Faults:

So far, this car has been perfect, no problems what to speak of. I have had to do nothing with this car other than routine maintenance.

General Comments:

WOW, what can I say! I love this car, she is quick on the giddy-up and I have had her as fast as 120 mph.

I like the automatic transmission with OD, shifts without any question or hesitation.

Nice comfortable sedan that is a nice cruiser, but, has the power and agility to get me out of sticky situations.

Seats 5 average adults comfortably, but nicer ride with 4.

Has all the options, except for the sunroof that my previous Mazda 626 LX had, but, I really love the spoiler on this one, sporty look that hides a real nice and comfortable ride!

Definitely NOT my mother's station wagon!

Faults:

At about 45,000 miles there was a knocking sound coming from the rear of the car every time I hit a bump. At first is was believed to have been the rear struts and so they were replaced at a cost of $445.00. But the noise was still there. I did a little searching of my own and found out that the rear sway bar bushings were too small for the bar. As a result the bar was knocking around. New bushings that were cheap fixed the problem. Other than that, the car has ran very well.

General Comments:

The car's in-line 4 has a lot more power then what people give it credit for.

Drives very well, and is quite responsive on the road even at higher speeds.

Easy to take care of, very little maintenance required.

Faults:

Sway bar end links have gone bad twice. I've had to replace the battery twice. There was a misfire while under load at a low RPM, but plugs and wires fixed that.

General Comments:

I bought this car mainly because it was cheap, it was a rebuilt vehicle. The interior is very quiet and squeek free with no rattles. It's pretty quick too. I love the car, but, I'm in need of a "cooler" car. I'd sell this car to my best friend it's that good of a car, it's just not my type of car any more.

Faults:

I replaced rear sway bar bushings, timing belt, front axles at 100K. I hope to only do same at 200K.

General Comments:

The 626 has been a great reliable car. More fun to drive than my previous Camry. Much better handling and while no screamer is prety quick. 16sec quarter mile times and 140 mph top speed. Comfortable on long trips. Cheap to own and drive.

Faults:

Two of the auto. door locks failed in 2002;

Another two of the door locks failed in 2003;

Transmission needs to be rebuilt at 49900 miles.

General Comments:

I am a recent victim of notorious Mazda auto transmission.

I bought this car brand-new in June 2000. I had to replace all of the four door locks after 2-3 years. It costs ~$100/each.

The auto. transmission of the Mazda is really a problem. It runs OK except the shift is a little rough from 1st to the second gear until Nov.24, 2004. On 11/24/04, I found the speed couldn't go to more than 40MPH and the rotation is ~4k-5k at 40MPH with big noise. After ~10-15mins driving, the "O/D off" light turned on and I couldn't turn it off. I went to the Mazda dealer and spent $106 for diagnosis. The dealer said there is an internal electrical failure in the transmission and I need a rebuilt transmission which will cost me $3010.00!! My car is only 4.5 years old and only 49900 miles. I am a very mild driver and most of the mileage is highway. I did all of the regular maintenance during the years, but now I need a new transmission!! I searched on the INTERNET about the key words "Mazda O/D off light" and "Mazda transmission problems" and surprisingly to see that there are tons of victims of Mazda's transmission. Most of the victims had the exact problems of what I have and had to spend $2000 to $4000 to repair the transmission. I think Mazda knows this problem very well, but they never admit it is their fault. Now I am going to rebuild the transmission in AAMCO and it will cost me $2500. I will join the lawsuit against Mazda and will never buy any Mazda or Ford (the transmission is from Ford) any more in my life. I will also tell my friends not to buy Mazda. I think the Mazda needs to be punished for their bad quality.