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What 226 owners told NHTSA about the 2012 Mazda Mazda3 Sedan

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (226)Crash / fire / injury (10)Transmission & drivetrain (40)Engine (32)Lights (31)Electrical system (25)Fuel system (22)Speed control (20)Airbags (17)Body & structure (17)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (16)Seats (16)

1 of 226 complaints match · Body & structure · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Dec 10, 2013LightsBody & structureCrash

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

NHTSA ODI 10555504

Working with the data? Download all 226 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 18, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2012 Mazda Mazda3 Sedan verdict →