1996 Mazda 626 problems
Owners have filed 426 complaints with NHTSA about the 1996 Mazda 626. Transmission is the most reported problem area, at 56% of complaints. Next are air bags (12%) and engine (8%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 426 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Transmission 56% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 43 and 3
- Injuries and deaths
- 141 and 99
- Typical mileage
- 97,000 miles 123 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 4 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 4 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 7 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 14 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 34 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 22 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 19 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 7 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 8 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 2 |
What the data shows
Of the 123 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 97,000 miles. For transmission specifically, the median reported mileage is about 95,000 miles (99 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 43 complaints mention a crash; 3 complaints mention a fire; 141 injuries reported; 99 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1996 ranks 5th most-complained-about out of 12 model years of the Mazda 626 with enough data (187 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 2 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Mazda 626 transmission CD4e is faulty. Why should mazda be allowed to get off scott free while thousands of consumers are suffering because of this? Because it's not viewed as a safety issue? Issue a recall on the CD4e transmission. There has never been a more clear case in need of a recall.
I was driving on I-10. I made a routine lane change. At that moment I lost complete control of my vehicle. My steering failed. I was rear-ended. I was shoved into another car on my driver side. I came to rest on a concrete barrier. The mechanic at the collision center said the rack and pinion fell apart. A private mechanic examined the mazda and also concluded that the shaft in the rack and pinion unit failed due to a defective part.
Ea-97012; going about (10) MPH hit another vehicle in the rear and both air bags deployed, causing injuries to the driver's and passenger's face. The windshield was also broken by the air bags. The vehicle is being repaired.
I have a 96 626 that has 125,000 miles. I purchased my car in 98 with 60,000 miles. In may of 2000 I had to replace the oxygen sensor. I have also had to replace the left front axel and the right cv joint boot in feb. 2003. Now I have replace my entire transmission which is going to cost around 2300. I had no indications that I had transmission problems until it just quit. On my way to work my car just stopped moving on the interstate. When I pressed the accelerator it wouldn't pull.
Front seat belts were inoperative. The plastic piece of the seat belt assembly that the buckle was installed on came apart. When this occurred the metal piece inside the plastic seat fell out. Seat belt remained fastened, but will not restrain the occupant in an accident. Dealership replaced the plastic part.