Just Purchased a CX-9!

[Buster1]

I just picked up a 2021 Black CX-9 Signature and I love it! I was overlooking Mazda as I’ve been car searching for the past 3-4 months. All it took was one visit to the dealer and I was in love. I test drove a few different models, and then had the wife test drive the CX-9 too a few days later. Got the deal done last night!

A couple noob questions.

1. The exhaust STINKS! Whew it’s bad once things heat up. Salesman said it will go away, is that right?

2. The area around the engine bay and such gets pretty warm after a drive. Just curious if the CX9s run a bit hot?

Thanks guys. Glad to be a part of the family.

 

[Tiggs]

What do you mean the exhaust stinks? It smells like any other vehicle exhaust to me.

Regarding, the heat - are you referring to the dashboard?

 

[tekbiz]

I just picked up a 2021 Black CX-9 Signature and I love it! I was overlooking Mazda as I’ve been car searching for the past 3-4 months. All it took was one visit to the dealer and I was in love. I test drove a few different models, and then had the wife test drive the CX-9 too a few days later. Got the deal done last night!

A couple noob questions.

1. The exhaust STINKS! Whew it’s bad once things heat up. Salesman said it will go away, is that right?

2. The area around the engine bay and such gets pretty warm after a drive. Just curious if the CX9s run a bit hot?

Thanks guys. Glad to be a part of the family.

congrats on the new ride! Looks really nice...you’ll enjoy it as I have mine (4years now).

you might be referring to the coating applied to the engines and that pungent smell will dissipate over time (after driving it for few thousand KMs). All new vehicles are like that..l

yes engine bay will be warm as it is a high compression engine and that’s normal for the CX-9

 

[Buster1]

What do you mean the exhaust stinks? It smells like any other vehicle exhaust to me.

Regarding, the heat - are you referring to the dashboard?

It’s a pungent odor. Really strong and smells like burning cardboard or something. I guess it’s not the exhaust, but the heated exhaust parts or something. It’s pretty bad. My garage had a blue haze after driving home last night and I closed the garage door. I’m glad to hear it should dissipate soon.

No heat on the dash, just around the engine bay, outside. It radiates a lot after shutdown. Just an observation.

Thanks guys!

 

[Antoine]

It’s a pungent odor. Really strong and smells like burning cardboard or something. I guess it’s not the exhaust, but the heated exhaust parts or something. It’s pretty bad. My garage had a blue haze after driving home last night and I closed the garage door. I’m glad to hear it should dissipate soon.

No heat on the dash, just around the engine bay, outside. It radiates a lot after shutdown. Just an observation.

Thanks guys!

First of all, welcome and thanks for joining up, congrats as well on your new CX-9!

As for the odor, it might have something to do with this...

Any new vehicle will have this...It’s the wax coating applied to brand new engines to protect them from corrosion while being shipped at sea for few months. Eventually the wax coating burns off thus the smell dissipates after a few thousand Kms...Not sure if you noticed during delivery but the tires are also inflated to 40+psi (to avoid flat spots for sitting in barges for months at sea).

 

[Trip CX90]

Congrats on the new CX-9!

Re: Exhaust odor - we've noticed it, too. After a month it's still there a little but it's been greatly reduced. I'm sure it'll disappear after a few more weeks. Definitely open the garage door if the car is running!

 

[sm1ke]

Welcome to the forums, and congrats on your purchase! Honeymoon period still isn't over for me and my 2018 Signature, lol. It's kind of funny, I also stumbled upon the CX-9 when I first started car shopping. I was looking to upsize from my Lexus IS250 and I wasn't even considering Mazda - instead I was looking at Grand Cherokees, 4Runners, used Q7s, used MDXs, used RX350s, etc. Happened to drive by a Mazda dealership one day and noticed the CX-9 parked out front, so I started doing a little research which landed me here. Which other cars were you considering before you came across the CX-9?

The odor is likely what was mentioned by tekbis and in tekz' quoted post above. It should go away after some driving. Personally I never noticed the smell, but everyone's sensitivity to smell is a little different. I was also parking outside quite often when I first got my CX-9.

The ambient heat in the engine bay doesn't seem to be much more than any other vehicle I've had, but I think I read somewhere that the 2.5T engine runs a little hotter to assist in preventing oil dilution. For the life of me, I can't find the source of that info, so take it with a grain of salt.. that said, generally turbocharged engines do run hotter than naturally aspirated engines because the turbo itself generates heat.

I would also second what was mentioned in tekz' quoted post regarding the tire PSI. Many new Mazda owners have reported that the PDI techs have not adjusted tire inflation to the specs listed in the driver's side door jamb, so the ride quality is a little stiff and tires don't perform as well. I think they're supposed to be at 34 or 36 PSI when measured cold.

Anyway, enjoy your new ride! This forum also has a Resources section with some handy DIY guides that may be helpful to you in the future. Additionally, we also have Resources that explain some of the useful forum features. Take care!

 

[Trip CX90]

The ambient heat in the engine bay doesn't seem to be much more than any other vehicle I've had, but I think I read somewhere that the 2.5T engine runs a little hotter to assist in preventing oil dilution. For the life of me, I can't find the source of that info, so take it with a grain of salt.. that said, generally turbocharged engines do run hotter than naturally aspirated engines because the turbo itself generates heat.

I can't find any links to share offhand at the moment either, but I've read this also. It actually has to do with preventing carbon buildup on the back of the intake valves.

With traditional fuel injected engines, fuel is sprayed into the intake tract before the valves. This allows detergents in the fuel to keep the valves clean. When valves get dirty, the crud build up can restrict airflow, affect temperature in the cylinder, eventually cause the valves to not seal, etc....

With direct inject engines, fuel is sprayed directly into the cylinder. What Mazda found is that if the heads are kept at or above 400 degrees, it's too hot for these deposits to form, or at least the build up happens at a significantly reduced rate. There are fewer cooling passages near the intake valves in Skyactiv engines than other engine designs so they do feel as if more heat is thrown off.

And to sm1ke's other comment, turbos in general run hotter. As engine's heat up, the air coming in heats up. That makes it thinner so the turbo has to spin faster and work harder to pack in the same amount of air for combustion to happen properly. I remember my 99 Audi 1.8T. After driving it hard, if you popped the hood and peaked in the engine bay, you could actually see parts of the engine glowing like molten lava. :-o I recall reading that temperatures can exceed 800 degrees.

 

[sm1ke]

Sorry @Trip CX9 you're right, it was to reduce carbon buildup, not oil dilution. My mistake!

 

[jal142]

The smell a corrosion inhibitor slowly vaporizing off the metal parts. Google "cosmoline" for more information.