My late father bought me a brand new Mazda 626 Sedan in Prestige Silver (Automatic) as soon as l turned 18 years old. He paid $33,500 Australian Dollars for it brand new at the time! Its now 31 years old and l still drive it!!!! and cannot part with it .... I've never ever had a problem with the car in all those years. It's absolutely outstanding!!! It's clocked up nearly 500,000 kilometres!! I LOVE IT so much. Big hello from Melbourne, Australia!!

Watching this today in 2023, it's clear you didn't really know about the car you reviewed. It wasn't a Ford, though it has a lot in common with the Probe. The sunroof wasn't a big deal in 1990 - the prior generations of 626 had that, too. Same for power windows. Those seatbelts weren't something all manufacturers experimented with in the 90s - they were a stopgap for passive restraints until airbags proliferated the industry. The Mazda B series wasn't a Ranger - the Ranger was separate. Ford sold the Mazda as the Courier until the Ranger debuted in the early 80s, and then Mazda sold Rangers beginning in 1993. Ford relied on Mazda for the US Escort and the Mercury Tracer, not the other way around. And that engine was only 110 hp. The turbo had 145 hp.

Thanks for doing a review on a car many have forgotten. Folks always think of hatchbacks when they think of Mazda but in fact Mazda built many competent front and rear wheel drive sedans over the decades. This 626 also came as a hatch available with a turbo and a 2 door (MX 6) complete with a huge amount of wrist wrenching torque steer ones the turbo spooled up!

My first car was an '89 323. Manual transmission. Went nearly 300,000 miles. Best car I ever owned. I miss it!

Mine was an '88 GTX hatchback, bought used in '92. Had Michelin 'H' tires on it when I bought it, which only lasted a couple of years (too soft), but made it feel like a race car. Loved it. Drove it until 2012 with 240k on the clock, but was in storage for almost 8 years. Broke it out every 2 - 4 yrs with no issues starting it after sitting, other than battery replacement. The weak link of the design was the CV axle boots, which needed replacement every 3 yrs or so - a real PITA. Other than that, it was fun to drive and light weight. The engine loved to rev. Although it did have an ECU, the electronics played a minor role, with the carburetor linkage and 5 spd trans being completely old-style mechanical. The quality of the engineering was impressive, and the turbo made it fly. Super reliable car that never failed to start.

Just a correction about the seatbelts at 5:19... the US gov instituted new safety laws which made one of two options a requirement: the car either needed to have a driver's airbag, or in lieu of, automatic seatbelts had to be fitted. This was at a time when you could count on both hands how many vehicles had airbags. As time rolled on and models were switched to newer generations with the safety law in mind, fitting of airbags become standard, and that's what killed off motorized seatbelts

Just picked up a 1990 626 5speed with 300,000miles! Still shifts buttery smooth and has good pep. Of course it smells like burnt oil and could use some new gaskets here and there, but dang is it a clean one for how many miles! Interior and exterior is a solid 8 with a few tiny tiny dents and normal paint wear. Engine bay is surprisingly roomy. Gonna enjoy shining this bad boy back up and putting a little classic tuner spin on it, just a bit.

145hp have a turbo version. N/A have 112hp

Easily the best 626 to have, Mazda got everything right with the GD (GV if a wagon). Luxurious, smooth to drive, excellent build quality and insanely reliable. My '90 GV wagon has 367000kms on the original clutch and I'd be surprised if your example was original mileage. Brilliant cars that can go forever.

Nice enthusiastic review. I had a '91 626 hatchback so viewing all the interior and dashboard details was like a blast from the past--they didn't change anything in the interior from '90 to '91. I kept the car for 15 years. My one complaint was that it had torque steer like you wouldn't believe. You mention how light it feels--it was the same platform as the Ford Probe, and the Probe definitely felt heavier and less nimble. But there were times when I was driving 85 mph in heavy traffic on beat-up California freeways that the lightness gave me some anxiety. It didn't feel too stable sometimes. I have a 2018 Mazda 6 now, and it feels way more solid in freeway driving.

Very interesting review, it was interesting to observe how my European version differs from your usdm. Thank you Zach

There's just something about 90s car designs (and 90s design design in general) that feels so familiar, calming and nostalgic to me, and I was born in 2004

Oh the memories! My first car was a 91 626 DX. It was lacking some of the options that this one has, but I had so much fun in it. I can’t believe how much I’ve forgotten about that car until I watched this video. I’d love to take it for a spin one last time.

Enjoyed your attitude & appreciation for the Mazda 626. I've (still) got my 1988 626 Turbo hatchback. I've got 316,000 miles on it. Found your review as searching for a cruise control servo actuator; have just replaced the brake light switch (braking turns off the cruise) after it started eating batteries like candy. New switch isn't draining the battery any longer, but cruise control still not working, will have to visit the dealer up the road (they humor me whenever I show up seeking a replacement part). I have thoroughly enjoyed this car. Turbo has been fantastic. Lots of memories. (Same with my '81 RX-7. But it doesn't have A/C, oscillating fan louvers or cruise. Oh, well...) Thank you!

Hey Zach, been a subscriber of this channel for a while now and sadly can't watch most videos because I don't have the time but when I saw this I had to watch it. I absolutely love the G series Mazdas. My parents own a GJ and I own a GD GT Coupe (1991), so it was a lot of fun comparing this to mine. Mine has the fe DOHC 2l 16V and it's a lovely engine, except I do have a rough idle that I have no clue where it comes from. Mine also has only 42000 miles on it...

A few comments from someone a few years older than you. Turbos weren't overly rare by 1990, nor were power windows. In fact the 4th gen 626 had a turbo option on the GT trim. The cubby below the stereo is to store tape cassettes, that's why it's a little narrow when it could be wider, so the tape cassettes didn't shuffle around. Thanks for the review! I enjoyed watching it

I drove from Vienna to the North Cape in 1997 with this vehicle (built in 1991). Had no problems for the entire, 4000 km trip.

Thank you for doing a review for this car, man! I'm looking forward to buy a Mazda 626 DX 1990 and your video really came in handy to see what the car actually looks like

I have an 88' MX-6 GT and its basically a 2door 626. but i love it so much! such a lovely starter car:)

Thanks for the vid! I have same year and color but mine is an automatic with hatchback. Currently has 206k. It has a slow coolant leak which I am having a mechanic check out tomorrow. I got her for $1500 three years ago and have put a little over $3000 into maintenance/repairs. Very fun car to drive and having a hard time letting her go.

I love older Mazdas. My first car was a 1994 Mercury Tracer which of course is the same as the 323/Protege

I loved my "91" dx. It handled the twisty roads and had great gear ratios for it as well. Buddy had a 2 gen rx7 and it ran beside it no problem & left many models in the dust.

I had a 89 626 a few years back. It was really clean. It actually had an up arrow that told you when to shift to save gas. It was just a regular plain green up arrow. Not really a redline shift light by any means 😁

I owned the clone of this car. One of the best cars of its era. I now have a 1990 626 5-door in mint condition. Awesome car.

Only had a few repairs on my 1991 626...bought at 106,000 miles and drove it til 200,000! Replace the clutch...and right front CV joint and don't forget to remove the right side head rest to recline in the back when front is fully reclined! thx!

Thank you for this video. My family drove one as their first car in America during a prudent time. Imagine driving a fully loaded 1991 626 LE, the rarest of this generation.

It's so beautiful. Love the proportions. Such confident styling.

Those oscillating fans are so cool!

My mom drove a 1980 626 coupe, nice car and to a teenager with a new license it was fun to drive.

my dads car. so many memories with this beauty.

1991 2.0i, best car i ever had and still going strong,never any fault and passes mot every time without any issues.

Love the video. My first car in 2000 was a 2L Mazda 626 Executive variation in Zimbabwe. Absolutely loved the car. Sold it to my friend in 2002 when I moved to South Africa. One of the best cars I have ever had.

Picking up one these bad boys up tomorrow & it only has 40k Miles !!! But it’s an automatic regardless its still a steal because it’s only 3k ! Clean title & its the original owner & comes with a binder full of documentation of every repair/service it’s every had since it was bought brand new ! Thank you for the vid really helped seal the deal for me !!!

My uncle used to have this car (Carburettor Type 2.0 cc). I was impressed with the speedometer which had use digital system It was comfortable to drive, yeah as always In Indonesia the cars which has at least 2.0 cc engine usually has comfortable driving experience

My first car was a green 1991 626 bought in 2000. My favorite car. It was so cool and never got tired driving in that car. Unfortunately had to donate it because of problems with the mechanics cheating me out of money for AC and brakes.

My grandpa had a 626 in white, so much memories with it. 😅🤙🏻

Hey Zach my dad owned a 1989 Mazda MX-6. It also has oscillating A/C in the front one of his favorite features. @Shooting cars

Broski, Thank you for this, this was my first car and you captured it really nicely, I have often said that my 1990 mazda 626lx had more luxury features in 1990 than another car I have owned since

Hey Zach, love the channel. More older cars, please! After seeing your comments about the auto seat belts and "pull up" on the electric window switches.... These were not styling or trendy choices, they were done for a reason. More than a dozen children died in the 80's with "toggle" style window switches, when they would stand on the driver's seat, step on the button, and because they rocked, would close the window on them. There was no sensor to stop the window...... it would close on your hand, or worse. The Regan administration proposed "passive" restraint be implemented by 1986. That meant either auto seat belts, or airbags. Most manufacturer's were not ready for airbags at that time, it was easier and cheaper to throw in the belts. Had them on my 90 integra, they were damn annoying.

This is the best car Mazda ever made

Some food for thought: Is this where Stitch from Disney's Lilo & Stitch actually got his experiment number (Experiment 626) from?

Wonderful cars those old 626s. I almost bought one with red interior a couple of months ago but the owner ghosted. Now I found another one which is even older. I guess I will take that one.

This was my first car. Brought back so many memories.

still driving my 1992 626 and everything still works perfectly. Fun little car

Great review 🙏 I had a 626 sedan manual 2.2i from 2011-2021, I loved it

Cars like these are strangely attractive to me. Usually good on gas, comfortable, reliable, not very safe honestly but whatever and overall just really simple.

My first car was just like this but in green. Loved that thing. I wanted a 90-93 Accord so bad. Ended up with this. Wouldn't trade it for nothing. Great car. Quick note. the 145/190 was for the Turbo only. W/Out the turbo. You're looking at 115/120.

What wheels are these? Look good. I want them on mine where did you get em?

You forgot to mention that it has 5 speed shift, which it wasn't common at that era, i love it, thank you for this KZfaq.

EXCELLANT review! I had a 1992 Mazda MX-6 (2 door) when I was in high school and I thought I was the SH*T with the motorized seatbelts lol!

I love the 90's cars, especially da box looks, mazda's in South Africa is so underrated, your guys had the lx, the closest we had that look similar to this one was the 1989 to 1992 mazda which were the sli and slx, Toyota Cressida rule back then that where reliable , 3.0 litre editions and elegant looks.

makes me miss my pos protege, good review brother.

A Grey Mazda 626 was my very first car. I loved it. Mine was an automatic. I definitely thought I was the man with that oscillating fan. But I wish you would have mentioned and shown the power antenna. I thought that was a cool feature too.

It's so similar to my manual transmission 1994 Mazda DX in so many ways...the front dash, the turn signals, etc. I bought mine new back in 1994 and have kept it going all these years, though now I drive it just on Tuesdays and Fridays to keep it in shape as my backup car. The air conditioning is long gone, roll up windows, beater-with-a-heater all the way. 187,000+ and still rolling...it baffles me that this sort of car would only have 15K on it.

I had this car but in white with blue interior. I got a D.U.I. 😢 in it when I was 20 years old. Man I miss that car I had a lot of fun in that car. It was a solid car and fun to drive.

I had a '90 626 automatic, that I got in '96. It was a huge headache for me. Just when I get one issue resolved and think great everything is sorted, a few weeks later something more serious would go wrong. Ended up trading it in for a huge loss with less than a year of ownership.

Good review At that time automakers either had to have airbags OR power seatbelts, thats why the motorized seatbelts were so prevalent then.

I currently own an 89' dx model 626 5-spd manual with 53,000 miles looks nearly showroom still. All stock.

Now I have a mazda3 sedan 2008 I will put a corvette engine soon on it

My parents had the same car in white, when you turned the radio on, the antenna would pop up automatically. Antena was located above front drivers door.

Haha yep, no cupholders! Always a fun trip when you get food to-go. That mileage is so low! I thought I read it wrong. Thanks for sharing this.

Piece of info, the standard car used a 2.2 12 valve SOHC engine, good for about 110 hp and 130lb ft of torque. The GT/Turbo one used a turbocharged version of the same engine, good for 145hp (although many reviewers agree that it might have been underrated) and 190 lb-ft of torque, according to Motorweek's test, it did the 0-60mph in 7.2s which was fantastic for the era.

A cold air injection system added on will definitely add more HP &! Quicker high rpm acceleration. Also polyurethane sway bar bushings dramatically improve cornering…plus vented disk rotors improves braking. Lastly head gasket had to be replaced 3 times in 17 yrs ownership

Had a 1998 did one timing belt and. New clutch drives like a charm but It got hit and I don't have it anymore I loved that car it was a 5 speed

I wasn't aware Mazda had dropped the manual from the 6... I know a 2018 6 could come with a manual. I wonder if the 626 had double wishbone suspension. The 2014 6 went to Macpherson struts up front, which really muted the handling in my opinion, making the 2009-13 6 one of the most underrated sedans ever.

I miss my 1990 Mazda 626. Mine was an automatic. Identical to yours.

I had a 1988 626. (When they first switched to this design) I lost my virginity in this car!!! Hahaha Memories! I had 2 12” JL audio 12 inch woofers in mine! BOOM

Than you for review. I used to have such Mazda GD, and that was realy good car. Only the rost was the problem. Interior was made from very good quality materials, after many years were like new

It's not before the days of turbo, mazda had many 1980s turbo 626 including even 4 wheel steer! Nice video just mentioning turbo in that exact car was 4 wheel steer and beginning MX6 coupe was a 626 called the GT...

"this is way before the time of turbo-charging". Nope, Mazda had been turbo-charging their 626 since 1982 with the previous generation. In fact, the specs that you put up (145hp, 18/26mpg) were for the Turbo version, the GT. Yours, the non-turbo, got 110hp, 21/28mpg.

I had the same in red with a small spoiler. 1991. 2.0. Electric windows and a/c

Awesome car, i do have an 323 from 1995 and i love it.. It is very reliable

I’ve got a 91’, and it’s got 470k ks on it, still going strong

Did anyone else noticed that time Japanese cars didn't really have badges, logos? Rather 'MAZDA', 'MITSUBISHI', 'TOYOTA', 'NISSAN', etc were written on the grills and boot lid.

I have sunrise red colored GD. I love it!

My first car. I loved it!

Your 626 actually has the base 2.2 liter engine which only has 110 hp and 130 lb ft. of torque. The GT Turbo had 145 hp and 190 lb ft. of torque.

My parents had one. It was white. Once a rainy night it was stolen however found again by the police some 15 kilometers away. I liked this one. Before this car we had a Mazda 323 / Sweden

I used to have this car it was awesome it would’ve been more awesome if it had a rotary engine

I had an 89 mx6 and the dash and steering wheels looks the same as this car i loved my mx6 tho it was really fun

Ooohh i seer this car everyday btw hope you are having a great say also i am going to buy a b13 sentra thoughts on it ?

Great review !

owner is pretty cute too

dope and i just seen this was posted on my birthday march 27 1991 and yes im from NYC brooklyn to be exact

Mine used to randomly just shut down while I was driving it.

Great review boy, great car to, regards from Serbia.

No way the clutch would be going out if this car truly had only 27,000 miles on it. Odometer must have been rolled back at some point.

My parents had one of these in red when I was a child (don't know the year though). Outgrew the backseat by a lot, they were way too short, and they sold it and got a Volvo (which I also outgrew). Just had a sudden urge to search it up and see what it looked like (interior looks like I remember it). Edit: had no sunroof though that I can remember. This was an optional thing?

I had a98 626 great car till motor went down to three cylinders at 220000ish miles

Hermoso 626, mi favorito

Mazda GD was big facelift Mazda GC (previous model)

I have a 89 probe that shares a lot of the stuff in this car

フォードが入る前のカペラですね。良い車です。日本の自動車教習所で多く採用されたクセのない車でした。同時期にはホンダのプレリュードなどの名車があり、カペラは大人気ではありませんでした。アメリカ現地生産はしていないはずなので、広島の宇品港から積み出しされたものでしょう。大事に使ってください。

I love this car so much :)

I miss mine I want another one I dream about mine lol❤😂

Actually they had an optional engine that was turbo equipped that year

You gave the horsepower and torque numbers of the turbo version

Best mazda cars ever

Is there a picture or diagram for the steering wheel column, someone added a extra fuse to the 1989 Mazda 626 we got and now we're trying to figure it out? Anyone got a picture?

How is the clutch going at 27k miles? Cool car, my buddy had one in high school. He was tall and used to stick his head up out the moon roof while driving. It looked funny but probably not smart.