Topic: Why Mazda sucks so bad.

[carcrazy]

Its very unfortuneate Mazda doesn't make as reliable cars as Honda or Toyota

You are too quick to draw a conclusion based on one owner's review. There is a rant about a Honda in here too. Does it mean Honda isn't reliable either?

[CatsEye68]

That reminded me of the PS belt in my GTI that would not stop squealing in certain situations regardless of the measures tried to calm it. Drove me nuts and I eventually sold the car. But in retrospect I never should have sold it - loved that car in spite of the problem and it was the best balance of fun and practicality I ever owned. Maybe i should buy another one.

[Pleem]

So mudgts has had numerous problems with a new Mazda  product and received unsatisfactory dealer support.  I sympathize with him completely.  My MPV was purchased new, has been problem-plagued from the beginning (it's in the shop right now, again) and service support from three of the Mazda dealerships in Ottawa has been at most just adequate.  My wife and I agree - if we could afford it the beast would be gone.  Some responders here think Mazda's are above reproach - they are not.  Some responders found humour in loss of power steering on a 400-series highway ramp.  I'm not not one of them - the scenario isn't funny.  While I could have handled the situation my wife or daughter probably wouldn't have with a resulting close encounter with a guard rail.

[ktm525]

I have always considered Mazda to be the Japanes Dodge. In general I feel they didn't have the  refinement of Toyota/Nissan/Honda but instead had good snappy handling with a tin feeling.

My first experience with Mazda was my sister's 84 626. A solid little little beast (5 speed 4 cylinder, no A/C. Unfortunately it was felled prematurely by rust. My parent's picked up a 93 MX-6 Mystere. Although it was a great handling car it was beset with issues (transmission, A/C, suspension) from the beginning and it just felt like it wasn't built to last. At about the same time my sister acquired a MX-3 V6(1.8L). A smoother engine I have never driven. The power was not great but what was there was incredibly linear. In the teal colour it was truly a girly car and I only drove it under the cover of darkness.   Again rust seemed to show up real early but before it became an issue it's life was ended in an accident. In the mid to late nineties I rented a lot of Mazda 626's. Again these cars felt like the parent's old MX-6. Just a little too "cheap and light" feeling. Compare a 99 Mazda 626 and a VW Passat and you will see what I mean.

[Pleem]

I have always considered Mazda to be the Japanes Dodge. In general I feel they didn't have the  refinement of Toyota/Nissan/Honda but instead had good snappy handling with a tin feeling.

My first experience with Mazda was my sister's 84 626. A solid little little beast (5 speed 4 cylinder, no A/C. Unfortunately it was felled prematurely by rust. My parent's picked up a 93 MX-6 Mystere. Although it was a great handling car it was beset with issues (transmission, A/C, suspension) from the beginning and it just felt like it wasn't built to last. At about the same time my sister acquired a MX-3 V6(1.8L). A smoother engine I have never driven. The power was not great but what was there was incredibly linear. In the teal colour it was truly a girly car and I only drove it under the cover of darkness.   Again rust seemed to show up real early but before it became an issue it's life was ended in an accident. In the mid to late nineties I rented a lot of Mazda 626's. Again these cars felt like the parent's old MX-6. Just a little too "cheap and light" feeling. Compare a 99 Mazda 626 and a VW Passat and you will see what I mean.

I think you summarize Mazda's nicely, ktm525; a notch below Toyota/Honda.  My 2001 Protege has decent giddy-up, handles like a 3-series BMW, but feels (is?) light and tinny.  My wife says it reminds her of our '84 Pulsar; she's right.  Rust seems to be a pervasive problem with Mazda's and it will do-in mine, not drive-train collapse.  I agree; if you want a higher degree of quality, that 'solid' feel, in a small package go German.  The recent review here of the 2011 Golf TDI is a good example of this.

[ajay]

Carcrazy I'm basing it on Consumer Reports and J.D.Power over the years , not from 1 post . Trust me , I like Mazdas alot .
Really excited about their upcoming skyactiv models , starting withg the next Mazda 2 - this car will be a blast . Can't wait !

[Schmengie]

I only owned one Mazda, a '78 GLC, and it was one of the worst vehicles I ever had. They should've called that thing the POS because the problems just came one after another, from the timing chain jumping the sprocket and falling into the oil-pan to premature clutch wear, bio-degradable upholstery, and rust perforation after less than 18 months. I know the 70s was an automotive dark age, but the '76 Datsun I had previously was built like a tank compared to the tin-can Mazda. By the time I ditched the GLC after only 4 years it was almost worthless as a trade-in. I've never owned a Mazda since, although I did almost buy a 5 a few years ago. That, however, is a whole 'nuther story.

[ajay]

WAS working , stopped at the lot for a minute - told my girlfriend there (her car to buy) to buy any car on the lot but that one - pointed to a yellow Mazda glc -- it was a 78 I think .
Guess what ?  She bought it !
Man was that thing gutless !!!!!!!!!!  I hated it - was fairly reliable though .
GLC stands for Gutless Little Car !  Never in my life have I driven a car that slow before . It was truly pathetic .
Couldn't do hills without massive downshifting . Could barely make it up the Malahat on Vancouver Island .

[mudgts]

@ktm525 that was the funniest thing that I heard in a while..

anyway.. the Mazda5 van has proven to be somewhat reliable over the last year.  Just oil changes and tires.
but it's the little things that push us away from this brand.   On rainy or moist days, the rear brakes SQUEAL like a poked pig when backing up.  It's louder then the car horn.  Somewhat embarrassing to say the least when in a crowded parking lot.

This morning, I took my '03 Mazda Protege5 to the shop (again) since it just makes a lot of noise when driving, it's the rear stabilizer bushings, a known failure point in this model.  With labor, it's $185 to fix.  The bushings are $5/ea WTF?   On the way there, the ABS light came on due to the right rear speed stabilizer failing.   It's a $250 part from Mazda or I can buy it from a ... reputable? .. source online for $125 and still pay the labour to install it.   

I'm sure that I could do some of the work myself but when it comes to brakes, I've learned to leave that to the pro's.

It it's not one thing, it's another.

Thanks for all your horror stories

[ktm525]

I still like Mazdas though...The father in law's Mazda3 is a zippy little scoot. Great fun.

[DKaz]

Your 2008 Mazda 5 is probably covered under the power steering recall.

Sorry had to make this clear. Bring it in ASAP and see if it's covered. My 07 is outside the range of manufacturing dates covered, but I've only experienced this problem once when I was trying to hypermile... coasted with the engine off down a hill, turned on, power steering was not there. Restart at a red light fixed it, but I don't recommend hypermiling the 5. My 2007 has been bulletproof so far, sorry to hear of your woes.

[RX7heaven]

The Mazda 5 is made in Hiroshima and priced starting at 15 thou. It has "minimal overall problems" with a 4.5/5 reliability rating but "the ps becomes heavy due to a return hose fluid leak". I guess this is another good reason to hold the steering wheel with two hands and to be alert! My RX7 has had a cpu horn short and a water pump failure in 25 years but I am but a statistic of one. Mazda is planning to build a plant in Mexico which could affect quality but will keep the prices down.