KIA Spectra vs Mazda MAZDA6

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	KIA Spectra	Mazda MAZDA6
Complaints on file	1,211	2,937
Model years covered	2000–2009	2002–2021
Worst model year	2007	2014
Best model year	2000	2021
Crashes reported	259	191
Fires reported	23	37
Injuries reported	160	112
Deaths reported	7	2
Most complained-about part	Airbags	Airbags
Share of complaints involving harm	37.1%	11.6%

KIA Spectra by year

30 56 121 132 92 130 129 206 163 152

00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Airbags 366 30.2%

Electrical System 91 7.5%

Brakes 88 7.3%

Engine & Cooling 86 7.1%

Transmission & Drivetrain 84 6.9%

Fuel & Propulsion 75 6.2%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 72 5.9%

Seat Belts 54 4.5%

Mazda MAZDA6 by year

40 245 197 180 207 184 121 529 318 186 128 34 196 78 111 77 78 6 3 19

02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Airbags 638 21.7%

Body & Structure 298 10.1%

Engine & Cooling 235 8.0%

Electrical System 231 7.9%

Suspension 225 7.7%

Other & Unspecified 223 7.6%

Transmission & Drivetrain 202 6.9%

Brakes 155 5.3%