Five 2021 Mazda Vehicle Models Burn Excessive Oil Due to Defect, Class Action Says [UPDATE]

A settlement has been reached in litigation over an alleged valve stem seal defect plaguing certain 2021-2022 Mazda vehicle models, with eligible drivers slated to receive free repairs, reimbursement for out-of-pocket costs, and warranty extensions, among other benefits. 

The official Mazda valve stem oil leak settlement website can be found at MazdaValveStemSealSettlement.com. 

The deal, which was preliminarily approved by the court on March 11, 2024, covers all individuals and entities in the United States who are current or former owners and/or lessees of a 2021-2022 Mazda CX-30, 2021 CX-5, 2021 CX-9, 2021-2022 Mazda3, or 2021 Mazda6 vehicle equipped with a 2.5L turbocharged engine with the affected valve stem seals. 

To check whether your Mazda vehicle is covered by the settlement, input the car’s VIN into the VIN lookup tool on the official settlement website. More than 86,000 Mazda vehicles are covered by the settlement, according to court documents.

To file a claim for settlement benefits, head to this page and enter your Mazda’s VIN and the unique ID and PIN found on your class action settlement notice. The deadline to file a Mazda valve stem settlement claim form is October 19, 2024. 

Eligible Mazda drivers whose vehicles displayed “Low Engine Oil Level” before the regular oil change interval of 7,500 miles or one year or who had to refill their engine oil before the regular oil change interval can receive a free replacement of the affected valve stem seals in their covered vehicle at an authorized Mazda dealership. Class members whose vehicles did not display these low oil level symptoms can visit an authorized Mazda dealer for a free excessive oil consumption test and have their vehicle repaired if it fails. The deal allows for eligible class members to receive loaner cars, subject to dealer availability, while their Mazda undergoes repair. 

The settlement also provides for all eligible Mazda vehicles an extension of the automaker’s powertrain limited warranty from 60 months/60,000 miles to 84 months/84,000 miles, whichever comes first. 

Further, class members can file a claim for reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses incurred for an oil change performed “more frequently than the normal interval of 7,500 miles or 1 year,” and/or additional engine oil bought in between the normal interval of 7,500 or one year. 

Notably, the plaintiff in the Mazda lawsuit detailed on this page, which is separate from the case that settled, has filed an objection to the settlement and the motion for attorneys’ fees and expenses and service awards for the class representatives. In his objection, the plaintiff took issue with the apparent lack of proposed settlement benefits for damage to the emissions systems in class members’ vehicles and relief afforded under the Clean Air Act (CAA). 

The objector noted to the court that Mazda has set aside nearly $103 million for “estimated costs of complying with environmental regulations,” namely the Clean Air Act, yet this reserve fund, the plaintiff said, “is clearly intended only for CAA fines, and not to benefit any class members” whose Mazda emissions systems, due to the valve stem seal defect, have been processing three to four times the carbon that they were engineered to handle.

“This is clearly a material item to Mazda and there is no disclosure,” the objection documents state. “In fact, the proposed Guthrie settlement is completely silent as to the environmental issues the defect caused and as to any remedying of overtaxed emissions components like the Catalytic Convertor in class vehicles[.]” 

The objector also noted that the proposed settlement fails to disclose that the extended powertrain warranty coverage excludes affected emissions components, “including, ironically, the valve stem itself,” which are not part of a vehicle’s powertrain. 

A final approval hearing is scheduled for September 16, 2024. It is typically after a settlement receives final approval from the court, and any appeals or objections are resolved, that benefits begin to be distributed to class members. Updates on the case will be posted on the official settlement website. 

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