Three problems related to transmission not go into gear have been reported for the 1998 Mazda 626. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
1998 Mazda 626 automatic transmission car will not go into gear, forward or reverse. The problem just started while driving at about 45 miles an hour on a smooth highway. The car had to be towed back home.
This will be the second time that I have replaced the transmission on my 626. The first time was August of 2006. It started with the o/d light flashing the smoking and finally going out completely. The car left me stranded on the freeway in the middle of no-where. I had to wait for a tow truck for 3 hours and $200. 00 to get it towed to a shop near my house. I was able to find a used transmission from a junk yard and had it replaced for a total cost of $1200. 00. Cheap compared to what everyone else has paid. The second time was just recent 12/7/07. The transmission started jumping between gears (2nd and 3rd) then it stayed stuck on 2nd gear. Finally it went out and would not engage any gear including reverse. So far I have not found another (reasonably priced) transmission. The cheapest I found with a 30 day warranty is $1000. 00. This does not include the labor which is about $400. 00.
After driving about 50 miles at 70-75mph, the transmission would sometimes downshift for no apparent reason. Sometimes the o/d light came on, and upon pulling off to stop, the car would not engage 1st gear until the car cooled down (the o/d light reset to off whenever the car was shut off and restarted. Towards the end of an 900 mile trip to port charlotte, FL, the transmission started slipping on top of the other problems and would not maintain a constant speed (the rpm's varied severely during this time). Had to eventually pull off, call a tow truck and have the transmission rebuilt. After about 3 and 1/2 weeks I got the car back and upon driving it home the o/d light came on twice during the 93 mile trip home and the same problem occured with the car not wanting to start in first gear again. I talked to the aadco transmission repair facility in tifton, GA again and they imformed me that the problem was probably electrical!!!!, I. E. The computer. After disconnecting the battery to reset the computer, it seemed to drive better, but still jerky or slipping at times. I haven't driven it at highway speeds yet, I'll be going about 190 miles this weekend, I hope. 1. What should I do next? 2. Is the computer the most likely failed component and is it expensive to repair? 3. Is Mazda recalling any of these vehicles due to these type of problems? 4. Are there any other actions that I may take to recover any past or future expenses?.