There are 3 owner-reported steering complaints for the 2018 Mazda CX-9in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Steering makes knocking noises when turning. It happened suddenly with no damage to car to cause it. It was fine prior to parking, when the car was restarted and the wheel was turned knocking noise started. Mechanic found there is a tsb for this problem but no recall.
the cars engine makes loud rattling noise and slips gear. the vecicle jerks hard and feels as if transmission is slipping. car hesitates when i shift into gear, followed by a jerking and jolting into gear. my brakes are replaced frequently. mazda at 65643 miles on car found excess operating noise coming from engine coolant/water pump due to internal bearing failing. they replaced the water pump. software (pyd8-18881-f) replaced. the vehicle has 74000 miles and has same problem. when stopped at a traffic signal it lunges forward at times. and shifts slow to fast gears. this problem is not resolved. the first time it was allegidely fixed was 22Dec2021 it is now 05Oct 2022
THIS VEHICLE IS HAS BEEN ON LEASE FOR 1 YEAR AND HAS LESS THAN 4000 MILES ON IT. INITIALLY WHILE ATTEMPTING TO START THE VEHICLE THAT HAD BEEN PARKED OVERNIGHT IT GAVE THE FOLLOWING WARNINGS: - KEYLESS ENTRY MALFUNCTION - CHARGING SYSTEM MALFUNCTION - VEHICLE OVERHEATING - BATTERY MALFUNCTION THE CAR WOULD NOT SHUT OFF UNTIL I HELD THE START/STOP BUTTON IN FOR ROUGHLY 20SECS. THE DEALER SERVICE CENTER TOOK THE CAR AND TOLD US THE BATTERY HAD A LOW CHARGE, CHARGED IT AND RETURNED IT. SEVERAL WEEKS LATER WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION WITH 2 ADULTS AND 2 CHILDREN ON A CITY STREET TRAVELING AT ABOUT 20MPH IT GAVE THE FOLLOWING WARNINGS: - KEYLESS ENTRY MALFUCTION - CHARGING SYSTEM MALFUCTION - VEHICLE OVERHEATING - BATTERY MALFUNCTION - PULL OVER TO SAFETY AT THIS POINT THE VEHICLE WAS STILL IN MOTION AND THE STEREO, HVAC, AND POWER STEERING CUT OUT. I WAS ABLE TO PULL THE VEHICLE OVER BUT AGAIN HAD TROUBLE SHUTTING IT OFF. I HAD TO HOLD THE START/STOP BUTTON FOR 20-40SECS. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER SERVICE CENTER. WE WERE TOLD BY THE SERVICE CENTER THAT A LOT OF 500 VEHICLES OF THIS YEAR AND MODEL HAD AN ENGINE HARNESS DEFECT THAT NO RECALL HAD BEEN ISSUED FOR BUT THEY WERE AWARE OF DEFECT AND HAD A FIX FOR IT. I FEEL I WAS LUCKY THAT I WAS ONLY TRAVELING 20MPH WHEN THE POWER STEERING CUT OUT. IF I HAD BEEN TRAVELING HIGHWAY SPEEDS ON A BEND THE SITUATION COULD HAVE BEEN TRAGIC AND I HAD MY CHILDREN IN THE CAR. CURRENTLY, BASED ON WHAT I'VE BEEN TOLD BY THE DEALER SERVICE AND SALES MANAGERS THERE ARE POTENTIALLY HUNDREDS OF OTHER 2018 CX-9S WHICH COULD EXPERIENCE THIS SAME MALFUNCTION WHILE IN MOTION.
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