Used Mazda Navajo Buying Guide: Best Years, Trouble Spots and Recalls

A used Mazda Navajo is a two-door 1991-1994 Ford Explorer with Mazda trim, so the one to buy is a 1993 or 1994, the years that got four-wheel antilock brakes. Every Navajo has Ford's 4.0-liter V6 and was built by Ford in Louisville, Kentucky, which means Explorer parts fit and Explorer problems apply. Before you pay, check the front radius arm bushings, the frame rivets and the recall list, which includes the Firestone tire campaign from 2000.

I read Consumer Guide's used-truck file on the Navajo, Autoweek's 2018 look back at it, a 2019 junkyard find on The Truth About Cars and MotorTrend's Explorer history, then pulled NHTSA's recall records for every model year, all on Oct 20, 2026. Honestly, the hardest part of buying one now is finding it. Consumer Guide's blog says most people who see a Navajo just assume it's an Explorer.

What you're actually buying

Consumer Guide says Mazda bought Explorers from Ford and added its own grille, taillamps and minor trim. Only the two-door body was offered. Autoweek adds that Ford had owned 24.5 percent of Mazda since 1979 and that both trucks came out of the same plant. The 1991 trucks were four-wheel drive only; a rear-drive version and a base DX trim arrived for 1992, with the plusher model renamed LX. Four-wheel-drive trucks use Ford's electronic Touch Drive part-time system.

The engine is the overhead-valve 4.0 V6, rated at 155 hp and 220 lb-ft until 1993, when the rating rose to 160 hp. You'll see it described two ways: Consumer Guide and The Truth About Cars call it a pushrod engine, while MotorTrend's Explorer history calls the 4.0 Cologne an OHC V6. For these model years the pushrod description is the one I'd trust. A five-speed manual was standard and a four-speed automatic was optional. If you want to confirm the drivetrain and plant on a specific truck, run it through our Mazda VIN decoder.

Motor Trend made the Navajo its 1991 Truck of the Year, which the Deseret News confirmed when it reported the 1992 winner. It didn't sell. Autoweek blames a price too close to the Explorer's, no four-door, and a lot of black plastic trim.

Which year to pick

Get a 1993 or 1994 if you can. Earlier trucks have rear antilock brakes that work only in two-wheel drive. Every 1993 got four-wheel ABS, and Consumer Guide recommends those last two years for that reason. Don't expect much else. Consumer Guide's overall rating is 36 out of 100, it averaged about 16 mpg with a 4WD automatic, and EPA figures were 17/22 for the manual and 15/20 for the automatic.

Known trouble spots

• Noise and loose steering from front suspension radius arm bushings separating inside (1991-94).
• Frame rivets that work loose and have to be replaced with bolts. Consumer Guide notes welding isn't an approved fix (1991-94).
• A chattering rear end in tight turns after highway driving, from a lack of friction modifier or over-shimmed clutch packs in the limited-slip differential (1991-94).
• Hard starting or a long crank followed by a stall, traced to a sticking idle air control valve (1994).

Consumer Guide's Navajo page also lists an A/C water leak and a cold-weather radiator leak for 1995-96, but those are Explorer years. Mazda stopped at 1994, so ignore them unless a previous owner swapped in later Ford parts. Rust is the bigger worry now. The 1994 LX that showed up in a Denver self-service yard in 2019 had close to 200,000 miles and plenty of rust. Look under it with a light before you look at the interior.

Recalls to check by VIN

• 00T005 (1991-94): Firestone Wilderness AT P235/75R15 tires from the Decatur plant, and all Radial ATX and ATX II tires in that size, can shed their tread at low pressure, high speed and heat. Original tires are long gone, but tires that old should be replaced anyway.
• 91V020 (1991): a heat shield can puncture the plastic fuel tank. 91V189 (1991 automatics): the park pawl may not fully engage when the lever is in Park.
• 91V028 (1991): the rear reinforcement can fatigue-crack under long-term towing with a hitch bolted to it.
• 96V024 (1991-94): master cylinder mounting studs can crack from stress corrosion; NHTSA's summary ties it to long service in Southern California.
• 97V235 (1991-93, factory sunroof): the glass panel can come loose while driving.
• 95V164 (1992-93) and 99V310 (1993-94): welds on the liftgate's lift cylinder brackets can fracture. 94V169 (1993-94): the parking brake self-adjuster can slip.

NHTSA's lookup returns an error for 1990 and 1995, which makes sense since no Navajo was sold those years. Run your truck through our Mazda recall check by VIN anyway; a 33-year-old campaign closed by a dealer in 1996 may never show as completed.

Reading the history on a truck this old

Consumer Guide's 2014 good-condition range was $1,000 to $2,100. At that money a lot of repairs happen in driveways, and nobody reports them. Check NMVTIS for a salvage or junk brand, then compare the odometer readings on the report with the paperwork. Our used Ford Explorer guide covers the Ford side if you'd take either badge.

About report prices: CarVins is a licensed CARFAX and AutoCheck reseller and isn't affiliated with CARFAX, AutoCheck, Experian, Mazda or Ford. In late October 2026 a single report cost about $5.50 as a guest or about $4.50 as a member, and both together ran about $6.75. Retail is roughly $39.99 to $44.99. Go by the total you see at checkout.

Sources

• Consumer Guide: 1991-94 Mazda Navajo (Tom Appel, 2014) and 5 Forgotten Mazdas
• Autoweek: Rare anywhere, Mazda Navajo (Jay Ramey, 2018)
• The Truth About Cars: Junkyard Find, 1994 Mazda Navajo LX (2019)
• MotorTrend: Ford Explorer history and Deseret News, Dec. 6, 1991
• NHTSA recalls for the 1991 and 1993 Navajo