IllustrationBOTH FRONT PASSENGER RESTRAINTS FAIL TO WORK PROPERLY. THE RESTRAINTS DO NOT RETRACT. I HAVE HAD THEM FIXED AT LEAST 3 TO 4 TIMES DURING THE WARRANTY. *NLM
1994 Mazda Protege
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1994 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: 8 of 74 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 37 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 7 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 6 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 reports1 fire reports3 injury reports
Seat Belts complaints
37 reportsCONSUMER STATES THAT SHOULDER BELT DOES NOT FEEL SNUG ENOUGH AND THE FASTEN SEAT BELT INDICATOR CONSTANTLY BEEPS. VEHICLE CHECKED BY DLR WHO ADVISED THE "CENTER CONSOLE RETRACTOR SEAT BELT ASSEMBLY" IS DEFECTIVE. NLM
WHEN OPENING DRIVER'S DOOR AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT DOES NOT RELEASE.*AK
DRIVER SIDE SHOULDER STRAP IS BROKEN. IT MOVES ON A MOTORIZED TRACK AND THE MOTOR DOESN'T WORK SO THE STRAP IS STUCK MORE THAN HALF WAY TOWARDS THE WINDSHIELD. MAZDA WON'T FIX IT WITHOUT PAYMENT BECAUSE OF MY MILEAGE IS BEYOND EXTENDED WARRANTIES. THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MILEAGE. THEY WANT $720.00 TO FIX THE SHOULDER STR…
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DRIVER SIDE SHOULDER STRAP IS BROKEN. IT MOVES ON A MOTORIZED TRACK AND THE MOTOR DOESN'T WORK SO THE STRAP IS STUCK MORE THAN HALF WAY TOWARDS THE WINDSHIELD. MAZDA WON'T FIX IT WITHOUT PAYMENT BECAUSE OF MY MILEAGE IS BEYOND EXTENDED WARRANTIES. THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MILEAGE. THEY WANT $720.00 TO FIX THE SHOULDER STRAP, $590.00 JUST FOR A NEW MOTOR. I HAVE A FIX-IT TICKET ON THIS STRAP AND CANNOT AFFORED TO PAY THEIR PRICE TO HAVE A SHOULDER STRAP THAT MOVES UP AND DOWN AS I OPEN AND CLOSE MY CAR DOOR. THE LANCASTER MAZDA SERVICEMAN TOLD ME THAT THE 1993 MAZDA'S WERE RECALLED FOR THIS PROBLEM BUT MINE IS A 1994 SO DOESN'T FALL UNDER A RECALL. I COULD USE SOME HELP WITH THIS.*AK
ACTIVE SHOULDER BELT SEAT BELT MECHANISM FAILS TO MOVE WHEN OPENING DOOR. *AK
THE DRIVER'S SIDE AUTOMATIC SHOULDER HARNESS WILL ONLY ROLL BACK ABOUT 1/3 OF THE WAY THEN STOPS. THE PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE EXACTLY THE SAME IN DESCRIPTION AS THAT OF A RECALL (CAMPAIGN NUMBER 97V211000 ON THE MAZDA 323 BUILT THAT SAME YEAR. THE SEAT BELT MOTOR AND TRACK ASSEMBLY COSTS $600 AT THE DEALER WHICH SEEMS TOTALLY OUTRAG…
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THE DRIVER'S SIDE AUTOMATIC SHOULDER HARNESS WILL ONLY ROLL BACK ABOUT 1/3 OF THE WAY THEN STOPS. THE PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE EXACTLY THE SAME IN DESCRIPTION AS THAT OF A RECALL (CAMPAIGN NUMBER 97V211000 ON THE MAZDA 323 BUILT THAT SAME YEAR. THE SEAT BELT MOTOR AND TRACK ASSEMBLY COSTS $600 AT THE DEALER WHICH SEEMS TOTALLY OUTRAGEOUS. I AM FILING THIS REPORT IN THE HOPE THAT MY CAR YEAR AND MODEL COULD BE ADDED TO THAT RECALL. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. *AK
AUTOMATIC SHOULDER RETRAINT IS GETTING STUCK AND WHEN GETTING IN OR OUT I GET HIT IN THE HEAD. *AK
THE SEAT BELTS ON THE MAZDA PROTOGE IS A SAFETY ISSUE, AND I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF THE MAZDA DEALER WOULD FIX THIS PROBLEM ON MY CAR. AND IF THERE WAS RECALL ON IT BEFORE.
SEATBELT LIGHT AND AUDIO SIGNAL ON INTERMITTENTLY WHEN DRIVING ALTHOUGH SEATBELT IS FASTENED. *AK
MOTOR SEAT BELTS ON BOTH DRIVER'S SIDE/PASSENGER'S SIDE FAILED TO OPERATE WITHIN 31,000 MILES OF WEARS. DEALER NOTIFIED, AND REFUSED TO REPAIR UNLESS CONSUMER PAID FOR THE REPAIRS. *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
1EA94039 · 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