02 Mazda Protege Dx Sedan See Description No Reserve on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Mazda considers expanding Takata recall nationwide

Vehicle recalls have come in force recently. Honda expanded its front driver's side Takata airbag inflator recall nationwide to cover an estimated 5.4-million vehicles, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration added 19 notices to its database covering safety campaigns dating back to October. It looks like there could be one more to add to the list soon because Mazda is considering a possible nationwide expansion of its own inflator repairs. A company spokesperson tells Reuters that there is no decision yet when to actually make this nationwide expansion of the driver's side inflator recall official, and the company isn't sure how many vehicles may be affected. Mazda just expanded the scope of its Takata inflator recalls to additional regions earlier in December. The move took its total number of units in need of repair from around 65,000 under the earlier NHTSA estimate to 86,773, according to the company. So far, the automaker's US campaign has included the 2003-2007 Mazda6, 2006-2007 MazdaSpeed6, 2004-2008 Mazda RX-8, 2004-2005 MPV and 2004 B-Series pickup.

Mazda expands scope of vehicles affected by Takata airbag recall to 330k

Earlier this week a Reuters report indicated that Mazda was considering a nationwide expansion of its recall for vehicles equipped with Takata airbag inflators. The company has now confirmed said expansion, with the vehicle count jumping from 86,770 to 330,000 affected in the US. As before, the affected vehicles are Mazda6 and RX-8 cars from the 2004 to 2008 model years. Mazda reports that Takata has tested a "large number of inflators removed from Mazda vehicles" and not found any to be "non-compliant" as of yet. With that said, the company also reports in its statement that one 2005 Mazda6, located in Florida, has been identified as having had an "abnormal" deployment of the driver's side airbag. For what it's worth, though the company's statement references the Takata inflator issue as a proper recall, it is calling its own program of notification a "Safety Improvement Campaign" for the moment. Find the full, if brief, Mazda press release in the form below. UPDATED MAZDA STATEMENT REGARDING TAKATA AIRBAGS Dec 11, 2014 WASHINGTON, DC (December 11, 2014) – In addition to the actions announced on December 4, 2014, as discussed in a separate document, Mazda today announced the following steps in the Takata recall: Mazda will institute a nationwide Safety Improvement Campaign of 2004-2008 model-year Mazda6 and RX-8 models equipped with certain Takata airbag inflators. The nationwide Safety Improvement Campaign will cover the driver's-side airbag inflator, as Mazda has not made a safety defect determination at this time. This action will support us to gather additional parts for examination and to promote customer satisfaction and safety. There are approximately 330,000 vehicles included in this Safety Improvement Campaign in the United States So far, Takata has tested a large number of inflators removed from Mazda vehicles, and NONE have been found to be non-compliant at this time One vehicle – a 2005 Mazda6 located in Florida – has been identified as having experienced an abnormal driver's-side airbag deployment. Mazda has worked closely with NHTSA on this situation Mazda will participate in the independent, industry-wide joint testing program for Takata airbag inflators For history, on December 4, 2014, Mazda announced: It would expand the area of the high-temperature, high-humidity region recall to include the Gulf Coast states.

Miata is always the answer, but not always the best one

The Mazda MX-5 Miata is a surprisingly versatile car. Not only is it hilariously fun on back roads and closed courses, it can also be a decent daily driver thanks to its solid gas mileage and usable trunk. But, it doesn't excel in every driving situation. Specifically long trips at high speeds, and those involving canine companions. This weekend, I did a roughly 500-mile round trip to my parents' home in Indiana to pick up my recently adopted dog. The trip was 90-percent highways, and I heard every single mile. Our MX-5 Miata Club has the minimally insulated top also found on the base level trim, and at highway speeds the wind and road noise fills the cabin with a loud, steady roar. This likely won't be a problem for fans of white noise, and it can be overcome by the stereo. However, over a few hundred miles, it starts to get old. The suspension, while superb for carving corners, also gets tiresome. On rough Rust Belt highways, it would become a bit overwhelmed, and the whole car would shiver and shake. On the plus side, nothing squeaked, rattled, or fell off in these instances. There are a few other quirks that show up on long trips. The small pedal box and floor-mounted throttle means that there isn't a particularly comfortable place to rest your right foot when the cruise control is set. Neither the door nor the center console have much padding either, so leaning your knees against them for long periods of time isn't advisable. The good news is that the seat itself was surprisingly comfortable, and never once was I feeling any back pain. Plus, when not using the cruise control, the seating position is great, allowing me to stretch out and relax. When I picked up my four-legged compatriot (a 7-year-old mix of unknown breeds named Ruby, pictured above), things became a tad tight. Standing up, she thoroughly filled the passenger compartment. For reference, she's a little over 50 pounds and stands a little more than 2 feet tall. Much bigger dogs, like my family's coonhound and German shepherd mix, won't really fit. This also made her prone to nearly face-planting on the dashboard anytime the car slowed down. She eventually figured out that simply curling up on the seat bottom was the best choice, and then slept for most of the trip. So it worked out, but I think I may have found the limit of a Miata's dog capacity. Would any of this make me want a Miata less? Certainly not. That is if I had a second car.