← New search

2022 Mazda MAZDA3

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Fewer warning signs than most model years

Owner complaints for the 2022 Mazda MAZDA3 are lower than the model-year median of 108.

About this comparison →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
Compare all MAZDA3 years →

Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 1 of 24 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Air Bags. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 5 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 2 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

1 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports

Air Bags complaints

12 reports
Clear category filter
Mileage unknown · Jul 22, 2025
Air Bags

I recently received a warning on the dashboard that there is an airbag malfunction and needs to be taken in to get serviced. The warning continues to appear. This appears similar to a recent recall of 2024-2025 Mazda 3s and CX-30s, but there does not appear to be a recall issued for 2022 Mazda 3 models. I have scheduled an app…

Read full complaint

I recently received a warning on the dashboard that there is an airbag malfunction and needs to be taken in to get serviced. The warning continues to appear. This appears similar to a recent recall of 2024-2025 Mazda 3s and CX-30s, but there does not appear to be a recall issued for 2022 Mazda 3 models. I have scheduled an appointment for July 24, 2025 at the Mazda dealership to get my vehicle inspected, but because there is no active recall, Mazda states that I may have to pay for the diagnosis and any repairs. I disagree that I am required to pay for any diagnosis/inspections/repairs.

NHTSA ODI #11675382

Mileage unknown · Dec 27, 2024
Air Bags

The passenger-side "airbag off" light does not go off, even with an adult in the passenger seat. This is a US car without an ability to disable the airbag, so this should never happen. We assume this means that the airbag will not inflate in an accident. It happens on about 60% of drives with a passenger, and the dealer was unab…

Read full complaint

The passenger-side "airbag off" light does not go off, even with an adult in the passenger seat. This is a US car without an ability to disable the airbag, so this should never happen. We assume this means that the airbag will not inflate in an accident. It happens on about 60% of drives with a passenger, and the dealer was unable to reproduce.

NHTSA ODI #11632713

Mileage unknown · Nov 30, 2023
Air Bags

For a few weeks in November 2023, I had my dash alarm/notify me when I would turn on my car and it would state "Airbag System Malfunction" then disappear. Potential risk with this issue is that the airbag may deploy randomly or not deploy at all if collision happens. This is extremely scary as I have a child and I commute daily …

Read full complaint

For a few weeks in November 2023, I had my dash alarm/notify me when I would turn on my car and it would state "Airbag System Malfunction" then disappear. Potential risk with this issue is that the airbag may deploy randomly or not deploy at all if collision happens. This is extremely scary as I have a child and I commute daily for work. I have turned my car into the dealer since 11/29/23 and currently have a loaner. No update so far from the dealer.

NHTSA ODI #11557754

Mileage unknown · Jan 6, 2023
Air BagsSeat BeltsCrashInjury

I was rear ended while at complete stop by someone going over 40mph on 12/19/22. My airbags did not deploy and my seat belts did not lock out. Directly after being hit my phone flashed a safety fracture malfunction on the dash board and then sent the notification to the mazda app on my phone.

NHTSA ODI #11500455

Mileage unknown · Nov 10, 2022
Air BagsSeat Belts

On 8/11/2022, my car indicated a message on my dashboard that said “Air Bag System Malfunction. Have the Vehicle Inspected.” I also received a Safety & Security message in my Inbox on my app that stated “Air bag system and seat belt pre-tensioner system malfunction. Vehicle airbags and seat belt pre-tensioner may not operate cor…

Read full complaint

On 8/11/2022, my car indicated a message on my dashboard that said “Air Bag System Malfunction. Have the Vehicle Inspected.” I also received a Safety & Security message in my Inbox on my app that stated “Air bag system and seat belt pre-tensioner system malfunction. Vehicle airbags and seat belt pre-tensioner may not operate correctly in an emergency. Have the vehicle inspected by your dealer.” This message was received multiple times. I called the dealer and they weren’t sure what it meant so I took it to them on October 6, I dropped off my car at the dealer. They called me a few hours later and told me that my car was not safe to drive because the airbag and seat belts weren’t working. Fortunately they had a rental for me, however, today is 11/10/2022 and I still don’t have my car back. They stated that it may take up to 6 weeks to get the parts in. And this dealer has never seen anything like this before.

NHTSA ODI #11493145

Mileage unknown · Nov 7, 2022
Air BagsElectrical System

The same or similar issue is described here: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10209787-0001.pdf Essentially, this issue has to do with the wiring under the seat that is responsible for airbag functioning. Adjusting the seat caused "Airbag Malfunctioning" alarm/notification to go off on a numerous occasions. Potential r…

Read full complaint

The same or similar issue is described here: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2022/MC-10209787-0001.pdf Essentially, this issue has to do with the wiring under the seat that is responsible for airbag functioning. Adjusting the seat caused "Airbag Malfunctioning" alarm/notification to go off on a numerous occasions. Potential risk with this issue is that the airbag may deploy randomly or not deploy at all if collision happens. The vehicle has been inspected by vehicle who is working on the repair. However, the vehicle has been waiting for spare parts for 3 weeks now.

NHTSA ODI #11492585

Mileage unknown · Jul 14, 2022
Air Bags

I purchased my car on February 5, 2022. After two months and 3000 miles later, I started receiving a notification that reads “Airbag Malfunction. Have the vehicle inspected.” I took the car to the dealer, and after 6 hours, they determined that the airbag was not receiving enough power, which triggered the warning. They replaced…

Read full complaint

I purchased my car on February 5, 2022. After two months and 3000 miles later, I started receiving a notification that reads “Airbag Malfunction. Have the vehicle inspected.” I took the car to the dealer, and after 6 hours, they determined that the airbag was not receiving enough power, which triggered the warning. They replaced the part, and now two months later, I have received the same notification. This problem is persistent, and I have seen in forums that many are having to deal with this issue. Mazda needs to recall the cars to replace the parts with ones that will not cause this type of inconvenience. After all, airbags are a huge part of safety.

NHTSA ODI #11474009

Mileage unknown · Jun 29, 2022
Air Bags

"Air bag system malfunction" Mazda3 Hatchback Preferred Package 2022. Current Miles: 3911 Owned for 6months. Received w/5 miles, I believe.

NHTSA ODI #11471664

Mileage unknown · Jun 21, 2022
Air BagsSeats

When adjusting the driver seat, the vehicle began to display "Air Bag System Malfunction. Have the vehicle inspected." This was with roughly 20 total miles on the odometer. It is a new car - Mazda3 Turbo Sedan 2022. After researching online, this is a very common problem with new Mazda3s and there are many customers with the exa…

Read full complaint

When adjusting the driver seat, the vehicle began to display "Air Bag System Malfunction. Have the vehicle inspected." This was with roughly 20 total miles on the odometer. It is a new car - Mazda3 Turbo Sedan 2022. After researching online, this is a very common problem with new Mazda3s and there are many customers with the exact same issue. The customers have also made complaints to the NHTSA. Mazda has a technical service bulletin for this problem (Bulletin no:08-001/22) and states the issue is due to "Driver-side air bag module circuit: open circuit or resistance high". This issue also occurs on the passenger-side air bag. It is a possibility that I could have been in an accident and the side airbag would not function. Or even perhaps the air bag may have had an electrical error and engaged itself while I could have been driving. My local dealership has verified the issue, however, they still have not been able to correct the issue after 8 weeks. So I have had to use a loaner for 7 weeks now. In summary, I'm filing a complaint because 1)This issue is so common 2)It pertains to something crucially important to safety 3)This is occurring almost immediately after purchase 4)Mazda does not seem to be able to readily and quickly fix the issue.

NHTSA ODI #11470333

Mileage unknown · Jun 10, 2022
Air Bags

Hello, I bought my 2022 Mazda 3 Sedan in February of 2022. I’ve had my car for a total of 5 months. From the very first month I bought my car I’ve had problems with the “Air Bag / Seat belt pre tensioner.” I have seen this issue appear on my dashboard as well as my Mazda app to give me warnings numerous times I can’t keep trac…

Read full complaint

Hello, I bought my 2022 Mazda 3 Sedan in February of 2022. I’ve had my car for a total of 5 months. From the very first month I bought my car I’ve had problems with the “Air Bag / Seat belt pre tensioner.” I have seen this issue appear on my dashboard as well as my Mazda app to give me warnings numerous times I can’t keep track. I have taken my vehicle to my Mazda dealership a total of 7 times for this same issue “Air bag/seatbelt pre tensioner” and yet to have my car fixed. Every time I take my car into the dealership service they claim the issue has been fixed and it has not been till this day. I decided to do my own research on my vehicle and seen so many complaints throughout the internet regarding the same issue on my model 3 sedan. These issues have been happening from previous models of the company vehicles. The service department and corporate are well aware of my issue and say I’m not the first customer with this type of complaint. This issue on the Mazda 3 sedan needs to be investigated as this is a huge safety issue for customers. We shouldn’t have to pay the price as the buyer. Thank you

NHTSA ODI #11468648

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.