The 1996 Mazda Mpv has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 1,368,500 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 21 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the air bags. Last updated July 5, 2026.
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…
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.
Complaints by component
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
3
2crashes3injuries
EQUIPMENT:APPLIANCE:AIR CONDITIONER
2
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
2
TIRES
2
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM:RADIATOR ASSEMBLY
1
1injuries
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM
1
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:LEVER AND LINKAGE:COLUMN SHIFT
1
POWER TRAIN:DRIVELINE:DRIVESHAFT
1
SUSPENSION:FRONT
1
SUSPENSION:FRONT:MACPHERSON STRUT
1
Total complaints21
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“On june 29,2005 my 5 month old son and I were traveling in our 96' mazda mpv north on 291 highway (I was meeting my husband) when my car began to shake. We were traveling approx. 65 mph. As I was getting ready to get over the van jerked hard to the right causing us to veer through both lanes of…”
“Owner of 1996 mazda mpv, while traveling to ammusement park requiring long lines for parking vehicle got hot. When motor was turned off radiator pressure increased, this pressure while being released safely to the overflow bottle through the connecting hose the overflow bottle was unable to…”
“While traveling 40mph in 4 wheel drive unit locked up. Dirver and 5 passengers were present. Vehicle started to skid and came to a stop. Driver attempted several times to unlock unit, and succeeded in putting vehicle back into 2 wheel drive. No accident or injuries occurred. *ak”
“Incident occurred on the evening of sat. October 14th, 2000 wherein my girlfriend (who is 9 months pregnant) and myself were traveling northbound on I-93 in boston, ma. I heard a loud crash-type sound and my vehicle began to swerve uncontrollably to the right. My vehicle then produced a loud thud…”
“Rust caused complete replacement of exhaust sytem after 22,400 miles (3 years). Both dealership where purchased and cole muffler (specialist) state that muffler and exhaust pipes should not rust or deteriorate in this time frame. After muffler separated from exhaust pipe, it remained attached to…”
“No deployment of neither passenger nor driver's airbag resulted in ijury when vehicle collided with another. Nlm”
“At low speeds drivetrain binds up. Makes popping noises. Vibrations occurs in accelerator. Dealer found no problem with drive train.*ak”
“At low speeds drivetrain binds up. Makes popping noises. Vibrations occurs in accelerator. Dealer found no problem with drive train.*ak”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1996 Mazda Mpv as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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