NHTSA Complaint #10161921 — 1996 MAZDA 626

MY CAR HAS A LITTLE LESS THAN 90,000 MILES. EVERY TIME I DRIVE THIS CAR FOR MORE THAN 30 MILES OR SO, SOMETIMES LESS IF HAVING TO SPEED AND SLOW OFTEN, MY OVER DRIVE LIGHT BEGINS TO FLASH WHICH ALSO MAKES THE TRANSMISSION SHIFT ERRATICALLY. IF I PULL OVER AND RESTART THE ENGINE TO STOP THE LIGHT FROM FLASHING AND IT BEGINS TO FLASH AGAIN SHORTLY AFTER MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL ALSO COMES ON. NORMALLY AFTER A WEEK OR SO THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL TURN OFF BY ITSELF. MY HUSBAND AND I HAD THE THROTTLE BODY CLEANED ABOUT A YEAR AGO THINKING THAT WAS THE PROBLEM WHEN ONE DAY MY CAR DECIDED WHILE SITTING AT A STOP LIGHT THAT I COULD NOT KEEP AN IDLE STRONG ENOUGH TO KEEP THE MOTOR RUNNING AND I THEN HAVE HAD TO START PLACING MY CAR IN NEUTRAL FOR STOP LIGHTS AND REV THE ENGINE WHILE THE LIGHT WAS RED TO KEEP FROM STALLING. WE HAVE NOT REPLACED THE TRANSMISSION, THOUGH I AM AWARE IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE LONG BEFORE NOW. WE SIMPLY DO NOT DRIVE THE CAR FOR MORE THAN 20 MILES AT A TIME. IF WE ARE GOING 30 MILES OR MORE, I HAVE TO STOP HALF WAY TO TURN THE ENGINE OFF FOR SEVERAL MINUTES TO LET THE TRANSMISSION REST. I FEEL THAT MAZDA HAS BEEN COMPLETELY IRRESPONSIBLE, UNETHICAL, AND RECKLESS IN ALLOWING LOYAL CUSTOMERS TO CONTINUE TO LOOSE FAITH IN MAZDA'S QUALITY OF STANDARDS. I WOULD ASSUME THAT THE LOSS IN AMOUNT OF PROFITS AND BUSINESS FOR YEARS OF PAST AND YEARS TO COME WOULD EASILY OUTWEIGH THE DAMPER TO PROFITS THAT WOULD HAVE RESULTED FROM DOING THE RIGHT THING AND COMPENSATING MAZDA OWNERS FOR THE HARD SHIPS THAT HAVE BEEN CAUSED BY A MUCH NEEDED RECALL AND LACK THERE OF. MY HUSBAND AND I NOW ARE IN THE MARKET FOR A NEW VEHICLE, MOST LIKELY AN SUV, AND WHILE MAZDA BEFORE NOW WAS OUR FIRST VEHICLE MAKE OF CHOICE, IT WILL NOW NOT ONLY BE LAST BUT MAZDA WILL NOT BE AN OPTION AT ALL. AS I ASSUME OTHERS HAVE COME TO THE SAME TERMS, WE WILL NOT PLACE TRUST IN A VEHICLE USED TO TRANSPORT OUR CHILDREN THAT WE CAN NOT RELY ON FOR SAFETY AND DEPENDABILITY. *NM