2018 Mazda CX-5

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2018 Mazda CX-5 has 469 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 5.9x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is engine problems (38% of all complaints), specifically: engine makes loud noises after driving and acts like it's exhausted. this always happens when park the car and get out of it. there is a slight burning smell (which i was told would wear off after the first couple hundred miles), but it's still doing this. it's like the engine over heated (which no . ⚠️ 3 fire reports filed.

3 fire reports 21 crash reports 3 injuries

469

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

5.9x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ENGINE

176 complaints

38%

• ENGINE MAKES LOUD NOISES AFTER DRIVING AND ACTS LIKE IT'S EXHAUSTED. THIS ALWAYS HAPPENS WHEN PARK THE CAR AND GET OUT OF IT. THERE IS A SLIGHT BURNING SMELL (WHICH I WAS TOLD WOULD WEAR OFF AFTER THE FIRST COUPLE HUNDRED MILES), BUT IT'S STILL DOING THIS. IT'S LIKE THE ENGINE OVER HEATED (WHICH NO
• CAR BURST INTO FLAMES WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, UNKNOWN CAUSE, SUSPECT ELECTRICAL OR FUEL SYSTEM RELATED
• ATTEMPT TO STOP AT LIGHT. BRAKES WERE ENGAGED FULLY ENGINE KEPT REVVING UP. CAR KEPT GOING FORWARD. IN MOTION IN CITY STREET. STRAIGHT AND BRAKING. CAR HAS 496 MILES.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 4 crashes

“ENGINE MAKES LOUD NOISES AFTER DRIVING AND ACTS LIKE IT'S EXHAUSTED. THIS ALWAYS HAPPENS WHEN PARK THE CAR AND GET OUT OF IT. THERE IS A SLIGHT BURNING SMELL (WHICH I WAS TOLD WOULD WEAR OFF AFTER THE FIRST COUPLE HUNDRED MILES), BUT IT'S STILL DOING THIS. IT'S LIKE THE ENGINE OVER HEATED (WHICH NO ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

62 complaints

13%

• ON THE THIRD DAY AFTER LEASING THIS BRAND NEW CAR, I WAS DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, ON A NORMAL CITY STREET AND SLOWLY PRESSED MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE AS I APPROACHED A RED LIGHT ON A STANDARD CITY STREET. NO CARS WERE IN FRONT OF ME, THANKFULLY, BECAUSE AS I PRESSED THE BRAKE THE CAR ACCELERATE
• ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS IN THE LAST MONTH, DURING KEY ON/STARTUP/INITIALIZATION, I WILL GET AN ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL/AEB/LANE KEEPING SYSTEM FAILURE. THIS IS DUE TO A FAULT IN THE CAMERA MODULE. ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL STILL WORKS ABOVE 20 MPH INDICATING THAT THE FAILURE IS IN THE CAMERA MODUL
• SUDDEN WINDSHIELD CRACKING 11-14-2018 OUR 2018 CX5 HAS 7500 MILES AND DRIVING AT NIGHT WITH VERY LITTLE TRAFFIC ON THE FREEWAY IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THE WINDSHIELD JUST CRACKED FROM THE CENTER DOWN APPROX. 5 INCHES , THERE IS NO SIGN THAT IT WAS HIT BY A STONE OR ROCK . I HAVE OWNED A 2015 MA

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 4 crashes

“ON THE THIRD DAY AFTER LEASING THIS BRAND NEW CAR, I WAS DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, ON A NORMAL CITY STREET AND SLOWLY PRESSED MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE AS I APPROACHED A RED LIGHT ON A STANDARD CITY STREET. NO CARS WERE IN FRONT OF ME, THANKFULLY, BECAUSE AS I PRESSED THE BRAKE THE CAR ACCELERATE”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

40 complaints

• ATTEMPT TO STOP AT LIGHT. BRAKES WERE ENGAGED FULLY ENGINE KEPT REVVING UP. CAR KEPT GOING FORWARD. IN MOTION IN CITY STREET. STRAIGHT AND BRAKING. CAR HAS 496 MILES.
• THE VEHICLE WANTS TO KEEP GOING WHEN THE BRAKES ARE APPLIED. WHEN AT A STOP LIGHT, YOU MUST KEEP YOU FOOT FIRMLY ON THE BRAKE AS THE CAR WANTS TO LURCH FORWARD. WHEN YOU SLOW DOWN WHILE DRIVING, THE CAR ACTS LIKE THE TURBO IS KICKING IN AND WANTS TO LURCH FORWARD. VERY DANGEROUS. I THOUGHT IT WAS
• TAKATA RECALL. I PURCHASED A BRAND NEW MAZDA CX-5 SPORT FROM A MAZDA DEALERSHIP ON 6/4/2018. ON 7/31/ 2018 THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON SO I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP WITH ONLY 2,357 ON THE ODOMETER. MY CX-5 WAS IN THE SHOP FROM 7/31/ 2018 UNTIL 8/10/ 2018, DURING THE FIRST CAR REPAIR ATTEMPT

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“ATTEMPT TO STOP AT LIGHT. BRAKES WERE ENGAGED FULLY ENGINE KEPT REVVING UP. CAR KEPT GOING FORWARD. IN MOTION IN CITY STREET. STRAIGHT AND BRAKING. CAR HAS 496 MILES.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

FUEL SYSTEM

38 complaints

• CAR BURST INTO FLAMES WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, UNKNOWN CAUSE, SUSPECT ELECTRICAL OR FUEL SYSTEM RELATED
• 2018 MAZDA CX-5 WHEN I CHECK THE OIL IT IS EXTREMELY OVER FULL AND STRONG ODOR OF GAS WHEN THE DIPSTICK IS PULLED OUT TO BE WIPED OFF. IT IS LIKE 4 INCHES ABOVE THE MAX MARK/ OIL IS VERY THIN. THIS IS AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNTS OF GAS IN THERE.I WARM UP MY CAR BEFORE LEAVING AND DRIVE IT REGULARLY EVER
• ON MAY 9, 2020, OUR MAZDA CX5 LOST THRUST, STALLED AND CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY GOING 55 MPH ON A STRAIGHT 3 LANE ROAD. THIS OCCURRED DESPITE THE PCM PROGRAMMING WAS RE-CALIBRATED DUE TO A MANUFACTURER RECALL IN SEPTEMBER 2019 (NHTSA RECALL NO. 19V497000). THE CAR IS TOWE

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“CAR BURST INTO FLAMES WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, UNKNOWN CAUSE, SUSPECT ELECTRICAL OR FUEL SYSTEM RELATED”

— NHTSA complaint filing

BRAKES

33 complaints

• UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. I ENTERED OFFICE PARKING BUILDING AS USUAL. PARKING SPOT WAS ON THE RIGHT. SLOWLY APPROACHING I STARTED TO TURN RIGHT WITH FOOT ON BRAKES. SUDDENLY CAR ACCELERATED BY ITSELF AND HIT A CONCRETE WALL BEFORE I EVEN REALIZED WHAT'S HAPPENED. STEERING WHEEL AIRBAG DEPLOYED, I GO
• ATTEMPT TO STOP AT LIGHT. BRAKES WERE ENGAGED FULLY ENGINE KEPT REVVING UP. CAR KEPT GOING FORWARD. IN MOTION IN CITY STREET. STRAIGHT AND BRAKING. CAR HAS 496 MILES.
• I PURCHASED A 2018 MAZADA CX5 IN APRIL. IN MAY I NOTICED THAT THE BRAKES WERE HESITANT TO STOP AND THAT THEY ALSO MAKE GRINDING NOISE. I IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT MAZADA. THE SERVICE ADVISOR TOLD ME THAT BECAUSE THE CAR WAS NEW IT WOULD MAKE GRINDING NOISE AND THAT THEY WOULD E

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 8 crashes

“UNINTENDED ACCELERATION. I ENTERED OFFICE PARKING BUILDING AS USUAL. PARKING SPOT WAS ON THE RIGHT. SLOWLY APPROACHING I STARTED TO TURN RIGHT WITH FOOT ON BRAKES. SUDDENLY CAR ACCELERATED BY ITSELF AND HIT A CONCRETE WALL BEFORE I EVEN REALIZED WHAT'S HAPPENED. STEERING WHEEL AIRBAG DEPLOYED, I GO”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

FUEL SYSTEM(~50K mi)

$500

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 469 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ENGINE: ENGINE MAKES LOUD NOISES AFTER DRIVING AND ACTS LIKE IT'S EXHAUSTED. THIS ALWAYS HAPPENS WHEN PARK THE CAR AND GET OUT OF IT. THERE IS A SLIGHT BURNING SMELL (WHICH I WAS TOLD WOULD WEAR OFF AFTER THE FIRST COUPLE HUNDRED MILES), BUT IT'S STILL DOING THIS. IT'S LIKE THE ENGINE OVER HEATED (WHICH NO
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: ON THE THIRD DAY AFTER LEASING THIS BRAND NEW CAR, I WAS DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, ON A NORMAL CITY STREET AND SLOWLY PRESSED MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE AS I APPROACHED A RED LIGHT ON A STANDARD CITY STREET. NO CARS WERE IN FRONT OF ME, THANKFULLY, BECAUSE AS I PRESSED THE BRAKE THE CAR ACCELERATE
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
TRANSMISSION: ATTEMPT TO STOP AT LIGHT. BRAKES WERE ENGAGED FULLY ENGINE KEPT REVVING UP. CAR KEPT GOING FORWARD. IN MOTION IN CITY STREET. STRAIGHT AND BRAKING. CAR HAS 496 MILES.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
FUEL SYSTEM: CAR BURST INTO FLAMES WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY, UNKNOWN CAUSE, SUSPECT ELECTRICAL OR FUEL SYSTEM RELATED
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)