1999 Mazda MX-5 Miata problems
Owners have filed 87 complaints with NHTSA about the 1999 Mazda MX-5 Miata. Brakes is the most reported problem area, at 18% of complaints. After that come engine (13%) and electrical system (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 87 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 18% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 15 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 20 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 52,000 miles 29 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 | 2 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 8 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 10 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 3 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 2 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 2 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 1 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 29 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 52,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 15 complaints mention a crash; 20 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 92% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1999 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 6 model years of the Mazda MX-5 Miata with enough data (44 complaints in that window).
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.
Blindness caused by airbag. Crash caused by throttle sticking open. Full braking immediate as shown by skid marks and while brakes slowed vehicle unable to stop the car or turn before impact. Video and witnesses confirm cause must be open throttle. Both braking and turning failed to stop or turn the car. Throttle open or accelerator jammed full on.
Blindness caused by airbag. Crash caused by throttle stucking openg. Full braking with skid marks slowed vehicle but did not stop the car before impact.
Tl*the contact owns a 1999 mazda miata. On three occasions, when the contact filled up the gas tank, the gas overflowed. The dealer stated that his VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign id number 00v032000 (fuel system, gasoline:storage:tank assembly:filler pipe and cap). The cost for the repair will be $175. The current mileage was 63,500 and failure mileage was 62,000.
Intermittent failure of ignition "coil pack" leading to costly replacement of cat. Converter, o2 sensor, and coil packs. Mfr never covered this under any sort of extended warranty, even though the problem is not uncommon, and evidently bad parts are still in the system. Multiple failure dates.