IllustrationHEADERS WHICH ARE ATTACHED TO THE HEADERS TO EXHAUST MANIFOLD AND TO THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER WENT OUT. *AK
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
What owners actually said
74 reportsDRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT, SAFETY LIGHT CONTINUES TO COME ON AND SEAT BELT BEEPER IS ON. *AK
AUTOMATIC SHOULDER BELT LODGED HALF-WAY BACK AS CONSUMER WAS GETTING OUT OF VEHICLE. SUBSEQUENTKY, THE MOTOR BROKE, THE CABLE CAME OUT OF THE TRACK. CURRENTLY, THE LATCH IS LODGED ND CANNOT BE MOVED IN APOSITION THA TCONSUMER CAN USE SHOULDER BELT. *AK
DRIVER SIDE REPAIRED TWICE,PASSENGER SIDE NOT REPAIRED
I WAS AN HOUR AWAY FROM HOME WHEN MY HEADLIGHTS STARTED GOING DIM, AND WINDSHIELD WIPERS WOULDN'T WORK ON HIGH SPEED. AFTER THE CAR DIED WE WENT AND GOT A NEW ALTERNATOR AND PUT ON IT, AFTER THAT, IT DROVE FOR ABOUT 5 MILES AND THE HEADLIGHTS STARTED GOING DIM AND THE CAR WOULD CUT IN AND OUT. THE NEXT DAY WE PUT A NEW BATTER…
Read full complaint
I WAS AN HOUR AWAY FROM HOME WHEN MY HEADLIGHTS STARTED GOING DIM, AND WINDSHIELD WIPERS WOULDN'T WORK ON HIGH SPEED. AFTER THE CAR DIED WE WENT AND GOT A NEW ALTERNATOR AND PUT ON IT, AFTER THAT, IT DROVE FOR ABOUT 5 MILES AND THE HEADLIGHTS STARTED GOING DIM AND THE CAR WOULD CUT IN AND OUT. THE NEXT DAY WE PUT A NEW BATTERY ON IT AND I DROVE IT HOME, WHEN WE TOOK IT TO A SHOP, THEY REBUILT THE ALTERNATOR, AND I DROVE THE CAR FOR A FEW DAYS AND IT STARTED DOING THE SAME THING ALL OVER AGAIN. SO WE PUT ANOTHER ALTERNATOR ON IT AND SO FAR IT HAS WORKED, BUT WE ARE AFRAID IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN BECAUSE I HAVE ALSO SEEN SMOKE COME OUT OF THE HOOD AFTER HAVING THOSE PROBLEMS. *AK
THE AUTOMATIC SHOULDER BELT ANCHOR HAS STOPPED WORKING TWO TIMES, AND THE PROBLEM HAS HAPPENED AGAIN. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
WHILE DRIVING AT 30 MPH VEHICLE DIED OUT, CONSUMER COULD NOT GET VEHICLE TO START BACK UP. VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO DEALER'S REPAIR SHOP, AND DEALER CAN'T DETERMINE THE PROBLEM. *AK
WHILE ENGINE IS RUNNING AND VEHICLE IS STOPPED, DRIVER'S MOTORIZED SEAT BELT WILL OPEN AND SHUT ITSELF INTERMITTENTLY. ALSO, WHEN THE ENGINE IS SHUT OFF, AND THE DOOR IS OPENED ABOUT HALF OF THE TIME THE SEAT BELT WILL NOT OPEN.
AFTER PRESSING THE EMERGENCY RELEASE BUTTON ON DRIVER'S SIDE SHOULDER BELT, THE BELT WILL NOT INSERT INTO THE LATCH. MECHANISM IN LATCH IS BROKEN AND ENTIRE LATCH MUST BE REPLACED. *AK
THE REAR AXLE AND CV JOINTS ARE CORRODED AND ABOUT TO BREAK. WHILE DRIVING, IF THEY WERE TO BREAK, IT MAY CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. DEALER IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *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