Considering Used 2016 CX-5 Purchase

[Dermochelys]

NEED HELP QUICK! Considering Used 2016 CX-5 Purchase: Update: Not Buying Stand Down.

I may be buying a car tomorrow, and I have a few final questions after an extensive inspection of the car today. If people can respond tonight, that would be great.

The car I'm looking at is a 2016 (not a .5 model) FWD Touring listed at $19,550 with 40,500 miles on the odometer and is listed as a "Mazada Certified Pre-Owned Car". No Bose or Tech packages. The car is a former rental, and appears to be in fine working order (post inspection), the Carfax is clean. Noted issues....

1) We started the car with the key outside of the car. The car through warning lights....red flashing brake light, yellow brake light, maintenance light, and one other having to do with the brake but I can't remember and the parking brake would not disengage (even though the key was now inside the car after starting it). We restarted the car with the key inside, and the brake warning lights went away. Is this a feature of the car to keep it from getting stolen, not disengaging the parking brake if the key is outside of the car?

2) The maintenance light remained on during the drive. The salesman said it probably wasn't reset after they did an oil change and would reset it. At 40,000 miles, are there other maintenance issues that would through the light on. It wasn't flashing, just the orange wrench symbol.

3) There was a weird stain near a panic bar in the back on the headliner. Does anyone know of a good way to clean the headliner? Does it soil easily?

4) In the spare wheel area one tool appeared to be missing. The slot for it was in the upper right side and looked like it fit the silver tool in this photo on the right above the yellow thing https://cck-dl.s3.amazonaws.com/2013 Mazda CX-5 Sport 2.0L 4 Cyl./Tire Change - Part 2.png. What is this tool for? Is it supposed to be with this trim model? EDIT" Looks like it's the TieDown Eyelet.

5) The drivers seat clicked back and forth just a little bit, a fraction of an inch, when accelerating or hitting the brake. Does anyone else experience this? Can it be fixed? Both the bottom cushion and upper back seemed to do it, maybe moved 1/8 or less of an inch, but it was noticeable.

6) All of the tires except the spare were Kumo tires, so I know they've been replaced. I'm sure they aren't the best tires, but I'm not familiar with the brand, are they terrible, or just not great?

Any help would be great, thank you!

 

[Ram4Sam]

Rental cars tend to get beat up, by a lot of different people, I know I have treated them poorly in the past(nervous).....also, while I obviously don't know your money situation, but at $19,500 you are not that far from the cost of a new 2016.5 Touring. This late in the model year, the dealers are cutting some good deals as the 2017's aren't that far away. On my GT, I managed to get $3900 off the sticker. A new Touring is around $26,300 something, offer them $22,500 and see what happens......the worse thing that can happen is they say no. There are a lot of dealers with a lot of new cars out there, all trying to make a year end goal number. Since tomorrow is the last day of the year, it would be an excellent time for you to low ball a dealer.

Sam

 

[Kaps]

You will need new brakes pads and rotors under 20k miles. The replacement tires will be fine if you don't want quiter tires. Mazda as a rental is rare - 40k is a mileage where if it's abused it can be worrisome. But used car sales have lots of lying irrespective of Carfax.
My experience with Hertz rental car was good but it was 20k miles driven and had bad rotors in 30k miles. A huge section of renter's are business travelers who car share due to tough economy... You should be fine with 20k warranty. Are you buying from national/Hertz or a dealer?

 

[Chris_Top_Her]

1. The tiedown thing is just not included. You can get them from the dealer ebay etc. 2
The wrench just means the requirements for a preset maintenence item have been met; i.e oil change in 5000mi. These are set/removed by using the buttons on the steering wheel to adjust setting on the info display on the gauge cluster. It could be oil change or tire rotation, and it has to be reset manually, so it could just be whoever changed it didn't know how or bother to reset it. I've seen some owners here mention slighlty moving seats like you described. Foam Shoe cleaner is good for the headliner, or the headliner cleaner that comes in a can with the brush on top.

 

[blackcx5]

Rental cars tend to get beat up, by a lot of different people, I know I have treated them poorly in the past(nervous).....also, while I obviously don't know your money situation, but at $19,500 you are not that far from the cost of a new 2016.5 Touring. This late in the model year, the dealers are cutting some good deals as the 2017's aren't that far away. On my GT, I managed to get $3900 off the sticker. A new Touring is around $26,300 something, offer them $22,500 and see what happens......the worse thing that can happen is they say no. There are a lot of dealers with a lot of new cars out there, all trying to make a year end goal number. Since tomorrow is the last day of the year, it would be an excellent time for you to low ball a dealer.

Sam

Agreed, IMHO, @ $19,500 with 40,00 miles , OP is better off paying a little more and getting anew 2016.5 for ~$23K,
I believe someone was able to get it for $22.5K brand new FWD Touring. Rental cars tend to get beat up and renters really don't care....

 

[Mazdauser100]

IMHO don't go for that one for 19500 with 40k miles. In the Bay Area (san jose/burlingame/fremont) 2016.5 Touring new ones should be available for 22.5-23 K with zero apr or 1.9% for 72 months with excellent credit with zero down in the next 2 days at least. Think same thing would go for dealers around Roseville ,Tracy and Stockton. Tomorrow and Sunday will be super busy at the dealerships though.

If not Mazda financing, dealers offer financing through local credit unions and other parties for a slightly higher rate. All depends on credit/income. If credit is great lots of options. Or pay in full.

Only thing I'll say is don't go late in the day to buy car unless you are fully well prepared and relaxed. Plus don't rush . Have a checklist and be ready to walk away. 2 sets of eyes better than one.

All the best

 

[Dermochelys]

Thanks guys, I used this checklist today on the used one http://pop.h-cdn.co/assets/downloads/1479221054_-_used-car-checklist.pdf and the salesman seemed a little miffed that I was taking so long looking at everything. He said he had never seen anyone inspect a car so closely. Anyway, I've decided to pass on the used on. I think I could have gotten it for around $17,000 though. If I could get a new one for $23,000 that would work for me, but TrueCar is putting them at $25,000 right now. It doesn't seem like alot, but it does add up. I'm not too worried about "end of the year" sales, the lot was packed today. However, with the 2017s coming I can wait for the "we need to get rid of the 2016s" sales that are sure to come in the next few months. I don't need to buy a car today, next week, or even 6 months from now, my car is still good, just needing replacement "sometime" in the next year or so.

I have to say, I was impressed with the CX-5 my first few drives, but going out today i was less happy. For the same sort of money, I could get a 2012 V6 AWD Rav4 with around ~50k miles (fully loaded (leather, navigation, backup camera, etc.)) for the same price as a used Touring which matches most of those features, but not all. I'm now back to second guessing the CX-5 decision...ARRRRGGGGG!!!(dunno)

 

[Kaps]

Dermo for same price you can get a 2007 porsche Cayenne with 125k miles. It will blow all other vehicles.
If you are looking for a new cx5 touring which has more features than rav4 xle (26k vs 29k for rav4) both base models you can get one around 22500. It all depends on being lucky and good on negotiating.
Good luck.

 

[Unobtanium]

You will need new brakes pads and rotors under 20k miles. The replacement tires will be fine if you don't want quiter tires. Mazda as a rental is rare - 40k is a mileage where if it's abused it can be worrisome. But used car sales have lots of lying irrespective of Carfax.
My experience with Hertz rental car was good but it was 20k miles driven and had bad rotors in 30k miles. A huge section of renter's are business travelers who car share due to tough economy... You should be fine with 20k warranty. Are you buying from national/Hertz or a dealer?

I bought a 2015 rental. It's been great, and I'm still on the factory pads and rotors, although now at 56K miles, I am getting some shake when I apply the brakes from high speeds a few times and heat the rotors up. I bought it with 27.8K miles on it.

 

[Unobtanium]

Thanks guys, I used this checklist today on the used one http://pop.h-cdn.co/assets/downloads/1479221054_-_used-car-checklist.pdf and the salesman seemed a little miffed that I was taking so long looking at everything. He said he had never seen anyone inspect a car so closely. Anyway, I've decided to pass on the used on. I think I could have gotten it for around $17,000 though. If I could get a new one for $23,000 that would work for me, but TrueCar is putting them at $25,000 right now. It doesn't seem like alot, but it does add up. I'm not too worried about "end of the year" sales, the lot was packed today. However, with the 2017s coming I can wait for the "we need to get rid of the 2016s" sales that are sure to come in the next few months. I don't need to buy a car today, next week, or even 6 months from now, my car is still good, just needing replacement "sometime" in the next year or so.

I have to say, I was impressed with the CX-5 my first few drives, but going out today i was less happy. For the same sort of money, I could get a 2012 V6 AWD Rav4 with around ~50k miles (fully loaded (leather, navigation, backup camera, etc.)) for the same price as a used Touring which matches most of those features, but not all. I'm now back to second guessing the CX-5 decision...ARRRRGGGGG!!!(dunno)

I looked at the V6 RAV's, but they have rampant transmission issues. Otherwise, a great buy.

The CX-5 is the sportiest and arguably best of the rock-solid reliable CUV's that are still focused on cheap entry and ownership experience.

 

[Unobtanium]

Dermo for same price you can get a 2007 porsche Cayenne with 125k miles. It will blow all other vehicles.
If you are looking for a new cx5 touring which has more features than rav4 xle (26k vs 29k for rav4) both base models you can get one around 22500. It all depends on being lucky and good on negotiating.
Good luck.

Many banks won't finance a decade old daily driver, especially not in the 2's for interest rate, with over 100K miles on it, and a German car with 125K miles and a decade of use? Why not just buy a 2017 Cayenne? It will cost the same per month, if you factor in maintenance amortized over 5 years of ownership vs that same ownership under warranty, ROFL!

 

[Unobtanium]

Rental cars tend to get beat up, by a lot of different people, I know I have treated them poorly in the past(nervous).....also, while I obviously don't know your money situation, but at $19,500 you are not that far from the cost of a new 2016.5 Touring. This late in the model year, the dealers are cutting some good deals as the 2017's aren't that far away. On my GT, I managed to get $3900 off the sticker. A new Touring is around $26,300 something, offer them $22,500 and see what happens......the worse thing that can happen is they say no. There are a lot of dealers with a lot of new cars out there, all trying to make a year end goal number. Since tomorrow is the last day of the year, it would be an excellent time for you to low ball a dealer.

Sam

Personally owned vehicles get WAILED on, man. I used to work for a dealership in sales and looking at trades, man, no rental car has anything on some of the stuff I saw. With their OWN vehicle, people push and push and push their comfort limits---and the vehicles, as they grow familiar. Not so much with a rental car, as they typically don't want to end up in a ditch, and they aren't really sure where the limits really are in the short time they have it.

Regardless, I'd pick an average rental over the average owner's trade-in. ESPECIALLY talking CUV's.

 

[erhayes]

Skip this vehicle and look for a differerent one. ED

 

[jlx21]

Thanks guys, I used this checklist today on the used one http://pop.h-cdn.co/assets/downloads/1479221054_-_used-car-checklist.pdf and the salesman seemed a little miffed that I was taking so long looking at everything. He said he had never seen anyone inspect a car so closely. Anyway, I've decided to pass on the used on. I think I could have gotten it for around $17,000 though. If I could get a new one for $23,000 that would work for me, but TrueCar is putting them at $25,000 right now. It doesn't seem like alot, but it does add up. I'm not too worried about "end of the year" sales, the lot was packed today. However, with the 2017s coming I can wait for the "we need to get rid of the 2016s" sales that are sure to come in the next few months. I don't need to buy a car today, next week, or even 6 months from now, my car is still good, just needing replacement "sometime" in the next year or so.

I have to say, I was impressed with the CX-5 my first few drives, but going out today i was less happy. For the same sort of money, I could get a 2012 V6 AWD Rav4 with around ~50k miles (fully loaded (leather, navigation, backup camera, etc.)) for the same price as a used Touring which matches most of those features, but not all. I'm now back to second guessing the CX-5 decision...ARRRRGGGGG!!!(dunno)

Yeah, I'd also skip this vehicle. Also, if the options are important to you, I'd look past the CX-5 Touring and look at other competitors, or try to get lucky on a used 2016.5 Grand Touring w/ Tech.

I ended up buying a brand new 16.5 Sport AWD for $24k. If I had to do it all over again, I would've waited for a deal on a used 16.5 GT Tech with like 20k miles, used Forester 2.0XT (impossible to find though), or used fully-loaded Rav4.