VehicleVerdict

2005 Mazda RX-8 airbags problems

The 2005 Mazda RX-8 has 24 airbags complaints filed with NHTSA — 11% of the year's total, and down from the prior model year.

24

Airbags complaints

11%

Share of year

6

Crash-involved

3

Related recalls

Airbags complaints by year

RX-8 airbags complaints by model year50 complaints2004: 50 complaints2005: 24 complaints2006: 17 complaints2007: 16 complaints2008: 8 complaints2010: 1 complaints
RX-8 airbags complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

Related recalls

18V402000AirbagsJune 15, 2018 · 308,591 units

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, West Virginia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. On July 9, 2019 this recall was expanded to include certain 2004-2011 RX-8 vehicles that were previously recalled under 16V-354 but have not yet been repaired. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these passenger air bag inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

Consequence

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy

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 16V354.

18V404000AirbagsJune 15, 2018 · 4,184 units

Defect

Mazda North America Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2005-2006 Mazda MPV vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. On July 9, 2019 this recall was expanded to include certain 2005-2009 RX-8 vehicles that were previously recalled under 17V-011 but have not yet been repaired. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.

Consequence

An inflator explosion may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy

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 for MPV vehicles. The recall began July 9, 2019 for RX-8 vehicles. 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 17V-011.

17V474000AirbagsJuly 26, 2017 · 308,992 units

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.

Consequence

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.

Remedy

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.

What owners report

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2005 MAZDA RX-8. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, THE CONTACT VEERED TO THE LEFT TO AVOID HITTING A DEER. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO A TREE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE DRIVER DID NOT SUSTAIN ANY INJURIES. A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS…

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Airbags · October 15, 2014 · crash

Common questions

How many airbags complaints does the 2005 Mazda RX-8 have?

NHTSA has 24 complaints about the 2005 Mazda RX-8 airbags — 11% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Are there recalls for the 2005 Mazda RX-8 airbags?

Yes — 3 NHTSA recall campaigns for this model year are tied to the airbags: 17V474000, 18V402000, 18V404000.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.