2013~2016 CX-5 Strut and Shock replacement

[Voda Pas]

I apologize if this has been answered already. I did a search and came up with nada as far as the CX-5 goes.

Anyhow, my CX-5 is getting ready to hit 60K miles and I'm getting ready to throw on some new tires. So, I figured it'd be a good time to replace the struts/shocks since I'll be getting the alignment done anyhow. However, as I've Googled around I have found a surprising lack of replacement struts/shocks. Tire rack of course has a couple of pricey Koni options, but I'm sorry it's a CX-5 not a MazdaSpeed3 I don't see a need for super-wham-a-dyne suspension components. I did find the OEM struts/shocks of course. However, they are nearly as expensive as the Konis. Other than Koni and OEM I have yet to find any other replacement options. I guess I just find it hard to believe that a car that's been on the market for 3-4 years and is relatively popular would have so little aftermarket support for suspension components.

So, my question is have any CX-5 owners replaced their struts/shocks yet? If so, what brand did you go with? Please let me know if I've missed something or haven't been looking in the right place. Thanks!

 

[CX-5um]

Tire rack is selling the entire set of 4 Koni FSD premium for $616.00. Good deal. Should work with the existing OEM springs to improve handling and braking for every day driving.

 

[russiankid]

The problem with the aftermarket support is that the CX-5 is not exactly a desired car by enthusiasts, so no sense of spending money on R&D if the market is small. If it were me, I wouldn't even bother replacing the strut/shocks at 60k, I'd go to at least 100k before I'd even consider it. Heck my old 89' Accord had 213k on the stock strut/spring setup, granted it did scrape door handles on every hard corner.

 

[Ride92]

Other then Mazda and OEM, KYB also makes some Excel-G struts for the CX-5. Those are about the same as the stock ones so you're not gaining anything.

 

[mazdadude]

Tire rack is selling the entire set of 4 Koni FSD premium for $616.00. Good deal. Should work with the existing OEM springs to improve handling and braking for every day driving.

$220 for the KYB set,
$420 for the oem set,
$620 for the KONI FSD's


I had great luck with the KONI FSD's on my 06 Mazda5, however it would be nice to find some other options available...

You are one of the first I have seen on here contemplating replacements on the forum. Usually only driving enthusiasts or safety enthusiasts (Me included), will be changing theirs at 60k miles. You will find others will say they can last 2 or 3 times as long, yes..., they will still be attached to the car, but not very effective anymore...

You are on the early cusp of available shock options, and others will surely come out as there begins to be a demand.

 

[Mondo]

Put FSDs on my son's Volvo C30 (with Eibach springs) and think it rides better than stock. Heard some negative comments on FSDs leaking but it does come with lifetime replacement

 

[Voda Pas]

mazdadude and Ride 92 - Thank you! The KYB's are exactly what I was looking for. OEM level replacement without the OEM price. I agree that 60K is probably JUST getting to the point of replacing them. But like you mazdadude I fall in the safety camp. The part that suspension plays in braking is so often overlooked. And, while I am not experiencing any suspension problems as of yet it seems logical to me to err on the side of caution and swap them out before I throw the new rubber on and get it aligned.

russiankid - I agree completely that the CX-5 isn't going to see a lot of aftermarket support. First, it's a CUV and second it's a Mazda. Not going to spawn much of an enthusiast following. I guess I should of said third party support. I was surprised there wasn't a suspension manufacturer making OEM grade replacement struts/shocks. (Now that I see KYB is I'm not as surprised.) I was actually really surprised to see that Koni offers not just one, but two replacement options.

But, the Koni's just aren't what I'm looking for. I am sure they would greatly enhance the CX-5's already great handling. But, spirited driving isn't what I bought my CX-5 for. (That's what I'll be getting a Focus RS for! ) So, spending more than twice the cost of the KYB's for the Koni's just doesn't make sense for me.

 

[Voda Pas]

Just for the info of anyone else looking to replace their struts/shocks down the road here are the KYB part numbers:

Front Left - KYB 339337
Front Right - KYB 339336
Rear Shocks - KYB 349219
Strut Boots - KYB SB118

Please feel free to add more CX-5 suspension part numbers to this thread as it will come in handy for when others start looking to replace struts/shocks in the future.

Also, if anyone has the CX-5 shop manual and could post the torque specs for the upper and lower mounting bolts for both the struts and shocks it would be GREATLY appreciated!

 

[silvercoat]

Shock/Strut replacement is completely dependent on what you do over the life of the car I would wager. On my 2003 Chevy S10 (had ZQ8 suspension) the factory Bilsteins lasted me about 100k. 95% of my driving was highway but here they do a lot of road constriction so bumps are the norm. I never really towed anything with it and the bed was never really loaded up. But at about 100k they really lost their ability to dampen and any time I went over a bump the thing would bounce. They were hell to replace mainly due to finding something comparable with the stock ride height/quality/price. Ended up going with some Napa house brand. I think the truck sat a little higher but they worked.

I guess 60k would be reasonable for those who are getting the full life out of the CX5 (towing/kids/long trips/snow) but I would hope they last to 100k or so. I know most of my tires last 50k and they are rated at 50k.

 

[Voda Pas]

silvercoat - Agreed. There are a lot of factors that will determine the life of struts/shocks. (Industry recommends replacing struts/shocks at 50K. Of course for many years industry recommended oil changes every 3K no matter what kind of oil you were running.) In my case I commute on a curvy rural two lane 60 miles round trip. I live in the salt belt so pot holes are a part of life. If one doesn't swallow your call you consider it a good day. I do tow, but nothing terribly heavy (motorcycles). Honestly the thing that has ben the most detrimental to my suspension is the gutter bump at the end of my driveway. Multiple times a day... bump-bump. I don't even want to think how far my alignment is probably off.

 

[CX-5um]

The KYBs are perfect for the OP's situation. He's basically getting the brakes and shocks (although early) done all in one shot.

 

[timberstx]

When I replaced the original struts on my 626 they were stamped KYB. So its possible mazda uses KYB for the CX-5.

 

[Mondo]

let us know what you think of the new shocks

 

[Voda Pas]

let us know what you think of the new shocks

Will do! Just got the struts/shocks in today. Probably won't be till next week or the following weekend that I'll get a chance to install. BTW, in case anyone is looking KYB has a $40 mail in rebate deal running until the end of the month when you buy 4 struts/shocks.

 

[Voda Pas]

So, I've had the new KYB's installed for about a week now and I have to say they are a really great buy. I honestly feel like the CX-5 rides better now than when new. I know that sounds like just something I feel because of the drastic change from the old shocks, but as I also picked up a new 2016 CX-5 (also GT with Tech Pack) I'd say I have a pretty good basis for comparison. Anyhow, I would highly recommend the KYBs for anyone looking for, like myself, just a good set of shocks to directly replace the OEM shocks at a lower price point.

As for the comments about how 60K was too soon to be replacing the shocks... let's just say I'm glad I did. The drivers side rear shock was weeping fluid badly. Not enough to drip noticeably on the garage floor, but definitely enough to hamper the shocks performance. I'm not an aggressive driver by any means, but Southern Indiana roads are not the kindest. Anyhow, just saying for those of you with similar mileage to me, you might be surprised just how worn your shocks are.

 

[mazdadude]

So, I've had the new KYB's installed for about a week now and I have to say they are a really great buy. I honestly feel like the CX-5 rides better now than when new. I know that sounds like just something I feel because of the drastic change from the old shocks, but as I also picked up a new 2016 CX-5 (also GT with Tech Pack) I'd say I have a pretty good basis for comparison. Anyhow, I would highly recommend the KYBs for anyone looking for, like myself, just a good set of shocks to directly replace the OEM shocks at a lower price point.

As for the comments about how 60K was too soon to be replacing the shocks... let's just say I'm glad I did. The drivers side rear shock was weeping fluid badly. Not enough to drip noticeably on the garage floor, but definitely enough to hamper the shocks performance. I'm not an aggressive driver by any means, but Southern Indiana roads are not the kindest. Anyhow, just saying for those of you with similar mileage to me, you might be surprised just how worn your shocks are.

Thank you for the report!

Did you end up replacing the upper rubber mounts also, or just the boot?
Did you do the install, or have a shop perform the strut change?

I hope that I didn't come across as saying it was too early... I think 40-60k miles is max useful life expectancy. On a car that you enjoy the handling on, you might even want to change sooner. I know that with almost 30k miles on mine, I feel like they are ~80% used up.

 

[Voda Pas]

Thank you for the report!

Did you end up replacing the upper rubber mounts also, or just the boot?
Did you do the install, or have a shop perform the strut change?

I hope that I didn't come across as saying it was too early... I think 40-60k miles is max useful life expectancy. On a car that you enjoy the handling on, you might even want to change sooner. I know that with almost 30k miles on mine, I feel like they are ~80% used up.

Well, the KYBs boots came with new bump stops so those were changed. But, not the actual upper mounts.

I did the replacement myself. Took a little doing to find just the right way to get the spring compressors situated so I could disassemble the strut assembly, but that's pretty much par for the course. Besides my compressors suck. Otherwise pretty straight forward process. The lower mounting bolts for the rear shocks are a bit of a chore to get to and I doubt there is a torque wrench (at least one the average man could afford) that can be used on them so you kind of just have to go with snug is snug enough. That and use a good size dead blow hammer and a boxed end wrench to beat them to said level of snugness. A good impact wrench will make the entire job MUCH easier. Oh and watch out for the sway bar end link nuts when removing them as they seem to enjoy cross threading.

Anyhow, no worries. I completely understood people feeling I was changing them out a little on the early side. But, I'm glad I did and I just wanted to give everyone a heads up that they might want to take a look at there shocks as obviously the crappy road conditions that plague most of the US might have taken a toll. I was really shocked when I went to remove that shock and saw it was covered in dirt caked oil.

End of the day the wife has taken over the 2014 CX-5 and I'm happy to be able to give her a car that handles and brakes like new. Well, new plus the 60K miles. Haha. But, it's a Mazda so I have little worries about the drive train.

 

[Chris_Top_Her]

Make sure the suspension is under normal load (not jacked up at all) when removing endlinks; they shouldn't be an issue.

 

[Voda Pas]

Make sure the suspension is under normal load (not jacked up at all) when removing endlinks; they shouldn't be an issue.

Agreed. The issue is caused due to the sway bar attempting to force the link upward as the nut is loosened. However, if you, as I did, put the car up on jack stands all around before starting disassembly there is another option. Prior to loosening the sway bar end link take a decent sized ziptie and wrap it around the end of the sway bar and the lower A-arm (you'll see where I mean as soon as you look at it) then cinch it down. Don't worry the sway bar really isn't exerting that much force and a ziptie holds it no problem. Once I did this the end links were quite easy to remove and reinstall from the strut tab.

 

[ryan4130]

Can anyone else chime in with what struts they've used for replacements? I'm looking at replacing mine soon and am looking for a more comfortable ride. Don't really care about sporty-ness or cornering anymore haha