Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING - COLUMN | |||||
| SB-06-003-10 | 08/13/2010 | 10034527 | Mazda: steering column slightly moves in or out telescopically. some vehicles may exhibit a slight in or out movement of the steering wheel when it is pushed or pulled, even with the steering wheel release lever properly locked. *pe | 11/29/2010 | |
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST - POWER STEERING FLUID | |||||
| 06-003/08 | 02/18/2008 | 10024307 | Heavy steering effort/power steering fluid leakage. some mazda3 vehicles (except mazdaspeed3) with vin's lower than jm1bk**** **709745 (produced before feb. 1, 2007) & some mazda5 vehicles with vin's lower than jm1cr**** **150635 (produce | 04/03/2008 | |
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||||
| 03012006 | 03/01/2006 | 10019879 | Intermittent hard to steer. *ak | 05/08/2006 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 07/06/2012 | 78000 | 1 | |
| While i was driving on 101n, i saw the power steering light illuminating. steering wheel felt stiff and i have to fight it to keep the car in control while i was making a turn at 45mi/hr. i have experience this issue over 20 time now. on 12/7/12 this issue occurred so many times that i had to park my car at a random shopping center and have a friend pick me up. unfortunately when i called the dealer, they told me that its not a similar issue as the 07-9 model, so they have to charge me a $150 diagnostics fee. i am currently at 94,385 miles and my extended coverage also expired. based on my research it will be an expensive repair, somewhere close to 1700-2000. i'm not sure if mazda going to do anything about this issue, but id like my voice to be heard. *tr | |||
| 07/06/2012 | 78000 | ||
| While i was driving on 101n, i saw the power steering light illuminating. steering wheel felt stiff and i have to fight it to keep the car in control while i was making a turn at 45mi/hr. i have experience this issue over 20 time now. on 12/7/12 this issue occurred so many times that i had to park my car at a random shopping center and have a friend pick me up. unfortunately when i called the dealer, they told me that its not a similar issue as the 07-9 model, so they have to charge me a $150 diagnostics fee. i am currently at 94,385 miles and my extended coverage also expired. based on my research it will be an expensive repair, somewhere close to 1700-2000. i'm not sure if mazda going to do anything about this issue, but id like my voice to be heard. | |||
| 11/08/2012 | 80000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2006 mazda mazda3. while driving approximately 30 mph, the power steering warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. the contact depressed the brake pedal but the brakes would not respond. the vehicle suddenly stalled while making a left turn. the failure recurred intermittently. the contact stopped the vehicle in a parking area and after restarting the vehicle, the steering and brakes responded. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 80,000. kmj | |||
| 11/08/2012 | 80000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2006 mazda mazda3. while driving approximately 30 mph the power steering light illuminated on the instrument panel. the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. the contact depressed the brake pedal but the brakes would not respond. the vehicle suddenly stalled while making a left turn. the failure occurred intermittently. the contact stopped the vehicle in a parking area. after restarting the vehicle the steering and brakes responded. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 80,000. da | |||
| 06/05/2012 | 75000 | 1 | |
| On numerous occasions the power steering in my 2006 mazda 3s will fail. sometimes if i turn the engine off and then back on, the power steering will work again. most times i have to fight it with no power steering. my research online indicates that i am hardly the only one experiencing this issue. on a mazda 3 forum from toronto they state that the supposed protective coating on the inside of the brake lines has flaked away and clogs the power steering pump which then begins to overheat and hence it shuts down. mazda has owned up to the 2007-2009 models having this problem but, according to the local mazda stealership, they have not heard of the 2006 model having this issue. this is a safety issue and mazda needs to take responsibility for this. i thought mazda stood for quality, apparently not. at this time i will not buy another mazda product because of the way they are ignoring this issue. *tr | |||
| 06/05/2012 | 75000 | ||
| On numerous occasions the power steering in my 2006 mazda 3s will fail. sometimes if i turn the engine off and then back on, the power steering will work again. most times i have to fight it with no power steering. my research online indicates that i am hardly the only one experiencing this issue. on a mazda 3 forum from toronto they state that the supposed protective coating on the inside of the brake lines has flaked away and clogs the power steering pump which then begins to overheat and hence it shuts down. mazda has owned up to the 2007-2009 models having this problem but, according to the local mazda stealership, they have not heard of the 2006 model having this issue. this is a safety issue and mazda needs to take responsibility for this. i thought mazda stood for quality, apparently not. at this time i will not buy another mazda product because of the way they are ignoring this issue. | |||
| 07/19/2012 | 85000 | 1 | |
| I was parallel parking and my wheel stiffened up. i turned off my engine and turned it back on. i then had to power my wheel from that point forward. i tried putting power steering fluid in and that did not work. i went to a mechanic and he said that i need a new power steering pump. this issue is very similar to the recall that was put on mazda 3's for 2007-2009 models. *tr | |||
| 07/19/2012 | 85000 | ||
| I was parallel parking and my wheel stiffened up. i turned off my engine and turned it back on. i then had to power my wheel from that point forward. i tried putting power steering fluid in and that did not work. i went to a mechanic and he said that i need a new power steering pump. this issue is very similar to the recall that was put on madza 3's for 2007-2009 models. | |||
| 05/14/2012 | 129000 | ||
| Five times in the last month i have experienced problems when making left turns. the power steering momentarily shuts off, and the radio/electrical system shuts off momentarily as well. on one occasion the engine also shut off momentarily (for about one full second). when this happens, i feel a complete loss of control over the vehicle. two different independent mechanics told me that they could not fix the problem and the mazda dealership refuses to diagnose the problem without charging me because the problem is not a recall, and the car is not under warranty. there is a recall for a very similar issue with the 2007 model of mazda 3s, but the 2006 models are not included in that recall. | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 62853 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns 2006 mazda mazda3. the contact was driving 40 mph when the radio began powering on and off independently and the steering wheel seized. the failure corrected itself shortly after. the vehicle was then taken to the dealer for diagnosis but the dealer stated there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. the manufacturer was contacted and they stated there was nothing they could do to assist the contact. the failure mileage was 62,853 and the current mileage was 64,000. kmj | |||
| 05/01/2012 | 62853 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns 2006 mazda 3. the contact stated while driving 40 mph the radio was turning off and on and the power steering turn off also. he was able to pull over on the side of the ride. the vehicle responded on its own. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. the dealer stated there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. the manufacturer was contacted and they stated there was nothing they could do. the failure mileage was 62,853 and the current mileage was 64,000.jp | |||
| 03/26/2012 | |||
| While driving my 2006 mazda 3 at about 70 mph, i noticed my radio turning on and off several times. next my check engine, battery and power steering lights came on. i felt the steering wheel get stiff, when i tried to switch lanes, it became apparent i had lost the power steering. i began to slow down and started to merge over to the right to exit on the next available exit. i was nearly struck by an big rig as i was not able to steer clear of its path fast enough. as i began to exit, the steering wheel felt extremely stiff. i pulled in to a corporate park complex, while the car was still on, i popped the hood and did not notice any fluid levels being low. i drove the car a couple of blocks and pulled in to a gas station with better lighting. i once again popped the hood, but turned the car off....once again...no low fluids. i proceeded to back inside the car, i turned the ignition and discovered none of the indicator lights being turned on. i moved the steering wheel left and right...no longer stiff. i drove the car home and parked it. | |||
| 03/06/2012 | 10 | ||
| Two loss of power steering incidents in the past two weeks. i am the second owner and purchased in november 2011. the first incident occured in my parking garage at school after i had turned left into the garage. could not turn the wheel at all, fortunately there was an empty space directly in front of me. car sat for a few hours and then drove fine. a week later driving thru an alley at about 10 - 15 mph lost steering again, this time had it towed to a local repair shop. they cannot find a thing wrong calling it a very unique and strange issue. started doing some research on the internet and we found the recall on the 2007+ mazda 3. called mazda today, while they created a file # for my complaint they basically said that there were no reported incidents on this vehicle year , claiming not to know of the 2006 having any similar problems to the 2007+ recalled models and is not a recall issue. how many owners must risk driving under these conditions before mazda must do something about it?! | |||
| 09/16/2011 | 84300 | ||
| While making a right or left turn there is a temporary loss of power steering causing the car to almost veer into on-coming traffic because the steering efford increases significantly. this has happened several times. i have noticed no fault lights in the instrument pannel when this occurs. the steering loss appears to occur at random and sporatically. | |||
| 06/25/2010 | 35000 | ||
| Tl - the contact owns a 2006 mazda 3. the contact stated that while driving at various speed she loss the power steering. the contact mentioned that the failure had occurred a total of four times . the vehicle was towed to the dealer who the first time diagnosed that the top module needed to be replace. the second time they stated that the connectors were corroded, in order to remedy they clean all of the lines. the third time they replace the top module again and the last time the dealer decided to replaced the pump. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offered any assistance since the vehicle was out of warranty. the vehicle was repaired. the failure mileage was 35,000 and current mileage was 44,000. pm | |||
| 02/10/2011 | 58000 | ||
| First incident was about 1 month ago, while turning at a slow rate of speed the radio went out, the power steering went out, and the steering light on the panel lit up. everything came back within about 5 seconds. this started happening more frequently, and yesterday it happened nine times in the span of a 13 mile drive. took the vehicle to our regular mechanic and he said that the power steering pump needs to be replaced. i find it strangely coincidental that the 2007-2009 makes of this vehicle were all recalled for this very same reason. | |||
| 02/05/2009 | 29000 | ||
| Following a rear end collision, my 2006 mazda3 mileage dropped from ~24mpg to ~8mpg, with no torque at all from ~20mph. significant steering trouble, awful tire noise, and loud knocking when turning were dismissed by the local dealer as well within specs. requested brake caliper and alignment check, refused by the same dealer; tech performed a road test, declared the problem due to tire feathering and demonstrated 120mph tight curve as remedy. three sets of tires, one set of wheels [3 of oem were warped], entire complement of motor mounts, two sets of rotors later, i'm about to replace caliper mounts and axles. car is unsafe, and dealership disregard of warranty and tsbs, and of basic safety standards was outrageous, especially given (ongoing) [spine injury from collision was nearly fatal] circumstances. | |||
| 01/10/2010 | 64300 | ||
| 2006 mazda 3 i touring, started to have heavy steering problem without the steering light turning on at the dashboard. failure occurs from standing stop to turn left or right while in intersection..hard to steer. easier to steer while in motion. been a problem for several months now. dealer claims not included in the model year of the recall. thanks. | |||
| 08/12/2010 | 52000 | ||
| Tl. contact owns a 2006 mazda 3. the contact stated while driving 10 mph the contact stated the power steering light will flash on the information center and the power steering will malfunction. this happen every ten turns. the manufacturer has issue a recall for the steering:electric power assist system ( 10v374000) but due to the year of the vehicle the contact is not able to have the remedy repair done. the contact stated the manufacturer should expand the recall to later model. the failure mileage was 52,000. jo | |||
| 10/26/2005 | 0 | 1 | 10/26/2005 |
| 2006 mazda 3, 5door automatic purchased new in october, 2005. car pulls left. its been to 2 dealers 7 different times. they cant fix it. i've got an attorney now and going through lemon law procedures. we did give mazda several extra chances to fix it and have their zone manager and his tech rep and a mazda engineer that drove down from michigan, a chance to test drive the car. on the last visit they confirmed 2 other new mazda 3's drove like mine did, i.e. they pulled left. on previous visits i was able to confirm with 3 other new mazda 3's that they did not pull left. basically if you let go of the wheel, especially on the highway, the car will quickly go left and leave your current lane. i've had an independent mechanic verify this as well. mazda is now taking the position that the mazda 3 is a 'sporty' car and has a weak on-center steering feel and that just the way their cars are and its not a defect. but as i mentioned i've confirmed on multiple other visits, with their tech people, driving other new mazda 3's that the other new cars did not pull left so at the least they have a problem turning out cars that vary from car to car. no other car i have ever driven drives this way and pulls left when you let go of the wheel. i'm an engineer and in my opinion this is a potential safety issue that nhtsa might want to look into. because the car is a unibody it hs no camber adjustment so they are not able to fix this defect once the car has been made. *nm | |||
| STEERING - HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||
| 03/27/2006 | 2 | 11/19/2005 | |
| 2006 mazda 3i touring stalled while at a traffic light. *ts the dealer was unable to determine the cause of the stalling. the power steering made strange noises when the consumer made a u-turn or pulled into a parking lot. *jb | |||