MMDNV (my mileage did not vary)

I've been relatively satisfied with Mazda customer service since I
bought my first in '91. But yesterday I had my '06 in for its 15k
service and I told the manager that I had an annoying rattle and told
him where it was coming from -- beside my right ear. My assumption since
I first heard it was that the latch which holds the top down had a loose
part but I know better than to give suggestions and to let them figure
it out for themselves but I did tell them that I had checked all of the
bulletins I had access to and none of them seemed to apply.

An hour later I was paged by the service manager with the breathless
news that my OEM tires were very nearly worn out -- like that could be
missed even by a blind person. And he was eager to sell me some Dunlop
tires that would get "twice the mileage" ($830 IIRC). I told him that I
knew about the problem and would take care of it myself.

Then when checkout time came I walked to the car as the mechanic was
parking it and he told me that he had "lubricated" my noise away and
didn't seem happy when I told him that my problem wasn't the squeak in
the service bulletin -- it was a real rattle. But to give him credit for
something he did take it out for a test drive and was able to identify
the rattle as being in the base of the wind blocker. I happened to be in
the parts department main counter as the mechanic came into the
"mechanics only" portion and started bitching about the cheap customer
who wouldn't buy tires from them but wanted every little thing taken
care of. I believe he never did know that I was there within earshot but
it seems that his boss sus'd it out and the mechanic was instructed to
order a new assembly for the repair rather than trying any kind of a kludge.

I guess it could just have been a tired hot mechanic at the end of a
long day blowing off steam and I'm trying to convince myself that this
was the case. Otherwise I'd have a reason to start questioning every
little thing that the dealer tries to do.

Oh, BTW I ordered new tires from TireRack and will have a recommended
installer right down the street install them on Monday or Tuesday. I
actually ordered the Michelin OEM-type tires because of all the
confusion about performance tire comparisons online and for the moment
I'd rather deal with a known quantity. I'm sure I'll have it sorted out
by the time the next change is needed. But I know that every test I saw
convinced me that the long-wearing Dunlops were crap more suited for a
FWD van than an MX-5.

Car Dealers mottos:
Buy low, sell high (Maybe just a bit lower if sales figures need to be met.)
Let the customer beware.
Tack on everything the customer will allow without blowing the sale.
Don't forget to make the customer sign a binding arbitration clause.
Make sure that there is at least a $500 charge for "Mop & Glow"