2014 Mazda CX-5

Above average

Owners filed 377 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the electrical system. It has been recalled 4 times.

When it fails
020k40k60k90k120k200k

280 complaints record an odometer reading. Failures cluster around 010,000 miles; the median is 42,400 miles.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Electrical System113
102
Visibility/Wiper54
000
Unknown or Other38
101
Structure › Body24
000
Power Train23
000
Service Brakes22
301
Engine19
000
Visibility › Windshield11
000
Electronic Stability Control (esc)11
000
Air Bags8
100

4 safety recalls

Part 573 reports
Structure › Body › Hatchback/Liftgate16V644000
Filed Sep 6, 2016580,455 vehiclesMazda North American Operations

Defect. Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2010-2013 Mazda3 and Mazdaspeed3 vehicles manufactured November 18, 2008, to June 8, 2013, 2012-2015 Mazda5 vehicles manufactured October 26, 2010, to June 22, 2015, 2016 CX-3 vehicles manufactured June 1, 2015, to December 26, 2015, and 2013-2016 CX-5 vehicles manufactured December 15, 2011, to December 26, 2015. On the affected vehicles, the lift gate support struts may corrode, possibly causing the struts to break and/or the lift gate to drop unexpectedly.

Risk. If the lift gate falls unexpectedly, it may hit the user, increasing their risk of injury.

Remedy. Mazda dealers will replace the both lift gate supports, free of charge, however parts are not currently available. The recall began April 2017. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 9916H.

Steering16V203000
Filed Apr 11, 2016578 vehiclesMazda North American Operations

Defect. Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2016 CX-3 vehicles manufactured June 1, 2015, to December 2, 2015, 2013-2014 Mazda2 vehicles manufactured July 3, 2013, to August 8, 2014, 2014-2016 CX-5 vehicles manufactured January 19, 2013, to December 2, 2015, and 2013-2015 CX-9 vehicles manufactured December 6, 2012, to July 31, 2015. The lower mounting nuts and bolts that attach the front strut assembly to the steering knuckle may loosen, allowing the steering knuckle to separate.

Risk. If the steering knuckle separates from the strut assembly, it can cause a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the lower mounting nuts and bolts that secure the front strut assembly to the steering knuckle. If the bolts are loose, they will be replaced and then correctly tightened, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin May 20, 2016. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 9316D.

Fuel System, Gasoline › Storage › Tank Assembly › Filler Pipe and Cap16V064000
Filed Feb 3, 2016268,799 vehiclesMazda North American Operations

Defect. Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Mazda CX-5 vehicles manufactured June 27, 2013, to February 2, 2016. The affected vehicles have a fuel filler pipe that may rupture in the event of a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 301, "Fuel System Integrity."

Risk. A rupture of the fuel filler pipe may result in a fuel leak, increasing the risk of a fire.

Remedy. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will alter the attachment between the fuel filler pipe and the left rear side of the bracket of the fuel filler pipe, free of charge. The recall began on February 25, 2016. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, option 6. Mazda's number for this recall is 9216B.

Visibility › Windshield16E002000
Filed Jan 19, 2016193 vehiclesPilkington North America, Inc.

Defect. Pilkington North America, Inc. (Pilkington) is recalling certain replacement windshields, model FW04026 GTY, manufactured November 23, 2015, to December 16, 2015 for use in Mazda CX-5 vehicles that are equipped with the Smart City Brake Support system. The affected windshields have a bracket mounted on the inside to hold a laser sensor or LIDAR device for the Smart City Brake Support system. These brackets were improperly affixed with only tape instead of tape and urethane and therefore may loosen.

Risk. If the bracket loosens or detaches from the windshield, the safety features of the Smart City Brake Support system may be disabled and therefore increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Pilkington will contact the wholesalers and retailers that purchased the windshields to try to identify the affected customers. The affected windshields will be replaced, free of charge. This recall began on February 15, 2016. Owners may contact Pilkington at 1-844-278-7230.

What owners reported

Newest filings
Electrical System
Filed Dec 10, 2025CA

The car's electrical system doesn't fully turn off after being put in park and turning the ignition off. The electrical system stays on, despite the engine and ignition turned off. It's a BIG problem that I've seen a lot of other people report. And yet Mazda refuses to address the issue.

Air Bags
Filed Jun 29, 2025AL

I was driving down the road and my right side curtain airbag deployed. I did let my insurance company know but was told that they couldn’t do anything for me since it was not an accident. I called the local Mazda dealership and they told me that they could inspect the vehicle but it would not be on them. That it could have been a rat that chewed on something to cause it to deploy because I was not the first owner of the vehicle. There was no other damage other than the airbag and where it came through on the side.

Steering
Filed May 23, 2025135,000 milesVA

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at a slow speed and attempting to parallel park, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine before the steering wheel seized. No warning light was illuminated. The contact's husband exited the vehicle to inspect the vehicle, and another person stopped to assist and became aware that the ball joint had detached. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the steering knuckle had separated from the strut assembly, causing the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted and stated that the vehicle was not under warranty. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V203000 (STEERING); however, the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was approximately 135,000.

Electrical System › Instrument Panel › Speedometer/Odometer
Filed May 13, 2025190,000 milesIL

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 86,000, and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was 190,000.

Unknown or Other
Filed Dec 31, 2024CA

CAR ACCESSORIES WILL NOT SHUT OFF WHEN I PUT VEHICLE IN PARK. THIS IS DANGEROUS DUE TO CAUSING THE BATTERY TO COMPLETELY DRAIN LEAVING ME STRANDED.

Electrical System
Filed Jun 21, 2024NY

Auxiliary power will not turn off when vehicle is turned off. Radio , lights interior power , etc….. car turns off when button is pressed but interior power does not .

Service Brakes
Filed Jun 13, 2024MO

I was waiting at a traffic signal to make a left turn, with my foot on the brake. The car accelerated aggressively, with no warning, like the pedal was pushed to the floor. I stood on the brake and shoved the shifter into park - coming to a stop in the middle of the intersection, Fortunately my wheels were pointed straight and the car did not race into oncoming traffic. My [XXX] father was in the car with me. Thankfully, my grandchildren were NOT in the car. You could smell the gas and brakes. It was NOT driver foot placement, nor was it floor mats. Vehicle has ~ 75K miles, and I am terrified of this happening again. I had driven this car regularly in rush hour stop & go traffic for years with no event like this ever before. Apparently sudden unintended vehicle acceleration is a recognized problem. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Electrical System
Filed Jun 9, 2024UT

Car fails to shut off completely. The motor stops, but the electronics (dash, radio, etc.) and things like the A/C still are on. Searching forums shows it is a faulty gear shift sensor that detects that the car is in park.

Visibility/Wiper
Filed Apr 15, 2024SC

There is a pressure crack that goes almost all the way across my front windshield, there are no chips or dings in the glass. Second you can smell gas fumes near the back of the car but no gas is leaking

Engine
Filed Mar 19, 202477,000 milesFL

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while attempting to turn off the vehicle, the vehicle failed to shutoff. The screen and vehicle remained powered on. The battery was drained, and the contact replaced the battery. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 77,000.

Engine
Filed Dec 6, 2023120,000 milesCA

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the heater core. The contact was informed that the heater core needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 57,311.

Unknown or Other
Filed Aug 9, 2023TX

In the past year the car has consistently given a “Set to P” message when parked and already shifted to Park, and doesn’t completely turn off (though the engine does). We have to turn the car back on, jam the car to P and try again. Internet tells me this was recalled for 2013-2014 cx-5s just before vehicles starting with the same VIN info as mine.

Electrical System
Filed Aug 8, 2023NY

We have had numerous times that the vehicle ignition system will not turn off after pushing the stop button. The motor will stop but the ignition and radio system stay on. The car must be restarted(sometimes numerous times) and shut down before the ignition system shuts down. I have seen many other owner's complaints about this same problem on (carcomplaints .com).

Electrical System
Filed Aug 7, 2023191,493 milesMO

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that when he turned off the vehicle, the radio remained operational. The contact disconnected and reconnected the battery. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 191,493.

Unknown or Other
Filed Jul 17, 2023NJ

UNKNOWN - A few months ago, I started to have an issue when turning off the vehicle. After putting the vehicle in park and pressed to turn off the vehicle, the radio/GPS screen would stay on and a warning message stating the car must be in ‘P’ark. I would restart the car, put it in neutral, turned it off, but the same message kept popping up and would beep at me when trying to close the door. I jiggle the stick multiple times and tried different ways to turn off the car, now taking as many as 10 times before the radio/GPS screen turns off and the message goes away. I made an appt with the closest dealer, but I have to wait for 4 weeks for the car to be inspected & corrected. This seem like a safety hazard not knowing if the car is actually in park and turned off so the battery doesn’t drain. There should be a recall issued by Mazda to correct this issue as many people have posted the same problem over many years.

Unknown or Other
Filed Jun 5, 2023OK

When the vehicle is put in park and the button is pressed to turn off the vehicle, the radio display screen stays on. I have to recrank the car, put it in a different gear, and then back into park and try again. Sometimes I do this process up to 10 times in order for the display screen to turn off. When the display screen stays on, the battery is drained within hours.

Unknown or Other
Filed May 25, 2023WA

A couple of months ago we started to have an issue when trying to turn off our vehicle. A warning message stating the car must be be in 'P' to turn off keeps popping up even though the shift stick is in the correct position. We have to jiggle the stick multiple times before the car turns off. This can be a safety hazard if the car is in fact not safely in the park position after being able to turn off the car. The vehicle was recently serviced for an oil change and we were reminded of the issue and were told this is a known issue. They recommended to change the shift switch to resolve it.

Power Train
Filed Apr 12, 202370,000 milesMD

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated while attempting to turn off the vehicle, the vehicle failed to immediately turn off. After several attempts, the contact was able to turn off the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 70,000.

Unknown or Other
Filed Apr 3, 2023WY

2014 Mazda CX5 will not turn off, keeps telling me to put it in park - then it tells me key fob battery low, which it is not. I have to turn the car on/off, on/off, on/off to get it to shut off.

Engine
Filed Mar 29, 2023CA

Vehicle was at highway speed when the warning light for high engine coolant temperature came on with a warning message to stop the vehicle in a safe place. The engine stopped and I was almost hit by a semi-truck as I was struggling to move over a lane to stop on the side of the highway. Vehicle was towed to the auto shop and diagnosed with a crack in the cylinder head. There was no problems prior to this. My research has shown that this has become a common problem with this vehicle.

20 of 377 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2016
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
202614000Routine
202527000Routine
202444010Routine
202362000Routine
202263020Routine
2021144000Routine
2020106000Routine
2019270220Above average
2018348310Above average
2017148100Routine
20165105100Above average
2015133400Routine
2014 — this page377400Above average
2013194110Routine
20121000Routine

Compare every CX-5 year →

Reading this record

Complaint volume is well above typical for a single model year.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Sep 6, 2016. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.