Brand New 2022 CX-5 Transmission Problems? Updated!

Picked up a new 2022 CX5 last week. Mostly expressway driving home and I didn't notice anything unusual. Next day take off and 1-2 up shift hesitation like the car took a pause to think about it then launches forward like it skipped second gear. Next up shift it shifts hard. When I slow for the first stop about 900 feet away I get to about 10 mph and lightly let off brake and car launched forward like it was bumped from rear then slows again. It was almost like a solenoid was sticking or the torque converter was stuck. Over several trips the last 4 days and about 388 miles it gradually got better and the last 2 trips were flawless. Then today on cold take off (2 min warmup) hesitation on 1-2 up shift and bang into 3rd. So far its done this mostly on light throttle and/or cold take off. I know a 30 mile trip to the dealer for service is in order. I'm just curious if issues like this are common on new Mazda and I made a mistake in purchasing one. I love the car, never had an issue with older Mazda's, but problems like this out of the box isn't a good sign.

Update: After 207 more miles.
Since my post I haven't had any more unusual shifts. The car had 90+ miles on it when I picked it up and after reading more posts I'm thinking the learn cycle may have been under more aggressive driving than my old man putter. The town I live in is 25mph max so it got quite a few shifts in the lower gears before hitting any main stretches. All prior problems were on fresh takeoffs. The car just wants to go. Anyway, its a very crisp transmission and seems to be fine for now. I'm keeping a record for future reference should it be needed. Maybe the learning cycle goes both ways, car & driver.
 
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Hi, OP.
If I were you I would disconnect the (-) battery terminal for a few minutes, and reconnect it.
This forces transmission logic to reset whatever it has learned before (like it was new from factory).
This is does not solve the problem, you can go back to dealer.
(note: you will also lose your auto-window setting, favorite radio stations, etc. Just set them again.)

Modern transmission learns from your driving (and whoever drove it before you).
 
The OP did not make a mistake buying a Mazda. Of course his issue is not common on new Mazdas. Before he decides he should have purchased a Subaru (!) let the dealer have a look at it.
 
Picked up a new 2022 CX5 last week. Mostly expressway driving home and I didn't notice anything unusual. Next day take off and 1-2 up shift hesitation like the car took a pause to think about it then launches forward like it skipped second gear. Next up shift it shifts hard. When I slow for the first stop about 900 feet away I get to about 10 mph and lightly let off brake and car launched forward like it was bumped from rear then slows again. It was almost like a solenoid was sticking or the torque converter was stuck. Over several trips the last 4 days and about 388 miles it gradually got better and the last 2 trips were flawless. Then today on cold take off (2 min warmup) hesitation on 1-2 up shift and bang into 3rd. So far its done this mostly on light throttle and/or cold take off. I know a 30 mile trip to the dealer for service is in order. I'm just curious if issues like this are common on new Mazda and I made a mistake in purchasing one. I love the car, never had an issue with older Mazda's, but problems like this out of the box isn't a good sign.
No, the SkyActiv 6 speed may be dated, but it is not known to be fragile or issue prone. This falls under the "sometimes anything can happen" banner.
 
Picked up a new 2022 CX5 last week. Mostly expressway driving home and I didn't notice anything unusual. Next day take off and 1-2 up shift hesitation like the car took a pause to think about it then launches forward like it skipped second gear. Next up shift it shifts hard. When I slow for the first stop about 900 feet away I get to about 10 mph and lightly let off brake and car launched forward like it was bumped from rear then slows again. It was almost like a solenoid was sticking or the torque converter was stuck. Over several trips the last 4 days and about 388 miles it gradually got better and the last 2 trips were flawless. Then today on cold take off (2 min warmup) hesitation on 1-2 up shift and bang into 3rd. So far its done this mostly on light throttle and/or cold take off. I know a 30 mile trip to the dealer for service is in order. I'm just curious if issues like this are common on new Mazda and I made a mistake in purchasing one. I love the car, never had an issue with older Mazda's, but problems like this out of the box isn't a good sign.

There have been reports of some new Mazdas with various low fluids.
 
There have been reports of some new Mazdas with various low fluids.

Despite that, I don't think any of those vehicles were experiencing the same issues the OP is. Sounds like a one-off issue.
 
Picked up a new 2022 CX5 last week. Mostly expressway driving home and I didn't notice anything unusual. Next day take off and 1-2 up shift hesitation like the car took a pause to think about it then launches forward like it skipped second gear. Next up shift it shifts hard. When I slow for the first stop about 900 feet away I get to about 10 mph and lightly let off brake and car launched forward like it was bumped from rear then slows again. It was almost like a solenoid was sticking or the torque converter was stuck. Over several trips the last 4 days and about 388 miles it gradually got better and the last 2 trips were flawless. Then today on cold take off (2 min warmup) hesitation on 1-2 up shift and bang into 3rd. So far its done this mostly on light throttle and/or cold take off. I know a 30 mile trip to the dealer for service is in order. I'm just curious if issues like this are common on new Mazda and I made a mistake in purchasing one. I love the car, never had an issue with older Mazda's, but problems like this out of the box isn't a good sign.
My brand new 2022 CX-5 does the exact same thing. Very erratic shifts in first 3 gears. I was hoping it was just in the learning phase since it only has 200 miles.
 
I've been driving a 2021 NA 2.5 loaner for the past month (roughly 1000 miles). Besides the lack of power (compared to my CE turbo), the transmission doesn't seem to be able to make up it's mind what it wants to do.

The 2.5T transmission shifts as expected, and behaves almost like a manual would.

Sport mode on the NA is even worse, it can never seem to figure out what to do unless it's in cruise control on the highway. I've noticed (occasionally) during normal, gradual/steady acceleration it'll upshift then downshift only to upshift again.
 
I've been driving a 2021 NA 2.5 loaner for the past month (roughly 1000 miles). Besides the lack of power (compared to my CE turbo), the transmission doesn't seem to be able to make up it's mind what it wants to do.
It's a loaner. It learned driving styles from all sorts of drivers. It got confused. :confused:
 
It's a loaner. It learned driving styles from all sorts of drivers. It got confused. :confused:
I view that idea with a great deal of skepticism. You'll find many new car complaints spread across this forum regarding less than smooth shifting with the 2.5L normally aspirated engine with cylinder deactivation, particularly in low gears.

Mine was a 2020 dealer loaner that had 4,000 miles on it when purchased. After putting my own 4,000 miles on it low gear lugging remained persistent when not in sport mode or when giving it some zoom-zoom. This would occur when 1) dropping RPMs going into a low speed right turn then accelerating out of it and 2) giving it gas after a light changed green, then letting off the gas when realizing the guy in front is dawdling, then reaccelerating. In other words, failing to drop down a gear, typically from second to first or third to second, resulting in a lug.

It wasn't the vehicle "learning" my driving style that went a long way toward resolving my issue. It was a reflash to the current PCM at that 8,000 mile mark (June 2021) per TSB 05-002/20 (attached below) which wasn't even indicated as a lugging fix, rather for a double bump in low gears. Mine still lugs on occasion, but less frequently and for shorter duration. If I had to guess they tweaked the torque curve. And from 8,000 miles to the current 13,000 miles the vehicle drives the same. As an aside, it also drives the same after reconnecting the battery after extended snow birding.

Others have reported that turning off traction control smooths out low gear shifting, more sprightly off the mark, but in testing I found leaving TCS on while giving it a little more gas yields the same result. Pre-TSB, sport mode prevented lugging as well.

So far as I can tell, this TSB has not been updated for versions beyond 2020 and I have not run across any other TSBs that address less than smooth shifting, yet 2021 new car drivers have reported iffy shifting as well. Now we have a 2022 driver voicing similar complaints. Unless Mazda rolled back some PCM changes it could just be a matter of degree. Post-TSB, I'd say mine is much better in the nagging lug department but I would not characterize it as a smooth transmission in casual driving. I've concluded it is in the nature of the beast that the harder you drive it (sport mode, manual shift or otherwise) the smoother it performs.

One technique I've found helpful is to leave some decent space, maybe a car length, behind a car at a light, or just pause a bit as it pulls away, where you can smooth acceleration into third gear.

For all the issues people choose to ascribe to cylinder deactivation, for my money it's about how the engine and transmission are integrated, a modified engine with an unmodified (?) transmission. If sport mode or TCS off resolves the low gear shifting as many claim CD per se is not the issue.

Low gear shifting in casual driving is the lone complaint I have about a vehicle with a lot of bang for the buck after 1.5 years and 9,000 miles of driving, and it is not a particularly onerous issue after getting accustomed to it under the heading "adapting to the tool" in getting used to how picky it is about how you modulate the gas. In another vehicle, something else would be bothersome. I would say that if one does a lot of stop-and-go driving (I don't) and is not inclined to drive in sport mode, with the manual shifter or just giving it some zoom zoom, the turbo or another vehicle might be preferable.
 

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Mine was a 2020 dealer loaner that had 4,000 miles on it when purchased. After putting my own 4,000 miles on it low gear lugging remained persistent when not in sport mode or when giving it some zoom-zoom. This would occur when 1) dropping RPMs going into a low speed right turn then accelerating out of it and 2) giving it gas after a light changed green, then letting off the gas when realizing the guy in front is dawdling, then reaccelerating. In other words, failing to drop down a gear, typically from second to first or third to second, resulting in a lug.

Yep, my '17 has the same "gone stupid" scenario, as you describe. Like some bug in torque calculations for low speed on-off-back on accelerator sequences. Most often when it is in 3rd, then refusing to drop to 2nd at small urgings, and sometimes near floored accelerator commands. I notice it most on slow u-turns, when finishing the turn and needing some extra zoom zoom at the end.
 
There's a reason that one of the 1st steps in CPOing a used Mazda (regardless of miles) is updating the PCM and TCM to the latest versions. I've seen lots of transmission quirks go away after an update
 
Absolutely. On my 2018 CX5 the issues were fixed/resolved when I updated the PCM and the TCM. Rarely the dealer updates the TCM. 2017 and 2018 models have at least few updates from the years after initial release. Latest calibrations are from around mid-2021.
 
Yep, my '17 has the same "gone stupid" scenario, as you describe. Like some bug in torque calculations for low speed on-off-back on accelerator sequences. Most often when it is in 3rd, then refusing to drop to 2nd at small urgings, and sometimes near floored accelerator commands. I notice it most on slow u-turns, when finishing the turn and needing some extra zoom zoom at the end.
That would indicate this behavior is not at all related to cylinder deactivation modifications which seems to be the scapegoat for anything that ails.

Ditto on the U-turns. Ditto in thinking it's torque calibration, which saw considerable improvement, though not a complete cure, with the aforementioned TSB applied to my 2020. More correctly stated, it may not have been the TSB per se, instead a reflash to the current PCM version.

I can't comment on near-floored performance since I nearly never push it that hard. A couple of Italian tune-ups going from dawdling 50 to to red line and 85 MPH didn't cause any shifting issues, though I was probably already in 5th. or overdrive at the get go.
 
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There's a reason that one of the 1st steps in CPOing a used Mazda (regardless of miles) is updating the PCM and TCM to the latest versions. I've seen lots of transmission quirks go away after an update
The TSB I referenced in post #10 was not updated to include my vehicle until after after I bought it, if that happened to be the basis for resolving most of my lugging situations. I have no reason to believe the dealer failed to update the software to the current version at the time.
 
Yes, you got the latest PCM version for your car at the time of the update. They can only install whatever the latest is. Also all current versions are cumulative of prior ones.
And you most likely dont have the latest TCM update since its not part of the TSB. Dealers usually dont go beyond whats written in the TSB.
not to mention that the TCM updates also require calibration procedure of the automatic transmission after any TCM version updates.
CPO is another story , as dunhillmc said "usually" the dealer puts whatever latest is for both PCM and TCM.
 
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Yes, you got the latest PCM version for your car at the time of the update. They can only install whatever the latest is. Also all current versions are cumulative of prior ones.
And you most likely dont have the latest TCM update since its not part of the TSB. Dealers usually dont go beyond whats written in the TSB.
not to mention that the TCM updates also require calibration procedure of the automatic transmission after any TCM version updates.
CPO is another story , as dunhillmc said "usually" the dealer puts whatever latest is for both PCM and TCM.
I see. I was under the impression that there is no separate TCM--both engine and trans controls imbedded in the PCM as the term "powertrain" suggests.

When I go to a dealer around June for an an oil change I'll explain that the TCB they applied last June did not entirely fix the lugging issue. I'll see if I can wrangle a free check for the most current software(s) and an update to current if necessary. It won't be the dealer I bought it from 200 miles from home, but they were quite accommodating the first time around, applying the previous TSB I had in hand (or should I say the PCM reflash) with no questions asked.

It would seem dealer practice should extend to new cars as well. In normal times, the time gap between manufacture and purchase can be many months. By the time a new car is sold the software could be out of date. Out of curiosity, are those updates SOP in new car dealer prep?
 
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Try turning off the TCS and see if there is a difference. The CX-5 will shift different with the TCS off. Not sure if the 2022 models have a TCS button.
 
Picked up a new 2022 CX5 last week. Mostly expressway driving home and I didn't notice anything unusual. Next day take off and 1-2 up shift hesitation like the car took a pause to think about it then launches forward like it skipped second gear. Next up shift it shifts hard. When I slow for the first stop about 900 feet away I get to about 10 mph and lightly let off brake and car launched forward like it was bumped from rear then slows again. It was almost like a solenoid was sticking or the torque converter was stuck. Over several trips the last 4 days and about 388 miles it gradually got better and the last 2 trips were flawless. Then today on cold take off (2 min warmup) hesitation on 1-2 up shift and bang into 3rd. So far its done this mostly on light throttle and/or cold take off. I know a 30 mile trip to the dealer for service is in order. I'm just curious if issues like this are common on new Mazda and I made a mistake in purchasing one. I love the car, never had an issue with older Mazda's, but problems like this out of the box isn't a good sign.

Update: After 207 more miles.
Since my post I haven't had any more unusual shifts. The car had 90+ miles on it when I picked it up and after reading more posts I'm thinking the learn cycle may have been under more aggressive driving than my old man putter. The town I live in is 25mph max so it got quite a few shifts in the lower gears before hitting any main stretches. All prior problems were on fresh takeoffs. The car just wants to go. Anyway, its a very crisp transmission and seems to be fine for now. I'm keeping a record for future reference should it be needed. Maybe the learning cycle goes both ways, car & driver.
Was this ever resolved by the Mazda Dealer? If so what was the result from them. I am curious if it was low Transmission Fluid due to low engine temp.
 
Picked up a new 2022 CX5 last week. Mostly expressway driving home and I didn't notice anything unusual. Next day take off and 1-2 up shift hesitation like the car took a pause to think about it then launches forward like it skipped second gear. Next up shift it shifts hard. When I slow for the first stop about 900 feet away I get to about 10 mph and lightly let off brake and car launched forward like it was bumped from rear then slows again. It was almost like a solenoid was sticking or the torque converter was stuck. Over several trips the last 4 days and about 388 miles it gradually got better and the last 2 trips were flawless. Then today on cold take off (2 min warmup) hesitation on 1-2 up shift and bang into 3rd. So far its done this mostly on light throttle and/or cold take off. I know a 30 mile trip to the dealer for service is in order. I'm just curious if issues like this are common on new Mazda and I made a mistake in purchasing one. I love the car, never had an issue with older Mazda's, but problems like this out of the box isn't a good sign.

Update: After 207 more miles.
Since my post I haven't had any more unusual shifts. The car had 90+ miles on it when I picked it up and after reading more posts I'm thinking the learn cycle may have been under more aggressive driving than my old man putter. The town I live in is 25mph max so it got quite a few shifts in the lower gears before hitting any main stretches. All prior problems were on fresh takeoffs. The car just wants to go. Anyway, its a very crisp transmission and seems to be fine for now. I'm keeping a record for future reference should it be needed. Maybe the learning cycle goes both ways, car & driver.
I purchaed my 2022 mazda cx5 na in Feb 22 and immediay noticed a similar quirk - I read the manual and it stated that it was designed to stay in second rolling up to a near stop - which i discounted as the issue - what i found was the brake master cylinder was holding for a split second after releasing - not allowing the trans to engauge - so ive waited at stops and once i know that the brake pedal is up - off i go - its getting better and i believe they just made the thing to snug or without a sufficent release mechsnisim - mainly when new - its popping up much faster than it used to - hope that helps
 
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