AutoUtility currently tracks 4 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2021 Mazda CX-3. Steering System issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 3 complaints (75% of submitted records). Zero crashes, fires, injury reports, or fatality reports are cited across these complaint records.

Key Problem Findings
  • Total NHTSA Complaints: 4 reports
  • #1 Reported Problem Area: Steering System (3 reports • 75% of submitted complaints)
  • Secondary Problem Areas: Driver Assistance & Safety Tech (1), Brakes & Traction Control (1)
  • Crash-Citing Complaints: 0 filings
  • Fire-Citing Complaints: 0 filings
  • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 0 injury filings • 0 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
4
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
0
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
0
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
0
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
0
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2021 Mazda CX-3

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 75% of complaints

Steering System

3 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#2 Problem Area 25% of complaints

Driver Assistance & Safety Tech

1 owner complaint submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#3 Problem Area 25% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

1 owner complaint submitted to NHTSA ODI
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#4 Problem Area 25% of complaints

Electrical System

1 owner complaint submitted to NHTSA ODI
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2021 Mazda CX-3

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Driver Assistance & Safety Tech NHTSA ODI ID: #11752506
Filed: 07/23/2026

"The instrument cluster in my 2021 Mazda CX-3 failed at approximately 50,000 miles. While driving, the vehicle displayed multiple warning lights, including Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), Smart City Brake Support (SCBS), traction control, and front camera/safety system warnings. These safety..."

Incident Date: 07/02/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE
Steering System NHTSA ODI ID: #11622299
Filed: 10/28/2024

"All of the issues listed in Mazda Technical Service Bulletin 06-001/20, however this bulletin does not cover my model. Inspected by dealer, possible solution intended to be relubrication of the worm gear/worm shaft in the steering assembly. Issue presented itself in the last year and is most..."

Incident Date: 09/01/2023 • Raw NHTSA Component: STEERING
Steering System NHTSA ODI ID: #11588265
Filed: 05/11/2024

"The Mazda CX-30 2021 I purchased from Mastria Mazda in Raynham, Massachusetts has a steering problem that is a significant safety concern. The steering wheel has resistance that can most notably be felt at highway speeds (around 65 mph). When making small corrections to the steering wheel to stay..."

Incident Date: 12/01/2023 • Raw NHTSA Component: STEERING
Steering System NHTSA ODI ID: #11576356
Filed: 03/09/2024

"Having the exact same issue as was outlined and allegedly repaired in the prior service bulletin 06-001/20. Obviously this bulletin only applies to vehicles up to model year 2020. I have checked the model number on the steering motor to determine that it is the "updated" design. Obviously, the..."

Incident Date: 07/12/2023 • Raw NHTSA Component: STEERING
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Mazda CX-3

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2016–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2016 Mazda CX-3 48 4 3 View 2016 Problems →
2017 Mazda CX-3 21 2 1 View 2017 Problems →
2018 Mazda CX-3 10 1 1 View 2018 Problems →
2019 Mazda CX-3 27 1 2 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Mazda CX-3 1 1 1 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Mazda CX-3 Current Page 4 0 1 Current
2022 Mazda CX-3 0 0 0 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Mazda CX-3 0 0 0 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Mazda CX-3 0 0 0 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Mazda CX-3 0 0 0 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Mazda CX-3 0 0 0 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2021 Mazda CX-3

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 2 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Steering NHTSA category: STEERING 3 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (4). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.
Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.