AI Damage1998 Mazda B-Series Truck: common problems
Owners of the 1998 Mazda B-Series Truck filed 67 complaints with NHTSA, most often about tires and vehicle speed control. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 67
- involving a crash
- 6
What fails most often
- 1 Tires 28% of all complaints
- 2 Vehicle speed control 19% of all complaints
- 3 Engine and cooling 13% of all complaints
- 4 Powertrain 7% of all complaints
- 5 Air bags 6% of all complaints
- 6 Service brakes 6% of all complaints
- 7 Suspension 6% of all complaints
- 8 Electrical system 4% of all complaints
- Tires: 19 complaints (28% of all), 2 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Vehicle speed control: 13 complaints (19% of all).
- Engine and cooling: 9 complaints (13% of all).
- Powertrain: 5 complaints (7% of all), 2 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Air bags: 4 complaints (6% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 67 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tires | 19 | 2 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| Air bags | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Suspension | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Equipment | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Exterior lighting | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel/propulsion system | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Lane departure | 1 | 1 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Mazdaspeed 3 turbo Vin:[XXX] ************************* Fuel pump EfI 400hp @ idel Turbo propultion not installed Cricket wireless broadband internet Connection.....? Swiage leakage: [XXX] [XXX] West covina sheriff dept. West covina ca INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C.
Report s as stolen from Santa Clarita ca newhall. Reporting to the chp.gov [XXX] ca tip line [XXX] Western general insurance, clabasas [link] Management LLC INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Four wheel drive system engaged on it's own, causing severe left turns as front wheel locks up. Has happened three times, even thou fixed twice. There is no locking hub conversion available for this model or the ford ranger it's clone. Will not drive this on snow or ice covered roads.
While the driver's foot was pressing the clutch, the plastic cover ripped off and caused the driver's foot to release the clutch. As a result the vehicle rear ended another vehicle. Both the manufacturer and the dealership were contacted.
Tire tread completely separated from the casing of the tire without any warning. Tires had been inspected and rotated just 1,000 miles earlier and no problems were found. The sudden lose of the tire tread and resulting loss of control caused the vehicle to spin and hit the center divider of the freeway.
Interior light stay on after it rains or moisture is in the air. Had door switch replaced, work for about a year and then recur again. The interior light can only be shut off by taking out the fuse. The interior light get shoot that it can burn your hand if touched.
I did a front end suspension check, and found all 4 ball joints with deep rust, no rubber seals left other than brittle and cracked remains of the rubber boot around the joints. The rubber bushings on the front stabilizer assembly were also either totally disintegrated or missing.
The brake failure has been occurring for the last eight years. The vehicle has been taken to the repair shop three times regarding the failure, but no failure was identified. The failure mileage was 35,000.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 4,533 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 12% most complained about).
On average one model year of the B-Series Truck has 36 complaints (20 years in the data). This year has 67, above average.
What to check before buying
- Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.
- Vehicle speed control. Accelerator pedal, cruise control, throttle codes.
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
Other years of this model
- B-Series Truck 199016 sources
- B-Series Truck 199114 sources
- B-Series Truck 199211 sources
- B-Series Truck 19939 sources
- B-Series Truck 1994122 sources
- B-Series Truck 199542 sources
- B-Series Truck 199655 sources
- B-Series Truck 199752 sources
- B-Series Truck 199978 sources
- B-Series Truck 200058 sources
- B-Series Truck 200137 sources
- B-Series Truck 200228 sources
- B-Series Truck 200321 sources
- B-Series Truck 200424 sources
- B-Series Truck 200516 sources
- B-Series Truck 200611 sources
- B-Series Truck 200737 sources
- B-Series Truck 200811 sources
- B-Series Truck 20094 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1998 Mazda B-Series Truck?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: tires, vehicle speed control, engine and cooling. Total complaints: 67. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: rust, corrosion (6%), stalls while driving (4%), tires: bulges, blowouts (4%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1998 Mazda B-Series Truck?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1998 Mazda B-Series Truck from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1998 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.