There are 5 owner-reported lighting complaints for the 2014 Mazda CX-5in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
THE ENGINE OF MY MAZDA CX-5 2014 TURNED OFF WHEN I GOT HOME BUT I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT ALL THE ACCESSORIES STAYED ON. AS A RESULT, THE CAR DIDN'T START THE NEXT DAY AND IT RAN OUT OF BATTERY. TURNING IT COMPLETELY OFF WAS NOT AN EASY TASK. I HAD TO RESEARCH ONLINE TO FIGURE OUT THE TRICK MOVING THE SHIFT LEVER AND REALIZED THAT THIS IS A VERY COMMON ISSUE. I CHECKED ONLINE AND FOUND A THREAD THAT IS INCLUDED AT THE END OF THIS MESSAGE. MAZDA SHOULD TAKE RESPONSIBILITY AND GET THE CARS FIXED WITH A RECALL BUT IT SEEMS THAT THEY ARE JUST DENYING THE SITUATION. EVEN THOUGH IT DOESN'T REPRESENT A SAFETY ISSUE WHILE DRIVING A CAR, IT DOES REPRESENT A HUGE INCONVENIENCE TO OWNERS, AS WELL AS TIME AND MONEY. THE KNOWN FAULTY PART THAT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED IS THE KDY0-46-040 SWITCH. ONLINE THREAD WITH MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SAME ISSUE: HTTPS://WWW.CARGURUS.COM/CARS/DISCUSSION-T49115_DS799849
VEHICLE WAS PUT INTO DRIVE & IT WOULD NOT MOVE FORWARD 03/20/2018 AND IT ROLLED BACKWARDS. ALSO UNABLE TO SHUT VEHICLE OFF ONCE IT IS PARKED. CONTINUOUS ISSUES TO TURN THE VEHICLE OFF ONCE IT IS PARKED. LIGHTS STAYS ON THE DASHBOARD & RADIO CONTINUE TO PLAY MUSIC. I HAVE BEEN HAVING ISSUES FOR TWO YEARS NOW TURNING THE VEHICLE OFF AND MAZDA IS NOW TELLING ME THAT IT IS BECAUSE OF MY PHONE CHARGER IS WRAPPED AROUND THE GEAR STICK WHY IT WILL NOT GO INTO PARK AND THE ISSUE IS THE VEHICLE CONTINUOUSLY HAVING ISSUES TO TURNING OFF.. I HAVE A VIDEO RECORDING OF THE CHARGER WRAPPED AROUND THE GEAR STICK AND THE VEHICLE PUT INTO PARK WITH NO ISSUES. I ALSO BOUGHT THE PHONE CHARGER LONG AFTER THIS ISSUE STARTED. THEY CHANGED THE SHIFTER 03/2018 BECAUSE IT WAS NO GOOD AND THEY CHARGED ME FOR AN ITEM THEY ARE AWARE OF HAS ISSUES. I HAD TO GOOGLE HOW TO TURN MY VEHICLE OFF 11/27/2018.
HEADLIGHTS, LOW BEAM. I'VE HAD MY CX-5 TOURING SINCE I BOUGHT IT NEW IN JULY 2013. I ALWAYS NOTICED HOW THE HEADLIGHTS, WHEN TURNED ON, ARE VERY BRIGHT FOR A SPLIT SECOND, THEN INSTANTLY DIMS DOWN LOWER. THIS HAPPENED ALL THE TIME THE FIRST 2 YEARS DRIVING IT. I KNEW IT HAD THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY FOR ROAD ADAPTIVE HEADLIGHTS. SO I THOUGHT IT WAS THE WAY IT SHOULD WORK. ABOUT 2-3 MONTHS AGO, THEY STARTED TO COME ON, AND STAY BRIGHT CONSTANTLY, UNTIL I TURNED THEM OFF THEN ON AGAIN. NOW, THEY WOULD STAY BRIGHT FOR HOURS IF I DON'T TOUCH THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH. THEN WHEN I DO SWITCH THEM TO ANOTHER SETTING; THEY WOULD GO DIMMER AND STAY THERE. AFTER A FEW TIMES DOING THIS, I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER TO BE CHECKED OUT. AFTER A THOROUGH INSPECTION, THE MECHANIC REPORTED THAT THESE (FACTORY) HEADLAMPS ARE SUPPOSED TO TURN ON HIGH THEN LOW IN A SPLIT SECOND. THIS DOES NOT SOUND LOGICAL TO ME, ESPECIALLY SINCE I SPENT 15 YEARS WORKING IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY (FOR OEM SUPPLIERS, AND I ALSO WORKED DIRECTLY WITH FORD, CHRYSLER, MAZDA, OTHERS) FOR A FEW DIFFERENT MAJOR ELECTROMECHANICAL VEHICLE OEM COMPONENTS. UNLESS THERE IS SOMETHING I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THESE HEADLIGHTS, WHY WOULD THEY DO THIS SPLIT SECOND BRIGHT THEN DIM FOR THE FIRST COUPLE YEARS, AND SUDDENLY START STAYING BRIGHT FROM THE TIME I START THE CAR? THEY NOW (ERRATICALLY) STAY BRIGHT AS LONG AS I DON'T TOUCH THE SWITCH ARM. WHEN I DO, THEY COME ON BRIGHT FOR A SPLIT SECOND, THEN DIM DOWN. THIS CONDITION IS ERRATIC, PARKED, IN MOTION, IDLING ETC., I HAVE NOTICED ON POORLY LIT BACK ROADS, THAT THE HEADLIGHTS (WHEN "LOW" WERE NOT ADEQUATE TO SEE THE ROAD, AND IS A SERIOUS ROAD HAZARD. I OFTEN TURN ON THE HIGH BEAMS TO COMPENSATE FOR THE DIM HEADLIGHTS. I CAN SEND THE DEALER INSPECTION REPORT UPON REQUEST. THANK YOU. *TR
THE HEADLIGHTS OF THIS VEHICLE AT NIGHT AT LOW BEAM ARE VERY DANGEROUS. AT LOW BEAM, A DARK "CURTAIN" APPEARS THAT COVERS APPROXIMATELY THE TOP HALF OF THE WINDSHIELD AT ABOUT EYE LEVEL. THE LIGHTS ILLUMINATE THE ROAD BUT WITH THE CUT OFF AS DESCRIBED. IT IS VERY AWKWARD AND DISTRACTING. TO COUNTERACT, I HAVE TO DUCK MY HEAD DOWN TO TRY TO GET SOME FIELD OF VIEW IN FRONT OF THE VEHICLE WITH SOME PERSPECTIVE. I HAVE NEVER DRIVEN A CAR THAT HAS EXHIBITED ANYTHING LIKE THIS, AND THERE IS NO QUESTION THAT IT IS A MAJOR SAFETY DEFECT. WHEN APPROACHED BY ANOTHER VEHICLE AT NIGHT, THE "CURTAIN" DISAPPEARS BUT THIS IS ITSELF DISTRACTING AND OF CONCERN. MY WIFE TOOK OUR NEW CX-5 TO THE DEALER FOR THE FIRST SERVICE INTERVAL AND TOLD THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT ABOUT THIS EXPERIENCE. THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THIS WAS A BIG SAFETY PROBLEM, AND THAT IT WAS WAITING ON A RESOLUTION. FRANKLY, MAZDA AND THE REGULATORS NEED TO GET THIS FIXED ASAP. THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT SOMEONE OR MANY PERSONS ARE GOING TO BE KILLED. THAT "CURTAIN" APPARENTLY IS NOT A MERE ADJUSTMENT ISSUE SINCE THE VERY GOOD LOCAL MAZDA DEALERSHIP CANNOT FIX IT. *TR
THE LOW BEAMS ON THIS VEHICLE ARE INEFFECTIVE ON DARK COUNTRY ROADS. ALSO, THEY ARE POINTED SO LOW THAT THEY DO NOT ILLUMINATE A STOP SIGN - THEY HIT JUST BELOW THE SIGN ITSELF. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP TO GET THEM ADJUSTED, BUT THEY SAID THAT THEY COULD NOT BE ADJUSTED, AND THE HEIGHT IS NORMAL. WHILE DRIVING ON DARK ROADS, IF MY HIGH BEAMS ARE NOT ON THEN I NEED TO DRIVE REALLY SLOW SINCE I HAVE SUCH LIMITED VISIBILITY WITH MY LOW BEAMS.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026