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Transmission, Transmission, Transmission.

I bought this car from a friend with 147,00 miles on it. The automatic transmission stopped working (all I have is 1st and 2nd gear), and it will cost almost as much as I bought the car for to get it repaired. And this for a FORD transmission!!!! I am most distressed. I will be selling my car as is, because it doesn't make sense to spend 2/3 what you bought a car for to fix it. And with what I have seen and heard about the transmissions and the fact that Mazda will not take responsibility for the product, I am not recommending or buying another Mazda product. Is there a '0' rating?

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It compares badly.

Bought this 10 year old car with 45,000 original miles on it (mostly covred and not driven). The car is strong and seems okay. Struts and shocks are still in perfect shape.

Radio back 2 speakers don't work. Drivers side and behind driver side window regulator went out. Medal roof rusted all the way through.

The 626 LX Hatchback seems to be a great little car. Started to have all sorts of problems at 70,000 miles. Alternator, timing belt, radiator went, water sensor, water pump, now jerking when AC is on for any length of time. I suspect it to be the tranny. I guess I should be thankful to have bought it at $2000 with such low mileage but then again I've put more than $4,000 in maintenance over the past three years.

In reading the other aticles, I was not aware that Mazda and Ford worked together on this car. That does it for me, I really liked the car until I read that news. Ford designers suck. I will sell my car this weekend due to this new found partnership I've discovered with Ford and Mazda. This is the only way to show these hammer heads their products suck.

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Nice interior. Roomy. Classy looking. Smooth ride (when not in the shop).

Transmission

Good news: it's an impressive looking car.
Bad news: I've laid out over 4 thousand dollars in repairs from new transmission, alternators, axles, etc.. I feel as if every component in my car has been replaced. I thought I had gotten a lemon. My parents had had problems since they first bought it, but after looking over these reviews I'm beginning to think that there's a pattern here - the transmissions have serious technical flaws.

Funny thing is, I really dig the car when it's on the road and I hate giving her up. I just replaced the alternator and now she's driving great. But my pockets are showing their white lining and she's an expensive date. No more Mazda's for me.

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This was my first car

Immortality. I adopted Bessie when she was 8 years old with 92,000 miles.
Since then, she's been across the country six times with only minimal maintenance (the clutch, a bearing, the starter, and the alternator, each once) up to 208,000 miles. She still has decent acceleration and gas mileage, though with the original engine and 5-speed, I can't outrun Mustangs anymore.

The seats are also incredibly comfortable, with the most headroom I've seen on a car its size. The car packs very well, and is still watertight after several minor accidents.

Most of the car's peripheral functions (radio, rear defog, dome light, temperature gauge, side mirrors) are spotty or long dead, but everything under the hood has been very reliable.

The 626 has been a great car for my entire (high school thru PhD) career, and well-suited for that purpose. It has many small problems, which I've ignored so long that they've become part of the car's personality. But all of the important parts have proven indestuctable (between three accidents, several New England winters, too many weeklong road trips), and I strongly recommend this car (though perhaps a slightly newer model!) for low-budget, extremely reliable transportation.

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None. She hasn't died yet.

Very stylish, Roomy, Fun to drive, pretty powerful for a 4 cylinder engine 2.0 L 128HP

Transmission is a little jerky, maintnance costs are through the roof

Considering I bought this car with 283,000 KM I've only had minor problems. Th problems were just age related, timing belt, brakes, water pump, spark plugs, spark plug cables, head gasket...keep in mind i bought this car with 283,000 KM on the odometer and none of these things were changed earlier. Im still driving with the stock muffler and just now at 292,000 KM its starting to burn through. With the mileage on that car its going great, the tranny is a litte jerky but thats understandable especailly for the mileage. Im 17 and ive been driving this for about 6 months and i am pretty impressed. We bought this car for $3000 Canadian and we put in about $1500 Canadian for repairs so far. My next car isnt gonna be a mazda 626 but for starters its a pretty good car.

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my dads '92 Buick Skylark - a beast on the road, very powerful off the line
my moms '92 Mazda MX-3 - sporty looks, sporty tranny, WEAK!!!

Great handeling, cute, nice sound system, comfortable seats, good gas, a lot of fun to drive.

TRANSMISSION... Shifts hard between 1st and 2nd, even after having the transmission built. The mechanic said it is a hard shifter... He decided to reroute something from the turbo and not a month after I had the transmission replaced, it doesn't run, due to engine problems... Had I seen this site before I bought the car, I would have saved myself the hassel and headache, not to mention A LOT of money... To anyone who is looking for a car. My suggestion is to stay as far away from the Mazda as you possibly can.

The car is fun, espicially in the mountians, so if you have a lot of money to blow on a car that is cute, but not in the porschesque range, then the Mazda is a great car. I enjoyed it sooo much when it was running right. I had several cars before the 626, and I took care of this one because it was a turbo, and because I enjoyed driving it so much. However, after putting over $3000 dollars into it in the last 3 mos, I have had about enough of it and as soon as I get it running, I plan on selling it to the person willing to pay the most for it. If you like taking risks then this car is for you... However, if you are a college student trying to make rent payments, I would go for something a little cheaper and more reliable.

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Very dependable..This car doesnt die. It is my first car, and i love it. It is roomy, especially in the trunk. I am into stereo applications, and this car takes a beating with stereo's. It is also practicle for stereo upgrades. The trunk takes my 4 12' woofs and over 10 cubes of box with it. Great gas mileage.

The tranny. Oh god it is rough. I replaced it last year and it is smoother now, but jees it is rough from 1st to 2nd. No guts. Maybe it is because my engine is old, but it is very weak. My compression is in the requirements but it is just weak. All the rest is good.

Well, this car is just the best thing I could recommend. Other than a rough tranny, this thing is a great first car. It has gotten me through 2 years now of going to work and just rollin down the streets. It doesn't die, the engine will run forever. Other than a few replacements..struts, brakes, tranny(opted to do it), spark pugs, wires, distributor cap & rotor, this thing is virtually maintanaince free. I would recommend this little car to anyone.

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The transmission jerks when accelerating badly.

I would never reccommend anyone to purchase a 1999 626. It is by far the worst vehicle I've ever owned. I've taken my car to the shop 4 times for the same problem and still no resolution. Mazda needs to do a better job of car production.

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Did not compare to any other vehicles

Nice size, good high powered engine for a mid-size. Seats are comfortable and interior is roomy. Stereo system had good sound (see CD player in weaknesses).

CD player is really screwed up. Plays CD-R's reluctantly, and sometimes not at all. Sometimes it doesn't even play store-bought CD's either. Front and rear bumpers are worthless, and need replacing with any fender bender.
A/C and heater take a few minutes to reallly get going, which isn't wonderful in this HOT climate.

I have had two front-enders, and it keeps running as smooth as the day I bought it. The car held up very well, except the bumper shells, which are worthless and needed replacing. Big plus was the strangth of the chassis and how unaffected the engine and other hood components were. It seems to be very safe, however, on both front-end collisions, the air-bags failed to deploy. It raises a concern.
The trunk is huge, as well as the back seat, great for hauling all my things to and from school. Spoiler makes the car more sporty looking, good for a younger owner.
One glaring absence is the lack of Anti-Lock Braking System in my version. My car spun out on a lose gravel mountain road, and could very well have killed us had we not run into the mountain side. I had no braking control, and the skid and 360+ spin we did was frieghtening as can be. IF YOU BUY THIS CAR...GET ABS!
The steering is good, although wheels do squeak a little if you take a corner too fast. This can be alleviated by upgrading to better wheels (or by going slower).
The interior of the car can get very HOT during the summer months. It might be a good idea to invest in tinting on the windows, or buy it with factory installation.

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Nice looking, fairly large interior, large trunk, affordable mid-size sedan, decent gas mileage. Comfortable. High ground clearance and good handling.

Transmission is rough as I thought it would be. I have an automatic, and it is a bit sluggish in first 2 gears. The engine is quite noisy and also a bit sluggish. The cabin lets in a lot of outside noise (mostly engine) and some vibration; I can hear air coming into the cabin, from where, I cannot find out. The styling of the car (low nose, high tail) makes it extremely difficult to see anything out the rearview mirror or when looking over shoulder.

It is a good car for the price. If I still think so in a few years, will be the test. I got it with 16k miles I think. The engine/trans are the biggest drawback, so get a V6 if it is in your price range and you want some ummph. I however couldn't afford the V6, so 4cyl is what I have. It is still my favorite sedan styling wise (excluding luxury models), and I am happy with it.

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1991 Chevy Cavalier Wagon. I wish I could have driven the 626 over and over my beloved wagon.