal weaves left and right. it is on the verge of snapping in half. placed the car at jax automotive while i purchase a new oem clutch pedal with reinforced brackets from race roots. *tr

The clutch pedal assembly bracket mounted to the fire wall cracked on broke on the left side of the unit causing the clutch to be unusable and unable for any forward or reverse gears to be engaged. luckily i was pulling off the road into a convenience store when this happened and was able to pull the transmission out of gear and into neutral without use of the clutch. this is dangerous beyond belief and is presently covered by mazda under an 8 year 100,000 mile warranty extension plan but this should be a mandated safety recall regardless of mileage or year. the factory part is made of tin as best i can tell and can be bent and deformed with bare hands at the point where its bolted to the firewall, a critical mounting point as evidenced by the growing number of cases for this exact defect. i will probably have to purchase the part at my own expense but don't feel i should have to since this is such a basic safety defect that could have deadly results to the driver and other innocent drivers in the vicinity of the affected mazda rx8. *tr

At a stop light, i depressed my clutch pedal. i heard an audible snap and the clutch became unusable. *tr

Clutch pedal assembly failure. causing the pedal to shift inward towards the brake pedal. *tr

I was driving my car and when i went to depress the clutch pedal to shift up a gear the clutch pedal snapped. i can force the transmission into first and up, but i cannot get it into reverse. *tr

This is the 2nd time this has occurred. my clutch pedal snapped the first time and it was covered by a recall due to the clutch pedal bracket failing. i had it replaced on 11-11-08. the 2nd time it happened on 4-10-12. luckily, i was at a stop light. i pushed in the clutch to go when the light turned green, heard a pop, and the vehicle would not move. the clutch pedal bracket snapped again. i contacted the mazda dealership where i had it replaced the 1st time. they stated it was no longer covered and the recall had just recently expired. now, i know the car is out of manufacturer warranty, but this is truly a safety issue. this is welded metal breaking. what would happen if you were driving on the interstate and this happened when you went to change gears and your clutch pedal assembly snaps? all of the sudden no acceleration dangerous. *tr

Clutch pedal bracket snapped while driving. prevented car from going into gear and was left stranded. *tr

My husband drove me to the grocery store and we heard a loud pop. the car barely went into first gear and started grinding when it went into second. we barely made it home!! it stalled in the middle of us turning into our road and we almost got hit. when we looked at it after we( luckily) made it home. the entire clutch pedal moved and angled to the right when depressed and went back to regular position when we let go of it. *tr

My clutch pedal assembly has been creaking now and shaking now for quite some time. originally (a year or so ago) when i asked to receive the extended warranty on it from mazda they said that it was not "bad" enough but what am i supposed to do wait for it to fail on the road so i have to pay to get it replaced and a tow truck? i have a 2004 and the warranty for everything is now over based on time. *tt

The clutch pedal is starting to squeak a lot and will eventually fail. hopefully it doesn't fail while i am driving. *tr

As my wife and i were driving home my clutch pedal stuck to the floor. i couldn't shift gears so i had to coast to the emergency lane. *tr

1. clutch pedal assembly would make pop noise when being depressed and released. 2. clutch pedal bracket to firewall snapped causing clutch pedal to not return. could not change gears or stop with car on. 3.had to replace with factory pedal (the same pedal that caused the problem). *tr

My clutch pedal was already replaced at 101,000 miles by another dealer part by mazda that was suppose to be updated by mazda because of so many clutch pedal brackets in the rx8's always breaking. mazda even extended the warranty over 100,000 miles because it was becoming so common. the so called updated one they replaced, broke again, and it was new when it was put in. it lasted 50k miles and that's all. im going on my 3rd clutch pedal assembly and mazda will only cover the first breakage. i called mazda corporate and they said that the replacement clutch only carries a part warranty of 30,000 miles. and that the clutch pedal assembly is a wear and tear item. clutch pedals in every other car on the market last the lifetime of the car. and im going on 3 in this car alone. mazda was suppose to have put an updated clutch pedal assembly in my car and they didn't. given, the work was done at firestone because my car was the closest to that place because it was undrivable. but even if it was done at mazda they still would have given me the same crappy warranty. mazda says that the extended warranty only covers the first clutch pedal assembly replacement. the first one lasted longer than the second one! and the second one was suppose to be better. come to find out. the mazda dealer that sold firestone the clutch assembly, sold them the old model one and charged me new pricing! my complaint to you is that since all of these rx8 owners are breaking their clutch still. mazda is not holding onto their promise to fix clutch pedal issues. is there any way you guys can force mazda to cover the newer pedals that break too? i mean this whole thing is ridiculous. *tr

The clutch pedal on my 2004 mazda rx8 started making a noticeable squeaking noise constantly for about 3 weeks. at one point while driving the vehicle at around 50 mph, it made a loud cracking sound and i noticed the clutch pedal became immediately loose which made it difficult to control the gears. it caused the clutch pedal to stop working and thus impeding my ability to drive the vehicle and control its speed. the consequence of this failure could of caused an accident if the vehicle was traveling at a higher speed and/or on the highway. *tr

I own a 2004 mazda rx8 with manual transmission. i had my clutch pedal break while driving. i originally though of it as an isolated case due to a bad component. i had the clutch replaced at my own cost but this part has broken again today. while searching for common issues i have found quite a few other people reporting the same problem. this part broke while driving on a local road but this came with no warning. had this happened on a busy street or the highway it may have been a different issue. this part seems to be of very poor quality as it has broken from the same place again. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2004 mazda rx8. while driving approximately 20 mph he depressed the clutch and heard a loud popping noise before stopping the vehicle. when he attempted to accelerate from the stop position he realized that he had to depress the clutch all the way to the floor in order for it to engage. the vehicle was taken to her residence where he noticed that the clutch pedal had detached from its hinge. the vehicle was examined for the cause of failure, and it was not repaired. the failure and current mileages were 51,500.

I was pulling out on a main stretch of road with busy traffic as i pushed in the clutch on my 2004 mazda rx8 the clutch pedal assembly broke and i could not get the car into gear. i paid 400+ dollars to get the clutch pedal assembly replaced and ran for about 20,000 miles and now the tranny will not engage again. *tr

My 2004 mazda, has 60k miles on it. already have had engine failure, leaving me stranded on a busy highway. experienced issues with the heat shield and sensors. now my clutch pedal bracket is apparently broken, it started off squeaking loudly and embarrassingly. sounded like it needed some wd40 or something, also leaning inward toward the brake, causing me to sometimes inadvertently depress the brake along with the clutch. it soon after completely broke, depressing nearly to the floor and leaving me stranded once again on the expressway. i know i'm not driving a bmw/audi/mercedes etc. but i'm also not driving a kia, yet my roommates kia has far less problems and isn't left without a car nearly as often as i am. *tr

The pedal assembly star making noise when you depressing the clutch. causing the pedal assembly broke and make don't engage . *tr

On sunday september 5th @ approx 5:30pm, i was driving on a local road. depressed the clutch pedal before shifting gears. immediately after the pedal was fully depressed, i heard something break. i pulled over to the side of the road. from that moment on, i was not able to put the car into gear. upon further investigation by myself, i had found that the metal bracket which secures the clutch pedal, had split/cracked. this made the clutch pedal loose and it was no longer in proper alignment (was able to move the clutch pedal with my foot or hand laterally a few inches.) due to the nature of this failure, i was unable to put the transmission in gear (even with clutch pedal fully depressed).....this made the car inoperable. the engine would start with the clutch fully depressed and the ignition turned to the start position, but the clutch would not allow me to put the transmission into any gear. *tr

I own a 2004 mazda rx-8. as i was turning right in second gear, i depressed the clutch pedal and then heard a loud snap. the pedal assembly is now very loose and not what i would consider structurally sound. when i got home, i noticed that the left side of the clutch pedal bracket had snapped. this has caused the pedal assembly to easily move from left to right. *tr

Clutch pedal assembly snapped off at one of the weld points. the welds are too weak and the metal is too thin. this is happening to everyone who owns an rx8. my car is a 2004 with 56k miles. i am an older male and my car is driven very sensibly and with no abuse. please do not wait for someone to be seriously injured or killed before mazda is required to recall and properly upgrade these clutch pedals. i had two small kids in the car and thankfully was able to get out of harms way when the pedal snapped. *tr

During a stop at a traffic light, i tried to engage into 1st gear, stepping on the clutch as usual, and all of a sudden, i heard a loud "pop" coming from underneath the clutch, and also felt the clutch pedal has dropped to the floor and i could not engage into any gear, i put my hazard lights and fortunately i was able to force it into 1st gear and manage to drive home, the part has not been replaced as it was just happened on aug 20 around 11:00 pm. *tr

My 2004 mazda rx-8's clutch pedal bracket has broken. i took my vehicle in to my local mazda dealership for some clutch problems i have been having with the clutch not engaging or disengaging properly and the first thing they looked at was my clutch pedal bracket. it turns out that this is what was causing all of my problems. the bracket that holds the clutch pedal assembly to the firewall broke along the welds from the manufacturer. the tech told me is a very common problem with 04 rx-8's and it is usually misdiagnosed as a clutch failure. this is a really big problem as the bracket braking causes the clutch to not fully engage or disengage which leads to premature clutch failure and can also be as extreme as the clutch pedal completely breaking off and obviously that would be a serious safety hazard. i had to have my clutch replaced as well due to the extra wear cause by not fully engaging and disengaging. my car has even stalled in intersections after a light turns green because the clutch would fully engage to shift into 1st properly. *tr

I went to start my vehicle as i pushed the clutch pedal in and turned the key it started but when i released the pedal it stayed half way down and moved towards the right, resulting in poor shift quality and a weak clutch. *tr

Clutch pedal broken while driving on highway. assembly snapped at highway speed. *tr

1. normal daily driving resulted in clutch failure. 2. heard a "pop" while depressing clutch pedal and clutch became "spongy". since then it as constantly occurred and now the clutch will not release. it has also been difficult to get the shifter into gear. clutch pedal bracket has come apart at one of the welds. 3. nothing has been done yet to correct the problem, but i will have to replace the clutch pedal assembly with a reinforced one to fix the issue. *tr

Upon normal clutch operation while driving, a loud snap was heard and then the clutch pedal stopped functioning causing me to be unable to change gears. once stopped, the car would start again but the clutch pedal would not allow me to put the car in gear. the pedal was now moving towards the right when stepped on. upon inspection it appears that part of the pedal bracket had snapped and caused the clutch to malfunction. i had to turn off the car and put it in first gear, then restart the car in order to drive it. i got it home safe and then towed it to the nearest mazda dealership and spent $310 on a new clutch pedal. if i was on a busy road i would have had an accident. i have the bad part if you want it for inspection! *tr

The clutch pedal bracket broke when depressing the clutch pedal. *tr

Mazda 2004 rx-8. clutch pedal bracket snapped. luckily i was starting the car when it broke. had this happened when i was moving, i may not have been able to slow down since the clutch pedal now moves sideways and can interfere with the brake pedal. *tr

My 2004 mazda rx-8 only has 53,000 miles on it and is again in the shop due to manufacturer-related engine failure. this is the second time in less than 1 year i've been left stranded in hazardous circumstances because of engine failure. i've also experienced power steering failure and loss of engine compression/engine misfires while driving on multiple occasions. as a result, i'm becoming increasingly concerned for my safety, as well as for the safety of others who own/operate this type of mazda vehicle. please consider organizing a class-action lawsuit against mazda to hold them accountable for putting many valuable lives at risk. *tr

I have a mazda rx-8 2004 i discovered that my clutch pedal bracket had broken away from firewall and has caused a safety issue as such if im decelerating i cannot take it out of gear thus could cause a serious accident opposite for accelerating and the inability to go into any gear or reverse. im in the military and upon my superiors orders am no longer allowed to drive the vehicle until repair which is my only transportation. this is not part of regular maintenance. *tr

Nhtsa action number : pe09045 as indicated in the above complaint, my clutch pedal assembly snapped this while driving. i depressed the pedal, heard a loud pop and the pedal became permanently depressed with the lack of ability to engage gears in a safe manner. i called the dealership and they stated that this is a normal wear issue and i am out of warranty. the vehicle has 60,000 miles on it and has not been driven hard for the period that i have owned it. i was able to forcibly shift gears and make it home after the incident. this seems like am extremely dangerous situation for any driver if the clutch were to move unknowingly behind the brake and hinder the ability to stop. *tr

2004 mazda rx8 manual transmission. the clutch pedal bracket has ripped at the upper outboard bolt to firewall. the clutch pedal return spring inboard retainer clip has broken off,outboard clip is intact but has multiple fractures. the return spring has worn into the bracket about 7 mm. vehicle owner stated there was a snap like noise and the pedal fell to the floor. the vehicle lost its ability to shift. i have verified that the vehicle will not shift into any gear.. unless you have it in first when trying to start it. even with clutch pressed in, the starter will force the vehicle forward. the bracket to firewall tear is about 3 inches long. *tr