CX-5 Diff, and how mine died like a dog.

[Lbear]

I think Unobtanium needs to just clear the air once and for all. He did attack and rip on Mazda on numerous threads about the AWD being poorly made and blamed the failure on bad craftsmanship by Mazda.

Now that the facts are out, we now know that the Mazda AWD differential is not poorly made and it's not a piece of junk like originally stated. We now know the differential failure is due to having water enter the differential due to going through 16 inches of standing water and then not changing the fluid.

Just to clear the air and move on with life and it was clearly a misunderstanding by him.

 

[old-school]

Which seems precisely the point of this thread, eh?

 

[Unobtanium]

I think Unobtanium needs to just clear the air once and for all. He did attack and rip on Mazda on numerous threads about the AWD being poorly made and blamed the failure on bad craftsmanship by Mazda.

Now that the facts are out, we now know that the Mazda AWD differential is not poorly made and it's not a piece of junk like originally stated. We now know the differential failure is due to having water enter the differential due to going through 16 inches of standing water and then not changing the fluid.

Just to clear the air and move on with life and it was clearly a misunderstanding by him.

I read this and just shook my head.

 

[Anchorman]

I read this and just shook my head.

No, but I know what he means though. You have been trying to demonstrate how bad this rear axle has been designed long before you came up with this thread which is even titled to indicate negativity. How long were you in this river for? The hole in the breather is tiny so now we are to just accept that a few drops of water are enough to almost immediately take out a diff. Not in my experience but I'm not in such a hurry to prove a point.

 

[Unobtanium]

No, but I know what he means though. You have been trying to demonstrate how bad this rear axle has been designed long before you came up with this thread which is even titled to indicate negativity. How long were you in this river for? The hole in the breather is tiny so now we are to just accept that a few drops of water are enough to almost immediately take out a diff. Not in my experience but I'm not in such a hurry to prove a point.

I drove through the 10 foot wide area pretty quickly I thought...

 

[Lbear]

No, but I know what he means though. You have been trying to demonstrate how bad this rear axle has been designed long before you came up with this thread which is even titled to indicate negativity.

That's my issue. I read dozens of threads by him about how poorly made the AWD for the CX5 was and how it was a ticking time bomb.

Why? I dumped an awesome vehicle for this thing solely because I'm building a house and didn't want to deal with EXACTLY this kind of BS.

I'm also very curious how long until your CX-5 breaks, MikeM. I saw that terrible hill you took it up. Total ticking time bomb, right? I mean, these things, you stress them a little, and they are done. Is it days? Weeks? Who knows. Mine must have taken nearly half a month, and then BOOM! Like cancer. Just lurking. That's so absurd I don't know where to begin. Had it broken on the scene, I would agree that the two are related. had Mazda drained water/compromised fluid out of the diff, I would have conceded the point. Neither occurred. You're fishing.

Now, the evidence clearly shows that it was the deep water that caused the failure. The reality is that the differential is actually really well built, in the fact that it lasted for weeks filled with water before it finally blew up.

This same AWD is going to be installed in the new Mazda 3Speed with the 2.5L turbo making 300HP.

I just wish he would have waited before bashing on Mazda. Let the verdict play out and wait for the tech results before attacking. Innocent until proven guilty.

 

[Chris_Top_Her]

pretty much just (deadhorse) at this point.

 

[Unobtanium]

That's my issue. I read dozens of threads by him about how poorly made the AWD for the CX5 was and how it was a ticking time bomb.



Now, the evidence clearly shows that it was the deep water that caused the failure. The reality is that the differential is actually really well built, in the fact that it lasted for weeks filled with water before it finally blew up.

This same AWD is going to be installed in the new Mazda 3Speed with the 2.5L turbo making 300HP.

I just wish he would have waited before bashing on Mazda. Let the verdict play out and wait for the tech results before attacking. Innocent until proven guilty.

I never created a thread about it until now.
I said the solenoid died. I also said it was a sample of 1. My complaint about the AWD is, and always has been, how "dumb" it is, in that it isn't capable of sending power to individual wheels in 0-100% increments. I still think it sucks compared to my Jeep, as I took it on some ice today, and it had nowhere near the controlled feeling my Jeep did. That said, it wasn't much ice, and I reserve the right to reverse that opinion as I drive in more icy weather with it.
It wasn't "deep water". It wasn't "16 inches".
You have reading comprehension issues, as you have completely fabricated things, or, as you will likely claim, "misread them", since you probably don't want to be called a liar.

 

[russiankid]

One thing I will point out is that you cannot compare a vehicle like a Jeep to a vehicle such as the CX-5. They both have different purposes, and Jeep has been known for years to make great 4x4 vehicles. So comparing the capabilities of the two is useless.

 

[erhayes]

Hmmm. I would think that 10-12 inches of water should not cause a problem. I'm looking at the parts diagram and there appears to be a stand pipe of sorts. Is that to protect against water intrusion? Ed

 

[MikeM.]

Although really there was a lot of retarded arguing about it going on anyways.

That's for sure! Because it really is pretty cut and dried.

Even the Owner's Manual for the full-size Jeep Cherokee 4x4 has this to say:

"If you must cross flowing water, avoid depths deeper than 9" (22 cm)." It also instructs what to do after driving through deep water:

"After driving through deep water, inspect fluids and lubricants (engine, transmission, power transfer unit, rear drive module) to assure they have not been contaminated. Contaminated fluids and lubricants (milky, foamy in appearance) should be flushed/changed as soon as possible to prevent component damage."

As you can see, even full sized 4x4's with off-road pretensions have limits and driving through water requires additional maintenance. Having extension tubes on differential breathers can reduce the likelihood of water ingress but it can't eliminate it.

 

[Unobtanium]

Hmmm. I would think that 10-12 inches of water should not cause a problem. I'm looking at the parts diagram and there appears to be a stand pipe of sorts. Is that to protect against water intrusion? Ed

I agree. However, it was a dynamic event, and dynamic events carry infinite variables.