Clutch Master Cylinder for Mazda5 - Recommendations?

I would go with OE only, having one fail on the road can be a real PITA. Aftermarket parts quality in general has become pretty shoddy in the last years.
I second this.

If I saw an FTE part and heard from a trustworthy authority that it's identical to the genuine Mazda part, AND if I trusted the vendor (e.g. FCP Euro yes, Rock Auto no), then I might consider it.

Otherwise.... Nope.

I know the genuine Mazda price tag is eye-popping compared to the alternatives, but as @Trav said, so is having one of these fail on the road.
 
I second this.

If I saw an FTE part and heard from a trustworthy authority that it's identical to the genuine Mazda part, AND if I trusted the vendor (e.g. FCP Euro yes, Rock Auto no), then I might consider it.

Otherwise.... Nope.

I know the genuine Mazda price tag is eye-popping compared to the alternatives, but as @Trav said, so is having one of these fail on the road.
In November I bit the bullet and bought the blower fan from the dealer. It was such a hard job that there was no way I was going to buy a cheap aftermarket clone only to have it fail a few months or even a couple of years later.

I suspect the clutch master cylinder will be easier but still challenging. And yes, a failure of the clutch's hydraulic system can leave you stranded.
 
Why not just get the FTE from Rockauto? Probably the same part in a different box.
Key word: "probably"

Maybe tolerable for things like light bulbs, wiper blades, and trim pieces. Not great for important parts.
 
Here is a further idea - take it or leave it.

But I believe the part is shared between the Mazda 3 and the Volvo P1 cars on the same platform. In the UK, there was a recall for Volvos on the version of this master cylinder where a plastic push rod was used: https://www.swedespeed.com/threads/clutch-pressure-issue-and-low-fluid.518201/page-2

Looking at the pictures online for these master cylinders, some show plastic rods and some metal. Maybe there's something different about Mazdas that don't stress the rod as much. Or maybe it's a rare failure. But if I were in your situation, I would want a metal one. (picture from the linked thread)

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I rolled the dice and bought the FTE part from Rock Auto. It arrived March 25th, but I was leaving for a trip the next day. After I got back, the winter weather held on for longer than I wanted. But anyway, I finally started the job this afternoon.

Very pleased to see that new part was made in Germany, and has a metal (vs. plastic) push rod.

As anticipated, the job has been a real pain so far.

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Yeah, anything involving pedals requires circus acrobatics to work underneath the steering wheel. A royal pain.
I had to remove the driver's seat to do the blower fan a few months ago, and figured it would be best to do so again today. Good decision as it turned out.
 
It's done. Phew! Had to bleed a lot of air out at the slave cylinder (not surprisingly). The car drives great - I suspect the clutch MC had been leaking for a long time.

The clutch feels better than it has in years.

I lost the clutch when we were heading out for a family holiday a few years ago. The pedal would go to the floor and not return on its own. I had to pull it back up with my foot. Limped the car back home about 60 km, and bled the clutch fluid - got lots of slushy aerated fluid out, and the car was fine for a few years. (This was in February, five or six years ago.)

The clutch gradually started feeling not quite right, and I noticed the clutch MC was weeping at the shaft when I was under the dash changing the blower motor last November.

It finally failed catastrophically a few weeks ago.

@Fleetmech81, I wish you had done your friend's and posted a YouTube video. 😁

Actually there was a pretty good video for a 2004 - 2013 Mazda 3 - pretty much identical as far as replacing the clutch MC.
 
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My cost from Rock Auto was C$111.50 before the 5% discount. I added three oil filters which didn't increase the shipping cost, so all-in my cost (for the FTE clutch master cylinder, three filters, shipping, and sales tax) was C$160.85. Not bad at all.

I probably used another C$20 worth of brake fluid.
 
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