"How reliable is the 1994 Mazda Protege?"

"Based on 89 NHTSA complaints, the 1994 Mazda Protege has a median complaint mileage of 95000 miles. The most common issue is Seat Belts."

"What are common problems with the 1994 Mazda Protege?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1994 Mazda Protege is Seat Belts, accounting for a significant portion of the 89 total complaints filed."

1994 Mazda Protege: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 89 complaints

Total Complaints

95,000mi

Median Mileage

Seat Belts

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

88,500 25th Percentile

95,000 Median Mileage

170,250 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Seat Belts

Webbing

Retractor

Anchorage

Gasoline

Constant Velocity Joint

Ignition

Fuel System, Gasoline

Axle Assembly

Buckle Assembly

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"FRONT SEAT SHOULDER LATCH HARNESS IS RIGIDLY MOUNTED AND DOES NOT YIELD PRESSURE, WIFE FORCIBLY STRUCK HEAD AGAINST LATCH, RESULTING IN HEADACHES/NAUSEA. *AK"

"BRAKES FAILS TO STOP VEHICLE EFFECTIVELY WHEN APPLIED CAUSING EXTENDED STOPPING/INOPERATIVE. CLUTCH SQUEAKY NOISE AND LOOSE/FREE PEDAL MOVEMENT. PLEASE DESCRIBE"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

Seat Belts 22 complaints

25th: 79,500 mi Median: 94,000 mi 75th: 151,250 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

GA: 11 TX: 9 CA: 7 NJ: 6 NC: 5 MD: 4 VA: 4 TN: 3 NV: 3 FL: 3

Who Files Complaints?

41.6%

Original Owners

58.4%

Second+ Owners

Mazda Protege — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	45	-	Seat Belts	5
1991	60	-	Retractor	6
1992	72	-	Seat Belts	6
1993	56	-	Seat Belts	1
1995	232	70,000	Frontal	42
1996	91	42,000	Frontal	31
1997	103	108,000	Frontal	20
1998	53	82,100	Automatic Transmission	11
1999	102	60,500	Automatic Transmission	26
2000	126	49,800	Automatic Transmission	33
2001	68	50,925	Air Bags	18
2002	133	65,000	Seat Belts	19
2003	145	69,800	Seat Belts	18

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28