FaultScore

Volvo 850 vs Mazda CX-9

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 Volvo 850 Mazda CX-9
Complaints on file 732 1,827
Model years covered 1993–2000 2007–2023
Worst model year 1996 2012
Best model year 1997 2020
Crashes reported 45 92
Fires reported 51 15
Injuries reported 38 38
Deaths reported 3 0
Most complained-about part Brakes Brakes
Share of complaints involving harm 18.7% 7.9%

Volvo 850 by year

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

What breaks

Brakes 117 16.0%
Tires 45 6.1%
Airbags 42 5.7%
Seats 37 5.1%

Mazda CX-9 by year

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

What breaks

Brakes 436 23.9%
Engine & Cooling 369 20.2%
Suspension 148 8.1%
Airbags 135 7.4%
Steering 60 3.3%