2012 MAZDA MAZDA3 Complaints

WHILE DRIVING ABOUT 60 MPH ON THE FREEWAY I HEARD A LOUD BANG AND SHATTERING SOUND FOLLOWED BY RUSHING WIND. THE SOUND WAS RIGHT BY MY HEAD AND I SAW SHARDS OF GLASS FLYING IN MY REARVIEW MIRROR. I PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED. THE SUNROOF HAD SHATTERED ON MY 2012 MAZDA 3. I ONLY HAD ABOUT 20000 MILES ON IT. NO ONE WAS INJURED BECAUSE I HAD THE CLOTH INTERIOR CLOSED, BUT HAD I BEEN DRIVING I COULD HAVE EASILY TAKEN GLASS IN THE FACE AND CRASHED. MY SUNROOF WAS DEFECTIVE AND MAZDA CLAIMS IT HAS NO RESPONSIBILITY IN THE MATTER. THEY SAY IT MUST HAVE BEEN CAUSED BY A PEBBLE EVEN THOUGH THERE WERE NO OTHER CARS AROUND AND I WAS DRIVING AT 5:30 IN THE MORNING. THEIR REASON FOR THIS BELIEF IS THAT IF THEY ARE DEFECTIVE THEY "USUALLY BREAK EARLIER." *TR

WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT, ALL THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM IN THE CAR SHUT OFF FOR A SPLIT SECOND, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE HEADLIGHTS, AUDIO SYSTEM, INTERIOR LIGHTS, AND DASHBOARD. THE ELECTRONICS RECOVERED AFTER THE SPLIT SECOND, AND THE CAR RAN NORMALLY. THE ENGINE WAS NOT AFFECTED. THIS ISSUE RECURRED ONE MONTH LATER. *TR

TOOK DELIVERY OF 2012 MAZDA3 I GRAND TOURING WITH 19,293MILES ON IT. NOTICED DRIVER'S SEAT ROCKED BACK AND FOURTH UNDER ACCELERATION AND BRAKING. TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE I GOT IT AND WAS TOLD TO TAKE IT TO MAZDA DEALER AS IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY. TOOK THE VEHICLE TO LOCAL MAZDA DEALER ON FEB 17 2014 AND THEY NOTICED THE ROCKING IN THE SEAT AND REPLACED THE SEAT TRACK. AFTER REPLACING THE TRACK, THE SEAT STILL ROCKED AND THE DEALER ACKNOWLEDGED THE FACT IT WAS STILL DOING IT. THEY CONTACTED MAZDA TECHNICAL SUPPORT WHO GOT BACK WITH THEM TODAY, FEB 21 2014, AND MAZDA TECH SUPPORT SAID IT IS NORMAL FOR THE SEAT TO DO THIS. I FIND IT VERY UNCOMFORTABLE THAT EVERY TIME I HIT THE BRAKES MY SEAT ROCKS FORWARD, WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN IN AN ACCIDENT? IS THE SEAT GOING TO HOLD UP? I HOPE SOMEONE TAKES A HARD LOOK AT THIS ISSUE, THERE ARE NUMEROUS ACCOUNTS OF THIS ALL OVER THE MAZDA3 FORUMS AS WELL, WITH SIMILAR RESPONSES FROM MAZDA. I PERSONALLY THINK IT'S A SAFETY ISSUE. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 MAZDA, MAZDA3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 25 MPH, THE POWER STEERING ASSIST FAILED WITH THE ILLUMINATION OF THE WARNING INDICATOR. THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME DIFFICULT TO TURN. THE VEHICLE WAS MANEUVERED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD WHERE THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. THE MALFUNCTION CONTINUED UPON RESTARTING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 30,000.

WHILE DRIVING ON FOUR LANE HIGHWAY, CAR SLOWED AND FAILED TO RESPOND TO GAS PEDAL. COULD NOT SHIFT GEARS IN MANUAL TRANSMISSION. PULLED TO SIDE OF ROADWAY AND CALLED FOR TOW TO DEALER. DEALER FOUND FRONT SURFACE OF CLUTCH DISK TO BE COMPLETELY WORN AWAY, THUS ALLOWING CLUTCH TO SLIP. DANGER WAS INABILITY TO MAINTAIN FLOW WITH HEAVY TRAFFIC. DUE TO LOW MILEAGE, SUSPECT DEFECT IN PARTS OR ASSEMBLY. *TR

WHILE TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 35 - 40 MPH (ACCELERATING) ON A LONG WINDING WOODED RURAL INTERSTATE ONRAMP, NO OTHER VEHICLE TRAFFIC NEARBY, THE SUNROOF (CLOSED AT THE TIME) LITERALLY BUCKLED UPWARD AND EXPLODED OUTWARD. IT WAS VERY LOUD LIKE A SHOTGUN. AT THE TIME IT HAPPENED, IT GAVE BOTH MYSELF AND MY DAUGHTER THE IMPRESSION THAT SOMEONE HAD FIRED A GUN AT US AND WE DID NOT STOP UNTIL WE REACHED THE NEXT EXIT. WE WERE VERY RATTLED BY THE INCIDENT. THERE WAS DEFINITELY NO PREVIOUS DAMAGE TO THE GLASS AND NO ROCK OR OTHER FOREIGN OBJECT INVOLVED. THE GLASS THAT WAS EXPELLED FLEW UP AND OUT BEHIND THE VEHICLE EXCEPT FOR SOME GLASS PIECES THAT STAYED ON THE ROOF AND THE TRUNK. VERY LITTLE OF THE APPROXIMATELY 8"X10" SECTION OF MISSING GLASS FELL IN THE TRAY BENEATH. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED WHILE WE WERE IN HEAVY TRAFFIC AT HIGHER SPEEDS, OR EVEN IF MY TEENAGE DAUGHTER HAD BEEN DRIVING AT THE TIME, I'M NOT SURE IT WOULDN'T HAVE CAUSED A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. *TR

AFTER SLOWING TO MAKE A U-TURN ON A BOULEVARD, THE POWERTRAIN WENT INTO LIMP MODE AND THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT CAME ON WHEN I TRIED TO ACCELERATE WITH THE WHEELS TURNED FAIRLY SHARPLY TO THE LEFT. CAR WAS FULLY WARM; VERY LIGHT ACCELERATION IN 2ND GEAR (MANUAL TRANSMISSION, SKYACTIVE MODEL). NOT EVEN CLOSE TO WHEELSPIN POSSIBLE. DRY PAVEMENT AND BARELY PUSHED GAS PEDAL. RAN VERY ROUGHLY BUT HAD ENOUGH POWER TO PULL INTO A PARKING LOT. TRIED PUSHING TRACTION CONTROL BUTTON TO TOGGLE OFF WITHOUT RESULT. TURNED CAR OFF AND RE-STARTED AND CAR RAN FINE. DO NOT HAVE A CODE READER TO CHECK TO SEE IF THIS INCIDENT SET A CODE OR NOT. APPROX 900 MORE MILES PUT ON WITHOUT INCIDENT. *TR

I DRIVE A 2012 MAZDA I TOURING SKYACTIVE. WHILE DRIVING HOME ABOUT 45 MPH WHEN I WAS CAME TO A STREET LIGHT. AS I APPLIED MY BRAKES THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTED DOWN HARD, THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT CAME ON AND THE TRANSMISSION DISENGAGED, WHICH FORCED ME TO PULL TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE TRANSMISSION TYPE IS AN ELECTRIC AUTO/MANUAL. WITH THE CAR STILL RUNNING, I PUT THE CAR IN TO MANUAL MODE AND NOTHING HAPPENED (NO POWER). ONLY AFTER TURNING THE CAR OFF AND RESTARTING IT DID THE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT GO OFF AND THE CAR RAN AS NORMAL. THIS IS NOTHING I WOULD WANT TO HAPPEN WHILE ON A THRUWAY. ALSO, OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS I HAVE NOTICED DOWNSHIFTING HARD ONE IN A WHILE, BUT NOT ENOUGH TO TAKE IT TO A DEALER. AFTER TO NIGHT, I WILL BE TAKING MY CAR OVER TO THE DEALER IN THE MORNING. *TR

CAR HIT COYOTE AT 75MPH. CAR NEVER WAVERED FROM WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO DO. IT SAVED OUR LIVES THAT NIGHT. HEADLIGHT NOT HIT BY COYOTE BUT BARES A LARGE "BLIND SPOT" ON DRIVERS SIDE MAKING CAR UNSAFE TO DRIVE AFTER DARK. CAR TAKEN TO DEALERSHIP, DEALERSHIP SAYS HEAD LIGHT IS WITHIN SPECS AND WAS COMPARED TO ANOTHER CAR OF THE SAME MAKE AND MODEL YEAR AND THE "BLIND SPOT" IS NORMAL. THIS PARTICULAR MAZDA 3 "DOESN'T LIKE TIRES". THAT IS WHAT THE GUY WHO PUT ON THE 3RD FULL SET OF TIRES TOLD ME. MILEAGE 46,000 THE CAR KEEPS BREAKING MOTOR MOUNTS AND MAZDA CLAIMS THIS IS ALL FROM THE ACCIDENT NOW 15 MONTHS AGO. THEY REFUSE TO FIX HEADLIGHT AND I HAVE BEEN TOLD NOT TO DRIVE THE CAR AFTER DARK AS MY INSURANCE COMPANY MAY FIGHT IF I SHOULD HAVE AN ACCIDENT DUE TO THE FAULTY HEAD LIGHT. I HAVE NEVER KNOW A CAR MANUFACTURER TO OFFER HEADLIGHTS WITH BLIND SPOTS BUT I HAVE AN INVOICE FROM THE DEALERSHIP SAYING THIS IS NORMAL ON THE MAZDA 3. THESE CARS ARE NOT MADE TO TAKE THE IMPACT OF A COYOTE SO I CAN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO THE MAZDA 3 SHOULD IT HIT SOMETHING LARGER THAN A DOG. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 MAZDA MAZDA 3. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THE TRACTION SKID WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE INDEPENDENTLY SHIFTED INTO A LOW GEAR AND WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. THE FAILURE WAS RECURRING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSIS HOWEVER, THE TECHNICIAN WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 26,900. *TR