Are Mazdas as reliable as Hondas/Toyotas?

[15fgdean64]

no, but it should still be pretty reliable overall.

 

[pandemonium]

Mazda isn't bad IMHO. As reliable if maintained well? Probably not quite, but it's difficult to say any moniker is terrible in today's age.

I wish I knew what that meant,

He's talking about the clutch slave cylinder that is part of the hydraulic system that actuates the clutch, meaning it's probably going to wear out before the clutch does. I would concur.

People often point to replacing the clutch first (including mechanics), where-as the actual problem is the master and/or slave cylinders being the problem and should be replaced first (since it's cheaper for parts, much cheaper in terms of labor amounts, and also the first step in diagnosing any issues with the clutch system).

 

[exar333]

No, they rust like no tomorrow if you are a part of the country that has a lot of cold weather/salt.

 

[Doppel]

Hell no. I had a Mazda for several years that I got rid of a couple of years ago. I got it because it was cheaper than the competition, and although it wasn't a POS, I did spend more money and time on it than I should have.

More than that, Mazdas are rust buckets. They look like absolute sh*t compared to Toyotas and Hondas of the same age if you're in an area that salts.

I don't expect to buy another Mazda after the terrible rust proofing of my last one, and I've seen other Mazdas lines pretty rusty also.

I would put Nissan pretty much on par with Toyota and Honda, you can't go wrong with either of them really.

 

[HeXen]

no...rotary motor. That's all that needs to be said. Had one before and god what a POS motor that thing was. I was told that to have it rebuilt would require shipment to japan cause it takes special tools to work on it.

I now have 2 different Hondas. One is 8 yrs old no rust. All I ever did to it was change the oil, new tires and new battery and air filter. Never a lick of issues with either except their paint jobs from factory are junk.

 

[Doppel]

I'm glad my anecdotes about seeing tons of rusty mazdas match some numbers:
http://www.autonet.ca/en/2013/10/09/top-10-best-and-worst-rust-resistant-cars

 

[Barfo]

rotary motor.

 

[Zenmervolt]

no...rotary motor. That's all that needs to be said. Had one before and god what a POS motor that thing was. I was told that to have it rebuilt would require shipment to japan cause it takes special tools to work on it.

1) With the discontinuation of the RX-8 in 2011, there is now no Mazda using a rotary in the US.

2) Whoever told you that it needed to be sent to Japan to be rebuilt had his head so far up his own ass that he could see his own tonsils.

Sounds mostly like you don't know enough to choose half-decent mechanics.

ZV

 

[npaladin-2000]

Mazdas are very reliable cars. They probably would be as reliable as Hondas and Toyotas except that Mazdas tend to be driven harder (let's face it, Toyotas are marketed to people who hate driving, and Honda seems to want that market themselves). But even so their reliability is high compared to other makes, plus they tend to be much more fun to drive than most of their competition.

 

[HeXen]

1) With the discontinuation of the RX-8 in 2011, there is now no Mazda using a rotary in the US.

2) Whoever told you that it needed to be sent to Japan to be rebuilt had his head so far up his own ass that he could see his own tonsils.

Sounds mostly like you don't know enough to choose half-decent mechanics.

ZV

1) Thank jeebus almighty for that, took them long enough and certainly it's discontinuation proves it's a terrible motor.

2) Don't give a crap but it was Mazda's service center so there's another one showing how crappy Mazda really is.

My choice of mechanics? I usually take it to the dealer but your not in any position to make assumptions about someones intelligence from 1 post because it's also telling of your own when you jump to conclusions.

 

[5150Joker]

I've got a 2010 Mazda 3 that still looks and drives like new with the only maintenance being new rotors for the front. Other than that its been perfect.

 

[Zenmervolt]

My choice of mechanics? I usually take it to the dealer but your not in any position to make assumptions about someones intelligence from 1 post because it's also telling of your own when you jump to conclusions.

Dealer mechanics are seldom very good. And anyone who would think that an engine would legitimately need to be sent to Japan just to be rebuilt is clearly not someone who knows a lot about cars or mechanics.

The fact that you cannot tell the difference between implying that cars aren't your area of expertise (what I actually implied) and making a generalized comment about intelligence (what you mistakenly assume I said) is, ironically, rather more telling than you intended.

Also, "your" is possessive, you meant to use "you're."

ZV

 

[Wingznut]

no...rotary motor. That's all that needs to be said. Had one before and god what a POS motor that thing was. I was told that to have it rebuilt would require shipment to japan cause it takes special tools to work on it.

The Wankel Rotary is a phenomenal engine. I own an RX-8, and I am in love with the buttery smooth rev up to 9000 rpm. No piston engine feels quite the same.

What Mazda did you own?

At any rate... I'm not sure what the rotary motor has anything to do with someone considering a Mazda today.

1) With the discontinuation of the RX-8 in 2011, there is now no Mazda using a rotary in the US.

2) Whoever told you that it needed to be sent to Japan to be rebuilt had his head so far up his own ass that he could see his own tonsils.

It's very sad that they no longer make an RX... I'm hoping they make a come back soon. I know I'll be first in line to order one.

And like Z said... Whomever suggested that it has to be sent to Japan, doesn't know what they are talking about.

 

[Wingznut]

Dealer mechanics are seldom very good.

I was an auto tech for a dozen years. I worked at both independent shops and dealerships. I've seen both excellent techs and horrible techs at both types of facilities.

Whether or not a mechanic is good, depends 100% on the person, and not the shop he works at.

 

[jumpncrash]

The Wankel Rotary is a phenomenal engine. I own an RX-8, and I am in love with the buttery smooth rev up to 9000 rpm. No piston engine feels quite the same.

What Mazda did you own?

At any rate... I'm not sure what the rotary motor has anything to do with someone considering a Mazda today.

It's very sad that they no longer make an RX... I'm hoping they make a come back soon. I know I'll be first in line to order one.

And like Z said... Whomever suggested that it has to be sent to Japan, doesn't know what they are talking about.

I believe the rotary was discontinued in N-A because of emissions issues, so the chances of it coming back are kind of slim.

 

[Zenmervolt]

I was an auto tech for a dozen years. I worked at both independent shops and dealerships. I've seen both excellent techs and horrible techs at both types of facilities.

Whether or not a mechanic is good, depends 100% on the person, and not the shop he works at.

Fair enough. My experience with dealership shops is that they're volume outlets not designed to handle big jobs. For that reason, most of what I would consider to be the truly excellent techs (the people I'd want actually performing a full rebuild) are at lower-volume independent shops that specialize in more complicated procedures.

For example, I have no doubt that the techs at my local Porsche dealership are good, possibly even excellent, but there are still at least a half-dozen independent Porsche shops in the area where I'd rather take my car for a big job like an engine rebuild. These are shops that do lots of engine builds and many even manage racing teams for people whose cars cost more than my house. The chance of even a really good dealership tech having the experience that these independents do is basically nonexistent.

I would place the average dealership service department a step or two above places like Jiffy Lube or Firestone. Great for normal stuff, but not the place I'd ever recommend someone go for a big job like an engine rebuild and not a place I'd trust to tell me if I truly needed a rebuild.

ZV

 

[Doppel]

I believe the rotary was discontinued in N-A because of emissions issues, so the chances of it coming back are kind of slim.

It was crap anyway, terribly unreliable and horrendous oil and gas consumption. It was invented a very long time ago and there's a good reason no other auto manufacturer has used one in a long time. I agree with the above that it feels interesting to drive, its ever-increasing and linear torque curve is nice.

 

[Wingznut]

It was crap anyway, terribly unreliable and horrendous oil and gas consumption. It was invented a very long time ago and there's a good reason no other auto manufacturer has used one in a long time. I agree with the above that it feels interesting to drive, its ever-increasing and linear torque curve is nice.

Gas mileage certainly isn't good... But at 185 hp/liter, no (non-electric) car is going to get excellent gas mileage. As for oil, we're talking about 1/2 qt of oil per tank of gas. That's really no big deal. Yes, it requires some additional attention.

Btw, for those who don't know, the oil consumption is by design.

 

[OVerLoRDI]

Short answer: no

Long answer: rotary engine models? Definitely not. Normal engine models? Not bad by anyone's standards, but not the best.

 

[lakedude]

Consumer Reports’ car reliability survey shows Japanese brands dominating

1. Lexus
2. Toyota
3. Acura
4. Audi
5. Mazda
6. Infiniti
7. Volvo
8. Honda
9. GMC
10. Subaru

http://autos.yahoo.com/news/consume...ting--europeans-gaining-ground-165357824.html

 

[lakedude]

My father was a traveling sales person who put a ton of miles on his vehicles. He tried a lot of brands but the experimenting stopped once he had a Mazda 626. The Mazda just ran and ran, in fact it outlived my father. Mom ended up with the car and drove it for many thousands of miles after my father's passing. The car was just rock solid.

I drive a Honda and it is rock solid as well. I wouldn't go so far as to call Mazda more reliable than a Honda but owning a Mazda wouldn't scare me a bit.

We just purchased a Hyundai Elanta which is worth considering if you are in the market for such a car. The Elantra is the second best small car according to CR and it is also one of the least expensive.

 

[skyking]

we had 3 but it was so long ago it is not relevant. I think all makers have duds and winner years/models.
As far as knocking the rotary, I give you the 787 LeMans car. It was a concert on wheels. That sound was like nothing else.

 

[Wingznut]

As far as knocking the rotary, I give you the 787 LeMans car. It was a concert on wheels. That sound was like nothing else.

Hell yeah! The only Japanese car to ever win the 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

Mazda 787B (YouTube)
Mazda 787B Dyno Recording -- Forza Motorsport 4 (YouTube)

From Wikipedia: "Although the 787 and 787B lacked the single lap pace of World Championship competitors such as Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, and Porsche, as well as Japanese Championship competitors Nissan and Toyota, the Mazdas had reliability which allowed them to contend for their respective championships. The reliability of the cars eventually paid off in 1991 when a 787B driven by Johnny Herbert, Volker Weidler, and Bertrand Gachot went on to victory in the 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans. This remains as of 2013 the only victory by a Japanese marque as well as the only victory by a car not using a reciprocating engine design."

 

[Sulaco]

I'm willing to go out on a limb here and say I probably have the most first-hand ownership experience of Mazdas of anyone here.
I've personally owned 3. A 2003 Protege5 (my first real car), a 2006 MX-5 NC1 (still own and drive), and a 2012 MX-5 NC2 (traded recently for a 4x4 winter beater).
My family have owned over a dozen since I was of driving age, that I've had seat time and maintenance experience with all:

4 NB Miatas
5 NC1-NC2 Miatas
3 RX-8s (2006-2008)
1 Protege5
1 '93 MX-3

...as well as a brief, week-long seat time with a 2008 Mazdaspeed 3.

So I'm fairly confident in my anecdotal history and experiences. I don't discount that many older, especially early 2000s, late '90s models had problems, like the Tribute and early Mazda6, but as for my personal ownership record, they've been stellar.

Really, the only troubles were from occasional CELs on the Protege (which, were nothing, btw), an ill-fitting gas cap that triggered a CEL on my '06 MX-5, and adjusting to the maintenance of the RX-8s. That's really about it. I have always done all my own oil changes and maintenance.

Statistically, the MX-5 has been one of the most reliable sports cars on earth for over a decade. Period. You simply don't get more bullet proof in the segment, at any level.
As a brand, Mazda has been Top 3 in the world according to Consumer Reports the past two years, and always near the top the last several according to CR and JD Power.

"As reliable" as Toyota and Honda as a whole? Probably not, but statistically it is going to be markedly close, enough to not be noticeable over a warranty period with regular maintenance, and with certain models (like the MX-5), as good or better.

 

[skyking]

Our three:
1984 GLC. My wife got it in 1985 with very low miles. @ 160K, new throttle body on the carb. Went to a family member with 248K.
1986 626. Got that one with 120K and a new clutch. Sold it with 350K. I could do timing belts blindfolded
1990 MX6 less than 100K and only had it a few years before trading in for an auto car for a really crappy commute.

Of those three the 86 was by far the most reliable car I had owned. I did the heater core a few times and that was a pain, but not much else. It just ran.