3 Year Ownership Check In

[IHeartGroceries]

I haven't been hanging around here much lately. Thought I'd swing by and check in. I've made a habit now, posting an annual ownership check in. Well, here's number 3.
My wife drives a loaded 2013 Touring, purchased March 10, 2012. Very early build. About 42K miles on the odo now. Still really love the little car. Still feels solid. It's never seen any additional maintenance, beyond LOF. I perform that service in my garage. XD

Still turns great fuel efficiency, even with my wife's exclusive city mileage, and short duration commute. Stays around 27 MPG. Can't complain about that. Just took it on another lengthy road trip to NOLA earlier this month. Dappled in 8.5K oil change interval, but UOA analysis yielded pretty nasty fuel contamination. Likely, due to driving habits (short commutes). Going to knock it down to 7.5K and see what happens.

Only notable complaints...

The cumbersome infotainment and nav system...same complaint from the beginning. Same complaint nearly everybody shared here. The TomTom nav is downright useless. My wife and I both just use our mobile devices.
It's always creaked from the front end. Sounds like a control arm bushing. It's never really bothered me, so long as everything is still tight in the front end, we're good to go.
The transmission can sometimes downshift very, very harshly. For example, after cruising on the interstate for a while, and throttling to overtake slower traffic, the downshift from 6th gear can sometimes be horrendously violent. Not sure what's up with that. Seems like some of the adaptable logic in the TCM could be the culprit.

And that's it. Great car. I recommend the CX-5 to anybody who asks. Its true trial is on the horizon...my wife and I are expecting our first child in June.

Meanwhile, I've considered getting back into a Mazda myself. My work commute will be tripling in the coming months. Not that the SHO is downright inefficient (20 MPG), and it's damn comfortable and quiet...but, a new Mazda 3s, with a manual trans is really tickling my fancy. I sure miss a manual trans. And 30 MPG sounds wonderful.

Take care!

 

[CC58]

Front end creaking is typically bushings holding front sway bar to chassis (for most cars). I've fixed this on several vehicles by unbolting the two bushings, greasing bar and interior of bushing.

You might see if there is a software update for your computer. May fix the shifting.

Good to see one of the original CX-5s holding up so well.

 

[cybercruiser]

We have Garmin Nuvi's for each car, they do a good job.

 

[IHeartGroceries]

Front end creaking is typically bushings holding front sway bar to chassis (for most cars). I've fixed this on several vehicles by unbolting the two bushings, greasing bar and interior of bushing.

You might see if there is a software update for your computer. May fix the shifting.

Good to see one of the original CX-5s holding up so well.

This is a great thought. Thanks for sharing! I'll check it out. If you pull the sway bar mounts without disconnecting the endlinks from the knuckles/spindles, is there a type of load on the bar, with the car up on ramps? Or, should the car be hoisted when unbolting the mounts? Or should I pull the endlinks off all together?

Thanks for the thoughts!

 

[CX-SV]

Great annual report.

I sold my CX-5 to a family member last summer with 30K miles, same kind of results with ownership experience.

 

[paris1]

My experience with 2013 Touring FWD (9/12 build date) at 20k miles pretty much mirrors yours (except for the squeaky front end). As for the front bushings, I concur with CC58 about the likelihood of it being front sway bar bushings. However, before you go to the trouble of unbolting the hardware in order to lube the bushings, you might try something as simple as spraying the hell out of the bushings with WD-40. I know that sounds less than elegant, but I had the same issue on my wife's last Miata and this actually worked. Surprised the hell out of me as it was motivated by sheer desperation and not wanting to make more of a job of it than I had to, but the noise never came back till we sold the car two years later.
As for the hard-shifting automatic, I have experienced the exact same thing on occasion. I also remember reading an early road test by one of the buff mags that noted something similar. In my case, there's a stretch of freeway incline (maybe 6 degrees) between my home and San Francisco where the transmission does this just about every time I drive it and I've come to the conclusion that the trans is programmed to shift down one gear too many during those particular conditions. I suspect that, if there is a software upgrade (and I checked with my dealer about a year ago for upgrades in general and there were none) it would be to revise the mapping so that it would not go from 6th to 3rd (or whatever gear it's currently programmed to select) under those conditions and maybe limit it to a 6th to 4th downshift. Be that is it may, I've learned to kind of sense when this kind of thing is a possibility and either back off on the throttle a bit to alter the engine vacuum or just put it in manual mode so I can control the downshift. I wonder if owners of later models have noticed the same thing or if Mazda made a running change in 2014 that eliminated this quirk.
One final comment, I'm not surprised your oil analysis is not terrific, since you seem to be ignoring Mazda's recommended oil change intervals, especially given your wife's short commute driving style. Most of my driving is around town too (hence the low mileage on my 2.5 year old car) and I would never dream of pushing it past the 7500 mile "freeway driving" service interval. As it is, I always use the 5k service interval per Mazda's recommendation for city driving. Obviously your wife does a lot more of this kind of driving than I do which would mean more frequent and costly service, but the proof is in the pudding and it doesn't sound like you're doing your little 2 litre any favors by stretching out those oil change intervals!

 

[IHeartGroceries]

Great annual report.

I sold my CX-5 to a family member last summer with 30K miles, same kind of results with ownership experience.

Good to see your still hanging around here! Hope the CX-5 proves just as excellent for your relatives!

My experience with 2013 Touring FWD (9/12 build date) at 20k miles pretty much mirrors yours (except for the squeaky front end). As for the front bushings, I concur with CC58 about the likelihood of it being front sway bar bushings. However, before you go to the trouble of unbolting the hardware in order to lube the bushings, you might try something as simple as spraying the hell out of the bushings with WD-40. I know that sounds less than elegant, but I had the same issue on my wife's last Miata and this actually worked. Surprised the hell out of me as it was motivated by sheer desperation and not wanting to make more of a job of it than I had to, but the noise never came back till we sold the car two years later.
As for the hard-shifting automatic, I have experienced the exact same thing on occasion. I also remember reading an early road test by one of the buff mags that noted something similar. In my case, there's a stretch of freeway incline (maybe 6 degrees) between my home and San Francisco where the transmission does this just about every time I drive it and I've come to the conclusion that the trans is programmed to shift down one gear too many during those particular conditions. I suspect that, if there is a software upgrade (and I checked with my dealer about a year ago for upgrades in general and there were none) it would be to revise the mapping so that it would not go from 6th to 3rd (or whatever gear it's currently programmed to select) under those conditions and maybe limit it to a 6th to 4th downshift. Be that is it may, I've learned to kind of sense when this kind of thing is a possibility and either back off on the throttle a bit to alter the engine vacuum or just put it in manual mode so I can control the downshift. I wonder if owners of later models have noticed the same thing or if Mazda made a running change in 2014 that eliminated this quirk.
One final comment, I'm not surprised your oil analysis is not terrific, since you seem to be ignoring Mazda's recommended oil change intervals, especially given your wife's short commute driving style. Most of my driving is around town too (hence the low mileage on my 2.5 year old car) and I would never dream of pushing it past the 7500 mile "freeway driving" service interval. As it is, I always use the 5k service interval per Mazda's recommendation for city driving. Obviously your wife does a lot more of this kind of driving than I do which would mean more frequent and costly service, but the proof is in the pudding and it doesn't sound like you're doing your little 2 litre any favors by stretching out those oil change intervals!

I'll try that. Thanks!
Also, pretty interesting about the bizarre shifting issue. For me, the transmission has proven to otherwise be flawless. In fact, it's the sweetest part of the machine. Work of art by Mazda. I agree it's got to be some skewed logic in its programming. When the conditions/variables are right, the gremlin presents itself. It can perform downshifts pretty well usually. But, it's fairly common occurrence, actually, when you really hammer it. My wife doesn't hammer it often, so I'm sure it's not a phenomenon she experiences often. Wonder if pulling the negative battery terminal for a while, in order to "reset" any adaptive logic might make any difference.

Originally, the CX-5 saw considerably more highway mileage. She then had a reduction in commuting distance, and so the conditions changed quite a bit. Before, I had always used about a 6,000 mile interval. Really, intended to stick with it. But, the mileage got away from me. Heh. The fuel saturation wasn't nearly as bad with the highway miles, with a 6,000 interval. So, I know it is exclusively the short driving distances causing the problem. But, 8,500 was a real stretch. Won't do that again. But, I do intend to run it up to 7K, or 7.5K, just for comparison purposes. Even with the heavy fuel delusion, the lubricating properties still seemed okay.

To be fair, I run my SHO up to 7.5K intervals, and even though I do operate significantly more on highway miles, I've had two consecutive UOAs on the SHO, both about 7,500 miles, both yielding only trace amounts of fuel. This is the 3.5l TT EB, with GDI.
Interesting that the Mazda has the issue so severely...

 

[paris1]

I would imagine "hammering" the throttle calls for similar logic from the transmission ECU as the situation I've experienced. On the one had the computer wakes up and says "Whoa, this guy wants to go right now! I'd better downshift like crazy to make him happy." On the other (my 6% grade), the computer wakes up and says "Whoa, we're running out of torque quick on this hill. I'd better downshift like crazy so this guy won't notice that I only have 150 # feet to play with and starts thinking about trading me in for a 2.5!"

 

[madar]

WD-40 isn't good for rubber, better option would be silicone spray with no petroleum additives.

 

[piotrek91]

"Whoa, we're running out of torque quick on this hill. I'd better downshift like crazy so this guy won't notice that I only have 150 # feet to play with and starts thinking about trading me in for a 2.5!"

That is exactly what's going through the ECU as it's calculating its next move

I suspect the harsh downshift might have something to do with meeting these impressive performance targets for the transmission.

 

[piotrek91]

And that's it. Great car. I recommend the CX-5 to anybody who asks. Its true trial is on the horizon...my wife and I are expecting our first child in June.

My Wife and I also have a child on the way (due early may), and unfortunately that means that she'll likely become the primary driver of the CX-5 and I'll be suck commuting in her automatic 02 civic coupe.
As soon as my CX-5 gets paid of in the next few months we'll be getting her a new car so I can get my cx-5 back!

 

[paris1]

That is exactly what's going through the ECU as it's calculating its next move

I suspect the harsh downshift might have something to do with meeting these impressive performance targets for the transmission.

It's that second line (6 to 3 @60mph) that causes the problem. And we all know this trans wants to be in 6th as much as possible! Maybe if they had let that one shift slip to 2/10 of a second like the German (?) DSCs, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

 

[inlinev]

While I'm not at all familiar with the transmission phenomenon, I already see a common point here, the 2.0 engine that the 2013 came with. I wonder if the different power curve of the 2.5 doesn't yield such results because the vehicle has more power.

 

[paris1]

While I'm not at all familiar with the transmission phenomenon, I already see a common point here, the 2.0 engine that the 2013 came with. I wonder if the different power curve of the 2.5 doesn't yield such results because the vehicle has more power.

That's what I kinda' suspect. The added torque may have given the engineers an opportunity to revise the shift mapping.

 

[CC58]

This is a great thought. Thanks for sharing! I'll check it out. If you pull the sway bar mounts without disconnecting the endlinks from the knuckles/spindles, is there a type of load on the bar, with the car up on ramps? Or, should the car be hoisted when unbolting the mounts? Or should I pull the endlinks off all together?

Thanks for the thoughts!

The only time there is a load on the sway bar is when one wheel is at a different level than the other. On level ground there is no load. I believe I used to pull the end links, mainly so I could twist the sway bar around to spread the silicon grease on the chassis bushings. I've tried quick fixes, such as sprays or even syringe filled with grease, but no substitute for removing bushing and greasing sway bar and interior of bushing. Regular bushing squeak is almost guaranteed if you replace the factory rubber with stiff performance polyurethane. If you let the factory rubber bushing squeak to long, it will bugger up the surface like a pencil eraser and you will have to replace bushings and not just lube them. Only a few cars I've owned had this problem, and my CX-5 has been quiet so far.

 

[Panther]

Thanks so much for checking back in, it was very good to hear your Positive review
and thoughts on things.

Look forward to hearing Year 4 !!!

Take Care,

CK

 

[Don.Eich]

On my second CX 5 got the first one oct of 2012 a sport 3.0 with touch screen good gas mpg but lacked power ok ride just traded it in 3 weeks ago for a good deal on a 2015 grand touring loaded love this one much nicer ride, noticeable power increase, quieter ride now I get around 29 mpg.
wife has a 2015 mazda 6 I sport she loves and son got his hands on a 1994 mazda Miata M edition in mint condition from a one owner old lady who drove it 2000 mile a year and kept it garaged

 

[GAXIBM]

I picked up one of the first GT 2013s and have 47000 miles. Just returned from a 1500 mile trip and the computer shows 33.8 average mpg. I run about 73 on the interstate. No issues so far. Wife took a recent trip with a friend in a new CVR base model and was not impressed, said it was loud and rough...

 

[CaboWabo]

whats a CVR?

 

[Goguinness]

whats a CVR?

It is a Honda Crossover Utility Vehicle, which is comparable to the CX-5 in almost every category.