2008 Mazda MAZDA3 tires problems

Filed Feb 29, 2016 · Tires · 70,000 miles · PA

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 mazda 3. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle veered out of control and the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The tire pressure monitor warning light illuminated. The contact discovered that the front passenger side tire valve stem failed and caused the tire to become deflated. The vehicle was not diagnosed, but the tire was replaced. The failure recurred with the front driver side tire, but the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 70,000.

Filed Jun 26, 2015 · Tires · 136,344 miles · CA

Tpms valve stem broke while we were servicing a vehicle. ..updated 10/02/15*bf updated 12/28/2015

Filed Nov 25, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 60,000 miles · NJ

The tire valve stem cracked while checking air pressure on one of the tires. After that the other stems looked like they were ready to fail. Had them all replaced.

Filed Oct 22, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 82,000 miles · MA

The tire pressure light came on as I was driving on the highway. When I stopped to fill my tires, the force of the air hose blew the tire pressure sensor into my tire. I had to have the sensor replaced, and was told that the other 3 sensors were close to wearing through as well.

Filed Sep 28, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 98,000 miles · WI

February 2014 1st valve stem and sensor broke. This week 2nd and 3rd valve stem and sensors broke. $90-100 each to fix. Ruined one tire and caused sudden flat which could have resulted in accident.

Filed Sep 2, 2014 · Tires · 30,000 miles · VT

Tire pressure sensor modules have been failing repeatedly. Nothing wrong with the tires, but these things are made of ceramic (apparently), get full of salt and/or other road detritus, and then fall apart, causing a flat tire plus additional expense to replace the fancy things. Instead of reporting a problem, which is supposedly what they are for, they are the problem. I've had to replace three so far; I've taken to buying them online in multiples; god only knows what a dealership would charge me for one plus the installation. This is going to be the ruination of my very nice tires, as I never know when one is going to fail again, but it's a lead pipe certainty that this is going to continue. I'm considering simply replacing them as they fail with ordinary valve stems, and covering the dashboard light with a bit of electricians' tape. Not quite the intended outcome, I'm thinking.....

Filed Aug 28, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 79,855 miles · MN

I was driving on the highway traveling about 65 MPH when my tire warning light came on, followed immediately by my front driver's side tire going completely flat. Luckily there was nobody too close to me, so there was no accident when I swerved onto the shoulder of the road. I changed my tire and made it to a service center where I was informed that it was my TPMS and valve stem assembly that had corroded and failed, causing my tire to immediately go flat. Not only did I have to pay to install a new tire ($300) I had to replace the destroyed TPMS sensor and replace another one that was also corroding. ($100 ea). The entire incident cost me about $500 due to a design flaw from mazda that I have no power to avoid. The issue is that it is illegal to remove or not have the sensors re-installed, as they are a safety feature. The irony is that I have to pay $100 each to install a component that causes one of my tires to immediately deflate randomly in the next 3-5 years, depending on when it corrodes again. It is infuriating that I have to install a "safety feature" that will randomly cause me to lose control over my car in the near future. As it is right now, I will be forced to drive with a component that, over time, will corrode and fail, causing me to lose control of my car, then re-install the exact faulty component. The sensor / valve assembly should have never been made of a material that is susceptible to corrosion in the first place. I was lucky this time that this didn't cause an accident, but if the situation were different I could have easily been killed or have killed someone. This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. Both mazda and the government have been aware of this issue for a long time now. What is going to happen when someone does die from this, and it comes out that the issue has been known for years, but nobody did anything?

Filed Mar 8, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 90,420 miles · WA

About a year ago I bought 4 new tires for my mazda 3. Six months later I went in for my routine alignment and tire rotation. They said my two rear tires were worn down to showing the wiring and could potentially cause a blow out. They refused to put the tires back on for safety concerns. I had to purchase two used tires that had about the same mileage my other tires had on them. Again 5-6 months later I go into les schwab for my tire rotation and alignment and again they tell me my two rear tires are showing excessive wear. When complaining about having to get tires so soon they stated that mazda designed the car this way to have a toe in alignment. Basically this will be a recurring issue unless I put a $500 camber kit on the back. When I asked about that they said it may change the way the car handles and have louder road noise. None of this was mentioned by mazda when I purchased that car back in 2008. Not only is this issue causing me to spend money every 5-6 months but if I were to go to long without checking my tires I could have a blowout while driving, possibly causing an accident, injury or death. I see this as being a very big issue with the mazda and I would like to see mazda have to recall and fix this problem.

Filed Feb 9, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 56,000 miles · IN

Tpms light alerted low tire pressure condition. Found tire with low pressure. During inspection of tire, a small air leak was discovered at the valve stem mid section of threads due to corrosion. The TPMS sensor assembly replacement was necessary to correct the failure. Approximately eighteen months afterwards, the same exact failure re-occurred in another TPMS sensor. The aluminum alloy valve stems on these sensors are highly susceptible to corrosion damage and need to be re-called. This failure is a common problem with these sensors, especially where vehicles equipped with these are driven where road "salting" is routine. The potentially dangerous low tire pressure condition caused by these faulty stems may lead to an accident resulting in death.

Filed Feb 5, 2014 · Tires, Wheels · 77,784 miles · NJ

The tire pressure monitoring system seems to be oversensitive the warning light stays on even when the tires are properly inflated.