IllustrationTRANSMISSION FAILURE
1994 Mazda 626
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most 626 years
Owner complaints for the 1994 Mazda 626 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 44.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all 626 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
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: 64 of 282 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 177 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 26 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
18 crash reports6 fire reports14 injury reports
What owners actually said
282 reportsI PURCHASED A 1994 MAZDA 626 WITH 72,000 MILES. AT 84,000 MILES, MY HOLD LIGHT WOULD START FLASHING ON AND OFF, WHEN THIS HAPPENED MY TRANSMISSION WAS VERY ROUGH, SHIFTED HARD. NOW, THE HOLD LIGHT DOESNT ALWAYS FLASH, ONLY FROM TIME TO TIME. IM AT 93000 MILES NOW AND ITS STARTED AGAIN, MY CAR IS RUNNING ROUGH WITH A WHEEZE COMIN…
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I PURCHASED A 1994 MAZDA 626 WITH 72,000 MILES. AT 84,000 MILES, MY HOLD LIGHT WOULD START FLASHING ON AND OFF, WHEN THIS HAPPENED MY TRANSMISSION WAS VERY ROUGH, SHIFTED HARD. NOW, THE HOLD LIGHT DOESNT ALWAYS FLASH, ONLY FROM TIME TO TIME. IM AT 93000 MILES NOW AND ITS STARTED AGAIN, MY CAR IS RUNNING ROUGH WITH A WHEEZE COMING FROM THE ENGINE. I HAVENT HAD ANY WORK DONE CONCERNING THE TRANSMISSION YET. *AK
EVENT LEADING UP TO FAILURE: MY 1994 MAZDA 626 LX 4 CYL. AUTOMATIC CAR WAS NOT SHIFTING INTO FIRST OR SECOND GEAR WELL. I TOOK IT TO A REPAIR SHOP, AND APPARANTLY, MY TRANSMISSION IS PRETTY MUCH SHOT. THIS WILL BE THE 2ND TIME I HAVE HAD THE TRANSMISSION FIXED IN THE LAST 4 YEARS. FAILURE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES: WELL, I AM CE…
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EVENT LEADING UP TO FAILURE: MY 1994 MAZDA 626 LX 4 CYL. AUTOMATIC CAR WAS NOT SHIFTING INTO FIRST OR SECOND GEAR WELL. I TOOK IT TO A REPAIR SHOP, AND APPARANTLY, MY TRANSMISSION IS PRETTY MUCH SHOT. THIS WILL BE THE 2ND TIME I HAVE HAD THE TRANSMISSION FIXED IN THE LAST 4 YEARS. FAILURE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES: WELL, I AM CERTAINLY SPENDING MORE MONEY ON TRANSMISSIONS THAN I WOULD HAVE EVER LIKED. IF I HAD NOT BROUGHT THE CAR INTO THE REPAIR SHOP AS SOON AS I DID, I MOST LIKELY WOULD HAVE BEEN STRANDED ON THE ROAD IF I CONTINUED TO DRIVE WITH THE TRANSMISSION IN THAT STATE. REPAIR SHOP HAS BEEN TRYING TO PUT A USED TRANSMISSION IN THE CAR FROM OTHER 626'S...BUT AFTER 3 DIFFERENT TRANSMISSIONS, NONE OF THEM HAVE WORKED WELL. IT LOOKS LIKE TRANSMISSIONS FOR MAZDA 626'S 4 CYL AUTOS WERE EXTREMELY EXTREMELY BAD IN 1994.*AK
ONCE DRIVING AT SPEEDS OF 55 MPH AND HIGHER IT SEEMS LIKE THE TRANSMISSION COMES OUT OF GEAR INTO NEUTRAL. THE REASON BEING THERE IS A LOUD ACCELERATION NOISE THAT COMES FROM THE ENGINE. WHEN TAKEN VEHICLE TO DEALER FOR SERVICE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED.*AK
I HAVE A MADZA 626 (1994) AND THE TRANSMISSION JUST STOPPED WORKING. IT WILL GO IN REVERSE, BUT THATS IT. I HAD THE FLUIDS CHANGED WITH HIGH TEMP. FLUIDS. THE HOLD LIGHT WOULD BLINK, AND IT WAS REAL SLOW ON THE TAKE OFF. THEN IT WOULD JERK ALOT WHEN SPEEDS INCREASE. SOMETIMES, I WOULD HAVE TO TAKE OFF WITH THE HOLD LIGHT ON TO…
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I HAVE A MADZA 626 (1994) AND THE TRANSMISSION JUST STOPPED WORKING. IT WILL GO IN REVERSE, BUT THATS IT. I HAD THE FLUIDS CHANGED WITH HIGH TEMP. FLUIDS. THE HOLD LIGHT WOULD BLINK, AND IT WAS REAL SLOW ON THE TAKE OFF. THEN IT WOULD JERK ALOT WHEN SPEEDS INCREASE. SOMETIMES, I WOULD HAVE TO TAKE OFF WITH THE HOLD LIGHT ON TO KEEP IT FROM JERKING ON TAKE OFF.*AK
HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH MY TRANSMISSION SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR I HAVE A 94 MAZDA 626 4CYL 2.0 NOW I HAVE TO SPEND OVER 2000.00 DOLLARS TO FIX . MY TRANSMISSIONS WENT OUT ON ME WITH NO WARNING IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION HAD TO TURN MY CAR OFF AND RESTARTED JUST TO GET IT OUT THE INTERSECTION AND WAS LUCKY I WASN'T HIT AND J…
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HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH MY TRANSMISSION SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR I HAVE A 94 MAZDA 626 4CYL 2.0 NOW I HAVE TO SPEND OVER 2000.00 DOLLARS TO FIX . MY TRANSMISSIONS WENT OUT ON ME WITH NO WARNING IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION HAD TO TURN MY CAR OFF AND RESTARTED JUST TO GET IT OUT THE INTERSECTION AND WAS LUCKY I WASN'T HIT AND JUST TO LET YOU KNOW I HAD MY ONLY CHILD WITH MY SO I THANK GOD THAT NOTHING BAD HAPPENED . *AK
ONCE AGAIN THE TRANSMISSION IS GOING OUT ON MY 1994 MAZDA 626 I HAVE OWNED THIS CAR FOR SIX YEARS AND IT HAS GONE THROUGH THREE TRANSMISSIONS. ALL THE SHOPS TELL ME THAT THIS IS COMMON WITH THIS CAR. WHY WAS THERE NOT A RECALL OF THIS CAR? THANK YOU. *JB
DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR WINDOW IS OFF TRACK AND OVERDRIVE INDICATOR FLASHES ON THE DASHBOARD. *NM
MY 1994 MAZDA 626 "HOLD LIGHT" FLASHES ON A DAILY BASIS AND WHEN IT TRIES TO SHIFT TO A LOWER GEAR, IE: AT SPEEDS UNDER 50 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION JERKS REALLY HARD. I TOOK IT TO THE GARAGE AND THEY SAID IT WAS THE MOTOR MOUNT & TRANSMISSION MOUNT THEY WERE REPLACED AND IT DID NOT HELP, ITS GETTING WORSE! NOT SURE WHAT TO DO NOW,…
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MY 1994 MAZDA 626 "HOLD LIGHT" FLASHES ON A DAILY BASIS AND WHEN IT TRIES TO SHIFT TO A LOWER GEAR, IE: AT SPEEDS UNDER 50 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION JERKS REALLY HARD. I TOOK IT TO THE GARAGE AND THEY SAID IT WAS THE MOTOR MOUNT & TRANSMISSION MOUNT THEY WERE REPLACED AND IT DID NOT HELP, ITS GETTING WORSE! NOT SURE WHAT TO DO NOW, THE TRANSMISSION WORK IS VERY EXPENSIVE :(. *NM
REPLACED MY MAZDA 626 TRANSMISSION 3 TIMES, THE LAST TWO TIMES I DEPLOYED WITH THE ARMY, HENCE THE WARRANTY TIME PERIOD HAD SURPASSED, LEAVING ME TO PAY THE BILL. AFTER MUCH RESEARCH, I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THIS WAS ALL BECAUSE OF THE DESIGN OF THE TRANSMISSION ITSELF. MY VEHICLE IS MAINTAINED TO A DEGREE SO HIGH, MY TEN YEAR OL…
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REPLACED MY MAZDA 626 TRANSMISSION 3 TIMES, THE LAST TWO TIMES I DEPLOYED WITH THE ARMY, HENCE THE WARRANTY TIME PERIOD HAD SURPASSED, LEAVING ME TO PAY THE BILL. AFTER MUCH RESEARCH, I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THIS WAS ALL BECAUSE OF THE DESIGN OF THE TRANSMISSION ITSELF. MY VEHICLE IS MAINTAINED TO A DEGREE SO HIGH, MY TEN YEAR OLD CAR RUNS BETTER, CLEANER, AND IS MORE MECHANICALLY SOUND THAN A BRAND NEW CAR (ASIDE FROM THE TRANSMISSION).*AK
Official recalls
215V674000 · 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.
99V358000 · Exterior Lighting:headlights:switch
Dec 17, 1999
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. THE HEADLIGHT WIRE THAT RUNS THROUGH THE TURN SIGNAL LEVER CAN FAIL AT THE POINT WHERE IT IS SOLDERED TO THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THE FAILURE OF THIS WIRE COULD CAUSE A LOSS OF HEADLIGHTS, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH LEVER.
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
2RQ99022 · Headlight Failure
Opened Dec 20, 1999 · Closed Aug 30, 2000
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Exterior Lighting
OBTAINED RECALL 99V-358
SQ98024 · Speedometer Inoperative
Opened Oct 29, 1998 · Closed Sep 10, 1999
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Power Train
SEE RESUME FOR DETAILS.