2005 Mazda MAZDA6 Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often write about the air bag system, both the Takata inflator recalls and warning lights or deployments that seemed out of the ordinary. A second cluster of complaints describes automatic transmission behavior — harsh or delayed shifting, hesitation, and intermittent stalls — many of which owners say dealers could not reproduce. Reports on file arrive at widely varying mileages, from near-new to well past 150,000 miles.

1. 1
   Air bags

   Air bag warnings, no-deploy and unexpected deployments

   • 73 complaints (50%)
   • median 90,000 mi at 10.3 yrs old (13 state mileage)
   • 11 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2005–2019

   Complaints describe the air bag warning light coming on, air bags that did not deploy in a collision, and in a few cases side or curtain air bags that deployed with no impact. Several owners mention being told the vehicle was covered by a Takata-related campaign but that parts were not available to complete the repair. Others describe diagnosis of a failed sensor or wiring that did not resolve the warning. Filed from near-new vehicles up to about 207,000 miles, spread fairly evenly rather than concentrated at one mileage.

   Recall 18V402000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 19V781000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 17V474000 · DO NOT DRIVE1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Ask the seller for proof that the passenger and driver inflator recalls were completed, and have a dealer run the VIN to confirm no open campaigns. Check that the air bag warning light comes on at start-up and then goes out.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The driver side airbag ruptured. I was driving down a1a in hallandale beach, fl. Three lanes of traffic had just merged to two and traffic was flowing perfect going 25 MPH. The car that was two in front of me stopped dead for no reason causing the car in front of me to stop. I hit my brakes but couldn't stop in time and rear ended the other car. There was a loud explosion and the next thing I remember I was sitting in my car staring at the center of my steering console. The airbag was no where to be seen. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10585224, filed 2014-04, 86,000 miles

   “Vehicle was in an accident. Owner was driving at approximately 5 MPH while turning at an intersection, the oncoming vehicle was going about 45 MPH, and t-boned the owners vehicle. Upon impact,the side air bags failed to deploy.”

   NHTSA complaint #10107257, filed 2005-01, 4,000 miles
2. 2
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Automatic transmission hesitates, jerks or sticks in gear

   • 16 complaints (11%)
   • median 22,800 mi at 4.8 yrs old (15 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2005–2014

   Owners describe delayed or harsh shifts, most often between first and second gear or when asking for acceleration at highway speed, with the car briefly losing power or revving without moving. Some report the transmission holding a gear while driving, and a few describe episodes where the car would not come out of park on hot days. Several say the dealer could not duplicate the condition. Mostly reported under about 60,000 miles, and the no-shift-from-park reports came specifically on very hot days with the interior heat-soaked.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Test drive from a stop and at highway speed and note any delay, flare or clunk on upshifts and downshifts. Ask whether the transmission fluid was ever changed and whether the car has any stored transmission codes.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “After a modest acceleration to pull into traffic, I had to stop suddenly due to a light and the car began to rev up to 1500 and back down over and over. I had to pull over immediately where it continued to rev and die down, regardless if I was in a gear or park. It is an automatic. I turned off the car and restarted, the problem went away but the engine light remained on for two days. I plan on taking to the dealer. It is only 7 months old, I bought it new.”

   NHTSA complaint #10154867, filed 2006-04, 10,900 miles

   “2005 Mazda 6s 3 liter v6 with automatic transmission (aisin warner). Application of throttle to accelerate in 5th or 6th gear causes jerk, selects neutral then eventually selects an appropriate gear. Very dangerous on uphill freeways due to sudden loss of any power. Mazda has a service bulletin on this # 05-016/06 that proves this condition is not isolated.”

   NHTSA complaint #10367343, filed 2010-11, 58,000 miles
3. 3
   Engine cooling

   Engine stalls or quits while driving

   • 13 complaints (9%)
   • median 57,000 mi at 5.4 yrs old (13 state mileage)
   • filed 2006–2019

   Complaints describe the engine shutting off at speed, at a stop light or when pulling away from a stop, sometimes restarting immediately and sometimes not. Owners report multiple dealer visits where no cause was found; in some cases coils, the catalytic converter, throttle body or accelerator pedal were replaced without ending the stalling. Some also describe rough running, hesitation and a check engine light alongside the stall. Reported from a few thousand miles up to roughly 170,000 miles, with many under 60,000 miles.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Ask for any stored engine codes and service history for ignition coils, throttle body and fuel system work. Note whether the check engine light is illuminated during the test drive and whether idle is steady.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “In august of 2005 I purchased a Mazda 6 (automatic transmission). After 2 - 3 weeks of ownership my Mazda died on me one day while driving on the highway. I immediately took it to the dealership yet no problem was identified. 4 - 5 months later my car stalled while sitting at a light. A couple of months after that, my Mazda stalled again. A couple of days ago while backing out of the driveway my car just turned off. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10182224, filed 2007-02, 3,000 miles

   “I own a 2005 Mazda 6 I sedan. After owning my car for 7 months it has turned off 3 times while driving. Once I was on the highway the other two times I was at a stop. I have taken it to the dealership twice to have the problem examined and no problem has been found. My car has received all of the scheduled maintenance. Yet the problem still occurs. When the car stalls it usually starts again immediately however I don't think a new car should have this problem.”

   NHTSA complaint #10153262, filed 2006-03, 2,000 miles
4. 4
   Vehicle speed control

   Unexpected acceleration or surging, sometimes with hard

   • 6 complaints (4%)
   • median 75,200 mi at 7.0 yrs old (5 state mileage, few)
   • filed 2006–2014

   Owners describe the car gaining speed with their foot off the accelerator, sometimes with the engine revving up and down, and in some accounts the brake pedal going hard so that stopping required the emergency brake or shifting to neutral. Complaints also note slow throttle response at low speed in other cases. Reports cluster between roughly 70,000 and 170,000 miles, with a few very early low-mileage mentions of delayed throttle response.

   What to check: During the test drive, check throttle response from a stop and at cruising speed, and ask whether the throttle body or pedal assembly has been replaced. Have the brake system inspected, including the booster, before buying.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I was driving with my 7 year old in my 2005 Mazda 6 when I noticed the car was accelerating on its own just a little bit. I didn't think much of it at the time. About 2 minutes later the rpms went up and down 3 times( 1000 rpms each time). Immediately after that, my brakes stopped working while I was going about 35 MPH. I had the brake pedal floored and it barely stopped in time. I managed to stop with my emergency brake and put on my hazard lights for a few minutes while the car was still running. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10614668, filed 2014-07, 75,200 miles

   “I was driving home from work today. I was driving on a road not far from my home and going about 40 MPH. My foot was not on the gas but the car began to suddenly accelerate. It suddenly accelerated to over 50 MPH. I began to brake, but it felt like I was trying to brake at the same time someone was pressing hard on the gas pedal. I put the car in neutral and pressed the brake as hard as I could. It was a definite hard push on the brake -- as if I had lost power brakes. There were cars ahead of me stopped in the road because of an accident. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10542187, filed 2013-09, 165,000 miles
5. 5
   Exterior lighting

   Headlights and fog lights failing or overheating

   • 5 complaints (3%)
   • median 20,000 mi at 3.3 yrs old (5 state mileage, few)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2007–2015

   Complaints describe low-beam bulbs burning out repeatedly, headlight housings or bezels melting from heat, and one case where the high-beam switch stopped working so only low beams were available. Owners say dealers replaced the assemblies or bulbs as a goodwill repair and then declined to do so again once the vehicle was out of warranty. Mostly reported between about 20,000 and 100,000 miles, with owners describing repeated bulb replacement over time.

   What to check: Inspect the headlight housings and bezels for melting, discoloration or hazing, and test low beams, high beams and fog lights. Ask how recently the bulbs were replaced.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Purchased car used 08/02/14 first Mazda purchase experience) low beam headlight was out, had it replaced 11/06/14. Now both low beams are out on 05/12/15. Began looking on internet and found there is a common complaint that Mazda's eat low beam headlights . This, in my opinion, is a dealer problem and a safety issue. We shouldn't have to continually replace headlights. We haven't even had the car a year (although used, new to us. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10716634, filed 2015-05, 100,350 miles

   “My drivers side front headlight issue first began about 50k miles (oct. 2012). The headlight went out and I went to replace the bulb but it wouldn't turn on. My mechanic fixed the brakes around the same time and took around the block, went over a bump and the bulb came back on. I've had issue ever since. Usually I can give it a little tap and it will come back on. Not this time! Ive replaced the bulb twice since 2013, it's at 80,555 miles now and it won't come back on at all! …”

   NHTSA complaint #10731854, filed 2015-07, 50,000 miles

Buying note. Confirm every air bag recall has been completed for the specific VIN before buying, since complaints show parts availability has been an issue. A thorough test drive that includes stop-and-go traffic, a highway merge and hot-weather parking is the practical way to surface the transmission and stalling behavior owners describe.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.