KnownCarProblems2003 Mazda Mazda6 Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 174 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 Mazda Mazda6, most often about the engine (26% of complaints, typically around 52,000 miles). It is the 3rd most complained-about Mazda6 model year since 2000 and has 6 recalls.
⚠ Safety advisory3 recalls for this car came with a do-not-drive warning. See below and check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Most common 2003 Mazda Mazda6 problems
Engine
46 complaints · 26%Half of these problems showed up before 52,000 miles. Parts named most often: exhaust system, engine, cooling system.
Beginning in 2006, my 2003 Mazda 6 would randomly experience power failure while driving. This was both scary and dangerous. I would be driving, the car would completely loose power with no warning and all the lights on the dashboard would come on. I would have to pull over, turn my car off and back on, and then it…
2003 Mazda 6 with regular maintenance and approximately 60k miles. Having incidents of stalling and idling hard. Per one mechanic it is a pvc and lines. A second mechanic showed US a crack in the intake manifold. These parts are cheap since they are plastic. But the quoted installation is over $700 for just the pvc.
Transmission
36 complaints · 21%Half of these problems showed up before 24,500 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, manual transmission, clutch assembly, driveline.
In early june my Mazda 6 mtx began to experience a problem with the transmission. Whenever I would accelerate the rpms would increase by 1k then decrease by about the same amount before the transmission would catch and the power would be distributed to the wheels. Now a little over a month later my clutch is almost…
: the contact stated there were several problems with the vehicle. The first problem involved the brake pads that were worn out and had to be replaced after 20,000 miles. The second problem dealt with manual transmission. Sometimes the manual transmission shifted roughly. Third problem, in cold weather, the engine…
Air bags
30 complaints · 17%Half of these problems showed up before 39,500 miles. Parts named most often: frontal.
: the contact stated after fainting, the vehicle struck a stop sign at 10 MPH. The impact occurred in the center of the hood. The air bags didn't deploy until the consumer opened the driver's side door to exit the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealership and was deemed totaled by the insurance company. There…
While driving 55 MPH the vehicle was involved in a side impact collision with an semi- tractor trailer. As a result the vehicle flipped twice landing in a ditch. None of the airbags deployed. No injuries reported. Please provide any additional information.
Brakes
23 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 10,000 miles. Parts named most often: foundation components, disc, antilock, supply.
The computer system failed without warning. As a result the brakes locked, then started smoking. The cause has yet to be determined. Please provide additional information.
Front (right) end squeaks/grinds mainly while turning, however has continued after straightening out. Started around 10,000 miles. I've taken it in 3 different times to two different dealers. This last time (now at ~50,000) I was told it was a break pad problem and that: my break pads were 80% worn. My rotors needed…
Electrical
18 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 40,000 miles. Parts named most often: wiring, ignition, alternator/generator/regulator.
The car got stuck in a mixture of mud and snow. During the effort to get the car unstuck there was a spark inside of the car on the drivers side. The occupants of the car exited the car and found that there were flames shooting out from underneath the front of the vehicle. They were unable to stop the fire at that…
The engine light and transmission light indicated a problem to me, as well as the car jerking upon acceleration. After taking the car to the dealer for service it was determined that knock sensor had malfunctioned. Since the first visit to the dealership for service regarding this problem, it has happened 5 times. I…
Speed control
18 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 89,500 miles.
Tl contact owns a 2003 Mazda 6. While driving approximately 20 MPH, the contact applied pressure to the brake pedal several times before the vehicle slowed down. The vehicle accelerated without the accelerator pedal being depressed. There were no warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was…
Traveling at freeway speeds in ca on the san francisco bay bridge during evening traffic, my 2003 Mazda6 suddenly went into "safe or limp" mode. This caused abrupt loss of power with no ability to accelerate, which almost caused a multi vehicle accident. When taken to a mechanic, the root cause was a code dtc p2135…
Fuel system
15 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 84,500 miles. Parts named most often: delivery, storage.
My car has had 4 recalls. I purchased the car in 2006 not knowing that parts had been recalled 3 times. I recently fixed a problem in my car that I feel make have had something to do with recall #3 , the fuel sender unit.
On several models of Mazda 6's Mazda has issued a tsb for the problem which is a defective throttle position sensor. I have read thousands of complaints by consumers. Mazda has made a new part yet not recalled the old part. When this part fails you lose all acceleration power to the vehicle. The way to reset this is…
Body and structure
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 80,000 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
Tl contact owns a 2003 Mazda 6. The contact stated that the paint was blistered on the fender on the rear passenger side of the vehicle. The dealer stated that they were aware of the corrosion on the rear fender. The dealer referred the contact to a body shop for repair; however, he took the vehicle to his body shop…
We have owned our Mazda 6 since 2003. This year there is substantial rust in both rear fenders. Researching this it appears to be a common problem, such a problem that it was a recall in england. We contacted Mazda to see if a recall was available to america, but one was not. Mazda is aware of the problem as they…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2003 Mazda Mazda6 recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. The recall began december 3, 2019. Owners may contact mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 2618f. Note: this recall supersedes recalls 13v130, 14v362, 14v773 and 15v869.
Full defect summary
Mazda north american operations (mazda) is recalling certain 2003-2008 mazda6, 2004-2005 mpv, 2004 rx-8, and 2006-2007 mazdaspeed6 vehicles. These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began july 6, 2018. Mailing to the affected rx-8 owners began july 6, 2019. Owners may contact mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 2618f. Note: with the addition of the rx-8 vehicles, this recall fully supersedes recall 16v354.
Full defect summary
Mazda north america operations (mazda) is recalling certain 2003-2008 mazda6, 2006-2007 mazdaspeed6 and 2004 mpv vehicles nationwide. Mazda is also recalling 2005-2006 mpv vehicles in alabama, arizona, arkansas, california, delaware, the district of columbia, florida, georgia, hawaii, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, louisiana, maryland, mississippi, missouri, nebraska, nevada, new jersey, new mexico, north carolina, ohio, oklahoma, pennsylvania, south carolina, tennessee, texas, virginia, west virginia, puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands (saipan), and the u.s. Virgin islands. On july 9, 2019 this recall was expanded to include certain 2004-2011 rx-8 vehicles that were previously recalled under 16v-354 but have not yet been repaired. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began on september 12, 2017. Owners may contact mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 1417g. Note: this recall supersedes recall 15v-382.
Full defect summary
Mazda north american operations (mazda) is recalling certain model year 2003-2008 mazda6, 2004-2008 rx-8, and 2006-2007 mazdaspeed6 vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion and other factors, including manufacturing variability that, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Fuel system: delivery
Risk: A fire could occur in the presence of an ignition source.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the top of the fuel tank, and if necessary, repair or replace it. Owner notification began february 9, 2004. Owners should contact mazda at 1-800-222-5500.
Full defect summary
On certain passenger vehicles, the fuel sender unit (fsu) may have been improperly installed in the fuel tank, producing an inadequate seal, and fuel may leak.
Brakes: indicator light
Risk: Should this occur, it is possible that the float will not return to the guide rail and the brake fluid level warning indicator may not function.
Fix: Mazda has not yet provided a remedy for this campaign. Owner notification began july 14, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact mazda at 1-800-222-5500.
Full defect summary
Certain passenger vehicles fail to comply with requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 135, "passenger car brake systems." during production, the float in the fluid level sensor in the brake reservoir can be forced off of the guide rail during the filling of the master cylinder.
Lights: fog lights
Risk: Should this occur, the bulb socket and the harness can drop inside the bumper and possibly but rarely, the heat generated by the bulb can cause the bumper to burn.
Fix: Dealers will install a spring to prevent the socket holder from separating from the lamp case. Owner notification began on july 14, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact mazda at 1-800-222-5500.
Full defect summary
On certain mini vans and passenger vehicles, the socket holder in the fog lights is installed in the lamp casing using pressure. During operation of the fog light, the heat from the bulb can expand the socket holder. The expansion can force the socket holder rearward. After repeatedly being subject to this expansion, if the fog light is also subjected to vibration during vehicle operation, the socket holder with the bulb holder and the wiring harness may separate from the fog light casing.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Fuel tank sending unit seal leak
Summary
In some of the subject vehicles, the fsu lock ring seal may have been installed improperly.the fuel tank may be assembled with insufficient compression on the fsu lock ring seal due to cross-threading the lock ring, the seal may be out of position at the time of installation,or the fuel tank may be assembled with insufficient compression on the seal due to distortion of the tank shell.each of these conditions may result in fuel leakage and in the presence of a source of ignition, a vehicle fire could potentially occur.mazda will conduct a safety recall campaign to correct fsu seal installation problems in the subject vehicles.mazda dealers will inspect the top of the fuel tank and, if necess
Questions about the 2003 Mazda Mazda6
- What are the most common problems with the 2003 Mazda Mazda6?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: engine (46 complaints, typically around 52,000 miles); transmission (36 complaints, typically around 24,500 miles); air bags (30 complaints, typically around 39,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2003 Mazda Mazda6 have?
- 6 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from October 31, 2019 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2003 a bad year for the Mazda Mazda6?
- It is the 3rd most complained-about Mazda6 model year since 2000, with 174 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.