2008 Mazda Mazda3 Powertrain (other) Problems

Transmission control module.

NHTSA ID

11554582

Incident

Nov 10, 2023

AT AND YELLOW CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND CAR WAS IN LIMP MODE FIRST THING IN MORNING AFTER HAVING NO ISSUES WITH MY MAZDA PREVIOUSLY. CODES CAME BACK WITH SOLENOIDS A, B, C, D, E ALL HAVE ELECTRICAL FAILURE, AND ISSUES WITH THE OXYGEN SENSOR. MY CAR HAS HAD REGULAR MAINTENANCE DONE ON IT. NO SIGNS OR SYMPTOMS OF TRANSMISSION FAILURE BEFOREHAND. HAPPENED INSTANTLY OVERNIGHT. TCM IS NOT IN STOCK ANYWHERE AND I SUSPECT THAT IS THE CULPRIT DUE TO OTHER MAZDA OWNERS SIMILAR SITUATIONS. 95K MILES.

NHTSA ID

11339240

Incident

Jul 13, 2020

Mileage

95,700 mi

THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY JERKS, PULLS, STOPS AFTER ABOUT 10 MINUTES RUNNING TIME. TOLD BY MECHANIC THAT IT IS THE TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE. HE SAID THIS MODEL IS NOTORIOUS FOR HAVING THEM FAIL. THEY ARE ON BACK ORDER WITH MAZDA WITH NO LEAD TIME, WHICH ALSO SAYS SOMETHING. THE VEHICLE IS VERY DANGEROUS TO DRIVE. MECHANIC SAID THE ORIGINAL DESIGN HAS BAD PLACEMENT WHICH CAUSES THEM TO HEAT UP AND FAIL.

NHTSA ID

11308959

Incident

Feb 10, 2020

Mileage

135,000 mi

THIS VEHICLE HAS HAD 3 REPEATED MAJOR SERVICE REPAIR ATTEMPTS RELATED TO THE TCM, PCM AT LIGHT, CHECK ENGINE/TRANSMISSION LIGHT TRYING TO RESOLVE THIS ISSUE PERMANENTLY. THIS VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AND STATIONARY ON A CITY STREET WHEN EXPERIENCING ALL OF THESE PROBLEMS. THIS VEHICLE HAS ONLY APPROXIMATELY 68,000 MILES. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED BY MAZDA OR BUY BACK THIS VEHICLE. NO ONE SHOULD HAVE TO BE FACED WITH THESE KINDS OF CONCERNS. THESE SYSTEMIC ISSUES HAS NOT BEEN FAVORABLE IN MY VIEW AND WILL HAVING A MAJOR DETERMING EFFECT IN FUTURE CAR PURCHASE. BRAND LOYALTY. [BLAH, BLAH, BLAH...] 4-3-2019 AT 9:27AM

NHTSA ID

11193534

Incident

Mar 7, 2019

Mileage

66,400 mi

SINCE THE COURSE OF ABOUT A YEAR, I HAVE EXPERIENCED TRAUMATIC MOMENTS WHILE DRIVING MY VEHICLE PERTAINING TO IT'S ELECTRICAL/TRANSMISSION FUNCTIONALITY. WHEN DRIVING THE VEHICLE AT NORMAL SPEEDS (EX. 50MPH) THE MAZDA WOULD BUCKLE, REV ABNORMALLY, ALL WHILE MY GEAR INDICATOR WOULD FLICKER. THIS WOULD HAPPEN AFTER ABOUT 10 MINUTES OF DRIVING AND CONTINUE ON FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE DRIVE ABOUT EVERY 20 MINUTE INTERVAL. THIS IS QUITE UNSAFE, AND THE REPAIRS THAT MULTIPLE MECHANICS INCLUDING MAZDA THEMSELVES SUGGESTED TO REPAIR THE ISSUE DID NOT ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING UNFORTUNATELY. REPAIRMEN FLUSHED AND REPLACED THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID, REPLACED MY OUTPUT SPEED SENSOR, CHANGED OUT MY SHIFT SOLENOIDS, GEAR SHIFTER, AND EVEN REPLACED MY ENTIRE PCM. I HAVE NOT ONLY TAKEN PICTURES AND VIDEOS OF THESE HORRID INCIDENCES, BUT THERE SEEMS TO BE OTHER INSTANCES OF PEOPLE HAVING THIS IDENTICAL ISSUE WITH THEIR MAZDA'S AS WELL. IF THERE IS A WAY TO SHOW MY VIDEO EXAMPLES FOR STUDY, THEN I WILL GLADLY SEND THEM.

NHTSA ID

11156027

Incident

Nov 2, 2017

Mileage

137,750 mi

THE CAR WE PURCHASED FOR MY 20 YEAR OLD SON IN JANUARY 2016 HAS HAD SEVERAL REPEATED TRANSMISSION ISSUES AND A DEFECTIVE SUN ROOF. AFTER THREE WEEKS OF OWNERSHIP, THE CAR'S AT CODE APPEARED AND THE CAR BROKE DOWN ON TWO OCCASIONS AND WAS TOWED TO RUSS TRANSMISSION IN TOUGHKENNAMON, PA. AS A RESULT AND TO OUR SHOCK AND DISMAY, IN FEBRUARY, THE CAR HAD A $2800 REBUILT TRANSMISSION INSTALLED. CONVERSELY, AFTER SIX RETURN VISITS TO THE TRANSMISSION MECHANIC, HE HAS REPLACED THE CELLENOIDS, THE COMPUTER AND ASSOCIATED WIRES. HOWEVER, THE CAR CONTINUES TO CODE "AT" WITHIN 3 DAYS OF EACH OF THE 6 RETURN VISITS TO THE MECHANIC.! LIKE THE TRANSMISSION MECHANIC AND MY 21 YEAR OLD SON, WE ARE BOTH FRUSTRATED AND ANGRY WITH MAZDA AND THE VEHICLE! PLEASE PROVIDE A SOLUTION OR ASSIST US WITH THIS FORMAL COMPLAINT AGAINST MAZDA. I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM YOU. THANK YOU [XXX] [XXX] *DL INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).*JB

NHTSA ID

10949649

Incident

Feb 3, 2017

THE CAR WILL NOT GO ABOVE THIRD GEAR AND SHAKES VIOLENTLY WHILE ON HIGHWAY AND SECONDARY ROADS.

NHTSA ID

10836803

Incident

Feb 10, 2016

Mileage

95,000 mi

CAR WAS VIBRATING A LOT WHEN IN GEAR AND HOLDING BRAKES REPLACED MOTOR MOUNTS AND THROTTLE BODY TO FIX ISSUE. ALSO WHEN SLOWING DOWN AND SPEEDING BACK UP THE TRANSMISSION GRINDS WHEN DOWN SHIFTING. FEELS LIKE IT IS SLIPPING AND IS NOT SAFE IF YOU ARE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY OR IN THE CITY AND WANT TO SWITCH LANES AND SPEED UP I'M AFRAID ONE DAY I'M GOING TO SWITCH LANES HIT THE GAS AND THE TRANSMISSION WILL FAIL. THE CARMAX I GOT THE CAR FROM INSISTS IT IS JUST A TRANSMISSION "SHUTTER" AND IT HAPPENS WITH CERTAIN CARS. I WILL BE GETTING A SECOND OPINION FROM AN ASE CERTIFIED TRANSMISSION SHOP. DEALERSHIP MADE ME THINK IT WAS BRAKE PADS AT FIRST I PAID $300 TO HAVE PERFECTLY GOOD PADS REPLACED WITH NEW ONES TO HAVE THE PROBLEM NOT FIXED. I AM EXTREMELY IRRITATED WITH DEALERSHIP TRYING TO GET AROUND FIXING THE CAR. OTHER THAN THOSE 2 PROBLEMS THE CAR IS GREAT.

NHTSA ID

10825734

Incident

Jan 31, 2016

Mileage

85,000 mi

ON 04/01/2015 WHILE DRIVING IN THE CITY AT ABOUT 25 MPH THE TRANSMISSION WENT FROM 4 TO 1, AND THE CAR JERKED REALLY HARD. AT LIGHT AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. AFTER PULLING OVER AND TURNING THE CAR OFF AND WAITING A COUPLE OF MINUTES, AT LIGHT WENT AWAY, CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS STILL ON. THE SAME HAPPENED IN TWO DAYS, THEN IN 5 DAYS WHILE DRIVING ON A FREEWAY WITH SPEED 65 MPH - THE CAR JERKED AND BUCKED AT FULL SPEED, AT LIGHT AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON, TRANSMISSION WENT FROM 5 TO 1 TO 3, TACHOMETER WENT FROM 2500 RPM TO OVER 4000 RPM - THANKFULLY I DID NOT HIT ANYONE AND I WASN'T HIT BY OTHER CARS WHEN THAT HAPPENED (I WAS VERY SCARED!). I GOT THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, AND AFTER TWO DAYS OF DIAGNOSTICS THE ANSWER - TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE (TCM) IS BAD. I DID RESEARCH ONLINE - VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH CARS OF THIS MAKE, MODEL AND YEAR. DEALER CAN NOT FIX IT BECAUSE TCM IS ON NATIONWIDE BACK ORDER! I HAVE NO CAR FOR A WEEK NOW AND IT COULD BE A MONTH WHEN THE PART WILL BE AVAILABLE. THIS KIND OF PROBLEM WORTH OF A RECALL DUE TO THE SAFETY CONCERNS AND THE COST OF THE REPLACEMENT - OVER $1000 INCLUDING DIAGNOSTICS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10705654

Incident

Apr 1, 2015

Mileage

82,360 mi

I PARKED MY CAR ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS WHERE THE TRANSMISSION FAILED TO ENGAGE IN PARK. IT REQUIRED MULTIPLE TRIES TO GET THE PARK INDICATOR LIGHT ON THE DASH TO REFLECT THAT THE CAR WAS SAFELY ENGAGED IN PARK. BEFORE I REALIZED WHAT WAS HAPPENING WITH THE TRANSMISSION. ON AT LEAST 3 OCCASIONS I WAS UNABLE TO START MY CAR AT ALL WHEN I RETURNED FROM A BRIEF STOP. THE PROBLEM WITH FAILING TO START HAPPENED WHEN THE CAR WAS ON A SLIGHT INCLINE AND I HAD ENGAGED THE PARKING BRAKE. AFTER JIGGLING THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION LEVER REPEATEDLY, MOVING THE STEERING WHEEL AND APPLYING THE BRAKE VIGOROUSLY, I WAS EVENTUALLY ABLE TO GET THE CAR TO START. I'M NOT SURE WHETHER IT WAS ROCKING OF THE VEHICLE FROM FRUSTRATION OR JIGGLING THE GEAR SELECTOR THAT FINALLY WORKED. THE CAR HAS A NEW BATTERY AND HAS HAD ALL SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE PERFORMED BY MY LOCAL MAZDA DEALER. WHEN THIS HAPPENS, OTHER ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT FUNCTIONS BUT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO RESPONSE FROM THE IGNITION SYSTEM. *TR

NHTSA ID

10561524

Incident

Nov 1, 2013

Mileage

55,000 mi

I WAS DRIVING AT NORMAL SPEED WHEN WITH NO WARNING, THE CAR JERKS SUDDENLY. I WAS EXTREMELY STARTLED AS IT FELT LIKE I HAD BROKEN AN AXLE OR RAN OVER SOMETHING BIG IN THE ROAD. FOR UNAWARE DRIVERS IT CAN CAUSE AN ACCIDENT IF THEY SWERVE IN REACTION. IT HAPPENED ABOUT 5 MORE TIMES IN A 1 HR DRIVE AND JUST KEPT ON HAPPENING WHENEVER I DROVE IT FOR THE NEXT 2 DAYS AT HIGHER SPEEDS OR LOWER SPEEDS, I THEN NOTICED THAT MY DISPLAY SHOWED THE GEAR TO DROP FROM 5TH SUDDENLY INTO 3RD OR 4TH TO 3RD. IF THIS IS HAPPENING TO A LOT OF MAZDA 3S, THE MANUFACTURER SHOULD DO A RECALL AS IT IS NOT SAFE ESPECIALLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10505362

Incident

Mar 29, 2013

Mileage

85,234 mi

TL- THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 MAZDA MAZDA3. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH THE VEHICLE SHIFTED INTO THIRD DEGREE INDEPENDENTLY FROM THE FIFTH GEAR. THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, NOT TRACTION, AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS ALL ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS STOPPED AND ONCE IT WAS RESTARTED THE VEHICLE OPERATED AS DESIGNED. THE FAILURE RECURRED NUMEROUS TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THE TRANSMISSION FLUID NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO THE MECHANIC WHO THEN INFORMED HIM THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NEED TO BE REBUILT. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE 87,000. DT

NHTSA ID

10503426

Incident

Mar 1, 2013

Mileage

87,000 mi

PREMATURE CLUTCH PROBLEMS AT 31K MILES. MY CLUTCH CHATTERS AND ENGAGES POORLY DUE TO A POORLY MADE CLUTCH, WHICH MAZDA WILL NOT REPLACE UNDER WARRANTY, EVEN THOUGH THE VEHICLE IS WITHIN THE WARRANTY PERIOD.

NHTSA ID

10368990

Incident

Oct 1, 2010

Mileage

31,000 mi