— A class action lawsuit has led to a Mazda valve stem seal settlement granted final approval by a judge for popular models equipped with 2.5L turbocharged engines.
The Mazda settlement alleges valve stem seals cause the vehicle to use too much oil, forcing customers to add more oil between oil changes.
According to the Mazda valve stem seal settlement, the eight vehicle owners who sued assert a vehicle needs to consume more than eight quarts of oil between recommended oil changes in order to qualify as excessive oil consumption.
A Mazda vehicle which consumes seven quarts of oil between recommended oil change intervals is allegedly normal.
The valve stem seal settlement includes these turbo vehicles:
- 2021 Mazda Mazda3 (Japan built)
- 2021-2022 Mazda Mazda3 (Mexico built)
- 2021-2022 Mazda CX-30 (Mexico built)
- 2021 Mazda Mazda6
- 2021 Mazda CX-5
- 2021 Mazda CX-9
Mazda denies all allegations in the lawsuit and denies all wrongdoing, but it agreed to settle the class action to put an end to the expensive litigation.
There were owners who objected to the Mazda valve stem seal settlement by arguing it didn't provide enough to customers, but the judge rejected those arguments.
Mazda Valve Stem Seal Settlement
Repairs
Mazda will issue a new technical service bulletin (TSB) that follows the same repair procedures as contained in previous TSB 01-003-23.
Loaner vehicles will be available while repairs are performed.
The Mazda settlement says a vehicle must be diagnosed with excessive oil consumption when the engine oil level warning light illuminates and the vehicle sets diagnostic trouble code (DTC) P250F:00. This must occur before the regular oil change interval of 7,500 miles or one year.
A customer may also show evidence their vehicle failed a Mazda oil consumption test.
Extended Warranty
Mazda will extend the powertrain warranty from 60 months/60,000 miles, to 84 months or 84,000 miles, whichever comes first, and any work must be performed by a dealership.
Reimbursement
It may be possible to be reimbursed for oil consumption problems if you paid for an oil change more frequently than the normal interval of 7,500 miles or one year.
You must submit a claim form along with proof of all oil change expenses and proof of additional oil you had to purchase.
The lawyers representing customers will receive $2,035,000.
These Mazda customers who filed the class action lawsuit will receive $2,200 each: Gary Guthrie, Stephanie Crain, Chad Hinton, Julio Zelaya, Anna Gilinets, Marcy Knysz, Lester Woo and Amy Bradshaw.
The Mazda valve stem seal class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Southern Division): Guthrie, et al. v. Mazda Motor of America, Inc.
The plaintiffs are represented by Lemberg Law, LLC.