CX-5 stalled at high speed

[rkmuggsy]

Just purchased a 2019 Mazda CX-5 Touring six weeks ago. Has anyone else ever had or heard of a problem with their CX-5 as this? Was traveling on Pennsylvania Turnpike around 72 mph in middle lane of three lanes. Attempted to pass another car in far left hand land while using radar cruise control. Suddenly my car began braking and stalled. Was able to drift to rt. side of the road and count my blessings as other cars were flying past me going 70-80 mph. Didn't realize immediately that the car had stalled. Car started right back up with no other problems since. Scared the hell out of me.

Contacted dealer where car was purchased and they did a customary computer hook up, but found no problems. Service tech road with me then, but could not make the care brake and stall again like it did. Anyone ever heard of this before? Am now scared to travel at these speeds while using cruise control, or even without using it. Afraid I made a major mistake purchasing this car. And, yes, I did take it for a test drive, but not at these speeds.

Thank you for any replies!

 

[SparkYellow]

This might not be the same problem. Back in May my 2017 CX-3 started stalling randomly at low speeds. No cruise control, just grocery runs in the neighborhood. It felt like an electrical issue with all the dash lights flashing for a few seconds before the car lost power and shut down. It didn't feel like it was braking. When it happened the first time, I was able to start back up and everything seemed normal. I even made a few long trips the following week before it happened again. Then it finally threw codes and I couldn't go far before it stalled. For me it turned out to be a fuse and battery problem.

My backup car was running at the time so just parked the CX-3 at home to figure it out myself. I didn't go to the dealer or seek help from a mechanic. If I had it towed in with the codes, I am afraid that I might get the repair/bill for the worst case scenario.

 

[rkmuggsy]

Thank you for the response. I've been driving 62 years and never had any other car stall on me like this., especially at a high speed. I took out a three year extended warranty, so I want the dealer to look at this car again only more intensively than hooking it up to a computer or taking it for a ride. I could have been easily involved in a high speed wreck when the car stalled. Like you, I have another car to use until this problem is diagnosed. Glad you were able to diagnose your problem.

 

[sm1ke]

Did the electronics (radio, lights, instrument cluster) also shut down during the incident?

You mentioned the car started braking. Was it like normal engine braking, or more abrupt like emergency braking?

I'm wondering if maybe a battery terminal or something was loose, and the emergency braking jostled it around enough to cause the engine to turn off. I had an older car that did something similar while driving through a bumpy gravel parking lot. I checked the battery terminals and the negative was a bit loose.

 

[rkmuggsy]

Didn't have time to check instrument cluster as I was trying to avoid getting hit by other cars, and coast to the side of the road. When I finally got to the side of the road, I don't remember any warning lights being on. It was then I discovered that the car had stalled. I just tried to start the car, and it started right up. The braking was firm, but not to the point of tires sliding. I'm guessing it was an engine braking having something to do with the cruise control. I was on my way to a doctor's appt, so I really didn't have much time to check anything. I was just happy the car started back up. Of course I turned the cruise control off for the rest of the trip and on the way home also. Eventually checked under the hood, but didn't notice any loose wires. Didn't know what else to look for with all the technology now a days. I have no idea what caused the stall. The engine never sputtered...just stalled.

 

[N7turbo]

Didn't have time to check instrument cluster as I was trying to avoid getting hit by other cars, and coast to the side of the road. When I finally got to the side of the road, I don't remember any warning lights being on. It was then I discovered that the car had stalled. I just tried to start the car, and it started right up. The braking was firm, but not to the point of tires sliding. I'm guessing it was an engine braking having something to do with the cruise control. I was on my way to a doctor's appt, so I really didn't have much time to check anything. I was just happy the car started back up. Of course I turned the cruise control off for the rest of the trip and on the way home also. Eventually checked under the hood, but didn't notice any loose wires. Didn't know what else to look for with all the technology now a days. I have no idea what caused the stall. The engine never sputtered...just stalled.

If the engine stalled you would have had a very hard time using the wheel and brakes to get the car to the side of the road. Did you find heavy resistance in the brakes and steering?

 

[jadmt]

one of those things you will never get the dealer tech to replicate...might have just been a total fluke...I do know I hate my 2023 cx5 turbo's auto radar cruise control...it brakes way to hard when coming up on something...

 

[rkmuggsy]

one of those things you will never get the dealer tech to replicate...might have just been a total fluke...I do know I hate my 2023 cx5 turbo's auto radar cruise control...it brakes way to hard when coming up on something...

I just bought this car (2019) about six weeks ago and I hate the radar cruise control also. Should have been installed with the option to turn it off and just use regular cruise control. "Fluke"...could have been. Sure don't want to risk it happening again going at higher speeds in traffic though. Or going at any speed. What if I was trying to merge into highway or turnpike traffic. Only option until problem might be diagnosed is to not use the cruise control I guess. Not real happy with this!

 

[rkmuggsy]

If the engine stalled you would have had a very hard time using the wheel and brakes to get the car to the side of the road. Did you find heavy resistance in the brakes and steering?

I was in shock when this happened since I was trying to pass another car as I was in the middle lane of three lanes of traffic. I did not touch the brakes. All I remember was pushing and pushing on the accelerator trying to make the car go, but with no luck. Steering was not the real issue as I remember since I was just trying to coax the car to the far right side of the road and avoid oncoming traffic. It was not a hard slow down, just consistent. Sort of like what would happen if your engine stalled going 75 mph.

 

[Moonlighter]

One suspect would be a blocked fuel filter. Easy to pick up a bad tank of fuel these days, and over time the debris in the filter accumulates.

Logic goes like this…
- Consistent high speed running increases the fuel flow, eventually the blockage gets to the point where engine is starved and stalls out.
- car stops. Blockage settles in fuel filter when fuel pressure is released, and fuel can flow again. Engine runs ok again at lower speeds.

See if there is anything in the service record about fuel filter being changed,

Talk to the dealer about the sensitivity of the auto braking when cruise control is activated. They may be able to reset/recalibrate it. On my previous CX5 it could, very occasionally, be a bit oversensitive with cars slowing in the next lane to take an off ramp etc.

But other than that, the radar cruise control is one of the best CX5 features.

 

[ADS-B]

If it's a fuel filter, please see my post about how to replace it ( fuel filter and/or the whole fuel pump assembly). Not hard at all, if you have some tools you should be done in less than an hour.

Other things to look at:
Check the spark plugs and coils. I've had a similar issue last year when my car suddenly lost power, the dashboard lit up like a Christmas Tree. It turned out to be the spark plugs.

When it stalled, did you get any warning lights on the dash board at all? Did the steering become stiff? Check the battery leads for corrosion. A bad connection at the battery can cause a lot of problems.

 

[HyFlyer]

... I hate the radar cruise control also. Should have been installed with the option to turn it off and just use regular cruise control. ...

You can turn off/on the radar cruise function by toggling the "mode" switch on the right side of the steering wheel any time you like. The cruise will then act like what you are used to.