3.2

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
42,784 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2015 Mazda CX-9 engine problems

engine problem

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2015 Mazda CX-9 Owner Comments

problem #15

Sep 012023

CX-9

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The issue is with the design of the Water Pump on this vehicle. From my understanding, this is a common issue with the 2015 Mazda CX-9. What happens is once the water pump starts to fail due to the design, the vehicle starts to stall randomly which poses a safety issue to my family when driving. The vehicle was inspected by a dealership in the area and was ultimately fixed. I was informed that the water pump has been redesigned by the manufacturer to prevent this issue from happening again.

- Sugar Hill, GA, USA

problem #14

Apr 142023

CX-9

  • miles
My check engine light came on. Thought it was the oil needing to be changed. Oil was extra dark and muggy. Also notice antifreeze low. Fill up antifreeze and change oil. 2 wks later antifreeze back down low. Check engine still on. Got it diagnosed with auto scanner and says camshaft sensor. Went to autoshop, mechanic says it's not cramshaft sensor but water tank leak in engine which was picked up by camshaft sensor. I have yet to find out what else is wrong or if my engine needs to be replaced. For sure the water tank needs replacement. I read from others of their car over heating or completely stopped working. I fear this because I have 3 kids and on weekends I drive on the highway for about an hour to get to my destination. This is something dangerous because I don't want to get rear ended or hurt if my car suddenly gives out during heavy traffic.

- Moreno Valley, CA, USA

problem #13

Feb 142023

CX-9

  • miles
Engine failed suddenly while driving on a busy street. No lights were on, no warnings. Slight hum earlier that day, that was almost indistinguishable from the radio or other road noise. Steering and brakes not responsive. Had it towed to dealer who found that the water pump had failed which allowed coolant to leak into the oil. Dealer mechanic stated that the water pump is not visible to any mechanic without removing the entire engine, therefore would not have been able to see defects or problems ahead of event. Also said the fix would run a minimum of $3400 if a new water pump could even fix the problem. Found that there is a class action lawsuit against Mazda already for the CX9 for my model year because they know of the problem yet refuse to recall. I am one of many this has happened to. It is very unsafe for a car to suddenly seize while driving. Especially with no warnings and with the car having only 97000 miles on it. Had my new teenage driver been behind the wheel or had it happened a few minutes earlier while I was on the interstate, the outcome could have been very different.

- Roanoke, VA, USA

problem #12

Jan 152023

CX-9

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Water pump failed and leaked coolant into oil. Known issue by Mazda but they have failed to warn consumers. Repairs roughly 4000 dollars. Luckily I caught before engine failed due to lubricant dilution from coolant. Potentially a very dangerous flaw.

- Dallas, GA, USA

problem #11

Mar 162022

CX-9

  • miles
2015 Mazda CX-9 with 93k miles: while driving in traffic, check engine light suddenly came on, the car began to shudder as I heard a loud knocking noises coming from under the hood, and then a sudden loss of power while trying to navigate through a busy intersection while trying to make a left turn left myself in danger of almost being struck from the vehicle behind me and an oncoming vehicle from the opposite direction due to me stalling out in the middle of an intersection. The water pump (unbeknownst to myself and apparently many others) is located inside of the engine and behind the timing belt components failed without showing any prior signs of failure due to the water pump being hidden inside of the engine. The coolant had been leaking into the oil pan and mixed with the oil but because the water pump was purposely hidden inside the engine NO leaks of coolant (which would have been the early warning tell-tale sign of a problem) were visible. This faulty design caused a catastrophic failure of my engine which has been verified by a Mazda dealership and the engine had to be replaced at my cost. Although there were no injuries or deaths in my case, it does not nullify a faulty design and component of a vehicle putting peoples safety at risk when it is a well known industry fact that Mazda knowingly continued to manufacture this faulty design and use it in their vehicles.

- Worcester, MA, USA

problem #10

Mar 072022

CX-9

  • miles
I am attaching documents to report 11461223 submitted April 18,2022

- Northbridge, MA, USA

problem #9

Mar 072022

CX-9 6-cyl

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On December 14, 2015, I bought, a Mazda CX-9, at Sentry West Mazda located at 940 Boston Turnpike, Shrewsbury MA 01545. Unfortunately, the car's engine contains a defect in design, manufacturing, materials and/or workmanship that causes the water pump to suddenly and prematurely fail well-before the end of the useful life of the engine, which leads to catastrophic engine failure or a costly replacement due to the water pump-€™s inaccessible placement in the engine. On March 7, 2022 while driving the car to the dealer to take care of a Check Engine Warning Light, the car started to shake, all the dashboard lights turned on and the car stopped. My car was immediately towed to the dealer, and hours later I was told that my car needed a new engine. I felt paralyzed with awed when I heard that my 2015 Mazda CX-9, which was just 6 years old with no more than 90,000 miles, needed a new engine. I have been taking this vehicle to the Mazda dealer for all its repairs and maintenance needs, so I can be confident that my family were safe in this car. Unfortunately, this has not been the case. In addition, please note that there is a pending litigation against Mazda for this kind of Engine. Please see more information in this link. https://www.ktmc.com/mazda-water-pump-engine-failure I strongly believe that a car like this is a threaten to the life of anyone driving in and to the people around it. Therefore, I am asking to this organization to take immediately action on this case. Thanks in advance for your attention to this matter, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Northbridge, MA, USA

problem #8

Oct 112021

CX-9

  • 110,435 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Mazda CX-9. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the temperature gauge began to accelerate rapidly. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to park on the side of the road for approximately 3 hours, until the engine cooled down. The contact stated she added water and continued driving to her destination. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with needing the engine to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 110,435.

- Slidell, LA, USA

problem #7

Jul 182021

CX-9

  • 67,384 miles
I was driving into the highway and my vehicle just shut off. I was in the car with my children and I was scared that we were going to be rear ended. I had my mechanic look at the car and he advised me that the water pump leaked and the coolant leaked into the oil. I-€™m having another mechanic provide me with an estimate of how much the repair is going to cost. After the car shut off and I tried to turn it in again the batter, engine and oils light went off and I had the car towed to the local mechanic.

- New Bedford , MA, USA

problem #6

Mar 192021

CX-9

  • 107,300 miles
Engine light came on then my vehicle started over heating and leaking coolant. Vehicle was towed to dealership.after technician diagnosed the problem, I was told it was the internal water pump that caused fluid to mix with the engine oil ruining the engine. I was told I had three options: Buy a new engine, buy a used engine or buy a new car. I was told that this was an issue with this year, make and model for several customers. I asked why a recall notice was not given to vehicle owners and was told it was not a safety issue. It would have resulted in an accident if I was on the freeway due to the sudden occurrence of the breakdown. I was driving on a street in traffic. (middle lane)when my car started overheating and shut down. I managed to get it to restart and was barely able to safely pull into a parking lot where I quickly turned it off. I contacted the greenway Mazda dealership to report problem and request tow service. Mazda has apparently been aware of this issue for a while.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #5

Oct 062020

CX-9

  • 65,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

We purchased a 2015 Mazda CX9 with 30,000 miles three years ago. At the start of the month, the car suddenly overheated while driving and the engine failed! the mechanic said the water pump failed, the coolant mixed with the engine oil and the engine was done. $$7944.41 additionally, the overheated engine caused the transmission fluid to burn to a point the the transmission failed. $$4864. This happened at 65,000 miles, 5,000 miles past warranty. After researching the problem, we learned that this is a common problem on Mazda that use the duratech engine. There are thousands of examples and a class action lawsuit.

- Marriottsville, MD, USA

problem #4

Oct 052020

CX-9

  • 84,564 miles
Code P0016 came up one day prior to engine failure. 30 miles after check engine line came up loss power. Upon inspection water pump failure at 85000 miles. Engine most likely toasted

- Rio Linda, CA, USA

problem #3

Dec 272019

CX-9

  • 116,100 miles
While driving my 2015 Mazda Cx-9 on a very busy interstate, the check engine light appeared on the driver panel. I was traveling with my very young children, ages 4 and 20 months. Approximately 10 miles later, I started hearing a rattling sound under the hood. Shortly thereafter, my car stalled out as I entered my subdivision. My husband had to push the car to our driveway. I called aaa that same day and had the car towed to the dealership that services the vehicle. I was told that the water pump needed to be replaced and was quoted a price to fix the issue. Later, I was told that after further inspection by the dealership that the coolant mixed with fluids and the engine needed to be replaced. I was quoted over $7000 to complete this work. During the course of my research, I have learned that a lot of Mazda customers who have this model vehicle experience this issue quite frequently. I called Mazda customer care and was told that Mazda is not electing to take responsibility for this issue. I was fortunate that I was able to arrive to my subdivision without injuring my children or self, but this is a safety issue that could result in the loss of lives if not corrected immediately.

- Powder Springs, GA, USA

problem #2

Dec 142019

CX-9

  • 83,183 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Mazda Cx-9. while driving 68-70 mph, the vehicle stalled. In addition, smoke was detected from the engine and the check engine, battery, and oil warning indicators were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic who stated that the water pump blew up and coolant entered the engine. The contact called heritage Mazda bel air (1800 belair rd, suite C, fallston, md 21047, (410) 575-1351) and was informed that the repairs were not covered under the warranty. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and provided reference number: 1-2464193497. The failure mileage was 83,183.

- Port Deposit, MD, USA

problem #1

Feb 012016

CX-9

  • 7,800 miles
We bought this vehicle in June of 2015 and about 2 or 3 moths after I noticed that the rear driver side rotor had a deep scratch on it. They fixed it by sanding the rotor insted of replacing the rotor. Next time I brought was an oil leak on the front side of the motor about 4000miles. They said that the oil filter is loosed. So me and my wife went home having some pieceof mind that I brought the car to a dealership and they will do the right thing. But at 7000 miles I brought our vehicle for first oil change and told them theres a screeching sound on one of the pulleys in the motor. Also the steering wheel is shaking driving at 55 mph or higher especially when you're lightly breaking at that speed. We left the car for a day at their service thinking that they wi address to those problem. But when we pick up the car none of my concerns. Had been resolve. So we brought the car home because it was late at night and their service technicians are all gone for the day. But upon arriving at the house to check the oil level I notice a big scratch on the hood I was aggravated at that moment because they didn't do a thing to my concerns and now this is what you will see. By the way we have a black Cx-9 and you can easily spot a scract if there is one. But that's not the most frustrating part of it. Because when I went underneath the car to check the oil filter. I noticed that the filter was located in the middle of the motor and theres no way that if leaks happen on that spot that it will go all the way to the front side of the motor near the pulleys where my previous oil leaked complaint was. I think they were trying to hide to avoid warranty repair on it. So I called the dealership service and my wife brought it over there. When they got cornered about the problem I guess they don't have a choice but to work on it. It was a bad power steering pump and they will replace

- Prairieville, LA, USA

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