2004 MAZDA RX8 User Comment / Complaint

I own a 2004 mazda rx8. i have 24,700+ miles & no problems until now. 8 months ago, i came to marin, ca. to work on contract. as this contract is long term , i brought my vehicle for transportation. 2 months later, i began to notice the odor of clutch burn, rarely & with no reason. i was due for an oil change, so i made an appt. with marin mazda. this was when i met john lauster, marin mazda's svc. mgr. during my 1st visit they were unable to find a problem, and said everything was operating. 3 months later, i experienced it again and brought it in. again, they couldn't find anything. on sept. 20 '05, it happened again. the clutch began to slip a little, & within 20 minutes the slippage was to the point where i couldn't drive it without possibly damaging the trans. i called marin service to bring it in, & towed to the dealer. john called me friday stating they would have to replace clutch, bearings, flywheel, & that my transmission warranty had expired, so cost would be passed to me. $1300.00. he put in for appeal to the factory rep for coverage due to extenuating circumstances & told me he would call me back with the decision. i contacted mazda usa- i went through the motions, thinking that they would cover it as the problem was obvious & related to a recent recall involving thermal damage. i got the call from john. he stated the factory rep claimed it as "normal wear" & mazda would not cover it. i told john that this problem was brought up 6 months ago. he stated mazda had made its decision. i did research online- & was shocked by the number of similar events i found with mazda products. all experienced what i am going through initially- the dealer & manufacturer would not recognize this as an item they were responsible for, & pushed the cost on the consumer. i called john back. but he was firm; mazda factory rep's decision was final.