IllustrationWHILE DRIVING ON A TWO-LANE HIGHWAY TRAVELLING 45MPH, AND 2 CARS AHEAD, ANOTHER VEHICLE WAS MAKING SUDDEN A TURN, CONSUMER SLAMMED ON BRAKES, AND REAR ENDED VEHICLE IN FRONT. UPON IMPACT, NEITHER AIRBAG DEPLOYED. *AK
1996 Mazda Protege
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1996 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: 5 of 70 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.
- Air Bags. Review the 24 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 9 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 8 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
24 crash reports1 fire reports17 injury reports
What owners actually said
70 reportsCONSUMER HAS BROUGHT VEHICLE IN FOR REPAIRS ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS DUE TO SUSPENSION POPPING NOISE THAT IS IN THE FRONT AND REAR OF THE VEHICLE, THE NOISE IS STILL PRESENT AFTER REPLACEMENTS AND REPAIRS OF VARIOUS SUSPENSION COMPONENTS. *MJS
ONGOING PROBLEM WITH TRANSMISSION GEAR NOT SHIFTING OUT OF GEAR. DEALER NOTIFIED AND INFORMED CONSUMER THAT NOTHING WOULD BE DONE BECAUSE VEHICLE WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. CAN NHTSA PROVIDE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. *AK
NO DEPLOYMENT OF NEITHER DRIVER NOR PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAGS WHEN CONSUMERS VEHICLE IMPACTED ANOTHER VEHICLE IN THE REAR. NLM
AFTER SPILLING A DRINK IN THE CUPHOLDER, THE ENGINE STALLED OUT DUE TO THE COMPUTER BEING UNDER THE CUP HOLDER. THE COMPUTER HAS TO BE REPLACED. *AK
DURING VEHICLE COLLISION DRIVER'S SIDE AIRBAG DID NOT INFLATE PROPERLY, RESULTING IN CHEST INJURIES TO CONSUMER. MJS
IN A PANIC STOP, REAR RESTRAINT UNLATCHED , TOSSING THE CHILD IN A CSS FORWARD, RESULTING IN MINOR INJURIES. MANUFACTURER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED.*AK *ML
AIRBAG DID NOT INFLATE WHEN CONSUME HIT A TELEPHONE POLE CAUSING HIM TO HIT THE STEERING WHEEL AND SUSTAIN CHEST PAIN.
MY PROBLEM IS THE PLASTIC PART I HOOK THE TWO THE TWO STRAPS TOGETHER WITH. MY 2 YEAR OLD SON IS CAPABLE OF REMOVING THIS. HE IS THEN ONLY SECURED IN WITH 3 POINTS ON THE SEAT. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW TO PROCEED WITH CONCERN. I HAVE SPOKEN TO EVENFLO. I DIDNT RECEIVE THE HELP TO RESOLVE MY PROBLEM. *AK
DRIVING AT LEAST 30 MPH HIT TELEPHONE POST HEAD-ON, BUT ONLY PASSENGER'S AIRBAG DEPLOYED. DRIVER'S SIDE DID NOT DEPLOY, CAUSING VERY SERIOUS INJUIRES. *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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.