RoadVitals

2014 Mazda CX-5 Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
377
Latest Dec 10, 2025
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
7
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
1
Reports on file since Jun 10, 2013

What this page shows

Our database holds 377 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2014 Mazda CX-5. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–25 of 377 · page 1 of 16

Electrical
Filed Dec 10, 2025

The car's electrical system doesn't fully turn off after being put in park and turning the ignition off. The electrical system stays on, despite the engine and ignition turned off. It's a BIG problem that I've seen a lot of other people report. And yet Mazda refuses to address the issue.

NHTSA ID
11704343
Incident
Nov 10, 2023
Airbags
Filed Jun 29, 2025

I was driving down the road and my right side curtain airbag deployed. I did let my insurance company know but was told that they couldn’t do anything for me since it was not an accident. I called the local Mazda dealership and they told me that they could inspect the vehicle but it would not be on them. That it could have been a rat that chewed on something to cause it to deploy because I was not the first owner of the vehicle. There was no other damage other than the airbag and where it came through on the side.

NHTSA ID
11670101
Incident
Sep 12, 2023
Steering
Filed May 23, 2025

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at a slow speed and attempting to parallel park, there was an abnormal sound coming from the engine before the steering wheel seized. No warning light was illuminated. The contact's husband exited the vehicle to inspect the vehicle, and another person stopped to assist and became aware that the ball joint had detached. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the steering knuckle had separated from the strut assembly, causing the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted and stated that the vehicle was not under warranty. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V203000 (STEERING); however, the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was approximately 135,000.

NHTSA ID
11662815
Incident
May 4, 2025
Mileage
135,000 mi
Electrical
Filed May 13, 2025

Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 86,000, and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was 190,000.

NHTSA ID
11660608
Incident
May 13, 2025
Mileage
190,000 mi
Filed Dec 31, 2024

CAR ACCESSORIES WILL NOT SHUT OFF WHEN I PUT VEHICLE IN PARK. THIS IS DANGEROUS DUE TO CAUSING THE BATTERY TO COMPLETELY DRAIN LEAVING ME STRANDED.

NHTSA ID
11633341
Incident
Oct 11, 2024
Electrical
Filed Jun 21, 2024

Auxiliary power will not turn off when vehicle is turned off. Radio , lights interior power , etc….. car turns off when button is pressed but interior power does not .

NHTSA ID
11595830
Incident
Jun 12, 2024
BrakesEnginePowertrain (other)
Filed Jun 13, 2024

I was waiting at a traffic signal to make a left turn, with my foot on the brake. The car accelerated aggressively, with no warning, like the pedal was pushed to the floor. I stood on the brake and shoved the shifter into park - coming to a stop in the middle of the intersection, Fortunately my wheels were pointed straight and the car did not race into oncoming traffic. My [XXX] father was in the car with me. Thankfully, my grandchildren were NOT in the car. You could smell the gas and brakes. It was NOT driver foot placement, nor was it floor mats. Vehicle has ~ 75K miles, and I am terrified of this happening again. I had driven this car regularly in rush hour stop & go traffic for years with no event like this ever before. Apparently sudden unintended vehicle acceleration is a recognized problem. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID
11594255
Incident
May 31, 2024
Electrical
Filed Jun 9, 2024

Car fails to shut off completely. The motor stops, but the electronics (dash, radio, etc.) and things like the A/C still are on. Searching forums shows it is a faulty gear shift sensor that detects that the car is in park.

NHTSA ID
11593296
Incident
Jun 9, 2024
Fuel systemVisibility
Filed Apr 15, 2024

There is a pressure crack that goes almost all the way across my front windshield, there are no chips or dings in the glass. Second you can smell gas fumes near the back of the car but no gas is leaking

NHTSA ID
11583118
Incident
Apr 2, 2024
ElectricalEngine
Filed Mar 19, 2024

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while attempting to turn off the vehicle, the vehicle failed to shutoff. The screen and vehicle remained powered on. The battery was drained, and the contact replaced the battery. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 77,000.

NHTSA ID
11578236
Incident
Mar 19, 2024
Mileage
77,000 mi
Engine
Filed Dec 6, 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the heater core. The contact was informed that the heater core needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 57,311.

NHTSA ID
11558841
Incident
Dec 6, 2023
Mileage
120,000 mi
Filed Aug 9, 2023

In the past year the car has consistently given a “Set to P” message when parked and already shifted to Park, and doesn’t completely turn off (though the engine does). We have to turn the car back on, jam the car to P and try again. Internet tells me this was recalled for 2013-2014 cx-5s just before vehicles starting with the same VIN info as mine.

NHTSA ID
11537371
Incident
Aug 9, 2023
Electrical
Filed Aug 8, 2023

We have had numerous times that the vehicle ignition system will not turn off after pushing the stop button. The motor will stop but the ignition and radio system stay on. The car must be restarted(sometimes numerous times) and shut down before the ignition system shuts down. I have seen many other owner's complaints about this same problem on (carcomplaints .com).

NHTSA ID
11537070
Incident
Aug 7, 2023
Electrical
Filed Aug 7, 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated that when he turned off the vehicle, the radio remained operational. The contact disconnected and reconnected the battery. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 191,493.

NHTSA ID
11536857
Incident
Aug 15, 2022
Mileage
191,493 mi
Filed Jul 17, 2023

UNKNOWN - A few months ago, I started to have an issue when turning off the vehicle. After putting the vehicle in park and pressed to turn off the vehicle, the radio/GPS screen would stay on and a warning message stating the car must be in ‘P’ark. I would restart the car, put it in neutral, turned it off, but the same message kept popping up and would beep at me when trying to close the door. I jiggle the stick multiple times and tried different ways to turn off the car, now taking as many as 10 times before the radio/GPS screen turns off and the message goes away. I made an appt with the closest dealer, but I have to wait for 4 weeks for the car to be inspected & corrected. This seem like a safety hazard not knowing if the car is actually in park and turned off so the battery doesn’t drain. There should be a recall issued by Mazda to correct this issue as many people have posted the same problem over many years.

NHTSA ID
11532877
Incident
Apr 5, 2023
Filed Jun 5, 2023

When the vehicle is put in park and the button is pressed to turn off the vehicle, the radio display screen stays on. I have to recrank the car, put it in a different gear, and then back into park and try again. Sometimes I do this process up to 10 times in order for the display screen to turn off. When the display screen stays on, the battery is drained within hours.

NHTSA ID
11525487
Incident
Jun 4, 2023
Filed May 25, 2023

A couple of months ago we started to have an issue when trying to turn off our vehicle. A warning message stating the car must be be in 'P' to turn off keeps popping up even though the shift stick is in the correct position. We have to jiggle the stick multiple times before the car turns off. This can be a safety hazard if the car is in fact not safely in the park position after being able to turn off the car. The vehicle was recently serviced for an oil change and we were reminded of the issue and were told this is a known issue. They recommended to change the shift switch to resolve it.

NHTSA ID
11523862
Incident
Apr 16, 2023
ElectricalPowertrain (other)
Filed Apr 12, 2023

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated while attempting to turn off the vehicle, the vehicle failed to immediately turn off. After several attempts, the contact was able to turn off the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 70,000.

NHTSA ID
11516704
Incident
Jan 12, 2023
Mileage
70,000 mi
Filed Apr 3, 2023

2014 Mazda CX5 will not turn off, keeps telling me to put it in park - then it tells me key fob battery low, which it is not. I have to turn the car on/off, on/off, on/off to get it to shut off.

NHTSA ID
11515241
Incident
Mar 27, 2023
Engine
Filed Mar 29, 2023

Vehicle was at highway speed when the warning light for high engine coolant temperature came on with a warning message to stop the vehicle in a safe place. The engine stopped and I was almost hit by a semi-truck as I was struggling to move over a lane to stop on the side of the highway. Vehicle was towed to the auto shop and diagnosed with a crack in the cylinder head. There was no problems prior to this. My research has shown that this has become a common problem with this vehicle.

NHTSA ID
11514509
Incident
Feb 8, 2023
Engine
Filed Feb 8, 2023

The engine will not turn off when pressing the start/stop button while the transmission shifter is in park.

NHTSA ID
11506172
Incident
Feb 1, 2021
Engine
Filed Feb 6, 2023

The electrical component of the car does not turn off when the vehicle is in park and the push button disengaged. Drains battery and leaves me stranded. Can’t lock doors to prevent unwanted entry once this happens as everything is battery powered.

NHTSA ID
11505886
Incident
Feb 1, 2023
SteeringSuspension
Filed Jan 14, 2023

Car was inspected in April of 2021. The front of car started making knocking or clunking sounds on the right side. 2 weeks later, while making a U-turn instead of getting on the interstate, there was a loud crunch/crash sound. It sounded like a garbage can went under the vehicle. Upon further investigation, realized that the right ball joint somehow dropped out of the knuckle. This forced the axle to pop out and further damaged the rest of the suspension components. Thank god this didn’t happen on the highway with my wife and 2 toddlers in the car- that would have been horrific.

NHTSA ID
11501752
Incident
Jan 15, 2022
Steering
Filed Dec 21, 2022

The contact owns a 2014 Mazda CX-5. The contact stated while driving over a speed bump the front-end of the vehicle collapsed to the ground. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, and the front strut assembly was replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken to the independent mechanic and the front strut assembly was replaced again. The dealer was contacted and stated that the vehicle was not under warranty. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 146,000.

NHTSA ID
11498389
Incident
Dec 1, 2021
Mileage
146,000 mi
Filed Dec 15, 2022

The car wouldn’t fully turn off once it parks. Have to keep playing turn on/off game until it fully turn off. And apparently Mazda know about the issue but refuse to do anything. Other people are saying it’s a engine sensor issue.

NHTSA ID
11497651
Incident
Jun 1, 2021

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

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