Mazda known for certain type of problems?

allcarsrcool

Is Mazda as a company known for certain type of problems? Electrical, Engine, or other? Or are they pretty reliable for the most part?

erics6

Not specific problems. Some of the joint models with Ford have been average reliability, eg. 626 and Tribute. Most of the Japanese designed/made models have been better than average. I've never had any major issues with any of my Mazdas. I've had bigger issues with other Japanese cars I've owned like Subaru and Nissan. Check out Consumer Reports for an general idea of specific issues with the car you are interested in.

michele9

I'M A WOMAN WHO WAS TOLD BY MY MECHANIC THAT THE WIRE CONNECTOR TO THE HEADLIGHT BULB SOCKET GOT TOO HOT AND MELTED THE INSIDE OF PLASTIC SOCKET. THEY SAID THE DEALER QUOTED $2000 TO REPLACE ALL WIRING HARNESS AS THEY DO NOT SELL INDIVIDUAL PARTS. THE OTHER SOLUTION WAS TO GET A NEW CONNECTOR FROM A WRECKING YARD AND SPLICE OR SOLDER ON THAT ONE. THE COST,$10 TO $15. IS THIS INFORMATION TRUE IN YOUR EXPERIENCE, AND IS THIS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH MIATA'S THANKS IN ADVANCE FOR THE HELP.

erics6

There was a recall on foglights that are below the bumper. http://www.miata.net/garage/tsb/foglight_recall.html
http://www.miata.net/garage/tsb/1103foglightinspectionandrepair1.pdf

Never heard of headlight problems. 01+ uses projector beams style lights, but I'm not aware of any issues with them. I'd go the junkyard route. Dealer quote sounds ridiculous.

kswing

Can anyone help, I'm looking at a 92 Miata and it has an engine sputter. The wires and plugs have been changed.Is this a sign of something serious, Should I just walk away from this car,or is there a fix for this problem.

erics6

If your buying I'd look for another Miata. They're a dime a dozen. Lot's of good ones out there.

rgroe

Hi, I had the same problem. Dealer quoted $850 just for the harness. Claimed it was too dangerous to splice in a socket. Auto parts store across the street had a socket for $9 - it is a standard size - and an independent mechanic soldered it in place for a modest fee. This is criminal behavior on the part of the dealer. I like my MPV but am unlikely to get another Mazda for this and other service problems. BTW, my socket also overheated and melted. Cliff in PA.

manybmws

Stop me, stop me

The Mazda MX-5 Miata is still the standard of reference for people who care about driving. It's the best car with which to learn about driving, and nearly everybody you know has driven one or wants to drive one.

So our current long-term MX-5 surprised me a little. At 17,000 miles, our MX-5's brake pedal doesn't feel quite right. The pedal action is initially very light and lacks any feedback, and then the brake pads really bite. The overall braking action is not abrupt exactly, but it's not smooth, either.

It's not an issue when you're braking hard, but it can be difficult to brake lightly and smoothly in traffic situations. It's probably only something I'd notice, since I'm the kind of guy who doesn't like to stand the car on its nose under braking.

Our test car hasn't led a very hard life, and it's never even been to a race track (so far), so I'm pretty mystified. I have to say that this is the first MX-5 I've driven that has any reasonable amount of mileage on the odometer.

Turns out, this braking issue seems be apparent in the new-generation MX-5. Our sources tell us that it's difficult to know which part of the braking hardware is responsible. But apparently it's something the Mazda engineers plan to address.

So I guess it's not just me after all. A refreshing change….

Posted by Michael Feb 8, 2007 12:50 pm

wingden

Is anyone else having gas tank leak issues with a 2002 Miata? Or, did I possibly overfill the tank to create strong smell of gasoline odors. There is no spillage on the garage floor??

stevebus

I have a 1993 miata that has the airbag light on and am not sure why it is on or how to get it off. I took it to the dealer and they said it might be a censor problem but couldn't give me "advice legally"... doeas anyone know anything about this or how to get this light to go off?? appreciate any advice!

ateixeira

Let's see...not many.

The Mazda 626 with the 4 cylinder/automatic combination had the dismal Ford CD4E transmission. Those were so bad it's a matter of when, not if, they will fail. Rebuilds also fail. They're just that bad.

Oddly the V6 model did not use that trans and was fine. Both manuals and clutches were also OK. Only the 4 cylinder/automatic was affected.

First year Miatas had that crank issue, but that's long been resolved (replaced or failed by now).

I think 99 Miatas had some clutch chatter issues.

Few and far between for the whole Mazda lineup, basically.

blutalon

I've had my 06 Miata for a little over a year now, and just found out about a design flaw with plugged soft top drains.....the way I found out is getting into my car and stepping in 3 gallons of water. Has anyone else had this problem and why wasn't I notified? I'm very upset as my car only has 9000 miles on it and was still new to me!

erics6

Never heard of that on an NC. The older NA's and NB's had drains that could get plugged up with leaves, gunk etc. I think the NC design is totally different.

ndogg

i have a 91 miata with what sounds to be the same problem and was checking to see if you found any solutions

Claires

The original poster in this topic wanted to know if Mazdas were generally reliable, and it looks like that question's been answered, so I'll close it now. I've moved the recent posts about individual problems to the existing Mazda MX-5 (2006+) topic, where you can continue the discussion.