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1993 Mazda 626

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most 626 years

Owner complaints for the 1993 Mazda 626 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 44.

About this comparison →
122Owner complaints

Model-year median: 44

1Recall campaigns

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1Investigations

View investigation details →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
44
199062
199119
1992122
1993282
1994488
1995359
1996
Compare all 626 years →

Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

Power Train
42Service Brakes, Hydraulic
20Electrical System
17Air Bags
15Engine And Engine Cooling
12
All reported categories
Suspension
8Seat Belts
7Steering
7Structure
6Tires
6Equipment
5Unknown Or Other
5Exterior Lighting
4Fuel System, Gasoline
4Parking Brake
3Vehicle Speed Control
3Visibility
3Latches/locks/linkages
2Interior Lighting
1Seats
1Service Brakes, Air
1Service Brakes, Electric
1

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 22 of 122 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Power Train. Review the 42 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

11 crash reports4 fire reports7 injury reports

What owners actually said

122 reports
Mileage unknown · Oct 3, 2001
Tires

A NEW TIRE LESS THAN FOUR MONTHS OLD HAD TREAD SEPARATIION.(NO TIRE INFO GIVEN) *YH

NHTSA ODI #563595

Mileage unknown · Aug 20, 2001
Power Train

TRANSMISSION LIGHT KEPT COMING ON. TRANSMISSION STARTED SLIPPING AND VEHICLE WASN'T RUNNING PROPERLY. CONTACTED DEALER, AND DEALER STATED NEEDED NEW TRANSMISSION.*AK

NHTSA ODI #894760

Mileage unknown · Aug 18, 2001
Power Train

I'VE READ A LOT OF COMPLAINTS FILED FOR THE MAZDA 626. I HAD NO IDEA HOW BAD IT WAS. IT IS UNBELIEVABLE THAT NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE ABOUT THESE TRANSMISSIONS.THE TRANI SHOP THAT CURRENTLY HAS MY CAR ALSO HAS 4 OTHER MAZDA 626'S ON THE LOT FOR TRANI REPLACEMENTS. THAT IS RIDICULOUS.*AK

NHTSA ODI #750727

Mileage unknown · Aug 9, 2001
Exterior Lighting

HEADLIGHTS GO OFF WITHOUT WARNING. ALSO, HAS TO KEEP MESSING WITH SWITCH FOR HEADLIGHTS TO EVENTUALLY COME BACK ON.*AK

NHTSA ODI #893932

Mileage unknown · Jul 17, 2001
Power Train

HOLD LIGHT ON GEAR BLINKS ON AND OFF AFTER VEHICLE IS STARTED UP. VEHICLE DOESN'T SHIFT IN 2ND GEAR. CONSUMER IS TAKING VEHICLE BACK WHERE THE REBUILD TRANSMISSION WAS PUT IN. THEY WILL LOOK AT PROBLEM.*AK

NHTSA ODI #893034

Mileage unknown · Jul 13, 2001
Electrical SystemEquipmentStructure

4 DISTRIBUTORS WITH IN 75,000 MILES. CIGERETTE LIGHTER FAILED AT ABOUT 60-65,000 MILES. INSTRUMENT PANEL LIGHT (BEHIND GAS GAUGE) FAILED AT ABOUT 60,000MILES. DRIVER'S SIDE PASSENGER DOOR DOESNT OPEN ALL THE TIME.*AK

NHTSA ODI #748401

Mileage unknown · Jun 14, 2001
Electrical SystemFire

NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR ABOVE VEHICLE. *AK

NHTSA ODI #746853

Mileage unknown · Apr 26, 2001
Air BagsCrash

ANOTHER DRIVER HIT CONSUMER'S VEHICLE AT 75 MPH ON FRONT BUMPER WHILE CONSUMER WAS PULLING OUT OF A GAS STATION AT ABOUT 25 MPH. UPON IMPACT, DUAL FRONTAL AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. *AK

NHTSA ODI #886872

Mileage unknown · Apr 26, 2001
Air Bags

AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT STARTING FLASHING FIVE TIMES. THEN, IT WILL GO OFF AND FLASH FIVE TIMES AGAIN.*AK

NHTSA ODI #886835

Mileage unknown · Mar 31, 2001
Power Train

I WAS SENT TO THIS PAGE FROM A MAZDA OWNERS DISCUSSION GROUP...IT HAS BEEN KNOWN THAT THESE CARS, BUILT WITH A FORD TYPE TRANSMISSION HAVE BEEN NOTORIOUS FOR FAILURE AT AROUND80,000 OR EVEN MUCH EARLIER IN SOME CASES...IT WAS MENTINTED THAT IT WAS UP TO THE COMSUMERS VOICE THEIR PROBLEM OUT, IN HOPE TO MAKE MAZDA RELEASE A REAL …

Read full complaint

I WAS SENT TO THIS PAGE FROM A MAZDA OWNERS DISCUSSION GROUP...IT HAS BEEN KNOWN THAT THESE CARS, BUILT WITH A FORD TYPE TRANSMISSION HAVE BEEN NOTORIOUS FOR FAILURE AT AROUND80,000 OR EVEN MUCH EARLIER IN SOME CASES...IT WAS MENTINTED THAT IT WAS UP TO THE COMSUMERS VOICE THEIR PROBLEM OUT, IN HOPE TO MAKE MAZDA RELEASE A REAL PRESS STATEMENT, INSTEAD OF THEIR "SILENT, OR PRIVATE" ONE THAT THEY RELEASED EARLIER...WE WANT MAZDA TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ITS FAULTY PRODUCT.*AK

NHTSA ODI #743363

Official recalls

1

15V674000 · Electrical System:ignition:switch

Oct 19, 2015

Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 1989-1998 MPV, 1990-1995 323, 1990-1998 Protege, 1992-1993 MX-3, 1993-1995 929, 1993-1997 MX-6, and 1993-1998 626 vehicles. In the affected vehicles, grease applied to the contact points inside the ignition switch may become conductive and overheat.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the ignition switch overheats there would be an increased risk of a fire.

Remedy: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ignition switch, free of charge. The recall began on December 17, 2015. Owners may contact Mazda Customer Experience Center at 1-800-222-5500, option#6. Mazda's number for this recall is 8715J.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

RQ99022 · Headlight Failure

Opened Dec 20, 1999 · Closed Aug 30, 2000

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Exterior Lighting

OBTAINED RECALL 99V-358