Mazda 6

[Archerfish]

What I have discovered is that Mazda 6 units sold in the Philippines (Asia) come in GT trim (at least for the headlights). Bulbs are Bi-Xenon HID and the headlamp assembly comes equipped with an LED DRL. Replacement headlamps for the Mazda 6 sold in the US are for the Sport trim only, uses Halogen bulbs and has no DRL.

Good information for me! Another thing, US doesn't have the diesel variant but I'm not sure about Canada. Anyways, I haven't encountered any diesel variant on the Mazda 6 forum except for old models and those owners are seldomly​ active.

I just hope that the GT (gas) is similar to my diesel. I mean, the accessories over there.

If I may ask, are you active on that forum? I don't see you or perhaps I'm the one who isn't active.
[emoji3]

[travajante]

Thanks for the inputs guys. I actually ordered a replacement headlight from rockauto.com and had it shipped here. I opened an account at MyUS.com to obtain a US mailing address and had it shipped to that address. Myus.com then had it shipped to the Philippines via Fedex. You can also order the OEM part from other US based Mazda dealers like Mazdaparts, Mazdaswag, Priority Mazda, etc. The headlight, manufactured by TYC cost $134, plus $8 shipping to my US address. Shipping to the Philippines cost an additional $52. Overall, about $200. Johnny Air would have cost me PHP 11K just for shipping, so Myus.com was cheaper. The part arrived ok, and I just had to pay PHP 550 for handling. Everything would have been ok until I tried to have it installed. The headlight uses halogen bulbs and had no DRL. In other words it wasn't the same as the OEM part installed on my 6 which uses Bi-Xenon HID with a LED DRL. I found out that Mazda 6's sold in Asia come in the GT trim spec which is different from the base or sport models sold in the US. The replacement headlights sold on ebay, amazon, rockauto, unfortunately only come in the basic trim. An expensive lesson! I can order the HID version from the Mazda dealers I mentioned above for about US$ 522/unit for the HID version (with the bulb) but fear that it may still be the wrong part again or order from Aliexpress (from China) but not sure if the merchants are legit. I have seen some posts of Mazda 6 customers from the US (mazda6 club forum) who have bought after market headlights from Aliexpress but am not sure if it is worth the risk. By the way, I called another local Mazda dealer and was quoted PHP 61K. Anyway, sharing my experience so you won't make the same mistake. By the way, I bought rubber mats from Mazdaswag.com, and they fit perfectly. From rockauto, I bought oil filters, front brake pads, air filters, a/c filters, and a pair of wipers for my 6. I even bought a pair of disc rotors for my old Grandis. So far ok naman lahat except for the brake pads, which I haven't installed. I also bought a pair of scratch pens which I used once. ok din. Cheers.

Thanks for sharing this bit, sir. Best to do here is to grab part numbers. Tascaparts are a good Mazda genuine parts source, too. The site's VIN verification might only work for NA distributed units. Check this out, sir. I logged in the 2014GT...$526 for genuine HIDs. Not that bad.
Headlamp Components for 214 Mazda 6 | TascaParts.com

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[ecport]

Thanks! The prices seem to be a bit lower than the other mazda merchants.

I finally replaced my Motolite EFB with an Optima Yellow Top D35. I hope this lasts longer. I think I need to train my car though as the i-stop button doesn't light up. I ran through my maintenance records from the time I bought the 6 in 2014 and just realized how terrible Motolite batteries are.
1st Battery OEM installed Panasonic EFB: 17 months, 17K kms,
2nd Battery, Motolite EFB, 14 months, 15K Kms (32K on ODO)
3rd Battery Motolite EFB, 15 months, 11K kms(43K on ODO) warranty replacement
4th Battery, Motolite EFB, 21 months, 10K Kms (53K on ODO)
5th Battery, Yellow Top D35 today, let's see how long

My 5th battery in 5 years! Grabe! I hope you have a better battery experience. It's like PHP 1,000/month just for the battery.

[Archerfish]

Thanks! The prices seem to be a bit lower than the other mazda merchants.

I finally replaced my Motolite EFB with an Optima Yellow Top D35. I hope this lasts longer. I think I need to train my car though as the i-stop button doesn't light up. I ran through my maintenance records from the time I bought the 6 in 2014 and just realized how terrible Motolite batteries are.
1st Battery OEM installed Panasonic EFB: 17 months, 17K kms,
2nd Battery, Motolite EFB, 14 months, 15K Kms (32K on ODO)
3rd Battery Motolite EFB, 15 months, 11K kms(43K on ODO) warranty replacement
4th Battery, Motolite EFB, 21 months, 10K Kms (53K on ODO)
5th Battery, Yellow Top D35 today, let's see how long

My 5th battery in 5 years! Grabe! I hope you have a better battery experience. It's like PHP 1,000/month just for the battery.

I was told yesterday by the lead technician of Mazda that it is generally recommended to use CTEK when he attended a certain seminar. However, it is "not recommended by dealers" for business reasons.

They don't want your batteries to last as long as possible.
[emoji3]

There are other brands out there, it is just that CTEK is well known and has a good reputation here and abroad.

[travajante]

I was told yesterday by the lead technician of Mazda that it is generally recommended to use CTEK when he attended a certain seminar. However, it is "not recommended by dealers" for business reasons.

They don't want your batteries to last as long as possible.
[emoji3]

There are other brands out there, it is just that CTEK is well known and has a good reputation here and abroad.

True...Jay plugs em, too.[emoji4] CTEK is standard equipment for known badges like Acura, McLaren, Ferrari, etc.
CTEK - Jay Leno's Garage - YouTube

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[hardwang]

True...Jay plugs em, too.[emoji4] CTEK is standard equipment for known badges like Acura, McLaren, Ferrari, etc.
CTEK - Jay Leno's Garage - YouTube

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Ok ba mag CTEK kahit regularly driven ang sasakyan? The batteries in our cars die in less than 2 years. Makakatulong kaya?

[travajante]

Ok ba mag CTEK kahit regularly driven ang sasakyan? The batteries in our cars die in less than 2 years. Makakatulong kaya?

I had a Motolite double its life.[emoji16]
A lot of dailies turn in short trips by day's start & end. Not enough charging to keep batt health in check. That's where CTEK comes in. Like a spa for the tired & weary....Plug when garaged.[emoji4]

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[Archerfish]

Ok ba mag CTEK kahit regularly driven ang sasakyan? The batteries in our cars die in less than 2 years. Makakatulong kaya?

My usual route is about 160 km one way, then about 3-4 km around the area where I work every day.

I use CTEK every chance I have. Every night is ideal but if not, every week will do. Otherwise, every month should be sufficient.

My only issue with the stock battery right now is the leak on the negative terminal.



I believe petroleum jelly will do the trick. This reminds me, I should buy one tonight.

[JohnM]

Ok ba mag CTEK kahit regularly driven ang sasakyan? The batteries in our cars die in less than 2 years. Makakatulong kaya?

Just plugged in our daily driver last Friday night. Disconnected it last night. The charger indicates a full charge in less than an hour. After 48 hours plugged in it didn't even reach the trickle charge program. I guess the Amaron I bought in 2017 can still hold a charge quite well.

CTEK recommends reconditioning the battery every year. I reconditioned the Amaron last December. It will be reconditioned again before the year ends.

The charger is more expensive than the battery But since I have two car batteries and 1 motorcycle battery to maintain it's still money well spent.

[JohnM]

My only issue with the stock battery right now is the leak on the negative terminal.
I believe petroleum jelly will do the trick. This reminds me, I should buy one tonight.

Take care of that ASAP. I neglected this on my previous car and it ate through the negative terminal. For a best-selling sedan with parts supposedly available at every sari-sari store I had a hard time looking for a replacement.