Common problems with the Mazda3

I just noticed today that my f-ckin' windshield has a crack in it! (argh)
Does anybody think it could be caused by just really cold weather? It's not too significant, but I just got the car this July. What the hell?!?
 
Air sensor replaced right out of the box (on the way home from dealer the light went on).

Currently at 9500 miles and 9 months of use. Everything ok since the air bag sensor.

Rear Brake dust is seriously nasty and Mazda doesn't seem to care about it.
 
early 04's are 1st year production so that has to be taken into cosideration when buying any 1st year production car(Lessons learned). I beleve the newer ones got rid of most the isues. just be glad your car is imported unlike the 6 we loose the navi and hids by it being built here...
 
RonH said:
It' interesting...does anyone feel the quality is somehow effected since Mazda is made by Ford? Are these Mazdas made in the USA or Japan?

The Mazda3 is manufactured by Mazda in Japan. Ford does own controling interest in Mazda but doesn't build their cars.[/QUOTE]


Mazda has some Ford parts in their older cars such as the worst Mazda ever, THE 626, it has Ford transmission
 
Newer V6 6 has ford tranny replaing the jap junk ones...mazda 3 is imported...mazda 6 is built here...if you had the option for navi and hids then ford didn't build it...
 
Probably a full 75% of the parts in the Mazda3 are Ford parts.

Just not Ford USA parts. They all come from India, Hungary, etc.
 
I have a passenger door panel rattle. I'll fix that myself. Hmmm, I don't care for the way the slushbox shifts when cold. That's it. Drives great, handles wonderfully.

Rear deck rattle for the HB: check that the cover is securely fastened. I had this happen too and some cargo had pushed one side out of the detent.

Steering whine: this car has electric steering, the servos make that noise. It never seems all that loud unless I am going slow and steering hard (tight garage parking).

Undercarriage noise: this car is an entry-level car thus it does not have all the noise abatement material you'll find in a $30K+ car. You should drive a new Cavalier or base Civic if you want rattles and road noise -yuck.

This car is a miracle if you think about the first model year Focus. (boom08)
 
lol @ brake dust. Get some ebc pads if you want no brake dust. Most factory brake pads leave your wheels dirty.
 
There are 2 bulletins to fix your front and back brakes for squeaking when cold. Dealer will fix it for you if you mention it.
 
Got the infamous door pannel rattle... which is driving me nuts. I'm gonna have to go in and fix that. And the squeaky brakes when cold... I'll have to look up the posts on how to fix that.
 
3-LOV3R said:
Got the infamous door pannel rattle... which is driving me nuts. I'm gonna have to go in and fix that. And the squeaky brakes when cold... I'll have to look up the posts on how to fix that.

I just got done fixing the door panel rattle, after the dealership tried and failed twice. I used weatherstripping foam strips from Home Depot around the bolt holes underneath the innermost plastic cover. I first drove around without the outermost panel and still had the rattle, then I was able to narrow it down. I also tightened every bolt and screw down a bit, some were really loose. Took all of 20 minutes and two drives around the block. GL
 
Re:

I put 20k miles in 10 months and have had the following problems:..Car is currently in dealer to resolve some of these issues.

- Air bag sensor - Dealer replacing sensor (recall)
- Glove box does not close properly sometimes
- Sqeaky brakes - Dealer cleaned brakes..same issue - Dealer replacing pads
- Excessive rear brake dust..dust seems less now with 20k breakin.
- Check Engine light comes on - Bulletin out according to dealer for fix.
- With the recent cold weather, I have noticed a hissing sound from front of car during warm ups in the mornings. Sounds like an air leak but it goes away after a few minutes.

Overall the car runs great and after seeing a friend take his BMW to the dealer with problems for the past 2 months, I can't complain considering the 3 is a new model.

4dr sedan 2.3 AT
 
I think the most common problem is bad dealer service. (jerkit)

That might be common to all cars, though. This is my first new car, so I've never had to deal with service departments before.

Lemme tell ya... I ain't happy about having to spar with these people. (enguard)
 
carz8 said:
I put 20k miles in 10 months and have had the following problems:..Car is currently in dealer to resolve some of these issues.

- Air bag sensor - Dealer replacing sensor (recall)
- Glove box does not close properly sometimes
- Sqeaky brakes - Dealer cleaned brakes..same issue - Dealer replacing pads
- Excessive rear brake dust..dust seems less now with 20k breakin.
- Check Engine light comes on - Bulletin out according to dealer for fix.
- With the recent cold weather, I have noticed a hissing sound from front of car during warm ups in the mornings. Sounds like an air leak but it goes away after a few minutes.

Overall the car runs great and after seeing a friend take his BMW to the dealer with problems for the past 2 months, I can't complain considering the 3 is a new model.

4dr sedan 2.3 AT

Wow! Dealer addressed all my problems with new parts.
Service report:

CAUSE - RECALL - AIR BAG SENSOR
CORRECTION - REPLACED CRASH ZONE SENSOR AS PER RECALL 2304J

CAUSE - BRAKE NOISE
CORRECTION - REPLACED CALIPER MOUNTING FOR FRONT BRAKES AND FILED DOWN EDGES

CAUSE - CEL - INTERNAL FAILURE
TECH DIAGNOSED AND RETRIEVED CODE P2404-EVAP PUMP
CORRECTION - REPLACED EVAP PUMP

CAUSE - BELT NOISE
CORRECTION - REPLACED ALTERNATOR BELT
 
problems

My 3 wouldn't start this morning so I had to call roadside assistance. I've noticed lately that with the extreme cold weather its been very slow to turn over. I put the battery charger on it for about an hour and it gave it enough juice to start. Right now its at the dealership and they provided me with a loaner car.

Also, other concerns I have with the car is a hard 1st to 2nd shift when cold. After a minute or so its fine.... And a recall on the air bag sensor....

other than those two things its been a great little car, 10 months and 10,000 miles.....
 

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I bought mine in May of '04 and have 12,000 miles. Have had no real problems except one: check engine light that comes on for a couple days then goes off for a couple of hours only to come back for a couple of days, and so on.... About the 4th day after it came on I got hesitation coming from a stop on two different instances on the same short 2 mile trip, then nothing until two days later, only one instance. Both occurances were within minutes of starting the car.
Anybody else have this issue and can shed light on it? I'd like to have some info before I go to the dealer, so I don't get the runaround.

Otherwise no real issues just the same seen here:
- Airbag Sensor, got the recall letter, just haven't taken it in yet.
- Brakes squeak, but only in reverse when I first start the car on a cold morning or evening after the car has not been driven for a while.
- Brake dust on the rear wheels (haven't had the breaks done yet)
- Transmission shifts rough on a cold morning form 1st to 2nd. Otherwise it just shifts sloppy occasionally when warm. (I recommend the 5spd if you have any sporting intensions. 4 speeds is simply not enough for this engine. Car and Driver magazine says its one the best shifting 5spds you can find on an entry level car)
- Rear wheels have a certain amount of negative camber, but I see this on every other 3 I've seen. Anybody know anything about this??
- Glove box rattles sometimes, left side hangs down slightly
- Auto down doen't work on very hot day, 90+ degrees usually.
- Noticed the whining on the power steering, thought it was an issue, but apparently not.
- Groaning/squeaking like sound when turning the wheel either direction at slow speeds. Almost like a bad bushing. Haven't seen this one mentioned, anybody have this too??

Regardless, I absolutely love driving this car (except for the AT) and would whole heartedly recommend it to anyone considering a Hondo or Toyota.
 
Mnementh said:
I bought mine in May of '04 and have 12,000 miles. Have had no real problems except one: check engine light that comes on for a couple days then goes off for a couple of hours only to come back for a couple of days, and so on.... About the 4th day after it came on I got hesitation coming from a stop on two different instances on the same short 2 mile trip, then nothing until two days later, only one instance. Both occurances were within minutes of starting the car.
Anybody else have this issue and can shed light on it? I'd like to have some info before I go to the dealer, so I don't get the runaround.

Otherwise no real issues just the same seen here:
- Airbag Sensor, got the recall letter, just haven't taken it in yet.
- Brakes squeak, but only in reverse when I first start the car on a cold morning or evening after the car has not been driven for a while.
- Brake dust on the rear wheels (haven't had the breaks done yet)
- Transmission shifts rough on a cold morning form 1st to 2nd. Otherwise it just shifts sloppy occasionally when warm. (I recommend the 5spd if you have any sporting intensions. 4 speeds is simply not enough for this engine. Car and Driver magazine says its one the best shifting 5spds you can find on an entry level car)
- Rear wheels have a certain amount of negative camber, but I see this on every other 3 I've seen. Anybody know anything about this??
- Glove box rattles sometimes, left side hangs down slightly
- Auto down doen't work on very hot day, 90+ degrees usually.
- Noticed the whining on the power steering, thought it was an issue, but apparently not.
- Groaning/squeaking like sound when turning the wheel either direction at slow speeds. Almost like a bad bushing. Haven't seen this one mentioned, anybody have this too??

Regardless, I absolutely love driving this car (except for the AT) and would whole heartedly recommend it to anyone considering a Hondo or Toyota.





the only advise that i can give you is.....purge valve in the gas tank. thats waht happened to me and sound like what you are describing
 
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