There are 2 owner-reported fuel system complaints for the 2016 Mazda Mazda6in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Fuel smell in & outside of vehicle after fuel fill, being a retired Master Technician I decided to investigate this and after removing the the fuel tank access door under the rear seat I was shocked to see that on an 8 year old vehicle the fuel sender retainer is completely rusted out. An overfill, an aggressive maneuver or small collision could prove disastrous with this condition pending! I have just ordered a replacement since I intend to repair this myself and that is only of the tank itself is not compromised when I proceed to remove the rusted out screws as well. Also after further investigation I find this is nothing new to Mazda and actually had this same condition in previous years but I assume chose not to prevent it from happening in future models. I will be attaching a photo of it.
GAS OVERFLOW FROM TANK DUE TO PUMP AUTO-SHUTOFF NOT ACTIVATING. FUELING VEHICLE, SET GAS NOZZLE TO AUTOMATIC, WAS NOT HOLDING THE HANDLE OR TRYING TO TOP OFF. WAS WATCHING THE PUMP CLOSELY BECAUSE OF SIMILAR ISSUE WITH A 2016 MAZDA3 AT A DIFFERENT . BEFORE I COULD STOP THE FILL, GAS OVERFILLED THE TANK AND SPILLED ONTO THE GROUND.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026