10,000 miles in a 2022 CX-9 GT

So we're almost 10k Miles in our GT, so decided to do a write up/review of my wife's vehicle.

Exterior: the paint is great and the car still looks great, however it's starting to show its age. The headlights are really low and the rear deck looks ill proportioned for such a large vehicle. Speaking of headlights, again they are very low and have the "twerk", which sucks because they are phenomenal headlights; bright, sharp, focused, and bend effectively on turns. I think it's mainly the hood, it's so long and is 33% the length of the car. One thing I noticed that really sucks, the wheels pick up brake dust easily and if you don't wash it right away, it sticks to the wheels. Alot of older cx9s have those stained 20in wheels and I refuse to let my wife's car look that bad, but its hard work rubbing the residue off and I wash her car weekly.

Interior: the interior is holding up well. Minor plastic creaks, but the body itself is tight. Scratches are starting to show on the piano black pieces. The Infotainment works well, and the dial makes moving around it easier, it's just too many steps to get to specific settings. Wish the mirrors and steering wheel settings saved with the seat, and wish the steering wheel was power adjusting, weird cost cutting from mazda, but love how adjustable it is. Also wish the hud adjusted with settings, hate having to adjust on every cycle. Doing a long car trip, this is very annoying to have to dig in the settings to adjust every time the car is turned off. The seats are pretty firm and seem to have gotten firmer and flatter over time. Also, love how fast and effective the seat ac/heater are as well. They are Long distance supportive though. Havent sat in second and third rows to commment. Also love how quiet it is as well. Cargo space is lacking behind third row, but acceptable when its folded. Stereo is still only ok, it's really good, but only just really good. Music through the USB is better than Bluetooth, however, USB reader is not good and will only read 200 of the 2500 song on the drive at a time and mostly the same files.

The drive: the engine is smooth and quick, not laggy and fast for a turbo. It goes effortlessly on reg fuel. However, it's not very efficient. Three road trips, and not once did it crack 24mpg avg long term and that's driving avg 72mph. The car handles well, after initial roll, tightens up and stays flat, with slight understeer. The steering is light, smooth and tight, no slop. Thr ride is very good, if a bit firm on the highway, but never annoying. It's very good at small bump absorption and compliance and body Control stays flat mostly, but sometimes the back end is tight on certain impacts.

Conclusion: overall, wifey loves the truck. It's a nice piece and I'm happy with her satisfaction. For the price, and despite some odd cost cutting, this truck has a luxury car level feel at a bargain price, but it is getting old, even compared to our 2020 navigator. Looking forward to many more years with our "Indigo".
 
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Great review!

For your info the HUD position can be linked to the seat memory settings. That way you don’t have to adjust it every drive or every time the car is turned off. (At least that’s the case on my 2018, i assume it would be the same for later years)

Also raising the headlight a bit might help. It only requires a phillips screwdriver (and some tinkering to get the right height). They are pretty low when on mazda spec.
 
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I'll look in the manual about the hud settings to link it with the seat. There's nothing in any of the display settings to d9 this though.
 
Correct. It is not in the display settings. If i remember correctly, when you store the seat position into memory, it also stores the HUD position at the same time automatically. On my 2018 there is not a seperate button for it. Basically i think the steps are: set the seat position to where you like it, set the HUD position, then record the seat memory to settings 1 or 2.

I would also have been very annoyed if i had to reposition the HUD every drive. I have never had to change the position if the HUD since setting it up 3 years ago.
 
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A couple of suggestions for the brake dust.

1 - When you wax the car, be sure to wax the wheels. Keeps them shiny and helps prevent brake dust from building up. Makes the wheels much easier to clean as well.

2 - My 2021 CX-9 is my first SUV. One of the largest vehicles I’ve ever owned. One of my concerns is if this larger vehicle will eat through brake pads. One thing that I do that I think helps reduce brake dust is using the paddle shifters to downshift to help slow the car. It’s second nature to me because I’ve always driven manual transmissions most of my life. At nearly 30,000 miles, the service department said my brakes are still in really good shape. I always tap it once or twice so the engine braking helps slow the car. As the car slows down I’ll tap it again.
 
So after playing with it, I realized, the hud stays put after turning off the engine, but hitting the memory button resets it to its original position, as well as prolonged time it being off.
 
Hitting the memory button should reset it to the position it was memorized in. (For example if i hit 2 then the seat and the hud move to position 2).

It the hud was in the original position when you set up the seat position 2 (i.e. you had not moved the hud before memorizing position 2), then that position is now the memory 2 position. And hitting 2 will put the seat and the hud in that position.

Also the seat memory are tied to the keyfobs. If you unlock the car with the keyfob that is linked to the seat memory 2 then the seat and the hud moves to that position when you start the car.
 
I've found the ultimate setting for the HUD: A black piece of construction paper place on top of the screen creates a nice solution to the 'always on' feature.
 
Here is the info from your owner manual. I would do the erase the driving position programmed to the key first, then do the programming steps for the key and then leave the seat and hud in the same position and repeat the the same step but programing it to seat position 1 or 2. That way if it moves you can press 1 or 2 to bring it back.

In your owner manual:

  • The desired driving position (display position, brightness level, display information) can be called up after programming the position.
    Refer to Driving Position Memory (Search).
Erasing programmed driving positions

(Erasing the driving positions programmed to the key)

  1. Switch the ignition OFF.
  2. Press the SET button on the side of the seat until a beep sound is heard 1 time.
  3. After the beep sounds, press the key lock button within 5 seconds until a beep sound is heard 1 time.


If a beep sound is heard 3 times, the operation is canceled

Programming

  1. Make sure the parking brake is on.
  2. Make sure the selector lever is in the P position.
  3. Start the engine.
  4. Adjust the seat and the active driving display to the desired driving position.
  5. Press the SET button on the seat until a beep sound is heard 1 time.
  6. Perform one of the following settings within 5 seconds of completing step 5 above:
    • Programming using a button on the side of the seat
      Press the button you want to program, either button 1 or 2, until a beep sound is heard 1 time.
    • Programming using the key
      Press the key unlock button until a beep sound is heard 1 time.
 
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