2018 Mazda CX-9 complaints

Mazda has a known technical service bulletin [XXX] which has numerous engine cylinder heads which leaks coolant causing the engine to overheat without warning. On new cars. Mazda knows it’s an issue and has not pushed this information down to its consumers. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Cracked cylinder head which lead to coolant leak.

Engine coolant leaking due to cracked cylinder head, found by Mazda dealership service inspection and diagnostics. Powertrain warranty only covers this until 80,000 miles, our vehicle is 116,000.

At 102,000 miles I have a cracked cylinder head

Cracked cylinder head resulting in no heat, leaking coolant and risk of overheating and fire. Crack on backside of cylinder head near exhaust manifold bolts. Weight of exhaust manifold is too much for the cylinder head and results in a Crack around the bolt. Cylinder head was casted too thin at the factory resulting in the head no being able to support the weight of the turbo and exhaust manifold. Mazda is not covering the defect under goodwill when customer is outside of warranty even though it effects every 2.5 turbo engine made between 2015 and 2020.

The contact owns a 2018 Mazda CX-9. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he observed condensation under the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he observed condensation under the engine compartment and on the top of the engine. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that there was a crack in the cylinder head and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 68,000.

My 2018 Mazda CX-9 developed a rapid overheating issue which was determined to be caused by a cracked cylinder head. This was a known issue by Mazda as noted in a technical service bulletin (Mazda TSB 01-013/21). I've been told by Mazda corporate and the Mazda dealership where the car is currently parked that this bulletin means nothing and will they will not cover the cost of repair. My extended warranty is also telling me that they will not cover the cost of repair because they don't cover damage caused by overheating. Even though The leak caused the overheating in the first place.

Coolant leak in the 3rd cylinder, causing the car to overheat and cracking cylinder head, making inoperable.

We noticed a coolant leak and took vehicle in for service. Told that engine has a Coolant Leak at Cylinder Head [XXX] . 5 year old vehicle, 56k miles. No other warnings. All maintenance has been previously performed as required. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

As I was driving 26 mile trip to work I noticed a red light illuminated on dash indicating the temp was about 240-260. I pulled into the parking lot immediately turned car off. After work (8 hour shift) drove home temp stayed at 200-210. The next morning I took it to the mechanic I’ve used for years. He did a visual detailed inspection finding that the water or antifreeze in the radiator was low. The antifreeze in the over flow tank was about an inch or so above the “L” line. He said there may have been an air pocket in it, a leak, water pump or thermostat going out. Watch the fluid levels daily, if the lower again take it to the dealership where I purchased it (4 months ago with 106K miles on it). I do have a 3 year or 30,000 mile warranty through the dealership. 4 days later I was very observant watching the temperature gauge. It went up to 240 briefly, so I got home and had my ex-husband check it. Both the radiator and the overflow tank were bone dry. Topped off radiator with antifreeze and the overflow tank to the “F” line. Car had cooled and right before topping fluid started. There is no noticeable sign of a leak (smell, white smoke from exhaust, visible puddles of anything on the motor or the ground where I’ve parked. Today is Thursday 10/12 and I can’t get an appointment with dealership until Tuesday. I’ve been reading a lot online about this being a very repetitive issue. In some cases new engine replacement required. Mazda is well aware of not a few but NUMEROUS iss

Went in to the mechanic to get a regular oil change and noticed a liquid slushing sound after starting the car up. Was informed that there is a major coolant leak somewhere in the car. Took it to Mazda dealership right away who confirmed that it is a cracked cylinder head. I got lucky that the car did not overheat on the road and happened to catch it in the nick of time. No check engine lights or low coolant lights came on at all.

Coolant leak not from radiator but from the engine

GPS touchscreen developed cracks described as inside-frosting or spide-web. Mazda had a recall for 2015-17 years models for the same problem, but they are reluctant to recall 2018 models. In 2019, Mazda discontinued selling touch-screen GPS, but it refused to extend recall for 2018 models. I took my car to the dealership and the cost of repair is $2400. The dealer did not find any damage caused by external force. Hence, this is the same recall issue with poor hardware and craftsmanship. I would like to ask NHTSA to compel Mazda to do a recall for CX9 2018 GPS touchscreen.

Car started idling rough and losing power at 135000 miles. Then started to overheat. Mechanic noticed coolant was low and added some. Problem continued to get worse and now engine won’t turn over. Mechanic said it was a cracked head leaking coolant into engine and it’s a known problem with the CX-9.

Just noticed coolant leak during oil change. Vehicle has 77,000 miles. Power train warranty is only to 60K. The vehicle is undriveable without major engine work or engine replacement.

The cylinder head cracked and leaked engine coolant at 72K miles. This is a known design flaw IAW TSB 01-007/22. Vehicle overheated.

Coolant leak from casting defect. Common issue.

The vehicle started leaking coolant, I had it towed to dealer to prevent further damage. They said it has a cracked head, which is a known issue with the 2016-2019 Mazda's, and is acknowledged by Mazda to be their fault. They have posted on a service bulletin that it was caused by added stress during manufacturing. Like many others, they want me to pay over 8k dollars for the repair. This is ridiculous as Mazda has stated that it is their fault.

I noticed my 2018 mazda cx9 Sweet smell coming out of the engine.. When we were driving, a memo came up on my car screen and says please turn off vehicle as soon as possible, overheating. I was Scared That my car could have stopped in the middle of the freeway with my kids in it. My current was low. My engine was really hot and so we took it in to Mazda dealer. They diagnosed my car, and they said it had a cracked cylinder head by the exhaust manifold and because of that, it overheated my engine. This is a manufacturer problem. And it could have harmed my family. Mazda now doesn't wants to help me fix my this car, even when admitting they are fully aware of it. This happening on a freeway would have caused a major accident. There are Technical service bulletin on this case but people are Still in danger.

The contact owns a 2018 Mazda CX-9. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he noticed an abnormal odor inside the vehicle. Upon inspecting the vehicle, the contact found a trail of coolant. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who confirmed that coolant was leaking, and referred the contact to the dealer for a diagnostic test. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 88,080.

Driving on a major highway, when the engine overheating temperature light appeared on the instrument cluster. Seconds later it appeared and felt as if the engine would seize and come to an abrupt halt in the middle of a major highway. Thankfully I was able to quickly find a place with room to pull over, avoiding a potential collision. The engine coolant abruptly leaked/exited from the vehicle. I believe there is a service bulletin (No.- 01-002/23), but still no signs of a Recall being issued in reference to this safety concern.

There is a recall for Mazda 2016-2017 infotainment screens where they will show signs of cracking under the plastic and the screen will reboot. I have a 2018 CX-9 and Mazda corporate acknowledged the issue but only offered 15% of the price of a replacement part instead of replacing it. They said my VIN was not part of the original recall. I informed them this was a safety concern and then did not care. Case number - [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The seat belt in the center seat of the middle row of seats is locked in unusable position.

Started smelling coolant through AC and noticing that temp would momentarily spike to 240 before going back down to 200. My independent mechanic diagnosed it as a coolant leak in the cylinder head related to Mazda Tech Service Bulletin 01-002/23 (https://www.tsbsearch.com/Mazda/01-002-23). Took it to Mazda dealership, they confirmed a coolant leak and wish to replace the whole engine. Problem is that vehicle 1) has 105K miles and is not under warranty 2) Mazda engines are on back order and may not be available until November. I am going through an appeal process with Mazda right now to try to get some relief from a 9K repair bill. Disappointed that this known issue ( several threads in the Mazda forums ) is not getting the attention from Mazda that it deserves.

A coolant leak appeared around 62,000 miles. Car started overheating and come to find that I had no more coolant left in the reservoir. I filled it back up and drove it to the mechanic, after almost a week in the shop and have been quoted over $2k for the fix. There is a TSB out on this issue. It is a known issue apparently from a casting defect in the heads / block.

A coolant leak appeared around 60,000 miles. I caught it in the right time as I had no more coolant left in the reservoir. I filled it back up and drove it to the Mazda dealership - I did not overheat at all so no warning lamps appeared. Upon taking it into the Mazda dealership, the engine was pulled and it was discovered that the cylinder head was cracked. This requires a new engine. There is a TSB out on this issue. It is a known issue apparently from a casting defect in the heads / block.

My sunroof exploded while driving.

Coolant leaks at the cylinder head around the exhaust manifold , safety was compromised by car overheating in the middle of extremely high level traffic, problem confirmed by Mazda dealership, only inspected by dealership, there was no warning indicators from the vehicle. I could smell antifreeze the day before it overheated.

A known faulty cylinder head in these cars is breaking. A simple search of the web shows numerous owners have had the same problem. Mazda dealers KNOW it is a problem. They have upgraded the part, but it comes at a cost of approximately $7800 to owners of said vehicles.

Engine cylinder head cracks open due to bad design where turbo puts too much weight and vibration resukting in coolant leaking out of engine. Mazda has a bulletin out for this issue and I took it to a Mazda dealer for repair. They confirmed this was the issue.

Sorry there was no incident

Bought car new in 2018. At 72,600 observed coolant leaking from backside of motor. Carried to Classic Mazda of Texarkana,TX for diagnostic test. Has a cracked cylinder head.Mazda refused to pay to fix or assume any responsibility for the design flaw. Turbo charger is too close to the cylinder head causing heat issues over time resulting in cracked head/coolant leak.

Coolant leak at cylinder head. It is available for inspection. Driving on the highway and the car overheating light came on. Yes it has been reproduced and diagnosed as part of the TSB 01-013/21. No warnings, no notice of leaks before this happened. Noticed this in January - and thought it was just a one off and had the coolant topped off. Nothing happened until a month later that is when I took it to the mazda dealer. Safety issue as no one knows about it until their light comes on and they take it to the dealer to look at. Having this happen in the middle of nowhere on a highway with three small kids is a nightmare. This issue needs to be investigated. It is definitely a safety issue. It is shocking to know that Mazda has known about this for a couple years now based on the date of the TSB. A letter, at the very least, should have been sent out to all owners. Instead they let us all sit with a ticking time bomb that will be cost prohibitive to fix.

The vehicle has a cracked cylinder head as a result of stress put on the block from a bad exhaust manifold design. This is a known issue to Mazda and service bulletin was sent out to all their dealerships in 2021. Mazda only offered to pay a very small portion of the repair and puts the rest of the cost on the customer. Luckily I caught the issue early but this could have been dangerous if the car overheated and the engine failed on the highway. There are countless other stories of consumers having the same issue with the CX-9 and CX-5 of the same year. Many resulting in engine failure.

Infotainment screen has spider cracking from faulty screen when manufactured. Open TSB stating this and Mazda refuses to replace under warranty after 5 months of owning vehicle, spider cracks got worse this year. When i got more spider cracks i contacted mazda support since the first time I contacted a local dealer. Mazda support denied replacement because “ i do not get my car serviced through mazda”, this screen issue has nothing to do with a car being serviced. This is a safety issue as you can not see parts of the screen and will only get worse and make the whole screen inoperable when using navigation.

I own a 2018 Mazda CX – 9 with only 53,300 miles. I noticed something was wrong with my engine and had no idea what the issue was. My car would not shut off immediately when I turned it off and the fan was on super high speed. The day before my appointment with my mechanic, the engine light turned on. I was stuck in a parking lot and a friend suggested I use his car to go buy coolant just in case it was needed. Sure enough, I was completely out of coolant. When my mechanic inspected the car he told me I had a coolant leak and suggested I take it to the dealer as they would know immediately what the problem was. I started researching to see if this was a defect and sure enough, Mazda has been aware of the defect with the cylinder head (TSB) not supporting the turbo of the engine causing it to crack and mix with the engine oil in various models for years, yet continue to sell cars with this known defect. I understand that it may not be life threatening yet! But it could have been should my engine had blown while I was on the freeway causing a horrific accident. How are they allowed to continue manufacturing and sell cars with a known issue for years and not even be reuqired to make a recall to have the part replaced with a stronger one? This is issue is happening to 100's of customers worldwide. This is something that should be investigated.

Coolant leak into cylinder head, resulting in overheating and blown head gasket. Repair cost was $7k to resurface cylinder head and replace gasket. Repair did not fix issue, likely due to unseen cracks or warping to cylinder head. Will require rework, likely entire engine replacement, as the defect cannot be corrected.

The infotainment system screen has developed several cracks in the upper left-hand corner of the screen. Often time these cracks look like spiderwebs or frost --it's commonly referred to as "spider cracking." This is the second time my vehicle has had this issue. At the present time, the cracks are contained to the upper left-hand corner of the screen, but they are getting larger. The vehicle has been inspected by my local MAZDA dealership and I'm awaiting a resolution. As I understand, this is a known issue with 2016-2017 model years and a TSB has been issued for these years. MAZDA should extend the TSB to 2018 and beyond.

The main infotainment display randomly exhibited "spider cracking" which obstructs the view of the material being displayed within the screen. It is unsafe because the operator is unable to see maps, time, locations, controls, reverse cameras, etc. All of these are displayed in the screen and, due to the manufacturing defect, the operator is distracted by straining to see what is displayed behind the cracking. This is a well documented issue plaguing Mazda vehicles. Mazda has admitted it as defective, and are fixing the problem in the 2016-17 models. However, the 2018 model (which has the same screen as the 2016-17) is being refused. The fix needs to be extended to the 2018 model and beyond since it iw clear this it is still a widespread issue. It is well documented that once the cracking starts, it quickly spreads to the entire screen if not repaired, causing even more danger to the operator who will be distracted while attempting to see the display behind the screen.

This weekend Mazda CX-9 started leaking coolant from the firewall side.

Driving the car home from work, the engine temperature gauge started to go up high. I added coolant that same night. Went to the dealership for a check up. I was told the coolant was coming out from the back of the engine and will need to partial repair the engine. Only 75k miles in the engine and that was an estimate cause I could need a brand new engine. Now I’m stranded with out a car waiting for a response. MAZDA should do a recall regarding that issue cause I’ve seen a lot of CX9s have the same issue. THATS NOT GOOD FOR RELIABILITY.

After owning this used vehicle for about 11 months, the engine temperature gauge indicated the car was running hot - about 240 degrees. After inspecting the vehicle at home, we added coolant to the system. This helped maintain engine temperature temporarily, but we noted over the next several weeks that the coolant was dropping rapidly. After inspection by a Mazda dealer, it was concluded that the cylinder head needed replacing.

I was resting my foot on my brake in the middle of sealed traffic and when I eased up to move forward when traffic my brakes did stop causing me to bump the car ahead of me. After that what came next was that my car then accelerated forward with my foot still on the brake. By then 2 other vehicles were involved in this accident. My car is now totaled from this.

I keep getting a automatic emergency braking malfunction alert

I have a 2018 Mazda CX-9 with about 66,000 miles. I noticed a coolant leak when my SUV sat in my driveway. It was there each night after driving the SUV. I took the vehicle to a Mazda dealer who stated that the coolant leak is from a cracked cylinder head. A cylinder head should not crack in 4 years and only 66,000 miles. This is a known Mazda issue for this year make and model.

After sitting in the heat of summer, cracks appeared on two of the corners of the LCD navigation screen making it very hard to see portions of the screen.

I noticed a smell of antifreeze. After taking it back to dealership, I find out it has a cracked head. It has never ran hot.

The cylinder head failed causing a massive leak of engine coolant. This occurred initially at highway speeds which caused potential danger to myself and others around me as the car was required to pull over immediately. The problem was confirmed by the dealer and is known to the manufacturer as indicated by TSBs. The part was inspected and replaced by a new, redesigned part at the owner's expense.

The cars engine makes loud rattling noise and slips gear. the vecicle jerks hard and feels as if transmission is slipping. car hesitates when i shift into gear, followed by a jerking and jolting into gear. my brakes are replaced frequently. mazda at 65643 miles on car found excess operating noise coming from engine coolant/water pump due to internal bearing failing. they replaced the water pump. software (pyd8-18881-f) replaced. the vehicle has 74000 miles and has same problem. when stopped at a traffic signal it lunges forward at times. and shifts slow to fast gears. this problem is not resolved. the first time it was allegidely fixed was 22Dec2021 it is now 05Oct 2022

> I have a 2018 Mazda CX-9 with about 70,000 miles on it. Since 2020 this vehicle started developing cracks in the infotainment center screen. I only had about 23,000 miles on it at that time. the cracks are now starting to obscure my back up camera, communication system and nav system displays causing a safety issue. It is distracting to not be able to see clearly on this screen and I am afraid something will happen to me or my kids. About a year ago I did take this car to the local mazda dealer, for the longest time I thought I did something to it, but I did not. They called mazda customer service and no good will was offered. there is a technical service bulletin out but not a recall. There are several models older than my vehicle that have had this screen repaired free of charge by mazda. Same issue - nothing different then what is going on with my car. There are many many of the very same complaints online. can some please investigate this issue. it is ridiculous.