What have you done to your CX-5 today?

[azcx5]

Several weeks ago I ended up driving over a big sheet of thick cardboard in the roadway, thrown right in front of me by a truck. It was kicked up into the rear mud flap which was torn off along with breaking the wheel well liner. Just got both replaced at the dealer. $200

 

[gemepio]

After 4 years and half with the OE Toyo tire, finally get our GT replaced with 4 Pirelli Scorpion AS3 with 235/50/R19, slight wider than OE. After that, I decided to give it a good wash. Detailed the car by hand all by myself and now it looks so much better.

 

[azcx5]

Just like a new car! New tires and totally clean and shiny.

 

[azcx5]

First time i got to drive our 2021 GT-R over Mingus Mountain in the rain (2000' elevation change twice and several hundred twisty turns in about 25 miles of glorious driving). Impressed with how the AWD performed on the wet road, even when pushing it on some of the sections it handled very well. And a comfortable "flinging around" experience. Still plan to upgrade the tires to better tires and 235's.

 

[georgem44]

Can't wait for videos. Also where did you get it?

Bought direct from Racing Beat. they have a video on their web site.

Power Pulse Exhaust for 2013-2024 CX-5 Skyactiv - Racing Beat

 

[StPark]

Replaced factory TOYO A36 tires with Michelin CrossClimate 2 tires from Costco.
Ride was much better than out-of-alignment OEM tires. To my surprise, new tires were quite quiet. Let's see how these CC 2 tires perform on snow.

 

[Conrad 16.5]

Replaced factory TOYO A36 tires with Michelin CrossClimate 2 tires from Costco.
Ride was much better than out-of-alignment OEM tires. To my surprise, new tires were quite quiet. Let's see how these CC 2 tires perform on snow.

View attachment 305072

"out-of-alignment OEM tires"?

Did you have an alignment done after having the new tires installed?

 

[yrwei52]

"out-of-alignment OEM tires"?

Did you have an alignment done after having the new tires installed?

I believe he meant “out-of-balance” or “out-of-round” stock Toyo A36 tires. There’re reports that some stock Toyo A36’s caused highway vibration, and they couldn’t be road-force balanced. The road-force balance machine showed over 30 on some Toyo tires, and 20 is the acceptable value.

 

[StPark]

Well, not sure if the tires were out-of-alignment or out-of-balance, thought it was BOTH. Only once I felt some mid speed 40-50 mph vibration ( I thought I felt it) during initial test drive. Thinking it might have been tranny shudder, paid close attention on subsequent extended test drives, which I didn't feel any vibration at any speed. The transmission is shifting very smoothly now, even better with new tires. I did notice the tires were out of alignment, showing uneven wear, the reason why I replaced them at under 15,000 miles with 6/32 tread remaining.

Checked all alignment shops nearby, every single one is booked at least until a week after. I don't particularly like going to Les Schwab or Firestone, can anyone recommend any chain shop? Most local shops are booked for 3 weeks, now taking appointments on the week of Christmas!

 

[StPark]

Installed 2 channel Dashcam (Viofo A129 Duo) taken of from old Tucson. Broke the GPS unit, but everything else is working. Need to finesse Parking Mode setting, though. The front dashcam is almost invisible from outside unless you're looking for it.
Unlike my other vehicles of past, the CX-5 fuse box doesn't have enough space to hide extra wires.

 

[SWCX5R]

I popped the AWD letters off. I used a hair dryer for a minute and a piece of dental floss. The letters didn't even leave any residue behind. Looks cleaner to me. Glad I searched on here to discover the other badges use alignment pins. The adhesive used is pretty thick.

I can verify the 2021 Skyactiv G badge has 2 alignment pins on the back (one on each end) along with an adhesive strip. Part KN0V-51-771. The Mazda tailgate logo is called a "mascot" and has 2 pins on the right and one on the left with a full adhesive backing. Part KB7W-51-731. The CX-5 has a pin on the C and the X. Part KBG8-51-720. It comes with the AWD letters and it's all mounted to a big piece of backing material, and comes with a foam template so you can position everything perfectly.

I wound up ordering a second set so that I could paint them a better way. So I sanded the second set of badges (no way to remove the chrome using some YouTube methods) and use SEM adhesion promoter, SEM trim black and SEM low luster clear and the badge look outstanding. A very satin, deep, rich black. Much nicer than the Hyper Dip look. Glad I did this. Just use low hair dryer heat and floss and you'll get all the emblems off.

​

 

[Westy16]

Took it for the first wash since I got it , found a brushless place the next town over as its getting kind of cold to do in the driveway. Installed a rear license plate cover I got from Amazon, it was matte black but dipped it with Stealth Gray Hyperdip in my basement. I was planning to dip the emblems and roof rack rails in spring but not sure the stealth gray will look right, Its dip so I guess I could always peel it off but that stuff aint cheap lol.

Off work this week so I scheduled a visit with the local dealer tommorrow to get some recalls that the previous owner neglected to have done taken care of (WTF) and have them update the FW on the infotainment unit. I have the updated box and harness on order for the carplay as well as some other goodies (Mats, Cargo cover etc.) hope to have them b4 xmas.

 

[SWCX5R]

Took it for the first wash since I got it , found a brushless place the next town over as its getting kind of cold to do in the driveway.

Brushless as in no touch? If it's one of those all chemical cleaning places, those can be hard on the paint.

 

[Westy16]

Chemical cleaning places ? I dont think so, a no touch wand went round the car with soapy foam than a fresh water rinse and a blow dry. I think for a couple more bucks they spray some hot wax crap on there but I dont go that route. Just a soap and rinse to get the road grime off. Gotta be better than the brush places with the dirt and crud from everyone elses cars on the brushes scratching your paint.

 

[sm1ke]

Brushless as in no touch? If it's one of those all chemical cleaning places, those can be hard on the paint.

Not necessarily hard on the paint. They do use more aggressive soaps to break down the grime, but usually they follow with some sort of temporary protection in the last rinse. If they don't, the clearcoat still provides plenty of protection to the paint.

Chemical cleaning places ? I dont think so, a no touch wand went round the car with soapy foam than a fresh water rinse and a blow dry. I think for a couple more bucks they spray some hot wax crap on there but I dont go that route. Just a soap and rinse to get the road grime off. Gotta be better than the brush places with the dirt and crud from everyone elses cars on the brushes scratching your paint.

I switched to touchless washes in the winter for convenience. If I had the time, I'd be handwashing at the local wand wash. Touchless washes are 100x better than the automatic washes with the brushes.

I try to wait as long as I can before taking the car to its first touchless wash of the year. The soap they use is strong enough to strip the wax I normally use off the car. This year I got midway through November before it got too cold.

 

[Westy16]

I had never heard the soap they use in those type of washes was caustic in any way. Good to know thanks.

 

[Conrad 16.5]

I had never heard the soap they use in those type of washes was caustic in any way. Good to know thanks.

Yep, the detergents used in carwashes are very caustic and will remove your wax very quickly.

What I do in the winter months, when I have to use the carwash to remove the salt, is only use the manual bay at the carwash and only use the rinse mode with plain water. It may not get all the road grime off, but it does remove the salt. The trick is to do it on a day that the temps are above freezing, and the roads are clear. No point in getting the salt off only to reapply on your drive home from the carwash. You'll also want to get your brakes warmed up a bit before parking the car. It's good to get the brakes heated up enough to evaporate the water coating them.

YMMV

 

[Westy16]

Picked the car back up from the dealer today after they did the recalls, still not sure why the previous owner or the place I bought it from didnt get them done, but its all up to date with a clean bill of health from Mazda. One of the recalls was for the tailgate struts so I got a new set for free ( Sweet !! ). Also had the oil changed and the firmware updated so am just waiting for the parts to do the carplay update. Very happy with the local dealership they did the firmware for free and a sign up for discounted oil changes In the future.

 

[yrwei52]

Picked the car back up from the dealer today after they did the recalls, still not sure why the previous owner or the place I bought it from didnt get them done, but its all up to date with a clean bill of health from Mazda. One of the recalls was for the tailgate struts so I got a new set for free ( Sweet !! ). Also had the oil changed and the firmware updated so am just waiting for the parts to do the carplay update. Very happy with the local dealership they did the firmware for free and a sign up for discounted oil changes In the future.

Ha, most gen-1 CX-5 owners, including me, regretted doing the liftgate struts recall as the replacements are weaker and shorter. Some started having noise very soon, and the liftgate opening height becomes lower and easier to bump to the head. At least one member had to replace the replacement struts again with his own expense.

There’re 4 recalls for 2016 CX-5. The first one is the fuel tank fuel filling pipe recall; the second one is a Special Service Program for passenger side airbag re-programming; the third one is the liftgate struts; the forth one is LED DRLs which is only for those with optional LED headlights. Which were those recalls you just had done in addition to liftgate struts recall?

I’d say the previous owner of your 2016 CX-5 was very smart holding on to original liftgate struts for as long as he could.

 

[yrwei52]

Here:

Necropost

These recall replacements never seemed to be good as the originals. I could never get them to not squeak and they began to lose pressure I assume since they wouldn't fully hold the hatch open.

Just replaced them and now silent and fully opens the hatch.

KD77-62-620A (Right)

KD77-63-620A (Left)