2018 MAZDA MAZDA3 Complaints

The touchscreen has started to exhibit similar issues as seen in previous recalls for the Mazdas. Commonly known as "ghost touch," the screen receives erroneous inputs, causing settings to change or unwanted functionality to start/stop. Depending on the active screen, the system will exhibit different behavior. In my case, the discoloration is directly at the 6 o'clock position. Whatever application button is there is the one that will be triggered. On a Bluetooth connection, that is the random button. On the AM or FM application, that is the seek button. On the settings menu, that could be any number of important things, including safety systems' settings including the ability to disable traction control. You can see on the display where it has been overheated and is discolored. This is the same location that the "ghost touches" occur. It is intermittent, but occurs more frequently as the unit heats up or after the car warms in an parking lot.

The contact owns a 2018 Mazda Mazda3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V487000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while shifted into reverse(R) and reversing out of the driveway, the rearview camera image was flickering on the display screen. The contact stated that the flickering was intermittent but eventually the camera became inoperable. The contact had notified the manufacturer of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

The contact owns a 2018 Mazda Mazda3. The contact stated while reversing, the rearview camera image was distorted and failed to display on several occasions. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the rearview camera had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact later received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V487000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

The infotainment screen in this vehicle has internally delaminated causing a well-known "ghosting" problem that causes random buttons to be pressed (without touching the screen) while driving, including volume changes. This results in the system randomly choosing radio stations and turning the volume up to high levels suddenly, distracting the driver and making the screen unusable. Mazda repairs 2014-2016 model year vehicles with this issue under an extended warranty but refuses to do so for 2017+ models.

The contact’s sister owns a 2018 Mazda Mazda3. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled. The contact also stated that while attempting to depress the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond as intended. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with a defective fuel pump. The vehicle was repaired, and the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V875000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure; however, no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 51,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Mazda Mazda3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V487000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

In 2023, the reverse camera would either flicker or completely shut off (displaying a blank screen) while the reverse gear is engaged. While reversing the vehicle to park onto the property the rear camera image failed to display in the vehicle, leading to a collision with the curb. The limited visibility out of the rear windshield for the Mazda 3 leads to a typical driver relying on the camera display to show obstructions not visible through the rear and side mirrors. This failure lead to the car impacting the curb and the passenger being shocked that the car was in an accident. If that was child or small animal, they would have been hit or run over. Luckily, this failure only resulted in property damage, a large dent in the bumper, and possible exhaust damage (see attached). A recall notice for this known Mazda camera issue was sent out in the mail by the manufacturer at the end of 2023. Mazda failed to address the issue when inquired over the phone, instead stating they "Would be in contact once a solution was found." Mazda did not reach out or notify me at any point with a solution until the incident above occurred. After contacting Mazda by phone to address the issue, they said there is still no solution found but to take the vehicle down for a diagnostic test that would be the owner's responsibility to pay for if it was found to be a "owner issue". After a brief discussion and multiple phone calls, Mazda stated they would make the repair as it was confirmed to be a Mazda issue that had just been solved. However, the car would need to be kept over the weekend and a loaner vehicle would be provided. Mazda also stated the collision was a driver issue and Mazda will not be responsible for anything that occurs while using the vehicle. At that point, the dealership was unwilling to assist me and I left. This seems to be a Mazda originating issue, if the rear camera functioned as intended, the curb would have been visible and the impact could have been avoided.

The radio has a ghost touch that continues to beep and change noise levels without being able to control the radio. This is distracting and is a danger to have this occur while trying to focus on driving.

The contact owns a 2018 Mazda Mazda3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V487000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had experienced the failure causing the display screen to intermittently malfunction and no image was displayed. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 32,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Over a year later and Mazda is not fulfilling an existing recall despite continuing to pump out new cars: Manufacturer Recall Number6023G NHTSA Recall Number23V-487