IllustrationCALIPER AND ROTOR FAILED WITH LESS THAN 30,000 MILES, DEALER SAID IT IS TYPICAL AND SAID THE PARTS USED ARE POOR. OTHER VEHICLES I OWNED EXERIENCED THIS TYPE OF FAILURE MUCH LATER IN VEHICLE LIFE (75,000 MI +). *AK
1998 Mazda Protege
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Mazda Protege do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 66.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Protege 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: 8 of 46 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.
- Power Train. Review the 15 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 10 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 5 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
8 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports
Service Brakes, Hydraulic complaints
5 reportsAFTER MANY TRIPS TO THE DEALERSHIP AND ONCE TO A LOCAL BRAKE SHOP, I CONTINUE TO HAVE A PROBLEM WITH EXTREMELY SOFT BRAKES. THIS IS MOST PROBLEMATIC WHEN IT RAINS. I'VE HAD THE DEALERSHIP "TIGHTEN" THEM AND REPLACE PADS THREE TIMES, BUT WITHIN A COUPLE OF
THIS PROBLEM DIDN'T RESULT IN ANY TYPE OF ACCIDENT OR PROPERTY DAMAGE. THE PROBLEM I AM HAVE IS THAT MY CAR IS MAKING A VERY BAD KNOCKING NOISE EVERYTIME I APPLY THE BRAKES BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT FRONT SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. I TOOK THE VEHICLE BY TO DENNIS EAKIN MAZDA ABOUT TWO WEEK AFTER I PURCHASE IT. THEY INFORMED ME IT WERE THE…
Read full complaint
THIS PROBLEM DIDN'T RESULT IN ANY TYPE OF ACCIDENT OR PROPERTY DAMAGE. THE PROBLEM I AM HAVE IS THAT MY CAR IS MAKING A VERY BAD KNOCKING NOISE EVERYTIME I APPLY THE BRAKES BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT FRONT SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. I TOOK THE VEHICLE BY TO DENNIS EAKIN MAZDA ABOUT TWO WEEK AFTER I PURCHASE IT. THEY INFORMED ME IT WERE THE BRAKE CALIPERS SLIDES. THEY HAD TO ORDER THE SLIDES. THE SLIDES CAN IN AND WERE REPLACED. THE NOISE STOPPED FOR ABOUT TWO OR THREE WEEKS AND STARTED BACK. I RETURNED THE VEHICLE AGAIN TO DENNIS EAKIN AND THIS TIME THEY INSTALLED A NEW AND IMPROVED CALIPERS SLIDES. THE NOISE STOPPED FOR ABOUT 5 WEEKS AND IS NOW MAKING THE SAME KNOCKING, KNOCKING NOISES EVERYTIME I APPLY THE BRAKES. THIS NOISE WORRY ME BECAUSE IT DEALING WITH THE BRAKES OF THE CAR AND AS YOU KNOW THE BRAKES ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE VEHICLE BECAUSE IT COULD CAUSE ME TO HAVE AN ACCIDENT, POSSIBLE KILLING MYSELF, OR SOMEONE ELSE. THEREFORE, I AM REQUESTING YOU INVESTIGATE THIS SITUATIION WITH THE BRAKE CALIPERS SLIDES ON THE MADZA PROTEGE, BECAUSE I WAS TOLD BY THE SERVICE PERSON THAT THIS VEHICLE IS GOING TO MAKE SOME NOISE S AND THAT THEY WOULDN'T REPLACED THE CALIPERS. THIS COULD TURN OUT TO BE A SERIOUS PROBLEMS, AGAIN I REMIND YOU THAT WE ALL TALKING ABOUT THE BRAKES ON THIS TYPE OF VEHICLE. PLEASE HELP ME IF POSSIBLE ON THIS DANGEROUS MATTER. I AM CONTACTING THE DEALERSHIP AGAIN CONCERNING THIS PROBLEM, BUT I THINK THEY JUST WANT TO SAVE SOME MONEY AND NOT HAVE TOREPLACE THE CALIPERS ON THIS VEHICLE. THIS SAVING COULD COST ME, MY FAMILY OR SOMEONE ELSE THEIR LIFE. HELP, HELP. *AK
MASTER CYLINDER MALFUNCTIONED, CAUSING NO BRAKING PERFORMANCE, AND RESULTING IN A CRASH. PREVIOUSLY, THE BRAKE PADS BEEN CHANGED. DEALER DETERMINED THAT MASTER CYLINDER WAS DEFECTIVE. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *AK
BRAKE PADS FAILED. *YC
Official recalls
115V674000 · Electrical System:ignition:switch
Oct 19, 2015
Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 1989-1998 MPV, 1990-1995 323, 1990-1998 Protege, 1992-1993 MX-3, 1993-1995 929, 1993-1997 MX-6, and 1993-1998 626 vehicles. In the affected vehicles, grease applied to the contact points inside the ignition switch may become conductive and overheat.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the ignition switch overheats there would be an increased risk of a fire.
Remedy: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ignition switch, free of charge. The recall began on December 17, 2015. Owners may contact Mazda Customer Experience Center at 1-800-222-5500, option#6. Mazda's number for this recall is 8715J.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.