2004 Mazda Rx-8 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Steering (74) · Power Train:manual Transmission (73) · Engine And Engine Cooling (36)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Mazda Rx-8 model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
399 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (6)
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2019-10-31 · campaign 19V781000 · 47,006 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2003-2008 Mazda6, 2004-2005 MPV, 2004 RX-8, and 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed6 vehicles. These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. The recall began December 3, 2019. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 2618F. Note: This recall supersedes recalls 13V130, 14V362, 14V773 and 15V869.
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2018-06-15 · campaign 18V402000 · 308,591 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Mazda North America Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2003-2008 Mazda6, 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed6 and 2004 MPV vehicles nationwide. Mazda is also recalling 2005-2006 MPV vehicles in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia,
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began July 6, 2018. Mailing to the affected RX-8 owners began July 6, 2019. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 2618F. Note: With the addition of the RX-8 vehicles, this recall fully supersedes recall 16V
Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module 2017-07-26 · campaign 17V474000 · 308,992 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2003-2008 Mazda6, 2004-2008 RX-8, and 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed6 vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion and other factors, including manufacturing variability that, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began on September 12, 2017. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 1417G. Note: This recall supersedes recall 15V-382.
Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump 2017-06-01 · campaign 17V354000 · 69,447 vehicles
Defect: Mazda North America Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2004-2008 RX-8 vehicles. Heat from the engine and the exhaust may cause the main fuel pump pipe to crack.
Risk: If the fuel pump pipe cracks, fuel may leak, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump filter kit, free of charge. The recall began on July 31, 2017. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 1017E.
Suspension:front:control Arm:lower Arm 2017-06-01 · campaign 17V355000 · 35,332 vehicles
Defect: Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2004 Mazda RX-8 vehicles. The ball joint socket on the front suspension lower control arm may crack and the ball joint may separate from the socket.
Risk: If the ball joint separates, steering control may be lost, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front lower control arms, free of charge. The recall began on July 31, 2017. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 1117E.
Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump 2016-10-31 · campaign 16V793000 · 69,447 vehicles
Defect: Mazda North America Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2004-2008 RX-8 vehicles manufactured April 10, 2003, to February 18, 2008. The affected vehicles have fuel pump sealing rings that may deteriorate due to exposure to heat from the engine or exhaust pipe.
Risk: The deteriorated seals may leak fuel, which, in the presence of an ignition source, can increase the risk of a fire.
Fix: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump sealing ring set and add a thermal insulation pad to the fuel tank, free of charge. The recall began July 31, 2017. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 0516J.
Service bulletins (202)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-08-20 · SA-055-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
product quality information (pqi) description service information mt-041/12 is no longer valid. it has been unpublished and superseded by the field quality information report (fqir) reporting system.
Visibility/Wiper 2026-07-29 · 09-022-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this bulletin supersedes the previously issued bulletin(s) listed below. the changes are noted in red text. 09-042/04 12/10/04 description some vehicles may exhibit inoperative electric rear window defroster grid lines, integral antenna concerns causing radio reception issues or terminal tabs pulled
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-21 · SA-029-26 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this service alert supersedes the previously issued sa listed below: the changes are noted in red. sa-011/24 02/12/24, 06/06/24, 07/29/24 description mazda has developed factory recommended scheduled maintenance services that support all major vehicle systems. mazda recommends dealers follow the sch
Unknown Or Other 2025-08-22 · SA-039/25 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some vehicles may experience exterior trim heat damage such (melted, separating, etc.) when parked near a glass building or low-e windows. this may be caused by the sun's reflection. if a structure's windows create enough of a curve, the concave glass can focus the sun's rays onto a small area and a
Unknown Or Other 2025-06-19 · SA-032-25 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some customers may complain about a noisy hvac blower motor or odor after a cabin air filter replacement. foreign debris on the blower motor after servicing the cabin air filter may be the cause. during the removal of the cabin air filter, foreign debris (leaves, dust, dirt....ect.) may fall on the
Structure:body 2024-08-15 · SA-058-24 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
some vehicles may experience exterior trim heat damage such (melted, separating, etc.) when parked near a glass building or low-e windows. this may be caused by the sun's reflection.
Showing the 6 most recent of 202 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-13 · Fuel System, Gasoline · 70,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 mazda rx-8. the contact stated that while the vehicle was being serviced at valvoline for a scheduled oil change, the contact was informed that fuel was leaking. the contact was advised not to drive the vehicle. the dealer was contacted and notified of the failure. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where a diagnostic eval…”
2026-05-08 · Fuel/Propulsion System“no worries — here it is trimmed to under 2,000 characters: i am reporting a recurring safety defect on my 2004 mazda rx-8 (vin: [xxx] a repair under nhtsa recall 1017e (fuel pump ring / discharge pipe). recall 1017e was completed on my vehicle on september 19, 2017. the same fuel leak has since recurred, with fuel vapor now entering the passenger…”
2025-07-21 · Air Bags“for a year i have responded to every notice for a recall repair (7 total) mazda has not repaired my vehicle or scheduled its repair. my recall id is 016742248 and my campaign number is 100409. my car has a do not drive status and mazda tells me i must drive the car 2 hours to get it repaired each way. and they refuse to transport y vehicle even tho…”
2024-05-23 · Engine · 60,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 mazda rx-8. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. the contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. the check engine warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure…”
2024-02-11 · Steering“the electric power steering randomly pulls hard to one side while driving. there are brief spasms of forceful jerks each jerk is 1-2 seconds the series of jerks lasts 10-20 seconds and usually stops with power steering failure all while driving.…”
2023-03-29 · Engine“engine naturally wears out especially after 200k miles due to friction in the natural design of the rotary engine, resulting in losing its overall function such as turning off in the middle of a drive due to loss of compression from worn apex seals of the rotary. the rotary engine requires a replacement of the apex seals to continue functioning nor…”
2022-12-23 · Fuel System, Gasoline · 86,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 mazda rx-8. the contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he noticed a strong gasoline odor originating from the vehicle. there was no warning light illuminated. the contact stated that the failure persisted. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump was fractured and needed to be …”
2021-08-02 · Fuel/Propulsion System“fuel fumes are leaking into passenger compartment and leaking from tank. previous recall failed to fix…”
2021-04-28 · Unknown Or Other · 62,000 mi“front passenger airbag cracked dash and pushed out glove box.…”
2021-03-27 · Unknown Or Other · 78,000 mi“i now have replacedclutch pedal the forth time. im writing this to see ifi can still get one factory repair of the part the pedal will break in weld spot regardless of my trying not put to much pressure.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.