2001 Mazda 323 GLX 1.6 from Norway
Summary:
Rust
Faults:
Joints clicking.
Brakes hanging.
RUST! And a lot of it.
General Comments:
The car drives well and is well equipped for its price tag. On longer drives of 1 hour+, it becomes uncomfortable. Partly because of the seats, and partly because of the rough ride and road/wind noise.
The car I bought looked as good as new. Still shiny paint, and the interior looking and feeling as new!
The car had been well maintained with annual servicing.
However, this was still not enough, as the car had heaps of filler applied to it under the body. The car had rusted way beyond repairability many years ago and will never pass another MOT. It has severe rust damage on all 4 corners, and also alongside.
Despite all the servicing, the fact that it had only done 58000KM in 13 years tells me that this car is of poor quality. I am utterly disappointed by Mazda.
A mechanic, judged by the looks of the damage that the car was already rusted beyond repair when it was 10 years old. And, judging by the service book back then, only had done 40000KM.
Never another Mazda.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 12th April, 2015
3rd Aug 2022, 21:56
Moving somewhere warmer could also be an option. This reviewer is from Norway. Any car will rust there in that weather and all the salt on the roads. Warm climate and don’t drive through deep puddles and splash water up onto the exposed metal underneath the car, and you’ll be OK.
4th Aug 2022, 22:25
Dunno man, I live in a cold climate (up north in the UK) and have had all sorts of cars over the years, through brutal winters and even the odd warm summer. Japanese cars in general are reliable but always rusted early on me, at 5 years or so. Not just Mazda, but I had a Honda that rusted early also. German cars fared a bit better (Audi, VW), cosmetic rust appearing at 10 years old, but nothing serious.
Right now I have an 11 year old Ford Mondeo that believe it or not has no rust whatsoever, I wash it every other week and service it and do average mileage, basically no different from the way I treated other cars, so who knows, it is hard to say sometimes what causes early rusting on some cars. I guess maybe living near the coast with salty air does not help, I have heard people blame rust on that, but then again I also know people that live by the seaside for years and swear their car has no rust! It's like an ongoing motoring mystery!
5th Aug 2022, 13:12
Not just Mazda to be fair - I remember Mercedes in the late 1990's and early 2000's having early rust issues on some cars.
26th Jan 2024, 17:00
We had a 323 as well back in the day. Great car until it rusted away at ten years old also!
3rd Aug 2022, 16:09
I had a 2006 Mazda 6 and it rusted away at barely 10 years old. Mazda had rust issues in the late 90's and early 2000's no doubt. My father had a 1980's Mazda 626 and it was not anywhere near as bad with rust when it was 10 years old.
Newer Mazda's long term rust protection remains to be seen.