The 1997 Mazda 626 has 4 recalls, the most serious being an airbag that can deploy unexpectedly during minor impacts to the undercarriage, and an ignition switch that can overheat and start a fire.
The airbag issue involves the sensor unit misreading small undercarriage hits as a crash event, firing the airbag without warning and raising the risk of injury to the driver or passenger. On the ignition side, grease inside the switch can become conductive over time, causing the switch to overheat and potentially ignite surrounding materials. Both of these carry meaningful consequences for anyone driving the vehicle regularly.
The remaining two recalls both describe the same engine timing belt tensioner problem and should be counted as a single underlying issue. A spring on the outside of the timing belt tensioner can break and get pulled into the timing belt itself, causing the belt to jam or skip. When that happens, the engine can stall without warning, leaving the driver without power at an unpredictable moment.
At a glance
What can fail
Grease at the ignition switch contact points may become conductive and overheat in certain 1989–1998 Mazda vehicles.
What the fix does
Dealers will replace the ignition switch at no charge.
Summarized — see the official notice for exact wording, dates, and contacts.
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At a glance
What can fail
The side airbag sensor can trigger airbag deployment during minor undercarriage impacts that shouldn't deploy the airbags.
What the fix does
Dealers will reprogram the sensor to prevent unnecessary airbag deployment from low-speed undercarriage impacts.
Summarized — see the official notice for exact wording, dates, and contacts.
At a glance
What can fail
A spring inside the timing belt tensioner may break and get caught in the timing belt, causing the engine to stall.
What the fix does
The dealer will inspect your vehicle and replace the tensioner if needed.
Summarized — see the official notice for exact wording, dates, and contacts.
At a glance
What can fail
The external spring in the timing belt tensioner can break and become wedged in the timing belt.
What the fix does
Dealers will inspect the tensioner and replace it if needed.
Summarized — see the official notice for exact wording, dates, and contacts.
