IllustrationBRAKES FAILED, RESULTING IN ACCIDENT.
1997 Mazda Protege
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1997 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 66 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 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 10 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
15 crash reports2 fire reports10 injury reports
What owners actually said
66 reportsWHEN DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, THE OVERDRIVE LIGHT STARTED TO FLASH AND TACHOMETER WENT TO 5000 RPMS, VEHICLE DID NOT ACCELERATE AND DID NOT CHANGE GEAR. THE SECOND TIME, DRIVER LOST CONTROL AND HIT A CURB WHILE DRIVING ON SLIPPERY ROAD. *AK
DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 50MPH WHEN HIT ANOTHER VEHICLE DIRECTLY IN THE FRONT, NEITHER AIR BAG DEPLOYED. *AK
THE GEAR SHIFT STICKS IN PARK WHEN CAR FIRST STARTED.
THE BRAKES MAKE A NOISE LIKE THEY ARE RUBBING AGAINST METAL AND THE BRAKE PEDAL ALMOST GOES TO THE FLOOR BEFORE STOPPING. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. *AK
AIR CONDITIONER FAILED.
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.