2008 Mazda MAZDA3 - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2008 Mazda3 hatchback model has not been rated overall for safety. However, it has received a 4-star rating for both the front crash driver side and front crash passenger side. The car does not have a rating for overall side crash, side crash driver side, and side crash passenger side. The rollover rating is 4, indicating a moderate risk of rollover.

Additionally, the Mazda3 offers optional electronic stability control, but does not have forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems. The car has had 301 complaints reported, along with 3 recalls and 1 investigation. While the front crash ratings are decent, the lack of overall safety rating, side crash ratings, and the moderate rollover risk, combined with the high number of complaints and recalls, suggest that potential buyers may want to assess the overall safety and reliability of the 2008 Mazda3 before making a purchasing decision.

auto generated summary, may be inaccurate.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

301

Recall Count

3

Investigation Count

1

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2008 Mazda3 5-DR. Hatchback w/SAB Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2008 Mazda3 5-DR. Hatchback w/SAB

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Optional
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2008 Mazda3 5-DR. Hatchback w/SAB Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2008 Mazda3 5-DR. Hatchback w/SAB Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2024 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 4 4 5
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 4 5

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2024 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 3 Not Rated 5
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 3 Not Rated 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2024 Score
Rollover Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5

Complaints for the 2008 Mazda MAZDA3

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 mazda mazda3. the contact stated that the vehicle experienced loss of power steering assist while driving at various speed and making turn. the power steering failed and the steering wheel became difficult to turn. the parking brake and power steering assist warning lights were illuminated. the contact stated that the failure occurred five times in two days. the contact mentioned that an unknown recall repair was completed on the vehicle for the power steering, however the repair had not corrected the failure. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that a recall repair was completed for the same failure and it was a one-time free fix and provided a case number. the failure mileage was approximately 90,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2020-05-08
Complaint:
"power steering goes in and out while driving"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2021-05-12
Complaint:
"loss of steering, immediately fixed itself but with steering wheel light on dash. vehicle in motion. loss of ability to steer vehicle. vehicle was in motion."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2019-02-09
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 mazda 3. while driving 5 mph, the power steering warning indicator illuminated and the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. the contact stated that the vehicle exhibited the same symptoms as listed in nhtsa campaign number: 10v374000 (steering). the vehicle was not taken to a dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified and stated that the vehicle was not included in a recall. the failure mileage was approximately 100,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2018-10-09
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 mazda 3. the contact stated that the vehicle hesitated to start. after a few attempts, the vehicle started, but there was no power steering. the vehicle was driven to the contact's residence very slowly. the contact stated that the vehicle was repaired in 2010 by star mazda in glendale, california for the same failure per an unknown recall issued by the manufacturer. the vehicle was not repaired this time and the dealer was not contacted again. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2017-02-10
Complaint:
"lost all power while driving and turning. abs, brake , ps , battery lights on dash illuminated, car looses steering and then the engine dies. battery discharged as per load test.alternator tests fine. happened two times after the power steering manufacturer recall was performed to remedy the same issue."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2019-03-07
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 mazda 3. while having the vehicle serviced for nhtsa campaign number: 10v374000 (steering), the dealer did not repair the vehicle as written in the recall. the recall stated that dealers would replace the power steering pump and lines free of charge. the dealer reportedly stated that they would replace the power steering reservoir and lines, and that replacing the power steering pump would be at the owner's expense. the manufacturer was notified of the failure and discrepancy. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000. the vin was not available."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2017-12-01
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 mazda 3. while driving various speeds, the steering seized without warning. the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. the vehicle was previously repaired under nhtsa campaign number: 10v374000 (steering), but the remedy failed to repair the vehicle. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 118,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2016-09-05
Complaint:
"steering wheel locked up on the highway as i was curving to the right. caused my car to veer off the road and ran along a rail until the i braked the car. i could not turn the steering wheel and that caused the accident. last year i had the mazda serviced which they had fixed the recall supposedly. but this is the second time that this happened. i may not be lucky the next time."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2017-01-10
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owned a 2008 mazda 3. while driving approximately 50 mph, the vehicle started to veer to the right causing the contact to crash into a fence and the mile marker. the vehicle was destroyed and towed to an impound lot. a police report was not filed and no injuries were reported. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 87,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2015-01-04

Recalls for the 2008 Mazda MAZDA3

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"mazda is recalling certain model year 2008-2009 mazda3 and mazdaspeed3 vehicles manufactured from january 7, 2008, through november 28, 2008. the ground terminal of the windshield wiper motor may have been inadvertently bent during assembly. if this condition exists then over time the electrical resistance of the motor circuit may increase up to a point that the windshield wipers would not work."
Consequence:
THE LOSS OF WIPER FUNCTION IN ADVERSE WEATHER COULD POTENTIALLY INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy:

DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ADDITIONAL GROUND HARNESS ON THE WIPER MOTOR FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN ON OR BEFORE JULY 15, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT MAZDA CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE CENTER AT 1-800-222-5500.

Component(s) Involved: VISIBILITY > WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER > MOTOR
Date of incident: 2011-06-15

MAZDA Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

MAZDA ranks 16 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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