Turbo Replace/Repair

AMPS93

MEMBER
2015 MAZDA 3
2.2L
TURBO
2WD
MANUAL
85,000 MILES

Hi all,

I purchased the vehicle listed above (Skyactive) with all the bells and whistles rough 10 months ago for £6000 as it’s been a dream car of mine for a while

This week however, I noticed a loss of power and after a trip to the local Mazda dealership they have informed me that the turbo and vacuum pump have failed. It’s going to cost £3500 to fix and replace

My question is, do you think this is worth it? Should I go to a local garage instead or use an aftermarket turbo? Or alternatively, do I sell the car, which I’m reluctant to do. But I certainly can’t afford this bill

Thanks for any help you can offer.

1 Reply

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

These questions are always weighed a couple different ways. First, what the car is worth and you can just go on any site and get a value.

So once we know what it is worth, we never put more money into a vehicle on a single repair then it is worth. You are far better selling it as is, take that money plus the money you would have put into a repair and buy a different vehicle.

The only time this is different is when the vehicle has sentimental value or some other reason to go against this advice.

However, before you decide this it is always a good idea to get two or even three estimate on what it will take to fix the vehicle. Just because the dealer says it needs something doesn't mean they are correct.

I have seen many times when a customer comes in saying they were told it needs a complete transmission and it turns out to be a speed sensor issue.

Once you have multiple shops saying the same repair independently from each other (don't tell one shop what the other said), then you can decide if you want it fixed or not.

The reason is, there are a number of reasons for low power. Here is a guide that talks about the most common ones:

https://youtu.be/U1RoG3I-Oww

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/symptoms-of-low-engine-power

Clearly your engine having a turbo that is the likely cause but I would question the need for the turbo and pump. That sounds like an over repair which is why a second opinion is needed. They could be exactly correct but just sounds like something I would question further.

Please let us know what questions you have with this and we can go from there. Thanks