2002 Mazda Protege Problems, complaints & recalls

Bulges on sidewalls of both passenger tires. Tires are 6 months old and only have approximately 3,000 miles.

The security alarm feature becomes activated and will not deactivate with either the key fob, the ignition key, disconnecting the battery, or pulling the internal ignition/alarm fuse. This prevents the car from being started and driven for indeterminate periods of time. This happens after the vehicle is stationary, and all the doors are locked, no matter by what method. The most recent occurrence caused the car's alarm system to become activated while driving, causing great concern that something may short out in the engine while on the highway.

I've owned my 2002 mazda protege5 for 7 years now. It's always had a vibration while braking. Even after having out brand new brakes, rotors and calipers. I'm very anal on how my car looks and drives. If I feel something out of the ordinary, I know something is off. This has happened ever since I've had the car. It does cause me to drive more cautiously especially in the back roads along with wet pavement. The steering wheel shakes while braking as well. As for the body of the car, the paint is faiding fast....

Underneath the car is nothing but rust. It is affecting the undercarriage, the ball joints, the control arm, and the car's frame itself. I have replaced both ball joints both control arm shock and the car is still hard to steer

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 mazda protege. The contact stated that while attempting to park, the brake pedal was applied and the vehicle lunged forward. The vehicle then accelerated up a hill and suddenly stopped. The contact had the vehicle towed to a tow yard. Later, the vehicle was driven to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the frame was bent and the fuel and brake lines were destroyed. The vehicle was unable to be repaired and was destroyed. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000. Updated 11/09/15*lj

Drivers side seat belt latch broke in the latched position. Necessitated taking the latch apart to release the belt.

I was driving at about 35 mph and hit a bump on the road that caused the driver seat belt buckle to come loose and it got in my way of the steering wheel. I was lucky to be driving on the left lane on one way street, I was able pull over, and to my surprise the buckle wouldn't latch to the female connector. It seems like the female connector pieces inside it had broken. Please check, this is a huge concern for anyone. If this would have happened on an interstate freeway I can't imagine taking my eyes of the road for even 1 sec. Please investigate! *Tr

Recently purchased a 2002 mazda protege5. Without warning, it wouldn't start. The low beam headlight burned out. The heat, stereo, headlights & power windows all worked. The car had no power and didn't even turn over. About 15 mins later, it started fine and never had a problem again until a few days ago (approx a month in between incidents). Same thing all over again, but this time the car refuses to start. What can I do? What info should I be aware of? I discovered online that this is an extremely common problem. *Tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 mazda protege. The contact attempted to start the vehicle but the engine failed to start accompanied by an abnormal knocking from the engine. The contact also mentioned that the failure occurred more often when the engine was cold. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was 880. Updated 05/28/14*lj the consumer stated model year 2003 vehicles have been repaired for the same failure by the manufacturer. But the manufacturer...

At first the seat belt locked and I could not get out of it. After about 15 minutes I was able to get it released. Thank god I was in the garage at home. Then approx 6 weeks later I was latching the belt to the buckle and the darn thing fell apart. The right rear door handle broke last year but since no one sits back there I never worried about it. Now with the seat belt issue I was searching for the part and someone suggested I check the recall list for this car, because they are not supposed to do that. I found numerous complaints on line and then this site. *Tr

The driver-side seatbelt latch fell apart. The seatbelt is no longer operable. *Tr

Tire: firehawk gt bl 205/50r16 87v 50k mile tire. Tread separation with only 13,582 miles on the tire. The vehicle was parked when the tire was observed to be flat. Attempts to inflate failed. Removed tire and noticed two places on the inward side where tread was separating - one spot was just over an inch and the other was just under an inch. Full set (4) originally purchased at firestone complete auto care store, which is where the failed tire was taken the following morning. Tire has since been discontinued...

I was driving on 905 west, close to the 805 n exit, and the road was broken. There was a hole on the road and my car's tire exploted when I drove by it. My car's alignment is lost. I almost had an accident because of it. Unfortunately I didn't have a good spare tire so I had to drive to my house with the exploted tire, and since it happened at 10pm I will have to miss work to fix it, and buy a new tire. *Tr

The car began to shutter and dropped from 50 to 25 in seconds. The check engine light (cil) starting flashing and the car began to stutter like it was going to die, I pulled to the side of the road and the car died. Started car again the cil continued to flash, it only would accelerate to 25 miles an hours even with my foot all the way down on the gas. I took it to the a mechanic and the codes were p0421, 171, 300. The mechanic did everything from engine flush, spark plugs, oil, air filters and installed a new catalytic converter but the problem persists. Its now a year later and the car is doing the exact same thing. *Tr

Seatbelt will not lock in on driver's side and today the handle broke on the inside driver's side to get out of the car! *Tr

I have a 2002 mazda protege. Were the upper passenger side motor mount attaches to the car body, the car body metal is severely rusted and starting to separate on the inside of the engine compartment. I did take the car to a mazda body shop and they quoted me in the area of $1,000.00 To fix the issue. I do not feel it is my responsibility to pay for the fix as this is an area high in the engine compartment not subject to the elements. Basically mazda has some problem with the metal, the anti corrosion treatment...

DRIVERS FRONT SEAT BELT WILL NOT LOCK IN. *LN

2002 Mazda power steering pump failures. Pump has been replaced twice, now on its 3rd unit.. Car, a 2002 mazda protege5 has approx. 102,000 Miles on it. First failure was a complete failure with loss of steering with no warning noticed. 2Nd pump leak was determined by mechanic causing erratic steering problems. First pump (on car when new) failed at 87,000 miles, 2nd occrred some 10,000 miles later. The third pump has only 3k miles and no way of telling how long it will last. Mazda denies all...

2002 Protege heater fan switch malfunctioned and melted plug and switch almost caused a fire but it was smoking when it fried and caused the 4th speed of the fan not to work I had to splice a new plug in to fix the issue and to keep it from catching fire I have pictures if needed. *Ln

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 mazda protg. The contact was entering a parking space when the vehicle abnormally accelerated. The contact engaged the brake but the vehicle continued to accelerate and crashed into a pole. She stated that the pole struck a building and caused minor damage to the building. There were no injuries. A claim was filed with her insurance company. The front bumper of the vehicle was damaged. The vehicle was repaired. The vin was not available. The failure mileage was 58,624 and the approximate current mileage was 64,000. Updated 2/22/11 *cn updated 07/01/11

Myself, the driver, rear-ended another driver at a speed of 35-40mph. The driver slammed on his brakes and I had no time to react. The result is a totaled front end w/ $4000+ of repairs. The seat belt did not restrain me and the airbag did not deploy. The car will be totaled and I suffered extensive bruising because of this failure. *Tr

DRIVERS FRONT SEAT BELT WILL NOT LOCK IN. *TR

On 10/31/09, while moving the '02 mazda protege es from 2nd bay to 1st bay in my shop, at the 1st bay even brake pedal being applied, that car rushed forward to the shop wall ; my shop wall and car crashed. My address is [[redacted]](cell) information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.S.C. 552(B)(6). *Tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2002 mazda protege. While driving 25 mph, the radio stopped working and then smoke came out of the radio. The contact removed the fuse to disengage the radio after smelling the wires burning. The manufacturer has not been notified. The contact is concerned about the risk since serious damage may have occurred. The failure mileage was 110,275.

DRIVE SEAT BELT LATCH BROKE INTO PIECES. *TR