Need help! CX-5 not stable on highway

Cross wind stability has been awful for me, guess its more of a problem for FWD with single occupant. Even in Dallas Ft Worth where there are lots of bridges and obstacles its just is an awful awful experience. Its like Mazda never even tested it in crosswinds. My confidence to drive this even at 60 mph hits rock bottom - not fun at all.

Please get your car fixed before it hurts you or an innocent bystander.
 
They must have muddy rain down in Texas. My wipers work just fine and I live in the region known for rain.

Then you probably got a CPO or used where original owner might have replaced it. I probably have never seen one person say the Wipers from factory were near decent
 
The wipers that come fitted on a 2016.5 are Denso Hybrid wipers. They are the best wipers that money can buy.

Now you’ve heard it.

The newer ones on the 2017 are nowhere near as good.
 
The wipers that come fitted on a 2016.5 are Denso Hybrid wipers. They are the best wipers that money can buy.

Now you’ve heard it.

The newer ones on the 2017 are nowhere near as good.

Mine are not able to wipe rain off - instead they smear it. Not had a chance to test with ice. I have bought Goodyear Hybrids for my 2nd car and it has been fantastic.
 
Then you probably got a CPO or used where original owner might have replaced it. I probably have never seen one person say the Wipers from factory were near decent



Nope it was brand new 2017.

I’ve posted this a couple of times but the standard windshield washer fluid is not very good. I swapped it out with NextZett Windshield Clear. It’s strong stuff so I diluted it for the reservoir. I used full strength on the glass to clean it well and i also cleaned the blades themselves. A black substance came off

Before I did all this I was getting smearing. Now it’s all clear. Give it a try or buy new blades. Constant complaining solves nothing.
 
Cross wind stability has been awful for me, guess its more of a problem for FWD with single occupant. Even in Dallas Ft Worth where there are lots of bridges and obstacles its just is an awful awful experience. Its like Mazda never even tested it in crosswinds. My confidence to drive this even at 60 mph hits rock bottom - not fun at all. This is in most cases an urban vehicle - really could have traded in half an inch of ground clearance for more stability and better highway mpgs.
Coupled with the fact that is has some of worst OEM wipers I have ever seen and does average to poor job in cold weather has made me a little less happy customer. Even for a minuscule amount of ice on windshield it takes 4-5 minutes to clean it up and i dont like that when folks in 8 year old cars just get in warm up in 2 mins and are off. Damn, a 9 dollar Toyota refill is 10 times better than my OEM wipers. Cant wait to throw mine out at 20K miles since for me this is an eco car and I will want to spend less on it.
I really feel bad for folks battling in this weather with 2017s that have no other option on their wipers. You can go to your local costco and get a Goodyear hybrid wiper (different stores stock different makes at different times). It has about 3 or 4 different adapters - something will stick or else you can return it no hassle. Pick 26 and 18 inch ones. They are really good ones compared to my OEM. In my OEM i would rather drive with ice and partially blocked view than run them and blur the whole damn thing. Shitgabbon quality from Mazda.

Easy fix.. get yourself a set of H&R springs for like $200 or less used. Very practical drop, and will address your issue. Wider tyers and/or wheels would make a difference too. Obviously mine is far from stock suspension.. but I have no qualms doing 120mph in Mexico. I'm willing to bet your #1 culprit is the tyre.
 
I am sorry to bring this thread back but it seems it saw some activity as recent as 2018.
I just picked up my 2023 CX5 Turbo and I am having a very similar experience as described by @faust222

We have less than 750 miles and it's been around 2 months since we got our 2023 CX5 Turbo and on first day driving it home, it felt different, but we were too excited to notice anything strange. It's primarily my wife's car so I didn't drive enough to notice anything. As I drove it more and more recently it feels like it's not planted on the road. I know some mentioned wind, it's exactly what it feels like, but then I think it can't be this bad. I have been driving BMW X5 and Q7, in fact I went from a top-heavy car like 2004 Jeep Liberty to 2012 X5 and these are all pretty tall vehicles. My most recent X5 has air suspension, so I thought maybe I am too used to the X5, where I almost never felt the motion that I am experiencing in CX5. Then, we bought another Mazda, CX30. I really appreciate it's agility and compactness, and it has nothing like what CX5 is experiencing, maybe because it's a shorter vehicle.

So, we took it back to dealer, they said alignment was slightly off (toe?) and initially during test drive tech also thought it might be alignment. We just picked it up, and it's still there. Driving down the highway around 65-70, or local 35-45mph you can feel it. Not as much locally but it's there. It's also more apparent when you let it coast. It's not "pulling" to one side, but pulling to left, then right then sometimes it feels like front and rear are not following the same line. I am sure I sound like an insane person but I would never expect a drive feel from a $38k vehicle, especially one that's been praised as "fun" and "great handling" zoom zoom vehicle.

PS: I don't know why OP went dark and never commented if he/she gotten the alignment done or just gave up and got that loaded 3?
 
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Your wasting your time at the dealer. They will just put it in the green. Thats all they HAVE to do. Pay the $125 to a GOOD alingment shop. Been thru this with ford and mazda. You want thrust angle at zero, front total toe should be +0.20 ish. Did they provide you with a print out to show how crappy of an alingment they did? Details matter when it comes to drivability. Unfortunately now a days all we get are lazy and stupid. Average is the exception anymore. Post your printout if you have it.
 

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It would be incredibly strange on a brand new car, but the only time my vehicle has ever handled like you describe is when the rear shock was busted. My ‘13 had about 80k miles and it was incredibly squirrelly on the highway, especially at 70+ mph. When I changed the shocks the rear left I think was bad. I couldn’t tell by bouncing the car. The piston was several inches shorter than the other shock from the side. Couldn’t see the leak from the shock or length discrepancy until I removed it from the car. Turns out the car was essentially wobbling up and down on that rear corner throwing the wheel left and right at higher speeds.

Handles as good as new with the new shocks. At 113k miles and no issues yet.
 
@Diver34 , brand new car .... Mazda dealer needs to solve this and make you happy! If they say nothing is wrong with it, ask to drive another brand new cx5 turbo and see if it behaves the same.

Wheel bearings?
Tire anomaly?
"Lane keep assist"?
 
Interesting comment on the shock. In my '20 Frontier I had a shock go bad at 5k miles. I wouldn't have had any idea unless I noticed the oil on the garage floor and traced it to the shock. Drove perfectly.

Both my 19 and 21 CX-5's have not had the issue posted about by Diver34. I would keep going back and taking rides with the tech until the issue presents itself.
 
I am sorry to bring this thread back but it seems it saw some activity as recent as 2018.
I just picked up my CX5 and I am having a very similar experience as described by @faust222

We have less than 750 miles and it's been around 2 months since we got our 2023 CX5 Turbo and on first day driving it home, it felt different, but we were too excited to notice anything strange. It's primarily my wife's car so I didn't drive enough to notice anything. As I drove it more and more recently it feels like it's not planted on the road. I know some mentioned wind, it's exactly what it feels like, but then I think it can't be this bad. I have been driving BMW X5 and Q7, in fact I went from a top-heavy car like 2004 Jeep Liberty to 2012 X5 and these are all pretty tall vehicles. My most recent X5 has air suspension, so I thought maybe I am too used to the X5, where I almost never felt the motion that I am experiencing in CX5. Then, we bought another Mazda, CX30. I really appreciate it's agility and compactness, and it has nothing like what CX5 is experiencing, maybe because it's a shorter vehicle.

So, we took it back to dealer, they said alignment was slightly off (toe?) and initially during test drive tech also thought it might be alignment. We just picked it up, and it's still there. Driving down the highway around 65-70, or local 35-45mph you can feel it. Not as much locally but it's there. It's also more apparent when you let it coast. It's not "pulling" to one side, but pulling to left, then right then sometimes it feels like front and rear are not following the same line. I am sure I sound like an insane person but I would never expect a drive feel from a $38k vehicle, especially one that's been praised as "fun" and "great handling" zoom zoom vehicle.

PS: I don't know why OP went dark and never commented if he/she gotten the alignment done or just gave up and got that loaded 3?
No way anything is worn out. My guess is a sloppy alingment which at this point they won't admit because they say its good. Ask them for the print out showing "actual" specs. Warranty wont cover fine tuning within the "green" window and thats what needs to happen. I was told by both ford and mazda they wont get paid for that, only landing it in the green
 
@Diver34 , brand new car .... Mazda dealer needs to solve this and make you happy! If they say nothing is wrong with it, ask to drive another brand new cx5 turbo and see if it behaves the same.

Wheel bearings?
Tire anomaly?
"Lane keep assist"?
Lane keeping...wouldn't that be a kick in the head? I don't know if you can turn off both the audible and wheel vibration alerts and still have the thing lane keep. If so, that could be a steath cause.

Overinflated tires could be the issue. A poster a while back reported wandering in his new CX-5. The vehicle was delivered with tire pressure at 40+. Letting the air out solved his problem. Surely by now the tire pressure has been checked. Or has it? Perhaps out of balance wheels? Worse things have come out of the factor.
 
Lane keeping...wouldn't that be a kick in the head? I don't know if you can turn off both the audible and wheel vibration alerts and still have the thing lane keep. If so, that could be a steath cause.

Overinflated tires could be the issue. A poster a while back reported wandering in his new CX-5. The vehicle was delivered with tire pressure at 40+. Letting the air out solved his problem. Surely by now the tire pressure has been checked. Or has it? Perhaps out of balance wheels? Worse things have come out of the factor.
I purchased a 2016.5 cx5 and they handed me this bs checklist that they checked everything. They checked nothing. Tonkin Mazda in Portland Or. Car rode harsh, tires had 48psi. They come like that from japan to prevent flat spotting the tire. Thats lazy mazda dealership. I never go to a dealer unless its unavoidable
 
I purchased a 2016.5 cx5 and they handed me this bs checklist that they checked everything. They checked nothing. Tonkin Mazda in Portland Or. Car rode harsh, tires had 48psi. They come like that from japan to prevent flat spotting the tire. Thats lazy mazda dealership. I never go to a dealer unless its unavoidable
This has been an issue since I joined this forum back in 2017.
Lazy Mazda techs do not do a proper delivery inspection like they are supposed to. Half the stuff they check off on the list never actually gets done. Fluid levels, tire pressure among the most common.
The problem may be nothing more than overinflated tires.
 
This has been an issue since I joined this forum back in 2017.
Lazy Mazda techs do not do a proper delivery inspection like they are supposed to. Half the stuff they check off on the list never actually gets done. Fluid levels, tire pressure among the most common.
The problem may be nothing more than overinflated tires.
I checked them myself the night before we went there, but I will double and triple check to be sure. They were all around 36-39psi. Could turbo get different tires that require different PSI then indicated on doors?

You know what this reminds me, when I had my jeep years ago, I got new tires (Nokian) after driving on Pirelli's for 35k miles. Tires were slippery all over the place, my Jeep (2004 model) had 2 wheel drive, unless you manually shifted to 4x4. And it would slip all over the place, tire spins on accellartion etc.. I went back to the tire shop, and he said these arrive from Norway or some place wherever they are made, with a heavy coating, and it will take at least 1k for them to wear out. Drive gently until then. He was 100% right. At 1500 miles, the tires were the grippiest, most stable, quiet, to be honest best tires I've ever had on any vehicle. That "instability" while driving sort of reminded me when I felt that way in CX-5. Could there be some coating on the tires? Wouldn't that be more apparent when I take those sharp turns, I think so. It would be there all the time vs some of the time while driving.

Lane-keeping...wouldn't that be a kick in the head? I don't know if you can turn off both the audible and wheel vibration alerts and still have the thing lane keep. If so, that could be a steath cause.

Overinflated tires could be the issue. A poster a while back reported wandering in his new CX-5. The vehicle was delivered with tire pressure at 40+. Letting the air out solved his problem. Surely by now the tire pressure has been checked. Or has it? Perhaps out of balance wheels? Worse things have come out of the factor.

Lane keeping: I turned that off while driving to dealer to make sure it wasn't that.
I also tried sport more and back to normal to see if it gives better results.
Tire pressure was checked and are within recommended psi (within few pounds).

I don't think dealer checked tire or anything else, other than maybe putting it on the machine. My dashcam shows car sitting in shop for 2+ hours other than 5 minutes of test drive (before) and driving into the alignment machine (eagle eye? hawk eye?) then it cuts off, maybe they disconnected the dashcam.

No way anything is worn out. My guess is a sloppy alingment which at this point they won't admit because they say its good. Ask them for the print out showing "actual" specs. Warranty wont cover fine tuning within the "green" window and thats what needs to happen. I was told by both ford and mazda they wont get paid for that, only landing it in the green

This makes me wonder actually. At first they were really pushing me not to get anything done, claiming road crown, claiming lane marker, etc.. I hate hearing this because I told them I've been driving more than half my life 25+ years (without a condescending tone). I know what road crown is. I told it's very apparent at 60-65 and when you are just coasting on a straight road. It's present on slower speeds too but you can sense it better at that speed. His response "my tech can't break the law and go over the speed limit, you shouldn't drive that fast if it's giving you problems".. I held myself back and remained polite and reminded him this is not the only city in the world where I drive this car. It was really a frustrating experience.

@Diver34 , brand new car .... Mazda dealer needs to solve this and make you happy! If they say nothing is wrong with it, ask to drive another brand new cx5 turbo and see if it behaves the same.

Wheel bearings?
Tire anomaly?
"Lane keep assist"?

Thanks. I actually thought it was lane keep assist, and I turned it off to test it on the way there.
I don't think they inspected tires or wheel bearings. We love our CX5, such a nice car, takes corners really nice, and great acceleration, but this wobbly feel (that's ever so slight that you feel as if sliding left and right). Imagine having the tiniest of the hyrdoplaning while driving. Momentarily the front and rear is not in-sync. Then it's all normal until you get another to the other side. I thought it could be the wind, but I am not so sure. I am going to try to get a test drive from another dealer. Should I tell them why I am test driving, or just go in and ask for test drive?

Your wasting your time at the dealer.

I think agree, and not little time either, 3 hours + driving to and from 40 minutes of our day. It's very frustrating, and i had to convince them to check. He did a test drive, said yeah he felt it moves a little to side, but "nothing major" so while we are there they will just check alignment... I said OK..

Post your printout if you have it.

Sadly, no printout. I will give them a call see if they can give me this. I have copy of the work order that says "toe adjusted" along with bunch of other technical words. You are right i should have gotten a report, in fact my other car they print this when I first drive into the shop (some fancy sensors pick up the tilt and tire wear).. They wasted 3 hours so they could claim to warranty.

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Sorry for the long reply, I tried to answer everyone's posts. I really appreciate the support because nobody said "you are crazy". We bought this CX5 with lots of excitement and we actually love it, but thinking of the issue I am trying to explain just takes away the fun. My wife said sometimes it pulls to the side, but she is a local driver, rarely goes over 45. She also hasn't been driving for a long time she doesn't have much reference point like I do.
 
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So, no change in feel at this point? Maybe try rotating the tires in an "X" so they switch axles and sides to see if that has any effect. (Rule out or confirm a tire anomaly)

I don't think tire pressure is an issue if you've checked them to within a couple of psi of the door sticker.
 
1. Tires to 33 psi. 36-39 is too much



2. Get an alingment and show them my printout.
 
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