2018 Mazda MAZDA6

No clear pattern

0% of complaints about the 2018 Mazda MAZDA6 arrived in its first year of service. That is an unusual figure for a 2018 vehicle, but with only 82 complaints on record the sample is too small to call it a pattern — the margin of error covers the range where ordinary vehicles sit. The figures below are reported without a verdict. The most-reported system is engine (32 complaints), typically at 6.5 yr or about 7,200 miles.

Complaints: 82
Median age at failure: 6.3 yr
Median mileage: 11,000 n=22
Crash / fire / tow: 6.1% of reports
Safety recalls: 2

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

21V875000 2021-11-12

Fuel system, gasoline:delivery:fuel pump

Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2018 Mazda3, Mazda6, 2019 CX-3, 2018-2019 MX-5, CX-5, CX-9, and 2019-2020 Mazda2 vehicles. The impeller inside the low-pressure fuel pump may crack and deform, potentially causing the fuel pump to fail.

Fuel pump failure may cause an engine stall, increasing the risk of a crash.

19V497000 2019-06-27

Engine

Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2018-2019 CX-5, Mazda6, and 2019 Mazda3 vehicles. A software error in the powertrain control module (PCM) may cause the engine to stall.

An unexpected stall increases the risk of a crash.

In owners’ own words

Engine 3,200 mi 1.7 yr in service

I MADE A STOP AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT AND THE GREEN LIGHT CHANGE I PRESSED THE GAS AND THE MAZDA6 STALLED AND THEN DRAGGED TO TAKE OFF WHICH ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT.

Engine 7,200 mi 1.9 yr in service

VEHIXLE HAS OPEN RECALL #3719F. TOOK VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE ON JULY 15 AND ACCORDING TO NHTSA RECALL HAS EVEN OUT SINCE JUNE 27.2019. TO THIS DAY I HAVE NOT GOTTEN ANY LETTER OR ANYTHING STATING CAR HAS OPEN RECALL WHEN THE CAR CAN TURN OF RANDOMLY. WILL BE TAKING CAR IN ON 08/26/19 BUT I'M CONCERNED AS TO WHY THIS HAS NOT BEEN ADDRESSED IN ANY LETTERS OR EMAILS

Engine mileage not reported 5.6 yr in service

Mazda is producing and installing bad belt tensioner sand bad belts for new cars belt tensioner only lasts about 27,500 miles and belt only lasts 11 month/14,000 miles belt tensioner is a major safety issue

Other MAZDA6 model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2018 Mazda MAZDA6

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

In owners’ own words

Other MAZDA6 model years

How to read this