2021.5 CX-9 Vibration at Highway Speeds

[Rfernandes1]

I’m having the same issue on our 22 cx9 signature. I think it’s making our little guy sick or cranky in the car cause he seems completely fine in our other car with the same car seat. Does the rear axle replacement solve the issue? Or is it something else. Been to 2 different dealers and the 2nd one was more inclined to try and fix. There were 2 other cX9s with the same issue present that mazda keeps seeming as normal….

 

[Fawiek]

I’m having the same issue on our 22 cx9 signature. I think it’s making our little guy sick or cranky in the car cause he seems completely fine in our other car with the same car seat. Does the rear axle replacement solve the issue? Or is it something else. Been to 2 different dealers and the 2nd one was more inclined to try and fix. There were 2 other cX9s with the same issue present that mazda keeps seeming as normal….

Hey, my issues with vibrations were solved after the dealer changed both rear CV shafts. A couple things to note, I have xice 3 winter tires mounted on new rims that also experienced the same issues as the summer wheels. I also had both sets of wheels balanced on the hunter road force, which is a better machine than the typical/ normal wheel balancing machine-- tough to locate a shop with it with an operator that knows how to use it well.

Interested to see your results.

The replacement of the rear CV shafts on the cx9 was suggested by someone else on these forums, which I used to sell my case. I can't take credit for this fix but based on my own experiences I can confirm this resolved my problems 100%.

Kid doesn't get sick back there anymore

 

[B_C2021]

It's the tires. I have the same issue with my 2021.5 CX-9 Kuro since new. Also noticed the vibrations on the first highway drive, in the steering wheel, and seats to a lesser degree. Currently at 1200 km. The car drives extremely well except in the 100-120 km/h range. Unfortunately, both OEM tire choices are preety poor for this car. I have the Bridgestone Ecopias. One look at Tire Rack reviews will show that Falkens and Ecopias are dead last in their respective category. Thinking back to my test drives on the 2021 Kuro and GT trims (with Ecopias), both test cars had vibrations to a certain degree on the highway. I believe the issue is more prevalent on this car with 20" rims and that some individuals may not be susceptible to vibrations as much. I certainly will not be able to accept the highway driving as is, until the problem is completely fixed. My dealer mentioned that this was the first time they have run into this problem on a CX-9 as well.

The first dealer visit was at 500 km. They acknowledged the vibrations and performed conventional balancing of all 4 tires, and found that the front two tires were out of balance from factory. The ride felt slightly better for the remainder of that day. Next day, same problem. It seems that tires are flat spotting when the car is sitting overnight. Second dealer visit was at 1000 km (yes I drove a lot in the first week of ownership). The dealer performed an alignment (slight correction to front left), took all 4 tires off the rims, rotated tires 180 degrees on each rim, and performed conventional balancing. They confirmed that the vibrations were less noticeable, but not completely gone. They will proceed to perform road force balancing at another dealer early next week, since they don't have the machine in-house. I drove the car on the highway this afternoon, and the vibrations were almost unnoticeable. Eager to see what the situation will be like tomorrow. If the road force balancing doesn't work, the dealer will request a new set of tires and rims from Mazda Canada. I'm not pleased with these problems on a new vehicle, but the dealer has been very supportive and they confirmed that they will solve the issue.

In another CX-9 vibration thread on the forum, one of the users was able to solve the issue permanently by switching to Michelin Premier LTX tires. I will report my findings early next week.

Did you ever get your vibrations issues resolved?

 

[B_C2021]

So I'm still scheduled to replace the CV shafts later this month but wanted to provide an update on something else. Before doing the rear CV shafts I wanted to be damn sure it's not the stock tires/rims (falkens on 20's)... As they're known to be of crud quality.

I had a tire shop change my tires to the Michelin x-ice tires on steel rims (18inch) and also asked them to roadforce the winter set-- which they did.

Problem with vibrations still there. Visor, phone on the magnet, all seats, front mirror etc vibrates still in the same way. It's to the point where my six year old often vomits in the car from getting car sick (doesn't happen on our other older car that doesn't vibrate).
We've had this car since brand new and on top our oil changes (Pennzoil platinum) and all other maintenance at the dealer.

So now that by process of elimination I've ruled out the Falken tires, hopefully it's fixed with the rear CV shafts. If this is the case, Mazda ought to recall this and not give consumers the run around for years and force the community to come together in this way. Shouldn't expect this in a flagship.

Other than this, I do like the car very much... But this issue is enough for me to leave the company. Even if they put a loyalty credit in finance for returning customers on the table...

Will update you guys in two weeks or so.

Did the cv shafts get replaced? Did it help your vibration issues?

 

[Longreach]

This issue could have easily been avoided if Mazda still allowed us to buy the FWD only CX-9! Better mileage too…

(spoken by someone who lives where it never snows)

 

[Fawiek]

Did the cv shafts get replaced? Did it help your vibration issues?

Yup, I posted a fulsome update, possibly in another thread. Coles notes is, replacing both my rear CV's 100% fixed the vibration issues I was having. A few other CX9 owners reported this fix for them as well. I can't take the credit as someone else (smike?) suggested it I think... but demand this be done under warranty!

 

[AccGuru]

THREAD SUMMARY:
It’s not the tires. If you switch wheels and tires and the vibration remains it’s the rear CV joints. Mines out of warranty so I get to do these suckers myself. Fun!

 

[uos]

THREAD SUMMARY:
It’s not the tires. If you switch wheels and tires and the vibration remains it’s the rear CV joints. Mines out of warranty so I get to do these suckers myself. Fun!

My Mazda dealer refuse to believe that there are any vibrations in the vehicle. I have done road force personally 2 times, it reduces the vibrations but they come back after a few weeks.
Does anyone have the part numbers to those rear CV joints? I may have to put the money myself to replace them even though my cx-9 is still under bumper to bumper warranty.
But lesson learned, Never again I will buy an extended warranty, its very easy for dealers to just refuse the problem, wtf a customer gonna do? My driver side mirror shakes at 60 mph, the dealer refused the issue, they said car is running on the road, there is bound to be vibration, except that there is no vibration at the passenger side mirror. but they make you look like as if you're out of your mind.

 

[11E20]

Interesting about your driver's side mirror. My 2019 CX-9 GT driver's side mirror also vibrates and has done so now for well over a year but the passenger side is solid as a rock. I'm getting rid of this SUV in February and don't drive very much so I have just lived with it but it can be annoying. Good luck.

 

[uos]

Interesting about your driver's side mirror. My 2019 CX-9 GT driver's side mirror also vibrates and has done so now for well over a year but the passenger side is solid as a rock. I'm getting rid of this SUV in February and don't drive very much so I have just lived with it but it can be annoying. Good luck.

Did you get the car brand new? and the shaking was since the beginning?

 

[11E20]

Did you get the car brand new? and the shaking was since the beginning?

Yes, I bought it brand new in Feb, 2019 from my local Mazda dealer. As I mentioned in my post the driver's mirror started shaking for more than the last year or so.

The mirror has also exhibited some strange behavior intermittently such as partially folding up when opening the door and then spontaneously reopening. Also the passenger mirror at times will not fold in all the way when locking the car. I did mention both of those things to the dealer who couldn't replicate the problem, of course. In addition I posted about these mirror issues on this forum but nobody seems to know anything about that. Again, good luck.

 

[Fruitwolf]

I have a 2018. The right side 2nd row, bench seat has always had a significant, noisy vibration. I have to “separate” it from the other split side to quiet it. Also, after purchase, I found a large paint defect on the roof. But that’s another story.
Good news is, it’s got 103k miles and still runs great.

 

[PTguy]

And, it might be only one rear CV joint, but no shop will replace one unless it visually looks bad and possibly face a returning angry customer with a not-fixed problem.

I checked Mazda parts suppliers. The axles and the required axle nuts are backordered. If you want to do the job try phoning some local dealers or on line suppliers and inquire about expected shipment dates.

 

[uos]

And, it might be only one rear CV joint, but no shop will replace one unless it visually looks bad and possibly face a returning angry customer with a not-fixed problem.

I checked Mazda parts suppliers. The axles and the required axle nuts are backordered. If you want to do the job try phoning some local dealers or on line suppliers and inquire about expected shipment dates.

Would you mind letting me know the part number to ask for? When I ask for rear CV joint then I am asked other questions around bushings etc, that I have no answer for. So if I could get the part number then I will order it and give the car to my local mechanic, because mazda doesnt think anything is wrong with my vehicle.

 

[Fawiek]

My Mazda dealer refuse to believe that there are any vibrations in the vehicle. I have done road force personally 2 times, it reduces the vibrations but they come back after a few weeks.
Does anyone have the part numbers to those rear CV joints? I may have to put the money myself to replace them even though my cx-9 is still under bumper to bumper warranty.
But lesson learned, Never again I will buy an extended warranty, its very easy for dealers to just refuse the problem, wtf a customer gonna do? My driver side mirror shakes at 60 mph, the dealer refused the issue, they said car is running on the road, there is bound to be vibration, except that there is no vibration at the passenger side mirror. but they make you look like as if you're out of your mind.

That's exactly my experience as well. The driver mirror was apparently replaced, but it behaved the same way. I personally don't think it was replaced because they'll be quick to show me the outgoing parts.

The rear CV's were replaced and looked new.

It runs great now, but took a few years and bruises from the dealer to get here. Not buying another Mazda EVER again. For such a small company, their service is not great.

 

[walt]

I have this vibration on my 2020 CX5. Bought it new and I noticed at 65 MPH and up. It's a body and wheel vibe. Not a shimmy in the wheel. Was always too busy to take to dealer since my wife drove it and rarely above 70 MPH. I thought it was the TOYO's. So at 45k miles replaced tires with Goodyears. Exact same vibration. Made the tire dealer replace tires with Michelins. Exact same vibration. Still have 7k miles on warranty so I'm gonna take it in. I know it's not tires. I suspect front CV axle/axles. I hate dealers. The service writers will ALWAYS say 'I never heard of that'. I think they are trained that way.
19" Grand Touring wheels. Front wheel drive. Any advice?

edit: How did dealer know it was your rear CV axle vs front?

 

[Fawiek]

I have this vibration on my 2020 CX5. Bought it new and I noticed at 65 MPH and up. It's a body and wheel vibe. Not a shimmy in the wheel. Was always too busy to take to dealer since my wife drove it and rarely above 70 MPH. I thought it was the TOYO's. So at 45k miles replaced tires with Goodyears. Exact same vibration. Made the tire dealer replace tires with Michelins. Exact same vibration. Still have 7k miles on warranty so I'm gonna take it in. I know it's not tires. I suspect front CV axle/axles. I hate dealers. The service writers will ALWAYS say 'I never heard of that'. I think they are trained that way.
19" Grand Touring wheels. Front wheel drive. Any advice?

edit: How did dealer know it was your rear CV axle vs front?

The service dealers looked at everything, from tires, bent rims etc. If I didn't have my winter xice tires mounted on a different set of rims, I had nothing to stand on with them. After I was able to dispute all that AND show that I paid twice out of pocket for the road force balancing on both sets of rims, then they agreed to start looking into it. This was fully under warranty as well btw as I too bought the vehicle new.

The service manager suggested to change the driveshaft but indicated he was not doing anything else for me under warranty with respect to vibrations. I didn't want to commit to that, as he couldn't defend why he chose to replace the driveshaft over anything else. (Control arms, CVs, shocks etc).
I had that commitment from him and told him I will think about it and research it a bit more before going forward.

Then I came across the CV (rears) issue here posted by another member. Took my issue back to the dealer and he agreed to change only the rear CVs, again, nothing else further if that wasn't it. Well, it was better but my vibrations never truly went away. My kid still pleads for us to drive long distances in my wife's Kia Seltos over our CX9 GT.

Oh, and everyone will have an issue with the AC condenser leaking from the bottom passenger side as its prone to 'rust' out from debris, road salt or another metal nearby. It's covered under a recall from another country, not Canada though.

Anyways, the vehicle itself never had any mechanical issues, comfortable and well designed. Ultimately, the run around from the dealers and the general unfriendly she distasteful attitudes from the service reps/ manager (at 3 different locations) will keep me clear from any Mazda going forward. I know each car has issues, but it goes beyond that for me.

Goodluck!