AWD and flat tire

[mhigh]

I have a 2013 CX-5. This has happened twice now and I'm not sure what is going on. The first time I got a flat tire and the car started cutting out and barely running. I limped to a parking lot and changed the tire and all was well. This weekend my lot tire pressure light came on while I was on the highway. Within a few seconds the car started bogging down and I could only drive about 50 mph. I even tried switching to manual shift mode and it would not come out of gear. I limped to a gas station and filled up one tire that was low (20 psi). Restarted the car and everything was fine.

Any ideas on what is going on?

 

[erhayes]

Almost sounds like a safety issue. If it senses a blow out or very low tire, it sets a low speed limit. Just guessing.

 

[Chris_Top_Her]

What's your change tire history... are you running old tires? Are you getting blowouts? Objects in tire? Are you mixing well worn tires with brand new tires (different rolling diameter) Some more details might give insight.. I'm assuming these aren't the original tires.

 

[pcardoza]

Was this issue with a front tire? If yes, it's a safety feature. The owners manual even tells you that when using the spare donut tire, you must put it on the rear and move a good tire up front.

 

[minnesotaart]

Was this issue with a front tire? If yes, it's a safety feature. The owners manual even tells you that when using the spare donut tire, you must put it on the rear and move a good tire up front.

In your case, with your 2019 GTR, yes that's true. But the reason is because the donut spare won't fit on the front due to the size of the brake calipers. The OP has a 2013 and this is not an issue for GEN1 CX-5s. I don't know what the answer is for the OP, but it's not as you describe in your post.

 

[murky]

The 1st gen doesn't have TPMS sensors in the valve stems, it senses wheel speed, an underinflated tire will do more revs than the others. I think the sensors for that are related to the ABS system.

There may be a malfunction of some element of that system, or it may be trying to protect itself. OP seems to want to drive at highway speeds with a flat or low tire, relative to the others. That sounds like a bad idea. Maybe other people don't have experience with that because they would pull over and put on the spare.

Is there a check engine light and/or a code from OBDII port?

 

[Chas]

I have a 2013 CX-5. This has happened twice now and I'm not sure what is going on. The first time I got a flat tire and the car started cutting out and barely running. I limped to a parking lot and changed the tire and all was well. This weekend my lot tire pressure light came on while I was on the highway. Within a few seconds the car started bogging down and I could only drive about 50 mph. I even tried switching to manual shift mode and it would not come out of gear. I limped to a gas station and filled up one tire that was low (20 psi). Restarted the car and everything was fine.

Any ideas on what is going on?

It sounds as if the engine is going into limp home mode, limiting you to 50 mph. I have experienced this limp home mode in other cars, not due to flat tires, but because of extreme heat, foolishly following a friend in a Suburban on a 122 degree day, in Palm Springs, up the mountain in a fully loaded car with AC running. First the AC shut off, then the car acceleration was severely limited until we got over the top of the mountain and the engine cooled off. The temp gauge never got to H, but was may be 1 or 2 needle widths from it. It was the ECU protecting the engine.

I digress of course, but the behavior sounds very much like that limp home mode.

In our 2014 CX5, we did have a nail in the tire once, and TPMS went off, and honestly, once it went off, I slowed down and pulled over. The other time TPMS went off was because of over pressure. I could not figure out why it kept going off, and it turned out that running the tires cold at about 39 psi was too much on a hot summer day. Never experienced the limp home mode, as I drove to the dealer, after verifying no leaks, no nails no pressure under 35 psi.

 

[sm1ke]

In your case, with your 2019 GTR, yes that's true. But the reason is because the donut spare won't fit on the front due to the size of the brake calipers. The OP has a 2013 and this is not an issue for GEN1 CX-5s. I don't know what the answer is for the OP, but it's not as you describe in your post.

You're right that CX-5s with the turbo engine have larger front brakes and the spare will not fit over the larger brakes. However, the primary reason is not that the spare won't fit on the front. It is a safety concern to put a spare tire on the front driving wheels because handling and traction is affected with a smaller, skinner wheel up front. Mazda states the warning in the Owner's Manual (note that they do not specify a trim level, thus the warning applies to all models). If necessary, you can put the spare on the front to get the vehicle out of harm's way, but a spare should be installed on the rear because it's safer that way.

Regarding the OP's limp mode issue, it sounds like it only happens when the tires are low on air. Keep the tires aired up and see if the issue happens again, but in any event it sounds like you may need a new tire(s).

 

[Chas]

You're right that CX-5s with the turbo engine have larger front brakes and the spare will not fit over the larger brakes. However, the primary reason is not that the spare won't fit on the front. It is a safety concern to put a spare tire on the front driving wheels because handling and traction is affected with a smaller, skinner wheel up front. Mazda states the warning in the Owner's Manual (note that they do not specify a trim level, thus the warning applies to all models). If necessary, you can put the spare on the front to get the vehicle out of harm's way, but a spare should be installed on the rear because it's safer that way.

Regarding the OP's limp mode issue, it sounds like it only happens when the tires are low on air. Keep the tires aired up and see if the issue happens again, but in any event it sounds like you may need a new tire(s).

Yes, I looked in the old 2014 manual, and they had the same warning. As well as one about spinning the wheels excessively which leads you to that other thread

Never spin a wheel that is off the ground:

Spinning a wheel that is off the ground as a result of the vehicle being stuck or in a ditch is dangerous. The drive assembly could be seriously damaged which could lead to an accident or could even lead to overheating, oil leakage, and a fire.

 

[minnesotaart]

You're right that CX-5s with the turbo engine have larger front brakes and the spare will not fit over the larger brakes. However, the primary reason is not that the spare won't fit on the front. It is a safety concern to put a spare tire on the front driving wheels because handling and traction is affected with a smaller, skinner wheel up front. Mazda states the warning in the Owner's Manual (note that they do not specify a trim level, thus the warning applies to all models). If necessary, you can put the spare on the front to get the vehicle out of harm's way, but a spare should be installed on the rear because it's safer that way.

I agree with the safety reasoning as described, but the basic fact that I was addressing with pcardoza is that the spare won't fit on the front wheels of certain trims regardless of it's safe or not, and some owners do not know this!