I've owned my 2002 Mazda protege5 for 7 years now. It's always had a vibration while braking. Even after having out brand new brakes, rotors and calipers. I'm very anal on how my car looks and drives. If I feel something out of the ordinary, I know something is off. This has happened ever since I've had the car. It does cause me to drive more cautiously especially in the back roads along with wet pavement. The steering wheel shakes while braking as well. As for the body of the car, the paint is faiding fast. It's yellow, and I hand polish and wax it once before spring, summer, and winter. I use maguires wax and polish every time. And it's also got a rust spot along the back left wheel lip. I am the second owner of the vehicle. And when I took it to the dealership to be repainted after I played for the car. It was magically only 24 hours from the warranty covering it. Other than that, it's been a great car. I would purchase another if I can find one. Something needs to be done about both of these concerns. Please fix and I would drive this car until it hits 1 million miles. As long as you keep maintenance up on it, it last forever.

- Louisville, KY, USA

Drivers side seat belt latch broke in the latched position. Necessitated taking the latch apart to release the belt.

- Glen Burnie, MD, USA

I was driving at about 35 mph and hit a bump on the road that caused the driver seat belt buckle to come loose and it got in my way of the steering wheel. I was lucky to be driving on the left lane on one way street, I was able pull over, and to my surprise the buckle wouldn't latch to the female connector. It seems like the female connector pieces inside it had broken. Please check, this is a huge concern for anyone. If this would have happened on an interstate freeway I can't imagine taking my eyes of the road for even 1 sec. Please investigate!

- Peoria, IL, USA

At first the seat belt locked and I could not get out of it. After about 15 minutes I was able to get it released. Thank god I was in the garage at home. Then approx 6 weeks later I was latching the belt to the buckle and the darn thing fell apart. The right rear door handle broke last year but since no one sits back there I never worried about it. Now with the seat belt issue I was searching for the part and someone suggested I check the recall list for this car, because they are not supposed to do that. I found numerous complaints on line and then this site.

- Jacksonville, FL, USA

The driver-side seatbelt latch fell apart. The seatbelt is no longer operable.

- Cleveland , OH, USA

Seatbelt will not lock in on driver's side and today the handle broke on the inside driver's side to get out of the car!

- Houston, TX, USA

Drivers front seat belt will not lock in.

- Girard, KS, USA

Myself, the driver, rear-ended another driver at a speed of 35-40mph. The driver slammed on his brakes and I had no time to react. The result is a totaled front end w/ $4000+ of repairs. The seat belt did not restrain me and the airbag did not deploy. The car will be totaled and I suffered extensive bruising because of this failure.

- Katy, TX, USA

Drivers front seat belt will not lock in.

- Clearfield, UT, USA

Drive seat belt latch broke into pieces.

- Broadview Hts, OH, USA

I have been working on this car for maybe 2 years and the last few months it has been misfiring on cylinder 3. it seems that many other people have had this problem but cant seem to figure it out. I have replaced everything that had to do with electrical and now I think it might be something to do with the fuel injectors. Also the seat belt would stay locked for about 10 minutes or so.

- Richmond Hill, 00, USA

2002 Mazda Protege. Driver-side seat belt receiver, the piece that the seat belt clips into, shattered when inserting the seat belt. Our car now has no seat belt, and there were no recalls for that particular year. We have to spend over $150 to have it replaced by Mazda.

- Gettysburg, PA, USA

2002 Mazda Protege was involved in a head on collision at 30 mph yet the air bags did not deploy. The consumer sustained two slipped disk in her back. After the vehicle's body damage was repaired the vehicle was taken to the dealer to have the air bags tested but the dealer refused to test the air bag. The indicated that as long as the air bag light wasn't on that everything was fine. The radio switches stations on it's own. The seat belt light did not illuminate when the car was started. The transmission failed 9/7/2004, 40561 miles. The vehicle alignment wont hold. The brakes have been replaced three times due to noise.

- West Haven, CT, USA

On March 15, 2005 I was involved in a pile-up accident. The airbag did not deploy and the seat belt did not restrain me from hitting the steering wheel with my chest. I had a fractured rib. My car is a Mazda Protege 5 and the vin3 is: [xxx]. information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- San Jose, CA, USA