1995 Mazda 626 LX from North America - Comments

I have had my 1995 Mazda 626 LX for about 3 years now. It was originally my brothers car, and he blew out the engine and transmission. We put a used motor and trans in, works flawlessly. Its at +143000 miles and working great.

I really appreciate this website. All my problems with my 1995 mazda were listed in these complaints. I've had lots of problems with mine, but now it's scary. It will start and run until it gets warmed up and then it will shut off everytime I come to a stop. Hit the brakes and it cuts off.

What if I have to tap my brakes on a busy highway where someone pulls out in front of me? It will cut off with no warning to anyone behind me. What can I do?

Midge

Maryland.

My family bought a '95 626 brand new and have had very few problems with it. The automatic transmission failed within 2 years of the car being new, and since being replaced under warranty we have seen no major problems with it. The key to these cars seems to be maintenance, and if you can change the fluids, filters, and belts when you're supposed to, the car will last forever. Ours has 125,000 miles on it and has been the first car for 4 teenage drivers now (i.e., abused) and still runs strong. The most significant repairs have been more routine considering the mileage (cv joints, MAP sensor, mass airflow sensor, throttle body, 02 sensor). No doubt this car has its quirks, as it loves to stall periodically for no reason, and overheat from time to time, even in the winter.

Even with the most abusive drivers (kids), our Mazda has survived many miles, and with this shows its build quality and craftsmanship. When this one dies in a few hundred thousand more miles, maybe another one will be in order. Maybe the new Mazda 6? :-)

I have a 2000 Mazda 626 with 70,000 miles on it. I feel lucky after reading all these posts that it actually still works, however I've experienced MANY problems with it over the past few years... the worst of which, can you guess...that's right! The O/D light started blinking, car started lurching and finally the transmission had a meltdown in the middle of the desert resulting in a $4000 overhaul at AAMCO. I picked the car up a week later, got 20 miles out of town and... what do you know... it happened again. I'm dumping more money into this car than it's worth. I had heard about a class-action suit a few years ago, but I haven't heard much about it lately. I think the whole thing was probably dropped, but I definitely believe companies should be held responsible for the quality of products they sell. I will NEVER buy another Mazda again! If anyone knows of a class-action suit or knows of anyone willing to pay me for the parts, please let me know. I just want to pay off this bucket and get a nice GM product. ;)

I called the law firm that's working on the lawsuit (Roy, Schecter, and Vocht) and yes, they're still pursuing it. However, the woman on the phone couldn't tell me how many people have signed up for it so far.

The transmission on my 2001 Mazda 626 went out just recently after 78,000 miles, and it cost over $2600 to fix. Before that, the most expensive problem it had was with the catalytic converter, but that was covered under my warranty.

I just bought a mazda 626 95' and it drives fine on the road, but when I get on the high way it doesn't shift after I think third gear or fourth gear (65mph.) does any body know what could this be maybe something with the over drive?

Hi, I have a 96 Mazda 626 LX. I bought it in 2004 at 89000 miles on it. I have already spent $1300 on it for a new rack and pinion and the transmission fluid pump. Now at 99500, I am having the same problem as other, the O/D light is blinking and the transmission is shifting pretty hard and the check engine light in also on. I tried turning off the car immediately when it happened the first time and waited for about five minutes. It was alright for a while, but then it starts blinking again. This is going on for about a month now. I also have the vibration problem. The mechanic said it is because of the engine mounts. I am not driving the car more than 25 miles from home. I dont know when its going to totally bust out on me. I searched the web about this problem and found this website.

I thank all of the people for their input in this website to help me understand about the problem. I am going to file a complaint with NHTSA and planning to call the lawyers and talk about the law suit. I recommend everybody to notify the problem to the right authorities and make Mazda pay for it. NO MORE MAZDA for me.

This is the Link for filing a complaint with NHTSA: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/complain/

The Mazda 626 is a lemon. I bought it new in 97 and the first transmission broke down at 15,000 miles and the car has had more problems than I can list. A few weeks back it started having problems again and I tried to get it fixed. After replacing the idol air control valve the dealer told me I needed a new transmission. Since they were no longer fixing it under warranty it was going to cost 3500 dollars at the dealer and I tried to take it to AAMCO. This was a mistake as they've been unable to fix the problem after 2 weeks and 3 tries now.

Today I thought I would do a Google search to see if anyone else has had this problem and what I found is that hundreds if not thousands of people have had similar issues with this car. The RPM goes up to 4000 sometimes staying there for a second or 2 then drops back into gear and resumes normal driving. It will fluctuate from time to time as well as slam back into gear. It does it mostly in O/D while letting off the gas and barely resting my foot on the accelerator. It also hard shifts in lower gears and occasionally fluctuates at lower speeds. This is my third transmission, but by no means my only problem with the car.

There is a Michigan law firm pursuing a class action against Mazda and after speaking with them today I found that they are working on making it a national class action. I of course added my complaint to their list of names and hope to hear back because it's clear to me that Mazda fails to recognize the problem. The simple fact is the Mazda 626 is a lemon and owners are wasting their time and money attempting to keep this car running.

To contact the law firm in Michigan who is working on this class action call 248-540-7660.

I have been searching for a small used import car, and today I found a 1995 Mazda 626 with the auto trans with 112,000 miles on it. Deciding to do some research first like always I luckily found this site.

However I still like the car and seeing how many people are having the same problems I dug deep into the Internet looking for solutions. I hope these may help some of you solve your problems because obviously Mazda isn't.

It appears overheating is the #1 cause of the transmissions failing on these cars. For one the transmission service interval is about twice as long as the life of ATF fluid as it breaks down each time it is heated.

So the transmission fluid should be changed at the latest it seems every 12,000 miles.

Also I found a place http://www.drivetrain.com/autotransproblemsolve.html

Which sells a $55 vale kit which is supposed to fix the problems with these transmissions which it lists as "Runaway line pressure and the parts breakage which result. Fixes converter slip, bushing wear & planet burnup. Fixes code 628 an low lube condition." Which from my searching falls right in to the problems these transmissions are having from those who actually get a mechanic who will go through and check everything. Most mechanic will just slap a new one in time after time without actually trying to discover what caused the original to go down in the first place.

So there is a fix kit out there and at $55 vs a new transmission after transmission it's worth a shot. I mean if you are about to put a 3rd transmission in it whats an extra $55 that might actually fix the problem.

Also somebody suggested earlier in the thread to install an aftermarket transmission cooler. Which can only help ANY automatic transmission. From the comments of those who got the stick shift manual trannsmission it's a bullet proof car. It seems 99% of it's problems result from this transmission which is obviously poorly designed.

Anyway to sum it up...

Get the $55 fix kit, and if possible buy high performance parts for the rebuild to increase reliability. Since obviously the stock transmission in any form just stinks.

Add a transmission cooler as they cost WAY less than a new transmission. Typically they are used on off-road, and performance cars to keep the trannsmission cool. Since overheating is the cause for 9 out of 10 automatic transmission failures.

Also I looked around and if it's eating tires up in 30,000 miles. You should check the rear sway bar out as well as the struts. Those are two other areas that seem to be weak from the manufacturer.

I hope that helps you all and me because I am planning on getting the car. However I am going to have to $55 valve kit installed and install a transmission cooler ASAP. Which is no big deal since I found it for a song and a dance.

Also hard running in drive at idle seems to be an engine mount problem which Mazda has updated improved replacement mounts to solve.

Before you replace the transmission go to http://www.dustbury.com/626/trans.html.

I have a 1997 mazda 626 that I bought in 2001, I too have changed the transmission at 98000 km. I have so many prombems with this car that it would take the entire day to list.

In conclusion if you all want to do something about this product. never and I mean never buy another mazda. please aid others in making the same decision, this way mazda corp will suffer the consequences of a united wrath.

Richar (canada)

This Mazda has been the worse car we have ever owned. I wish I got a cylinder head for the old Chrysler I had, I could of made it go 38 more thousand miles for a lot less than 3500. Too many problems with Mazdas, I will not buy another one.

Transmission fluid should be changed every 12,000 miles?!? Hey, I'm a big-time proponent for regular maintenance of vehicles, but this is friggin' ridiculous! Any transmission that is that fragile must come with a key for winding up.

My wife and I were looking for a good used car. We found the Mazda 626, with the 4speed automatic. We thought it was a good deal. Within 6 months, the oil pump began to fail, and the lifters clattered. Replaced it,1000 dollars. Then about 6 months the trans failed, 2568.14 dollars. (The overdrive light flashed and shifted so rough it would feel like your neck was going to break) Then the axles, then the water pump (Two of them at 380 a pop), then the exhaust system. We will never buy another one. We could of got a Lincoln Mark 8 for what we have in this thing. I should of never fixed the oil pump, I should of walked away and watched them crush it.

I've read many of your comments and I'm glad that we are not the only ones having so many issues with the mazda 626. We purchased a 2002 mazda 626, and whenever we come to a stop, the car seems to stutter/jump a bit. Its like the automatic transmission isn't fully disengaging or is disengaging and re-engaging while at a complete stop. The car has a little over 40k on it. I just can't believe that a tranny could give out this early...