2017 Mazda Mazda3 Problems

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 30,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Test every switch: windows, locks, mirrors, seat heaters, the screen, the backup camera, Bluetooth and every USB port.
• Watch the dash at startup. Every warning light should come on briefly and then go out.
• Have the battery and charging system tested. A weak alternator or battery drain shows up here.

Tools that help

What owners said

Repeated instances of the Mazda Infotainment system making changes randomly without any user input while driving. Repeated instances of the navigation system freezing, going black, rebooting while driving.Owner complaint, filed 2025

The infotainment system is malfunctioning. It constantly restarts/reboots while I am driving and it is highly distracting. I contacted Mazda USA about this, but they responded by saying there are not active recalls for this car and the car isn't under warranty. I took it to a dealership and they quoted me $1450 for repairs. However, a…Owner complaint, filed 2024

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 50,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Where it is safe, try the adaptive cruise and lane keeping on the test drive and watch for sudden braking or warnings with nothing there.
• Check the windshield in front of the camera and the bumper sensors for cracks, chips or poor repairs.
• Ask whether the windshield has been replaced. The camera has to be recalibrated afterward, and many shops skip it.

Tools that help

What owners said

Hello frustrated people! Second time back to the dealership...backup camera they say got wet from moisture, (after 2 drained batteries in less than 2 years), my cost. I think that this is a very dangerous vehicle that I am driving now!!!! Besides the fact, at my age, being stuck in a parking lot in 20 degree weather for 3 hours waiting…Owner complaint, filed 2025

The contact owns a 2017 Mazda Mazda3. The contact stated that while in reverse(R), the rearview camera would intermittently display a distorted or blank image. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the camera was replaced under warranty; however, the failure returned almost a year later after the repair. The contact then received…Owner complaint, filed 2024, at 55,000 miles

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 10,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• The pedal should feel firm and the car should stop straight without pulling, grinding or a pulsing pedal.
• The ABS and stability control lights should go out after startup and stay out.
• Look through the wheels at the rotors. A deep lip on the edge means brakes are due soon, which is a fair thing to negotiate on.

Tools that help

What owners said

Car was parked in a carport on flat ground. Came outside car was gone .. Rolled out of the carport down a 500 ft driveway, turned into the driveway across the highway into a vehicle parked there.. Electronic braking was applied and still engaged.. Parked the car back into the carport and tried pushing it out of the carport and wouldnt…Owner complaint, filed 2022

52000 miles and warped brake rotors. Car stops fine. No danger just shimmy in steering wheel when stopping. This has happened way too soon. If it’s about Zoom Zoom Zoom then Mazda should be using a better quality rotor. I will be attempting to do the brake repair myself.Owner complaint, filed 2021

What to check before you buy

• Check every light: headlights on low and high, fog lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights.
• Run the wipers on every speed with washer fluid, and run the defroster front and back.

Tools that help

What owners said

Many modern trucks, SUVs, and cars use LED headlights that are excessively bright and create dangerous glare. When approaching these vehicles from the opposite direction, the headlights can be blinding, similar to having a flashlight shined directly into your eyes, causing temporary loss of visibility. The glare also affects drivers…Owner complaint, filed 2026

Intermittent faulty display (or no display) from rear-view camera as described in Recall 23V-487. Recall was issued in July 2023, but as of August 27, 2024, the parts to fix the recall issue are still not available and Mazda customer service has no idea when the parts will be available. In my view, this is not a timely resolution of the…Owner complaint, filed 2024

What to check before you buy

• Ask the seller not to warm the car up, and start it cold. Listen for ticking, knocking or a rough idle in the first minute.
• Pull the oil dipstick and the oil cap. Low oil, a gasoline smell or a milky film on the cap are reasons to walk away or get an inspection.
• Plug in an OBD2 scanner. Stored or pending codes matter, and so do readiness monitors that show "not ready", which usually means the codes were cleared right before the sale.
• Ask for oil change records. A gap in the records on a model known for engine complaints is a negotiating point at minimum.

Tools that help

What owners said

I have a 2017 Mazda 3 with exactly 59,454 miles. I was driving my car into work and a warning came on saying coolant temperatures high pull over immediately. I feel my safety was at risk since I was on a highway and my car lost power and would not allow me to accelerate. Loaded the car on a flatbed to bring into a Mazda dealership. I had…Owner complaint, filed 2024

Engine stalls; stops running. Loses total power while driving on a highway. This has happened at least 4 times, but most likely more. My mazda computer should have recorded these incidents.Owner complaint, filed 2020, at 45,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Look underneath with a flashlight. Utah road salt is hard on frames, brake lines and the bottoms of doors.
• Open and close every door, the hood and the liftgate, and lock and unlock each one.
• Use a paint thickness gauge and compare panels. A panel that reads very differently from the rest has likely been repaired.

Tools that help

What owners said

The paint chips very easily. The hood is very pitted. Titanium flash pearl. This paint color was an extra cost too. Since initial ownership, it has just become so bad over the ownership period, that I can't touch it up any more. Extremely reliable car otherwise. I purchased the car new.Owner complaint, filed 2020

I am noticing excessive paint chips on the hood and front fenders of my 2017 mazda 3. The paint is: soul red crystal paint. I have not noticed or heard road debris hit the car. The car has about 23000 miles. The paint seems very thin. I have noticed other mazda owners with this paint having similar issues. Perhaps these cars should be…Owner complaint, filed 2019, at 23,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Smell around the engine bay and under the rear of the car for raw fuel.
• On the test drive, accelerate firmly from a stop and up a grade. Stumbling, surging or a flashing check engine light are red flags.
• Fuel pump recalls are common. Check this exact VIN for open recalls before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

Anytime the tank was filled with gas there was a strong smell of gasoline vapors that persisted for several days. The car was a few months past its warranty on emissions issues and so I was charged about $1500 to replace a cracked fuel pump and fuel vent that was stuck open. The mechanic also said that the check engine light should have…Owner complaint, filed 2025

My 2017 Mazda 3 (85,000 miles) suddenly had the engine light go on and a loss of power. I’m lucky I didn’t have an accident. I took it immediately to the shop and they informed me that my low pressure fuel pump is bad. I see they have a recall on Mazda 2018, 2020 fuel pumps. However, I also saw a class action lawsuit attempt to include…Owner complaint, filed 2023

What to check before you buy

• Drive it from cold if you can. Shifts should be smooth in every gear, including reverse.
• Feel for slipping (revs rise without the car speeding up), shudder at low speed and a delay when you put it in gear.
• Listen for whining, which is a common CVT complaint, and clunks when you go from drive to reverse.
• If it has 4WD or AWD, engage it on the test drive and ask when the transmission and differential fluids were last changed.

Tools that help

What owners said

Transmission is pulling during shifting. Dealer updated Transmission software twice already during warranty. Car is doing it again. This can be a safety problem when pulling in front of traffic and Transmission fails to shift smoothly and it jerks/delays.Owner complaint, filed 2024

When from a full stop, then with when needing to accelerate quickly, there is a delay in engine response. Usually half a second to one full second delay in engine response before it starts to accelerate. One one occasion, it did not accelerate at all. I had to then let my foot off of the gas pedal and press down on the gas again for it…Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 9,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Drive over a few bumps and potholes slowly with the radio off and listen for clunks or rattles.
• Check the tires for uneven wear on the inside or outside edges, a sign of alignment or suspension trouble.
• Look behind the wheels for oily, wet shocks or struts.

Tools that help

What owners said

Control arms have started leaking where the front ball joints are and the warranty department is declining to cover any of the costs. They have been leaking since march 2020, right before my warranty expired. The dealership claimed to not have found anything wrong but that was not the case. My personal mechanic found they were leaking…Owner complaint, filed 2020, at 35,000 miles

During initial movement of vehicle after starting, suspension makes squeaking noise, specially when wheels are turned completely left or right. And you can hear the rubbing squeaky noise more when going on bump with wheels turn. Noise goes away after driving and warmed up. More than likely upper suspension strut bearing going bad [VIN].…Owner complaint, filed 2020, at 67,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Read the four-digit DOT date on each tire. Tires older than about six years should be replaced, whatever the tread looks like.
• Check tread depth on all four. On AWD vehicles all four tires should match.
• The tire pressure light should go out after startup.

Tools that help

What owners said

I had my 3rd flat tire in a parking lot, my husband came to change my tire, he used the breaker bar he used before (only way to get tire off) and 4 bearings broke, this LED to me needing a whole new hub assembly and tire, I don't feel that a 2 year old car should need a new hub assembly especially because the tire [VIN] tools that come…Owner complaint, filed 2019, at 30,000 miles

I wrote the following description of what happened to mazda customer services: on the evening of december 4, 2018, I was on my way home from work. I was driving 75 MPH, the posted speed limit for that stretch of texas highway. The surface of the road is brand new and driving conditions were ideal. At approximately 6:10 pm, about 10 miles…Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 19,735 miles

What to check before you buy

• Turn the wheel lock to lock while parked and listen for groaning, clicking or binding.
• On a straight road the car should track straight with the wheel centered and no loose feeling.
• A power steering warning on the dash, even briefly, deserves a mechanic’s look before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

Horn failed intermittently starting after odometer hit 36000 miles and when brought in for regular maintenance it passed all checks; may 2020 while driving when steering wheel horn was pressed the horn sort of 'whined' in august, while driving when horn was pressed it would whine and done it smelled like something burning; now, if you…Owner complaint, filed 2021, at 70,000 miles

So I have visited mazda dealer in cerritos. Few times since I purchased car I have been telling them about my car jerking to the side while driving its like a wobble effect they said car was fine I insisted to get it checked and they didnt soni went back and told them I wanted full check they said for whatbits a new car I said I dont…Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 28,692 miles

What to check before you buy

• On the test drive, press the gas gently and firmly. The response should be smooth with no lag or surge.
• Set the cruise control, then use resume and cancel to make sure each one works.

Tools that help

What owners said

The engine began revving high as I took my foot off the accelerator and apply the brakes as I approached a traffic red light. I put the car in neutral to see if by tapping the gas pedal it would stop revving. It did not. With my foot on the brake pedal to the floor, I put the car in drive and the car sped forward despite my foot on the…Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 10,000 miles

When from a full stop, then with when needing to accelerate quickly, there is a delay in engine response. Usually half a second to one full second delay in engine response before it starts to accelerate. One one occasion, it did not accelerate at all. I had to then let my foot off of the gas pedal and press down on the gas again for it…Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 9,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• The air bag (SRS) light should come on at startup and go out within a few seconds. If it stays on, the system may not work in a crash.
• Air bag recalls are some of the most serious. Check this exact VIN for open recalls and get proof any recall work was done.

Tools that help

What owners said

While driving the vehicle the air bag warning light began to blink on the driver display. After reaching my destination and after turning off the vehicle and turning it back on the air bag warning light disappeared and did not come back on.Owner complaint, filed 2017, at 2 miles

What to check before you buy

• Pull out and latch every seat belt, and let each one retract on its own.
• Try every seat adjuster, and watch for a passenger air bag "off" light when an adult is in the seat.

Tools that help

What owners said

Power seat sliding mechanism on drivers side when actuating the forward and reverse lever is extremely noisy. The noise started at around 45000 miles when the car was 3 years old. I was able to make the repair myself after finding a tsb on nhtsa.gov. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2018/MC-10143977-9999.pdf. Required part # can found…Owner complaint, filed 2021