1993 Mazda 626 ES review from North America

The moon roof motor went bad - covered by warranty.

Factory-installed radio did not work properly - covered by warranty.

Door seals cracked and broke - covered by warranty.

More doors seals cracked and broke - NOT covered by warranty.

Both rear brake calipers "went bad" after I owned the car for 37 months and had 34,000 miles - NOT covered by warranty.

Dashboard covering around the passenger-side airbag has bubbled up - not covered by warranty.

The engine started to miss when idling at about 42000 miles - Mazda mechanics are mystified. It still misses to this day.

The paint has deteriorated dramatically in the last six to nine months. Quote from the body shop guy I trust - "They (Mazda) probably didn't spend as much money on their paint as they should have".

I believe I have taken very good care of this car. It has the dark green metallic paint with a leather interior. It is eight years old this month and friends say that from the side it looks like new. From above it looks like it's been sitting in the junkyard for a couple of years.

The brake problem at 34000 miles was infuriating. I spent $550 to fix a car that had 34000 miles on it. I took it to a "non-authorized" mechanic to have the work done. The Mazda mechanic warned me - "They aren't going to use genuine Mazda parts!" To which I replied - "You mean the genuine parts that failed within 34000 miles and you won't replace under warranty?", "Why in the world do you think I'd want any of those parts?".

My advice to everyone - I owned a Toyota Camry before purchasing this vehicle, and believe me, this is no Toyota.