2000 MAZDA 626

Defective Auto Transmission Design Flaw

Performance Rating: 1 Interior Rating: 1 Reliability Rating: 1 Safety Rating: 1 Technology Rating: 1 Value Rating: 1

What's sad, I bought this car relying on Edmunds to be fair and impartial, providing a well rounded representation of actual experiences, and therefore an accurate rating. Overall Edmunds gave it 4 stars..... The car didn't deserve a star, and that's considering an ASE certified mechanic had inspected and replaced, where necessary, every conceivable part he could. It still has a new head on it, a re-manufactured engine with under 90k miles on it, newer CV axles, new; radiator, water pump, thermostat, serpentine belt, etc., etc., etc. down to the tires, and even though it had the same transmission that was mated to the re-manufactured engine from the factory, that automatic transmission is GARBAGE!!! And once faced with that reality, and extensively researching it, that seems to be a rather consensus opinion of all the forums dedicated to the car. The automatic transmission is such an issue in that generation of 626's people have tried to call for recalls, truly feel it's defective, and say the only way to salvage this car at all, should it have the automatic transmission, convert it to a manual transmission, which would cost more than the car should nearly be worth these days, and that would be even if you're doing it yourself. I truly hate it for anyone who bought one of these things in a pickle, someone struggling with finances, in need, an elderly person. They might as well just go ahead and shoot themselves in the head. And if they don't catch on real quick they could be out thousands in other repairs, on top of what they paid initially, just to have the transmission fail going down the Interstate like I did. I don't even care to go into how much money thrown away at this point, with no way I'll come off a penny more. Fortunately someone will get it from me with the truth behind what they're getting, knowing short of a manual transmission swap it's essentially worthless, which means I will get maybe a few hundred dollars out of it, and will have lost several thousands at this point, enough I could have bought a quality used car that was allot newer, and in allot better shape mechanically. Thanks Edmunds, I'll never seek your opinion on a vehicle again, but at least I now know that the overall star amount on your "reviews"/"consumer rating" page is totally irrelevant, that's got to be worth..................... Priceless to know up front.