Faulty Wiper Motor Prompts Recall of Mazda 3 and Mazdaspeed 3 Models

2008 Mazda 3.

A problem with the windshield-wiper motor has prompted Mazda to recall about 409,000 of its 2008-9 Mazda 3 and Mazdaspeed 3 models worldwide, including about 103,000 in the United States.

Mazda told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that the ground terminal of the wiper motor may be bent and, over time, the wiper motor may stop. The condition could raise the risk of a crash, the automaker noted.

In the report filed on the agency’s Web site over the weekend, Mazda said it received the first reports of wiper failures late in 2009.

In 2010, “based on an increasing trend of concern,” the automaker investigated and discovered the cause of the wiper motor failures. Mazda told the agency that rather than issue a recall, it decided to continue monitoring “the field status because the concern frequency was still low.”

Earlier this month, Mazda concluded there were enough reports of failures that a recall was warranted.

Mazda was not aware of any accidents, Tamara Mlynarczyk, a spokeswoman, wrote in an e-mail.

Mazda described the recall as voluntary, but once a manufacturer is aware of a safety problem, it has no choice but to conduct a recall and has five working days to report its plan to N.H.T.S.A. or face civil fines.