NOVEMBER 2010 -- Mazda is recalling certain model year 2009-2010 Mazda5 vehicles manufactured from June 29, 2009, through April 28, 2010. Water may not have been removed completely from the harness connector of the fuel pump due to variations in the fuel tank leak check process performed before vehicle assembly. The connector pin may corrode, potentially causing the pin to break. This could lead to an inoperative fuel pump, engine stall and the inability to restart the engine increasing the risk of a crash. Dealers will inspect the fuel pump connector and if necessary it will be replaced and the harness will be repaired free of charge. The safety recall is expected to begin on or before December 11, 2010.   10V-600

AUGUST 2010 -- Mazda is recalling certain model year 2007-2009 Mazda3 and Mazda5 vehicles manufactured from April 2, 2007 through November 30, 2008. These vehicles may have a condition in which a sudden loss of power steering assist could occur at any time while driving the vehicle. Power steering assist is suddenly lost reducing the driver's ability to steer the vehicle as typically expected, and increasing the risk of crash. Due to short supply of parts, the first phase of mailing of owner notification letters will begin on or before September 15, 2010 and the second phase mailing will begin in September 2010 and be completed in February 2011.  10V-374

NEWS:   Mazda recalls 215,000 vehicles in U.S. for steering

YAHOO NEWS -- August 18, 2010 – Mazda Motor Corp will recall 215,000 Mazda 3 and Mazda 5 vehicles sold in the United States because of the risk that they could lose power steering without warning.

The Mazda recall of vehicles from the 2007 through 2009 model years was announced in a filing with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Monday.

Mazda said the vehicles under recall could experience a "sudden loss" of power steering, increasing the risk of a crash. The notification did not detail any incidents.

The defect occurs because rust could break loose from a high-pressure pipe, straining the power steering pump and causing the system to shut down, the Japanese automaker said.

Mazda also said it was facing a shortage of parts to repair recalled vehicles at its dealerships.

The automaker said it would begin to notify affected owners of the recall in September and send notices to all owners by February.

The Mazda recall stems from a customer complaint in the Japanese market in March 2008, NHTSA records show.

Mazda had told dealers to monitor vehicles for the problem in the United States but had not issued a safety recall because it judged that the problem remained relatively rare.

Earlier this year, Mazda said it realized that more U.S. owners were experiencing the loss of power steering.

In June, NHTSA opened a preliminary investigation of the problem.

The Mazda recall comes as the automaker's larger rival Toyota Motor Corp faces continuing scrutiny of its handling of safety recalls. It was fined a record $16.4 million by NHTSA, the maximum then allowed, for moving too slowly to recall vehicles with defective accelerator pedals.

MORE RECALL INFO:    Mazda 3       Mazda 5

NEWS:   NHTSA Announces Recall of 5,500 Mazda SUVs for Fire Hazard Associated with Exhaust System

• Date Published: September 24, 2005