1999>2000 mazda miatas are known to have had a bad batch of coil packs put in them, resulting in the check engine light coming on, (has happened to me three times), not while driving, but upon restarting after a brief stop, like at a store, wherever. Anyway the code says, random miss firing, which results in a very lean unburned mixture of fuel, with many owners having their catalytic converters and/or 02 sensors get burnt out as a result. When this occurs the engine runs very very rough, and could stall. If this happens in the wrong situation, like on the freeway, it could possibly result in an accident or even death. Mazda knows about this and has a technical bulletin out on it, but it is around a $300 part (dealer) and very near that everywhere else (I.e. Autozone $260) and they told me that there is not a recall on this. Imo since this condition can and will ruin the pollution system, they ought to issue a recall, and refund any money already spent on the new coil pack for those that have already had it changed.
Mazda MX-5 Miata stalling problems
17 of the 339 owner complaints about the Mazda MX-5 Miata describe engine stalls while driving, most of them for the 1999 model year.
- owner complaints
- 17
- worst model year
- 1999
- typical mileage
- 69,500
By model year
- 20041
- 20031
- 20021
- 20014
- 20003
- 19997
Often reported together
What owners say
After driving around in heated conditions (roughly 80 degrees or more) for about 10+ miles, sometimes less, the car will not start. It will crank and attempt to start but fails to do so. In order to get it to start I have to pop the hood open and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Once it starts it is very rough and the check engine light will come on. If I stop driving it for the day, the next morning, the light will be off and it will drive fine, until I drive during the day, or over a long distance. Thre has also been an instance when I was driving and stopped at a stop light and the car just stalled, had to perform the same thing, pop the hood and wait, it was back running. This also happend at a drive thru in 100 degree weather, car stalled as soon as I got my food and held up the already long line of cars behind me. I had to push it to a nearby parking lot. I have read on numerous forums and posts that this is a common problem with these cars and that it's either a) ignition coil b) spark plugs c) spark plug wires or d) camshaft position sensor.. Well.. I changed out the first 3 options, with no success.. Still having the same problem. I recently bought a cps and waiting for it to arrive. If this doesn't fix the problem I don't know what will. I drive constantly on highways to get around and if it stalls then, I will be in a lot of trouble. I do not have a warranty so I am doing all these repairs myself.
Driving at highway speeds for approx. 20 minutes when car engine started to violently shake and stall out. Narrowly made it to road shoulder, with 2 vehicles making emergency moves to avoid collision with me. Afterwards my vehicle would only start after waiting periods of 10-15 minutes, and then only run for 5-10 minutes before same engine issue would occur. After numerous starts and stalls, and 4 hours later arrived at car repair shop. After checking vehicle over, and looking up "check engine code" they replaced a "engine camshaft position sensor" I have since read numerous blog posts on the internet that this part is a major issue with my make and model. And felt compelled to write this to voice my safety concerns. I feel strongly that someone could suffer a fatal crash all too easily with this part failing and the violent and sudden loss of engine power.
Driving my 2004 mazdaspeed miata on the highway and the engine suddenly stalls. The problem was the fuel pump failure. I bought my car new and it has 4,400 miles on it. I had three fuel pump failures since 2004. I complained to the mazda dealer as to why this is happening but they don't have a clue.
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 mazda miata. While accelerating from a stop, the vehicle shudders and stalls. The vehicle has a manual transmission and the failure only occurs while in first gear and when the engine is cold. Once the vehicle warms up, the failure does not occur as often. The failure mileage began when the vehicle was new and current mileage is 60,400. Updated 06/03/08. *lj updated 05/30/08
Engine stalls when car coming to a stop. Engine will restart briefly, then stall again. Runs only after allowed to rest for 10-15 minutes. Car has stalled 5 times in last month in heavy traffic and must be pushed off the road - very dangerous. Dealer suspects fuel pump. Apparently this is a known problem with the miata. Car has only 53,000 miles and has been serviced religiously.
I had bought the car the day before on feb 21 2008 and on feb 22 2008 I was driving and doing 60 and all of a sudden the car stalls wouldn't let me shift or gear down, and as trying to do so the brakes lock up when I let go of the clutch. Then coasting into the closest driveway. Now it wont start and I don't know what to do because I just got it from a used car lot the day before. And also makes me wonder, did they know this was going to happen or something similar was going to happen. What can I legally do about this?
When starting out cold from an intersection my 2003 mazda miata lurches forward possibly causing stalling in the intersection and causing an accident. This complaint has been addressed to my dealer who says that mazda will only fix this problem during the first 12 months./12,000 miles of owner ship. Mazda has had this problem since 2001 as a result of a re-design of the clutch and refuses to fix my car because it is beyond 12,000 miles. This is a latent defect that only manifests itself I cold weather but I am concerned that someone may be seriously injured or killed as a result of this deficient clutch system.
Car stalls consistently when coming to a stop in neutral causing loss of power steering and power brakes. Engine speed drops below 500 RPM and almost always causes a stall.
While driving 55 MPH vehicle stalled. Consumer took vehicle to the dealer for inspection, and mechanic determined that engine needed to be replaced.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Mazda MX-5 Miata stalling
Which Mazda MX-5 Miata years have engine stalls while driving problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1999 (7 complaints), 2001 (4 complaints) and 2000 (3 complaints).
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