NHTSA Complaint #10119654 — 1997 MAZDA 626

I OWN A 1997 MAZDA 626 ES V6. THE FIRST TRANSMISSION FAILED AT ABOUT 68000 MILES, AND NOW, AT ALMOST 200K MILES, ANOTHER IS HAVING PROBLEMS. THIS IS APPARENTLY A COMMON PROBLEM, AS I HAVE FOUND A NUMBER OF WEBSITES WITH LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE CARS EQUIPPED WITH THE CD4E AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. THE FIRST TRANSMISSION I WAS TOLD DUE TO EXCESSIVE HEAT. ACCORDING TO EACH OF THESE WEBSITES DISCUSSED ABOVE, THIS IS ONE OF THE COMMON PROBLEMS WITH THIS TRANSMISSION. THE PROBLEM WE ARE HAVING NOW IS ANOTHER APPARENTLY COMMON ISSUE. THE O/D LIGHT WILL BLINK ON AND OFF CONTINUOUSLY, AND THE CAR WILL SHIFT FROM 3RD TO 4TH REPEATEDLY WHILE DRIVING. MY WIFE DRIVES THIS CAR WITH THREE OF OUR CHILDREN DAILY, THEREFORE, THE PROBLEMS DEEPLY CONCERN ME, SINCE SOME OF THE COMPLAINTS ON THESE SITES INVOLVE THE TRANSMISSION LOCKING UP AT FREEWAY SPEEDS. AFTER SPEAKING WITH THE NHTSA, THE REP INFORMED ME 335 COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN FILED REGARDING THIS VEHICLE, WITH MANY OF THEM FOR THE SAME REASON. ALL PEOPLE WHO HAVE COMPLAINED ON THE ABOVE MENTIONED SITES HAVE BEEN TOLD BY MAZDA THESE PROBLEMS ARE NOT MAZDA'S, BUT THE CONSUMERS. ACCORDING TO MOST OF MY RESEARCH, ALL 626 MODELS FROM 1994 TO 2000 ARE EQUIPPED WITH THE FAULTY TRANSMISSION, AND BEING THIS IS A FORD TRANSMISSION, THE FORD PROBES OF CORRESPONDING YEARS ARE AFFECTED AS WELL. THE FIRST TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED, THE OLD TRANSMISSION IS NOT AVAILABLE. THE CONSEQUENCES OF THIS FAILURE WERE AS FOLLOWS: I MISSED FOUR DAYS OF WORK DUE TO THIS BEING OUR ONLY VEHICLE AT THE TIME. MY WIFE WAS THE ONE DRIVING, AND WAS STRANDED ON THE SIDE OF STATE HIGHWAY 101 WITH MY SON AND INFANT DAUGHTER AFTER THE TRANSMISSION STOPPED WORKING ALTOGETHER WHILE DRIVING AT ROUGHLY 65 MPH.