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Engine & cooling

2016 Mazda MAZDA6 Engine problems

Owners have filed 7 complaints about the 2016 Mazda MAZDA6's engine & cooling with NHTSA - 9% of all its complaints, most recently on April 22, 2026. They describe 0 crashes, 0 fires and 1 injury. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Complaints
7
Recalls
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
1
Deaths
0

Engine complaints

Acceleration & cruise controlBrakesEngine & cooling

The vehicle exhibits dangerous electronic malfunctions. A licensed technician (MV-113255) has confirmed a sporadic unintended acceleration defect where the cruise control 'decrease' button causes the vehicle to increase speed. Additionally, the vehicle repeatedly enters 'Limp Mode' in active traffic, causing a violent jerk and a total loss of acceleration while displaying a 'Smart City Brake Support' (SCBS) failure on the dashboard. An independent inspection also documented gross mechanical neglect, including loose battery terminals and a loose transmission bellhousing bolt, which may contribute to these intermittent electrical/safety failures.

Filed Incident Vehicle speed control · Service brakes · EngineNHTSA 11732963
Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemEngine & cooling1 injury

PCM ISSUE, passenger air bag issue, OCS wiring issue. infotainment system, transmission, and engine. Key fobs not able to be reprogrammed due to PCM issue

Filed Incident Power train · Electrical system · EngineNHTSA 11667949
Engine & cooling

There is a bearing in the crankshaft that looks like it's not up to spec. No warning lights came on, car suddenly lost power on the highway. Fortunately no one was injured though it was a very scary situation. Mechanic took a look inside the engine and said a main bearing stud broke off and busted a hole through the short block. He said I'm lucky the engine didn't turn into a grenade. Upon looking up the failure many other people have had the same issue with this engine. The exact same failure on the exact same...

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bolt. Here are some links to some posts: [[redacted]] [[redacted]] [[redacted]] [[redacted]] Clearly I'm not the only one with this issue, and there are more examples of the same problem that you can find online through out different Mazda models that use the same engine. I can definitely have the vehicle inspected if needed, my mechanic took video of the damage as well. I could only imagine if this happened while there was more traffic on the road, it's not safe. And the fact I can find more examples means there are probably more that never posted or reported the issue. the vehicle has less than 100k miles which a lot of the examples have the same issue at less than 100k INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11558470
Engine & cooling

The contact owns a 2016 Mazda Mazda6. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact pulled over but was unable to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not under warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11452282
Engine & cooling

My car has been showing red check engine light randomly for the lst 3 months. It lasts 24 - 48 hrs, sometimes after oil change. Dealer said nothing to worry about, but I finally took it to autozone who said code was stored as misfire on cylinder 4. Dealer is looking at it now, but always dismissed it before. Now that I know it has to due with a cylinder - why didn't they investigate further? Of course my car is about 2 months out of warranty and 17oo miles as of today.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11151808
SteeringSuspensionEngine & cooling

This car has serious problems. I have approached mazda with numerous service complaints and they refuse to fix. The car gets terrible gas mileage not the factory stated 42 mpg which was sold on the msrp but more like 22. The suspension drives terrible makes noises, the car "creaks" when going over things and is not stable at freeway speeds. The car also sways form left to right on the freeway and is extremely slow to stop. It is dangerous and mazda will not fix. I even have a voicemail form mazda corporate stating...

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then refuse to fix these problems. I have had to hired a lawyer to declare the car a lemon. Mazda also refused to service the car for oil changes, tire rotation, etc. I have also filed a claim with mazda corporate along with the numerous times in and out of the shop yet they still refuse and are unwilling to service/fix the safety issues on my car. Also, the heated seats, both front and passenger, have not been able to be fixed since the day I purchased the car (i have now had the car approx 14 months). As of today 7/11/2017, this problem that has been going on since I bought the car early 2016 has not been resolved. Please help!

Filed Incident Steering · Suspension · EngineNHTSA 11004665
Electrical systemEngine & coolingFuel system

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 mazda 6. While driving approximately 50 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle eventually restarted, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump and brake lines were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted after the engine system malfunction warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, but the failure was unable to be determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 7,000.

Filed Incident Electrical system · Engine · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 10822594

Mazda MAZDA6 engine complaints by year

MAZDA6 engine problems, every year

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Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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