IllustrationSEAT BELT WARNING LIGHT AND BEEP GO ON AND OFF INTERMITTENTLY WHILE DRIVING DUE TO AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR WEARING THROUGH IN THE DRIVERS SHOULDER BELT RETRACTOR LOCATED IN THE CENTER CONSOLE. REPLACED SEVERAL TIMES UNDER WARRANTY. PART IS NEARLY $300. SEVERAL PEOPLE I KNOW WITH THIS MODEL AND YEAR HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM.
1991 Mazda Protege
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1991 Mazda Protege do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 66.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Protege 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: 3 of 51 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.
- Seat Belts. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Structure. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 4 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
5 crash reports2 fire reports7 injury reports
What owners actually said
51 reportsTHIRD TIRE OF SET OF 4 THAT TREAD HAD SEPARATED - THIS ONE TOTALED THE CAR AND INJURED ONE PERSON. TIRE HAD 18,000 MILES WEAR. *AK (TIRESIZE: P185/60R14)( DOT NUMBER: TIRE SIZE: P185/60R14 )
CURRENT RECALL ON MAZDA 323 MOTORIZED SAFETY BELT DOES NOT COVER THE MAZDA PROTEGE WHICH HAS THE IDENTICAL PART NUMBER. MY CAR'S BELT HAS FAILED DUE TO THIS DEFECT AND MAZDA REFUSES TOCOVER IT.*AK
DATES ARE APPROXIMATE. HEADLIGHTS: BOTH LENS'S WERE FOGGED/YELLOWING LATER WHEN I WENT TO DEALER IN LEESBURG, VA (PATEROS); SERVICE MANAGE TRIED TO CLEAN.. MADE WORSE. THEN I REALIZED THAT LENS'S WERE PLASTIC! -- HIS CLEANING SOLUTION MELTED THAT PART OF THE LENS. I BELIEVE THAT THE HEADLIGHTS SHOULD LAST THE DURATION OF …
Read full complaint
DATES ARE APPROXIMATE. HEADLIGHTS: BOTH LENS'S WERE FOGGED/YELLOWING LATER WHEN I WENT TO DEALER IN LEESBURG, VA (PATEROS); SERVICE MANAGE TRIED TO CLEAN.. MADE WORSE. THEN I REALIZED THAT LENS'S WERE PLASTIC! -- HIS CLEANING SOLUTION MELTED THAT PART OF THE LENS. I BELIEVE THAT THE HEADLIGHTS SHOULD LAST THE DURATION OF THE CAR'S LIFE. --THAT I SHOULD GET REPLACEMENTS AS THEY ARE A SAFETY FEATURE. ENGINE: A YEAR AND A HALF AGO ENGINE WILL EMIT BLACK SMOKE WHEN ON TREADMILL FOR EMISSIONS INSPECTION AND SMOKES WHITE WHEN I SIT FOR LENGTH OF TIME IDLING. THREE VALVES NEEDED TO BE REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY YEARS AGO -- I THINK THE ENGINE SHOULD NOT BE DOING THIS AT THIS POINT AND EITHER THE NOW DEFUNCT SERVICE DEPT DID IMPROPER JOB OR HAVE A DEFECTIVE ENGINE. I HAVE FOLLOWED REGULAR SCHEDULE FOR OIL CHANGES. PASSENGER SEAT: THE SPRINGS HAVE FALLEN APART COMPLETELY, I THOUGHT PERHAPS ONE OF MY KIDS DID IT YEARS AGO BUT WENT TO SEE ABOUT REPAIR AND WAS POINTED OUT THAT THE WHOLE SEAT FRAME/SPRINGS IS FALLING APART!
ON THREE OCCASIONS WHILE DRIVING THE REAR SEAT BELT FELL APART WHILE MAKING A TURN. REPLACMENT COULD NOT BE DONE DUE TO NO WARRANTY. *YC
REAR DOORS WILL NOT UNLOCK.THIS HAPPENS WHEN THE CAR IS ON OR OFF ,AND THESE ARE MANUAL DOORS.DEALER HAS YET TO BE CONTACTED. *AK
AUTOMATIC SHOULDER SAFETY BELT HAS LOCKED UP IN THE RELEASE POSITION. IT APPEARS THE OPERATING MECHANISM FOR THE SAFETY BELT HAS JUMPED OFF TRACK.
THE HORN GOES OFF RANDOMLY WITHOUT APPLYING IT DUE TO A SHORT CIRCUIT IN THE STEERING COLUMN. DEALER HAS NOT SEEN VEHICLE. *AK
AT GAS STATION TO FUEL VEHICLE. REACHED FOR FUEL LID & A BURST OF FLAMES SHOT OUT. DRIVER'S ARM & HAIR WERE BURNED. FLAMES OVER GAS LID. FIRE DEPARTMENT PUT FLAMES OUT. FIRE DEPARTMENT STATED THAT CAUSE OF FIRE WAS STATIC ELECTRICITY. *AK
WENT TO STOP AT STOP LIGHT, ENGINE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE, UNABLE TO STOP. REARENDED STATIONARY VEHICLE AT LIGHT. OUR VEHICLE TOTALED. DRIVER SUSTAINED INJURIES. *AK
Official recalls
115V674000 · 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
2EA94039 · Auto Restraint System Fail
Opened Nov 30, 1994 · Closed Nov 26, 1997
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seat Belts
There is no summary currently available
PE94059 · Auto Restraint System Fail
Opened Jul 28, 1994 · Closed Nov 30, 1994
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seat Belts
There is no summary currently available