Got rid of my CX-50 Turbo Premium (long post)

[Digbicks1234]

Hey guys, it's been fun and I wanted to say that I really thought I would love the CX-50 and I just don't think it was a good fit for me. There are just some things a test drive won't be able to uncover until owning a vehicle long term and I ultimately traded the CX-50 Turbo Premium in for a 2023 CX-9 Touring but I think it was worth it in the end. There's just so many build quality issues with the CX-50 cropping up every other week to the point where I felt like Mazda just half-assed this vehicle and rushed it in addition to my other gripes.

At the time of the trade in, I was deciding between the Acura RDX/MDX, Toyota RAV-4 Hybrid/Highlander, Lexus RX-350 or the CX-5 Turbo Premium and I settled on the CX-9 as it had the best price/features ratio with little to no markups compared to Toyota in addition to being very spacious, quiet and comfortable. After nearly 6,000 miles of driving the vehicle, here's some of my observations.

What I liked:

1. Appearance: I really like the wide body stance of the vehicle along with the 20 inch wheels, front/rear tail lights as it really stands out.
   
   
2. Lumbar Support: The lumbar support on this car is phenomenal as it has a very deep adjustment setting that can dig into the lumbar if necessary and it provides a lot of support.
   
   
3. Auto Adjusting Side Mirrors: I liked how the mirrors would automatically point downwards when the car is reversing. It would've been cool if both sides of the mirror could reverse instead of having to manually select the individual mirror.
   
   
4. Horn: The horn on this vehicle is very loud and not anemic like the CX-5/CX-9.
   
   
5. Headlights: The headlights look very cool at night when walking away from the vehicle and when cornering (thanks to the auto adjusting headlights).
   
   
6. Bose Centerpoint Speakers: The sound from these speakers are very good compared to the CX-9 with stock speakers. I had a chance to test drive a 2020 Lexus RX-350 F-Sport with the Mark Levinson as well and the Bose sounded much better overall.
   
   
7. Infotainment: I really liked how the system uses Wi-Fi to enable Android Auto instead of the traditional USB cable that plugs into the phone. Another thing that I liked was the volume knob that has the ability to skip tracks.
   
   
8. Heads-up Display: I've never had a car with a heads up display before and I thought it was cool. It can be distracting at times but it's especially helpful when using Google Maps and instead of following turn-by-turn directions on the center console/cell phone, it was right in front of my face.
   
   
9. Tire Pressure Monitor System (TPMS): Being able to see the PSI of each tire was very nice, especially on the My Mazda app.
   
   
10. Backup Camera: I don't know what resolution the camera is but it seemed like 720/1080p as it was very high resolution. It definitely blows the CX-9 out of the water on this aspect.

What I didn't like (I guess I don't really like majority of the car ?)

1. Steering Wheel: This is one of my biggest gripes with the car so far. There's really no need to make the steering wheel so stiff as it's very fatiguing to drive on long road trips that are 3-7+ hours. Some people don't have an issue with it but I am guessing they take short trips with the vehicle only or maybe they're used to it. Coming from a CX-5 and now CX-9, I much prefer the light steering wheel that doesn't require much effort. Another thing that I do not like is the fact that only the left/right hand portion of the steering wheel is heated and the top and bottom are cold.
   
   
2. Cup Holders: It was originally a massive issue for me until I got a shorter length charger + L-shaped USB-C cables that stopped obstructing the cup holders. However, this is still a very poor design as the cup holders are not only small but they are literally right in front of the cigarette port and they're barely big enough to hold larger sized bottles.
   
   
3. Visibility: I am not sure if it's just me but each time I drove in the CX-50, I felt like the visibility for the car isn't so great. The windshield feels very narrow and the angle is awkward compared to that of a CX-5/CX-9 and combined with the super stiff suspension, it makes me feel sick.
   
   
4. Suspension: This car is easily more harsh than the 2016 CX-5 as every bump on the road can be felt throughout the vehicle due to the stiff suspension/torsion beam setup as opposed to the softer independent rear suspension that is in the CX-5/CX-9. Some people reported that the 20 inch wheels may be the factor while others reported that installing 17-18 inches didn't make a drastic difference so I am not sure....
   
   
5. Seatbelt Chime: This is another extremely annoying thing about the vehicle that I cannot really tolerate. The chime is very intrusive and unfortunately, there's no way to change this sound.
   
   
6. Safety System: Each and every time there is low visibility or some type of terrible weather, the Safety and Driver Support Systems Temporarily Disabled message appears on the center speedometer gauge. Not that I actually rely on these systems but it makes me question the purpose of this system if it gets disabled like this each time the weather turns bad to worse with some fog, snow or rain. This will ultimately disable any features such as Active Cruise Control and some other ones that I don't really use or care about but it's something to keep in mind.
   
   
7. Rattles: Every time I went over very specific imperfections (e.g. one side higher than the other) on the road, I would hear a rattling noise on top of the headliner and after multiple trips to the same dealership, nothing was ever done to remediate the issue even after escalating my case to Mazda corporate. I was told that there was no insulation or padding in between the headliner and roof to dampen the noise as it's held into place by Velcro clips and to purchase felt lining and to put the material myself to dampen the sound. The run around that I was getting from both the service tech and Mazda corporate was that this vehicle was meant for "off-road usage" and that they've heard of other repeated complaints from other customers as well.
   
   
8. Panel Gaps: One day after walking around my car, I noticed that the driver side of my vehicle's hood was higher than the passenger side. I slid my hand up and down the panel and felt the raised section that was ultimately fixed by the service technician when I brought it up.
   
   
9. Noisy Driver (Rear) Window: I noticed this issue when I closed the Driver (Rear) door as it sounded weird compared to the other doors. I rolled down the window and tried closing the door again and the noise went away and after the service technician applied some lubricant to the Window, the noise went away.
   
   
10. Fuel Economy: I drive 80% City/20% Highway and I was averaging 15.6-15.8 MPG with or without a heavy foot. With my CX-9, I am averaging about 17-18 MPG with or without a heavy foot even though the car hasn't broken in yet. I honestly could barely get 220-240 miles out of each fill up without having to fill up. EPA claims the CX-50 Turbo MPG to be 23 (City)/29 (Highway) but the City MPG did not live up the expectations for me.
    
    
11. Road Noise: After driving in a CX-9, I noticed that the CX-50 has lots of road noise as there's not much insulation inside of the panels. It feels like the entire car is made of very hard plastic for cost saving measures.
    
    
12. Brakes: The CX-5 (Raybesto Element 3's)/CX-9 (OEM) brakes that I have stop much better in wet/dry conditions as opposed to the CX-50. In the CX-50, it feels like the brake doesn't really have much bite and I am guessing the material is more on the ceramic side than semi-metallic. Could be the tire differences as well.
    
    
13. 5-8 MPH Lurch: From what I was told by the service advisor, this was normal behavior that the vehicle does that because it disconnects from the torque converter. It doesn't always lurch but in stop and go traffic, I can feel the car lurching around 5-8 mph and disappearing afterwards. I've read on other Mazda CX-50 forums and they've experienced this issue as well.
    
    
14. Door Handle: I am not sure if anyone else experienced this but the handle that is grasped to open/close the door has a very cheap feeling to it, especially at the center portion. It almost feels abrasive and I feel that Mazda could've done a better job to polish that area to make it smooth and more refined as it seems like it came straight out of an ABS mold without much touch ups.
    
    
15. My Mazda Remote Start Feature: Probably one of the worst things to be designed where the car shuts off after the door is opened due to the fear of a vehicle being stolen. The car basically needs to be started a second time after getting in.
    
    
16. OEM Door Sill Trim Plates: I thought that the front door sill trim plates were cool as they light up but the rear ones do not unfortunately even after having to pay about $200-300 for the whole set.
    

Lessons I've learned from this whole ordeal

1. Never buy a first year production model as there's too many issues that may come up and ultimately, you will be a beta tester unless time/money is not an issue.
   
   
2. Best bet is to test drive a car in the winter time as that is when most of the rattles show themselves in a vehicle. During hotter weather, the rattles typically not appear.
   
   
3. The dealership/Mazda Corporate is not your friend when it comes to fixing small issues like rattles and will lie to your face as there's no money to be made even if you spent $40k+ on a vehicle.
   
   
4. Dealerships/Corporations typically respond well to criticism or negative feedback through sites such as BBB or other sources that may impact the brands perception.
   
   
5. If you drive in the city, the Turbo may not be the most fuel efficient even though it may be the most fun.
   
   
6. The torsion beam setup is awful.....

 

[GTEyes]

Sorry to hear your experience with the CX-50 wasn't the best. Sounds like you found something that works better for you, which is good to hear.
Thanks for sharing your experience!
I'd love to know your thoughts on your CX9 once you've had some time in the driver's seat!

 

[Sig cx-5]

...

What I didn't like (I guess I don't really like majority of the car ?)

Safety System: Each and every time there is low visibility or some type of terrible weather, the Safety and Driver Support Systems Temporarily Disabled message appears on the center speedometer gauge. Not that I actually rely on these systems but it makes me question the purpose of this system if it gets disabled like this each time the weather turns bad to worse with some fog, snow or rain. This will ultimately disable any features such as Active Cruise Control and some other ones that I don't really use or care about but it's something to keep in mind.
...

This is the one thing that stands out to me, as it is not unique to the CX-50, or Mazda for that matter. ALL radar and mmW systems rely on a clear path and are set to disable whenever there's a chance for error. When even basic things like parking sensors are covered with dirt, snow, etc, they will constantly chime, unless you manually shut it off, or clean them. Do you really want to be zooming down the road in a downpour, relying on your active cruise control? I wouldn't even use dumb cruise control during inclement weather.

I'm happy you were able to figure out what you needed and were able to move on from the vehicle you disliked. Life's too short to drive something you hate.

 

[CTt3P5]

Thank you for the thoughtful and thorough write-up of your personal experience. Our CX-5 comes off lease in August and the CX-50 is at the top of my wife's list as a replacement followed by another CX-5. We still need to take one for a test drive ourselves but your real world insight will be beneficial.

As for the remote start, I believe that is across the board for Mazda in that they all turn off when the door is opened. This seems absurd to me too. In our Jeep, once you enter the vehicle you are prompted to press the start/stop button again in order to put the vehicle in gear. Might be better to forego the Mazda OEM for an aftermarket system.

I hope that you have a better experience with the CX-9, keep zooming!

 

[Digbicks1234]

Sorry to hear your experience with the CX-50 wasn't the best. Sounds like you found something that works better for you, which is good to hear.
Thanks for sharing your experience!
I'd love to know your thoughts on your CX9 once you've had some time in the driver's seat!

This is the one thing that stands out to me, as it is not unique to the CX-50, or Mazda for that matter. ALL radar and mmW systems rely on a clear path and are set to disable whenever there's a chance for error. When even basic things like parking sensors are covered with dirt, snow, etc, they will constantly chime, unless you manually shut it off, or clean them. Do you really want to be zooming down the road in a downpour, relying on your active cruise control? I wouldn't even use dumb cruise control during inclement weather.

I'm happy you were able to figure out what you needed and were able to move on from the vehicle you disliked. Life's too short to drive something you hate.

Thank you for the thoughtful and thorough write-up of your personal experience. Our CX-5 comes off lease in August and the CX-50 is at the top of my wife's list as a replacement followed by another CX-5. We still need to take one for a test drive ourselves but your real world insight will be beneficial.

As for the remote start, I believe that is across the board for Mazda in that they all turn off when the door is opened. This seems absurd to me too. In our Jeep, once you enter the vehicle you are prompted to press the start/stop button again in order to put the vehicle in gear. Might be better to forego the Mazda OEM for an aftermarket system.

I hope that you have a better experience with the CX-9, keep zooming!

Thanks for the kind words guys, I hope my write up helps someone that is looking to purchase the CX-50 and to provide some more insight in what it was like to own the vehicle.

@GTEyes I will definitely do a write up for the CX-9 once I put some more miles on it to see if any issues manifest but overall, I am extremely happy with it. My only regret so far is not purchasing the Carbon Edition with the Bose sound system

@Sig cx-5 That is a very good point that you brought up. My last car that I purchased was the 16.5 CX-5 and I am not used to having so many safety systems in place for driver assistance but I definitely don't want to rely on cruise control when there's inclement weather outside.

@CTt3P5 You're welcome I would recommend waiting for a half year refresh for the CX-50 if they decide to ever make one to address all of these production issues or perhaps the release of the CX-60/CX-70 or CX-90 if it ever makes it out this year. I feel that the CX-5 still holds it's weight in terms of the overall driving experience unless you need more second row space. The only reason the CX-50 was on my list was because I had the CX-5 for about 6 years and I wanted to try something different.

I read that it's common on Toyota's also which is a bit annoying. If they provided the option to change the setting in the My Mazda App, it would've been nice. I had a Compustar installed on the CX-5 with a 3 mile range and rechargeable battery but now that I look back, it's definitely overkill haha. I'll most likely get another Compustar again for the CX-9 once the complimentary 3-years is up. They just need to make a rechargeable USB-C remote starter and I will be a happy camper. Having to use the micro-USB is a no bueno for me as I want to use the USB-C charger in my vehicle to charge it up instead of an adapter.

 

[MetroMike]

The CX 9 is not exactly a feature loaded vehicle, heard some bad reviews from a Mazda dealer none the less.
It may be going away next year model.

 

[sm1ke]

Thanks for taking the time to post such a thorough write-up, @Digbicks1234. This will certainly help a lot for anyone who may be considering the CX-50 (or an alternative).

I do look forward to your thoughts on the CX-9! At its price point, it offers a lot of key features. The CX-9 will indeed be replaced eventually by the CX-90, but I imagine they will be sold side by side for a couple of years at least.

 

[Digbicks1234]

The CX 9 is not exactly a feature loaded vehicle, heard some bad reviews from a Mazda dealer none the less.
It may be going away next year model.

You are correct about the CX-9 not being a feature loaded vehicle but I guess it depends on which trim you are referring to. I had a chance to test drive the carbon edition while my CX-50 was in the shop for a few days and I really enjoyed driving experience overall which led me down the road of purchasing the CX-9 over a CX-5.

The issue I have with the CX-5 is that the second row seats are so cramped. I feel that I always enjoyed driving a bigger car and the CX-9 satisfied that aspect for me. I mean the only downside is the cargo space and I guess the stigma of driving a family oriented vehicle but that doesn't really bother me.

I did some digging around and it looks like the common issues of the CX-9 I've seen would pertain to the 2016-2021 models with the engine block issue causing a coolant leak. Hopefully I won't experience this issue during my ownership but after putting about 236 miles on the vehicle, I could not be happier that I chose this car. The cabin is very quiet, it's comfortable over bumps and has very good driving characteristics for a car of this size.

Also, I did have a chance to drive a 2020 Lexus RX-350 F-Sport and I just didn't enjoy driving the car as it felt like a giant boat with no personality. The steering felt very numbing and I didn't feel connected to the road at all.

 

[Digbicks1234]

Thanks for taking the time to post such a thorough write-up, @Digbicks1234. This will certainly help a lot for anyone who may be considering the CX-50 (or an alternative).

I do look forward to your thoughts on the CX-9! At its price point, it offers a lot of key features. The CX-9 will indeed be replaced eventually by the CX-90, but I imagine they will be sold side by side for a couple of years at least.

Thank you @sm1ke, glad to help and I will work on creating something after putting some miles on the car! It's going to be sad that the CX-9 is going away but it's definitely long overdue for a refresh. I am curious if Mazda is planning to manufacturer the new CX-70/90 lineup in the US and if so, I wonder how that will turn out.

The Inline 6 will definitely be a lot of fun to drive and I am hoping they can get through a lot of the production issues for the first gen models so that we can slowly gravitate towards getting one of these models in a few years when an upgrade is due

 

[Silly Wabbit]

I have the same mentality with first year production car. But I decided to get my 2016 cx-9 because it was "made in Japan".

 

[sm1ke]

Thank you @sm1ke, glad to help and I will work on creating something after putting some miles on the car! It's going to be sad that the CX-9 is going away but it's definitely long overdue for a refresh. I am curious if Mazda is planning to manufacturer the new CX-70/90 lineup in the US and if so, I wonder how that will turn out.

I believe the 90 will be made in Japan, and I would guess the same for the 70, but don't know for sure. I really do hope they're both made in Japan - usually those models have fewer issues down the road with regard to reliability and fit and finish (in my experience).

The Inline 6 will definitely be a lot of fun to drive and I am hoping they can get through a lot of the production issues for the first gen models so that we can slowly gravitate towards getting one of these models in a few years when an upgrade is due

Agreed! I waited a couple of years before I got my CX-9, mostly because I wanted to wait for them to resolve any teething issues with the first model years, as is common with any new model, including the CX-50. It was also nice that they made some incremental improvements over the years as well that made waiting worth it, like the addition of GVC, adding 2nd row seat heaters, and allowing the 2nd row to slide forward an extra few inches for better 3rd row ingress/egress. I'm hoping to get into a CX-90 or maybe even a CX-70 eventually, maybe in 2025 or 2026.

I'm sure Mazda will address these issues with the CX-50 once enough users and dealerships report on them in the next year or two.

 

[CTt3P5]

@Digbicks1234 Yes, I hear you about waiting for a refresh but we are hoping most of the bugs will be worked out by the time our lease is up. You are not the first person to mention the rougher ride so that alone might be the deal breaker for my wife. So far we have had two CX-5s and she loved both of them so I don't think she would be too unhappy to get behind the wheel of a third if the CX-50 doesn't work out for whatever reason. haha

@sm1ke A co-worker of mine bought a 2010 CX-9 used and she loves it. Other than brakes/tires the only work she has had done was a new brake booster a couple of months ago. It now has close to 200K miles and she keeps saying that she is going to hold on to it for another year as she wants to wait for 2024 models to come out. Of course she has been saying this since 2019 while waiting for the 2020 models to come out, etc. lol

 

[GFrosty]

Lessons I've learned from this whole ordeal

1. Never buy a first year production model as there's too many issues that may come up and ultimately, you will be a beta tester unless time/money is not an issue.

^ This. Goes for almost any product that has any sort of complexity.

I suspect Mazda will eventually cure the car's little issues, from fit and finish to ride quality, from fuel efficiency to refinement.

 

[David45]

Hey guys, it's been fun and I wanted to say that I really thought I would love the CX-50 and I just don't think it was a good fit for me. There are just some things a test drive won't be able to uncover until owning a vehicle long term and I ultimately traded the CX-50 Turbo Premium in for a 2023 CX-9 Touring but I think it was worth it in the end. There's just so many build quality issues with the CX-50 cropping up every other week to the point where I felt like Mazda just half-assed this vehicle and rushed it in addition to my other gripes.

At the time of the trade in, I was deciding between the Acura RDX/MDX, Toyota RAV-4 Hybrid/Highlander, Lexus RX-350 or the CX-5 Turbo Premium and I settled on the CX-9 as it had the best price/features ratio with little to no markups compared to Toyota in addition to being very spacious, quiet and comfortable. After nearly 6,000 miles of driving the vehicle, here's some of my observations.

What I liked:

1. Appearance: I really like the wide body stance of the vehicle along with the 20 inch wheels, front/rear tail lights as it really stands out.
   
   
2. Lumbar Support: The lumbar support on this car is phenomenal as it has a very deep adjustment setting that can dig into the lumbar if necessary and it provides a lot of support.
   
   
3. Auto Adjusting Side Mirrors: I liked how the mirrors would automatically point downwards when the car is reversing. It would've been cool if both sides of the mirror could reverse instead of having to manually select the individual mirror.
   
   
4. Horn: The horn on this vehicle is very loud and not anemic like the CX-5/CX-9.
   
   
5. Headlights: The headlights look very cool at night when walking away from the vehicle and when cornering (thanks to the auto adjusting headlights).
   
   
6. Bose Centerpoint Speakers: The sound from these speakers are very good compared to the CX-9 with stock speakers. I had a chance to test drive a 2020 Lexus RX-350 F-Sport with the Mark Levinson as well and the Bose sounded much better overall.
   
   
7. Infotainment: I really liked how the system uses Wi-Fi to enable Android Auto instead of the traditional USB cable that plugs into the phone. Another thing that I liked was the volume knob that has the ability to skip tracks.
   
   
8. Heads-up Display: I've never had a car with a heads up display before and I thought it was cool. It can be distracting at times but it's especially helpful when using Google Maps and instead of following turn-by-turn directions on the center console/cell phone, it was right in front of my face.
   
   
9. Tire Pressure Monitor System (TPMS): Being able to see the PSI of each tire was very nice, especially on the My Mazda app.
   
   
10. Backup Camera: I don't know what resolution the camera is but it seemed like 720/1080p as it was very high resolution. It definitely blows the CX-9 out of the water on this aspect.

What I didn't like (I guess I don't really like majority of the car ?)

1. Steering Wheel: This is one of my biggest gripes with the car so far. There's really no need to make the steering wheel so stiff as it's very fatiguing to drive on long road trips that are 3-7+ hours. Some people don't have an issue with it but I am guessing they take short trips with the vehicle only or maybe they're used to it. Coming from a CX-5 and now CX-9, I much prefer the light steering wheel that doesn't require much effort. Another thing that I do not like is the fact that only the left/right hand portion of the steering wheel is heated and the top and bottom are cold.
   
   
2. Cup Holders: It was originally a massive issue for me until I got a shorter length charger + L-shaped USB-C cables that stopped obstructing the cup holders. However, this is still a very poor design as the cup holders are not only small but they are literally right in front of the cigarette port and they're barely big enough to hold larger sized bottles.
   
   
3. Visibility: I am not sure if it's just me but each time I drove in the CX-50, I felt like the visibility for the car isn't so great. The windshield feels very narrow and the angle is awkward compared to that of a CX-5/CX-9 and combined with the super stiff suspension, it makes me feel sick.
   
   
4. Suspension: This car is easily more harsh than the 2016 CX-5 as every bump on the road can be felt throughout the vehicle due to the stiff suspension/torsion beam setup as opposed to the softer independent rear suspension that is in the CX-5/CX-9. Some people reported that the 20 inch wheels may be the factor while others reported that installing 17-18 inches didn't make a drastic difference so I am not sure....
   
   
5. Seatbelt Chime: This is another extremely annoying thing about the vehicle that I cannot really tolerate. The chime is very intrusive and unfortunately, there's no way to change this sound.
   
   
6. Safety System: Each and every time there is low visibility or some type of terrible weather, the Safety and Driver Support Systems Temporarily Disabled message appears on the center speedometer gauge. Not that I actually rely on these systems but it makes me question the purpose of this system if it gets disabled like this each time the weather turns bad to worse with some fog, snow or rain. This will ultimately disable any features such as Active Cruise Control and some other ones that I don't really use or care about but it's something to keep in mind.
   
   
7. Rattles: Every time I went over very specific imperfections (e.g. one side higher than the other) on the road, I would hear a rattling noise on top of the headliner and after multiple trips to the same dealership, nothing was ever done to remediate the issue even after escalating my case to Mazda corporate. I was told that there was no insulation or padding in between the headliner and roof to dampen the noise as it's held into place by Velcro clips and to purchase felt lining and to put the material myself to dampen the sound. The run around that I was getting from both the service tech and Mazda corporate was that this vehicle was meant for "off-road usage" and that they've heard of other repeated complaints from other customers as well.
   
   
8. Panel Gaps: One day after walking around my car, I noticed that the driver side of my vehicle's hood was higher than the passenger side. I slid my hand up and down the panel and felt the raised section that was ultimately fixed by the service technician when I brought it up.
   
   
9. Noisy Driver (Rear) Window: I noticed this issue when I closed the Driver (Rear) door as it sounded weird compared to the other doors. I rolled down the window and tried closing the door again and the noise went away and after the service technician applied some lubricant to the Window, the noise went away.
   
   
10. Fuel Economy: I drive 80% City/20% Highway and I was averaging 15.6-15.8 MPG with or without a heavy foot. With my CX-9, I am averaging about 17-18 MPG with or without a heavy foot even though the car hasn't broken in yet. I honestly could barely get 220-240 miles out of each fill up without having to fill up. EPA claims the CX-50 Turbo MPG to be 23 (City)/29 (Highway) but the City MPG did not live up the expectations for me.
    
    
11. Road Noise: After driving in a CX-9, I noticed that the CX-50 has lots of road noise as there's not much insulation inside of the panels. It feels like the entire car is made of very hard plastic for cost saving measures.
    
    
12. Brakes: The CX-5 (Raybesto Element 3's)/CX-9 (OEM) brakes that I have stop much better in wet/dry conditions as opposed to the CX-50. In the CX-50, it feels like the brake doesn't really have much bite and I am guessing the material is more on the ceramic side than semi-metallic. Could be the tire differences as well.
    
    
13. 5-8 MPH Lurch: From what I was told by the service advisor, this was normal behavior that the vehicle does that because it disconnects from the torque converter. It doesn't always lurch but in stop and go traffic, I can feel the car lurching around 5-8 mph and disappearing afterwards. I've read on other Mazda CX-50 forums and they've experienced this issue as well.
    
    
14. Door Handle: I am not sure if anyone else experienced this but the handle that is grasped to open/close the door has a very cheap feeling to it, especially at the center portion. It almost feels abrasive and I feel that Mazda could've done a better job to polish that area to make it smooth and more refined as it seems like it came straight out of an ABS mold without much touch ups.
    
    
15. My Mazda Remote Start Feature: Probably one of the worst things to be designed where the car shuts off after the door is opened due to the fear of a vehicle being stolen. The car basically needs to be started a second time after getting in.
    
    
16. OEM Door Sill Trim Plates: I thought that the front door sill trim plates were cool as they light up but the rear ones do not unfortunately even after having to pay about $200-300 for the whole set.

Lessons I've learned from this whole ordeal

1. Never buy a first year production model as there's too many issues that may come up and ultimately, you will be a beta tester unless time/money is not an issue.
   
   
2. Best bet is to test drive a car in the winter time as that is when most of the rattles show themselves in a vehicle. During hotter weather, the rattles typically not appear.
   
   
3. The dealership/Mazda Corporate is not your friend when it comes to fixing small issues like rattles and will lie to your face as there's no money to be made even if you spent $40k+ on a vehicle.
   
   
4. Dealerships/Corporations typically respond well to criticism or negative feedback through sites such as BBB or other sources that may impact the brands perception.
   
   
5. If you drive in the city, the Turbo may not be the most fuel efficient even though it may be the most fun.
   
   
6. The torsion beam setup is awful.....

Thanks for your feedback on the CX-50. Just curious why you chose the CX-9 over the Lexus NX 350 or Acura RDX other than price of course? I may be giving my CX-5 to my daughter at some point and will need another car. I really had my heart set on the upcoming CX-70 until I found out it will be virtually the same size as the CX-90. I do not need or want a car that big, that's why I went with the CX-5. So once I found out about the size of the upcoming CX-70, I have been exploring other options.

I could get another CX-5 but I think it's getting a bit dated and needs an 8 speed auto and touch screen IMO. I may consider the CX-50 hybrid when it comes out. I have also been considering the Lexus NX 350 and 350h. Not as fun to drive as the CX-5, but equally as reliable and way better on gas if I get the 350h. I drive a ton and in CA gas costs a fortune. Although the NX is more expensive.

It would be great if Mazda did a true redesign of the CX-5 but with so many new models coming it doesn't seem likely. I am also considering the Lexus IS 300 and IS 350F sedan with the V6 engines. I think it's a mistake Mazda did away with the Mazda 6 sedan. I would buy the Mazda 6 sedan with the new V6 engine they are putting in the CX-90/70 over the Lexus IS 300/350F.

The Acura RDX and TLX sedan are nice too but neither offers a hybrid and I personally don't believe Acura is as reliable as Lexus. I put Lexus on par with Mazda for reliability.

 

[Bird-Dog]

More than simply being a first-year model, I suspect a lot of the blame for the CX-50's failings lies with... A) being built by Toyota -and- B) being a rushed design heavily influenced by Toyota in order to produce it on the same line as their model it shares a lot of DNA with (I forget which model and really don't care enough to look it up). From what I can tell reading-between-the-lines the RWD chassis Mazda was working on that it was assumed would be the basis of a CX-50 was postponed for a redesign (now to be the upcoming CX-70 and recently launched CX-90).

 

[GTEyes]

More than simply being a first-year model, I suspect a lot of the blame for the CX-50's failings lies with... A) being built by Toyota -and- B) being a rushed design heavily influenced by Toyota in order to produce it on the same line as their model it shares a lot of DNA with (I forget which model and really don't care enough to look it up). From what I can tell reading-between-the-lines the RWD chassis Mazda was working on that it was assumed would be the basis of a CX-50 was postponed for a redesign (now to be the upcoming CX-70 and recently launched CX-90).

There’s a lot of incorrect info in this. There’s no Toyota DNA in the current cx50 and it has nothing in common with Corolla Cross besides being built in the same location. The CX50 is built by Mazda not Toyota.

 

[Jack Rabbit]

Thanks for your feedback on the CX-50. Just curious why you chose the CX-9 over the Lexus NX 350 or Acura RDX other than price of course? I may be giving my CX-5 to my daughter at some point and will need another car. I really had my heart set on the upcoming CX-70 until I found out it will be virtually the same size as the CX-90. I do not need or want a car that big, that's why I went with the CX-5. So once I found out about the size of the upcoming CX-70, I have been exploring other options.

I could get another CX-5 but I think it's getting a bit dated and needs an 8 speed auto and touch screen IMO. I may consider the CX-50 hybrid when it comes out. I have also been considering the Lexus NX 350 and 350h. Not as fun to drive as the CX-5, but equally as reliable and way better on gas if I get the 350h. I drive a ton and in CA gas costs a fortune. Although the NX is more expensive.

It would be great if Mazda did a true redesign of the CX-5 but with so many new models coming it doesn't seem likely. I am also considering the Lexus IS 300 and IS 350F sedan with the V6 engines. I think it's a mistake Mazda did away with the Mazda 6 sedan. I would buy the Mazda 6 sedan with the new V6 engine they are putting in the CX-90/70 over the Lexus IS 300/350F.

The Acura RDX and TLX sedan are nice too but neither offers a hybrid and I personally don't believe Acura is as reliable as Lexus. I put Lexus on par with Mazda for reliability.

Those lexus are nice. Also noticed slightly used lexus aren't much more than mazda. Plus they have full length drivers side armrest...much like the 2016 mazda cx-5 did before re-design.
The 2018(and newer) mazda armrest ia pretty much is non-existent. Never thought about armrest before( all my previous vehicles had nice ones) so now thats high on my interior priority list.

 

[Bird-Dog]

There’s a lot of incorrect info in this. There’s no Toyota DNA in the current cx50 and it has nothing in common with Corolla Cross besides being built in the same location. The CX50 is built by Mazda not Toyota.

That is not what I read. They may not share parts, but I'm quite sure Toyota had a hand in the design-work. Further evidenced in that the planned CX-50 Hybrid will feature Toyota components.

 

[GTEyes]

That is not what I read. They may not share parts, but I'm quite sure Toyota had a hand in the design-work. Further evidenced in that the planned CX-50 Hybrid will feature Toyota components.

FUTURE hybrid drivetrain tech., yes, that’s correct. Toyota had no hand in any vehicle design work with the cx50 as it’s based off of the current Mazda3 platform.

 

[potownrob]

sorry things didn't work out with the cx-50. i personally find my cx-5 horn to be pretty loud and authoritative sounding. my forester xt had the puniest horn i've ever heard.