2014 CX-5 Interior Rust

[yrwei52]

I suspect flood car. Lift the carpet if you can and look for mud, also check the undercarriage for mud on or in horizontal flat areas. This has nothing to do with "Mazda quality". Auction cars are notorious for being flood cars.

And those CX-5 owner's rust complaints on interior I listed earlier, their vehicle never got flooded, and where the rust is coming from if they're not quality related? (uhm)

And I listed my personal experience on flooded interior from different vehicles and they don't show any rust afterwards. Flooded interior will not be necessary showing the rust like OP's does if you have good enough treatment on interior sheet metal.

 

[tibimakai]

My previous car, 08' VW Rabbit had the whole steering wheel column rusted like that(noticed it when I was installing my stereo + camera). It was purchased brand new by me, from a dealer.
They could have transported it, with open windows as well and some rain could have got down there.

 

[nubbers]

Mine has some surface rust under the passenger seat and specks of rust on the base plate/hinge of the back seat (2016 GT). I also just found a little corrosion on the bolt to the passenger seat (if you look straight down the right side of the center console). I was alarmed at first, but there are far too many things to worry about. My dealer didn't have any suggestions. My plan is to clean out the rust and put something over it to protect (e.g. Rustoleum).

 

[craigo]

Living in a humid environment some surface rust is pretty common... the interior of a car is as damp as a bathroom a lot of the time, and so some parts will rust accordingly... shouldn't be too bad though. Pics

 

[mazdadude]

The pics the OP posted look normal for what I have seen others experience in the rust belt region.

When you get in from the rainy/snowy/salty sidewalk, your shoes are the culprit. The air from the footwell vents blowing on your feet, pushes the salty/moist air right past the untreated stamped steel seats, and the stamped steel on the underside of the dash above the pedals.

 

[Studum]

Yep, normal. Rest easy, enjoy the car.

If super concerned pull the seat, hit it with a wire brush and paint. But not necessary for any reason other than putting your own mind at ease.

 

[Aviboy97]

I'm skeptical. I've lived in the Northeast US for most of my life and have never seen rust like that on a vehicle that's just a few years old. I don't know why there would be mildew either.

Lol. Then you don't know anyone with a Subaru. The 2015 Forester I have has rusted front seat bolts. Car has never been flooded, or windows left open in the rain.

Manufacturers don't use stainless steel on components not exposed to the elements.

So many factors that could attribute to interior rust. I would not be concerned. Many manufacturers suffer from this. Hell, look at your brake rotors after a rain storm. Rust all over them because rotors are not stainless steel.

 

[GAXIBM]

Someone spilled a coke which has some acid in it and also caused the mildew smell. Just spray some WD40 on it or take it apart and paint it...

 

[xtrailman]

Nothing there to worry about, just spray some oil on it, or paint it.

https://imgur.com/a/sd2Mf
https://imgur.com/a/6sqkr

As you can see, some parts of the seat are worst than others. i'd imagine if it was fully submerged, it would all be equally rusted? What are your thoughts?

 

[Red MC]

Lol. Then you don't know anyone with a Subaru. The 2015 Forester I have has rusted front seat bolts. Car has never been flooded, or windows left open in the rain.

Did you happen to look under my avatar? We own a 2007 Subaru Outback with ~190k miles on it which used to be my wife's car but now I'm stuck driving it. We live in New England and we deal with lots of snow and salt in the winter. It has been parked outside it's entire life. It doesn't have any body rust or interior rust. We've replaced most of the wear parts of the chassis but nothing due to rust and the original exhaust is still good.

So many factors that could attribute to interior rust. I would not be concerned. Many manufacturers suffer from this. Hell, look at your brake rotors after a rain storm. Rust all over them because rotors are not stainless steel.

Brake rotors are ductile cast iron so naturally they are going to rust.