1996 Mazda Protege: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 91 complaints
91
Total Complaints
42,000mi
Median Mileage
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
Top Issue
31
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

36,750 25th Percentile
42,000 Median Mileage
66,750 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
18
EQUIPMENT:APPLIANCE:AIR CONDITIONER
5
AIR BAGS
5
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
4
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
4
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
3
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:GEAR POSITION INDICATION (PRNDL)
3
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
3
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR
3
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS
2

Severity Assessment

31
Crashes
2
Fires
33
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"SUDDEN UNINTENDED ACCELERATION CAUSING VEHICLE ACCIDENT. TT"
"WHILE DRIVING, SOMETIMES VEHICLE ACCELERATES. PLEASE DESCRIBE. *AK"
"SEAT BELT BUCKLE DESIGNED TOO CLOSE TO THE FLOOR, CAUSING OCCUPANTS TO TURN SIDEWAYS TO LATCH SEAT BELT"

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

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