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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2011 Mazda Mazda3 — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 132 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

132

Complaints

filed with NHTSA

Involved a Crash

owner-reported

Involved Fire

owner-reported

Injuries

across all reports

Years to Avoid

Mazda Mazda3 — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

2010 Mazda Mazda3 AVOID

686 complaints

2011 Mazda Mazda3

132 complaints

2012 Mazda Mazda3

226 complaints

2013 Mazda Mazda3

117 complaints

2014 Mazda Mazda3

138 complaints

2015 Mazda Mazda3

129 complaints

2016 Mazda Mazda3

103 complaints

2017 Mazda Mazda3

83 complaints

2018 Mazda Mazda3

109 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Air Bags 29 reports

Seats 20 reports

Unknown Or Other 18 reports

Electrical System 15 reports

Steering 13 reports

Structure 13 reports

Power Train 12 reports

Exterior Lighting 10 reports

In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Exterior Lighting ODI 11292095 12/30/2019

MECHANIC'S REPORT 12/28/2019: "RIGHT FRONT (PASSENGER SIDE) HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY HAS MAJOR MOISTURE CONTAMINATION. HID CONTROLLER FAILURE DUE TO MOISTURE; HID BULB OUT. REPAIR EST. $1,500 - $2,000." MY 2011 MAZDA 3 MILEAGE IS 36,915. I WILL TAKE THIS TO MAZDA SERVICE DEPT. ON 1/2/2020 FOR EVALUTAION. THEIR REPAIR EST. ON PHONE WAS $2,000+ - PARTS ONLY. THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM RE…

Air Bags ODI 11291626 12/27/2019

I PURCHASED A USED 2011 MAZDA 3 IN MARCH 2019. I DIDN'T NOTICE IT AT THE TIME BUT THE AIR BAG LIGHT WAS FLASHING A CODE 16 ON THE DASH. I TOOK IT TO MY LOCAL DEALERSHIP AND HAD TO PAY $100 DIAGNOSTIC FEE. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS THE PASSENGER SEAT WEIGHT SENSOR AND THE TWO PARTS WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE COST WAS AROUND $800. I UNDERSTAND THAT COMPONENTS ON A CAR MAY GO BAD O…

Power Train ODI 11498447 12/21/2022

The contact owns a 2011 Mazda Mazda3. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the clutch became inoperable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Electrical System ODI 11383565 12/15/2020

WHILE DRIVING A LOUD GUN LIKE SOUND HAPPENS. SOUND WILL NOT TURN OFF EVEN WITH THE VEHICLE OFF OR VOLUME TURNED DOWN. THIS ISSUE IS RELATED TO THE BOSE AMP FAILURE WHICH THE DEALERSHIP HAS REFUSED TO FIX FOR FREE OR DIAGNOSE FOR FREE. CONTACTED BOSE AND THEY HAVE CONFIRMED THIS IS A KNOWN ISSUE THEY NO LONGER HONOR AND REFERRED ME TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE MAZDA DEALERSHIP WILL C…

Suspension ODI 11497383 12/14/2022

The contact owns a 2011 Mazda Mazda3. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel started to shake. The contact stated that the tire pressure warning light and check engine warning lights intermittently illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the suspension, seat connector, and an unknown software neede…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2011 Mazda Mazda3, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

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Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2011 Mazda Mazda3 reliable?

Owners have filed 132 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2011 Mazda Mazda3, most often about air bags. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.

Which Mazda Mazda3 years should I avoid?

The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.

Where do these complaints come from?

Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.

Do complaints mean a recall is coming?

Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.