Sad 2013 CX-9 Owner

I may be sad, but still optimistic....

I picked up my CX-9 GrandTouring in mid-july (2013). In the beginning of August and about 600 miles later, I dropped it off with the dealer to have the sunroof checked out. The sunroof shade has water stains on it. I honestly don't know if they were there when I bought it, or if it happened after the only one car wash it's been through, where it did drip on me.

Well, after three weekend without my brand new car and already making a car payment here's what's happened:
- Dealer water tested the sunroof, it leaked.
- Mazda Techline advised the dealer to adjust the sunroof. Dealer did, no good, still leaked.
- Mazda Techline advised to replace the sunroof.
- Dealer replaced the sunroof, no good, new unit leaked and doesn't sit right according to them.
- Mazda Techline advised to adjust the new sunroof, no good.
- Mazda Techline is sending out an engineer to take measurements.

Fortunately, my dealer's service dept has been great (and have been in the past with other Mazdas I've had). The dealer GM so far has been useless and has not contacted me back after leaving multiple voice-mails.

I called MazdaUSA and opened a record with them and got a POC to contact. I already told them that if the old one leaked, a brand new one doesn't "sit right", that I no longer want the vehicle since it seems to be a structural issue with the roof or some other part of the vehicle. With only driven for 600 miles, who knows what else could be lurking with this one or causing an issue. I'd accept a new replacement at this time, which at least to me, seems warranted. Looks like I'll have to wait for the engineer to take measurements to see what up. What they will be measuring, no one seems to know.

Sorry for the rant, had to vent... maybe this one was built after "Sake Bomb Thursdays" over in Hiroshima.

CX9 sunroof is designed to drain down the body frame to the ground.
In case that the drain hole (visible from below) is clogged, you might see water in the footwell or leaking stain on the interior.
Check the drain hole first.
Search this forum for where it is. Someone posted clear step by step pics to unclog it.

Bummer! Sorry to hear it.

Here's an update to the Saga...

According to the dealer, the engineer had spent a few hours getting the moonroof to align correctly. After 18 days, they finally called for me to pick up the CX-9.

That evening on my way home, went through a pretty good rainstorm.... the dang thing leaked again. Fortunately I was able to get video AND pictures of this happening.

The following morning when I went back to the dealer, I explained to them what had happened and that it wasn't fixed. I also provided them the pictures and showed the video. They took it back in that day and called Mazda.

Seven (yes, 8) days later, I called them back to get an update. The dealer said that they would review everything with me when I came in to pick it up. They water tested again and also tried a car wash. They said it looks like the problem is solved. They're going to call back when they have it all back together and cleaned up.

So far, 26 days out of the last 46 I've had my vehicle. This is a bit ridiculous now. Hopefully this is fixed at this point, but we'll see the next rain storm or car wash. I almost feel like I need to put a camera in there and park it outside for a few rains to see if it is fixed.... *sigh*

Did they give you a loaner while they had it????

Do you have "lemon" law in your state? Texas has one that I believe would cover this although I have no experience (fortunately) with it!

I would look into the lemon law option also.

So I can say that the dealer has been great in working with me and keeping me up to date. They did give me a loaner, but it's only a full size sedan, so it's caused a few problems not having the capacity for some weekends.

We do have a pretty good lemon law here. For non-safety reasons: 3 tries or 30 days. I'm past the three tries, now on to the 30 day mark... pretty dang close right now.

This is weird that we are seeing some 2013s with these reliability issues that don't seem to be very common to the CX-9. I wonder what is going on? or maybe this is just a coincidence. The new face lift did not have many changes.

Could be the overall cheapening down of the CX9 since 09-10 my. What was standard, is now either an option, or just N/A.

Dash illum; auxilery interior accent lighting; Rear tailighting; lower grade interior plastics; etc

You have to go through BBB Auto Line before you can litigate. There's a good chance you can get a replacement at that level. However, you have to send Mazda a letter stating that you intend to arbitrate through BBB. You must give them one final chance to correct the issue, but the number of days out of service keeps ticking if they take you up on the "final" attempt to fix. Mazda North America has no such "hidden" clause. They explicitly state in writing you must use the BBB prior to litigating against them.

I'm no lawyer and didn't even bother to look up the specifics of your state's lemon law. However, in every state you MUST first arbitrate through BBB. You can do it yourself or hire a lawyer. Legal fees are not awardable to you in arbitration, only litigation, and only if you win. If you prevail in arbitration, you can get a "repurchase" or "replacement". You have to state one or the other in the BBB paperwork prior to litigation. If you go for repurchase, you will take a financial "loss of use" deduction based upon the mileage on the car at time of aribitration. If you start now, it won't be more than $1,000-$2,000. The most they can deduct on a repurchase (in Maryland, anyway) is 15% of total purchase price, including taxes, fees, etc. It can get hefty. You MVA taxes and fees may be refunded at the settlement, or you may have to take your "arbitration award" paperwork to your state's MVA and persue that refund yourself (even if you have a lawyer). Usually, lawyers charge $2,500 for representation at BBB, and if you "accept" the BBB arbitrator's decision (Mazda is bound by what you decide: accept arbitrator's decision or reject and go forward into litigation), usually the lawyer can negotiate with Mazda for Mazda to pick up $1,500-$2,000 of the lawyer's usual $2,500 fee. It's not guaranteed, but usually that's how it goes down.

The letter you (or your lawyer) sends Mazda giving them a "final right to inspection and repair" is a requirement for possible litigation if you do not get a fair shake at BBB. Again, I'm not a lawyer and this is not legal advice; however, it is how I won a repurchase against another manuacturer. In my case, that manuacturer had a hidden clause in their warranty stating that you must give them 90 day notice from date of purchase to opt out of manufacturer sponsored (and paid for) arbitration. You don't want somebody paid by the manuacturer deciding your case, so I sent them certified letter/return receipt notification (you can also send electronic notification and get electronic receipt of said notification) a week after pruchasing the car, thus allowing my case to go to the BBB, and not Hyundai's "AAA" (manufacturer sponsored and paid for) arbitration.

Good luck. They're not just going to give you a new truck. Your water damage is no small matter. I bet they' didn't even replace the headliner, which is a monster of a job in itself and will take another 5-7 work days to complete. Insist on it. You can be in and out of BBB in fewer than two months from your first contact. I suggest you get moving. The number for BBB is in your warranty packet. You may not need a lawyer, but if your issues are "corrected" at the time of arbitration (the arbitrator will drive your vehicle that day), you may get nothing (and the lawyer gets nothing). A lawyer who may ultimately cost you $500-$1,000 at most might not be a bad idea to make your case successful, especially if you request a replacement which does not incur a "loss of use" deduction. A replacement is MSRP for MSRP, no loss of use deduction,

All manufacturers want to wear you down, and usually they won't just offer up a replacement (though not unheard of). Starting the BBB process and sending out the "letter" will let Mazda know you're not playing with them, especially if you lawyer up. I wouldn't want to keep your current truck. I'd do the work to get a replacement if you still want a CX-9. Also, if you hire a lawyer, make sure you hire a firm that does nothing but lemon law work. They know the ins and outs better than a jack of all trades lawyer, and these guys have independent experts who can testify on your behalf.

I had a New pathfinder with similar issues, was in and out of the shop constantly. I finally told Nissan headquarters the only way i would be happy is to have my vehicle replaced (had 1200 miles at the time). They refused to replace it. I went the BBB Lemon law route, after the BBB arbitrator denied our case, we proceeded and won our lemon law case and they had to buy back the car. The process from start to end was about 9 months, but you will get all your payments back from the day you start the claim with BBB. We fought them on our own, no attorney, at the hearing they had their "top" engineer and an attorney, and we still received majority decision. It was a frustrating 9 months, but that moment when they declared it a lemon was awesome, to see the looks on their face and the relief we finally felt.

Now i am happy cx-9 owner

So my advice, at least start with a call to the BBB, they act as a mediator and will work with Mazda on your behalf to try and make the consumer happy. Really have nothing to lose at this point.

The sad part about all this is that I don't want them to "buy back" and refund my money. I really like the car and it seems to be an odd-ball with this leak issue, I just want it replaced with one that doesn't drip water when I rains on my passenger seat.

I already sent the certified letter to Mazda on day 30, and like the 4th or 5th repair attempt at this one. Total days is now up to 47. They're playing games now and I'm pretty fed up. As I said to the Mazda rep, they have two choices: they can work with me prior to involving arbitrators or they can speak to a lawyer. The sad part is that if they don't want to work with me, they'll (under our lemon laws) have to pay my legal fees. I don't like involving lawyers and is a last resort in my opinion. I'm not thrilled with the BBB route, it's like them outsourcing a negotiator since the makers pay into that yearly for the service.

FYI, they've had the headliner out a few times now, and some of the interior trim pieces are not fitting like they should... grrrrr.

Maybe I should just take the pictures, and the VIDEO I have of it leaking to facebook, twitter, and youtube....

knowaczark said:

Could be the overall cheapening down of the CX9 since 09-10 my. What was standard, is now either an option, or just N/A.

Dash illum; auxilery interior accent lighting; Rear tailighting; lower grade interior plastics; etc

Click to expand...

You are not kidding. I inquired of the dealer why the name "MAZDA" was absent from the 2010 liftgate and the antenna was off to the right rear of the roof instead of the middle rear like most or all other vehicles and was told that it was to "save material cost."

As for Suliman, if I were you, I would see what an automotive attorney had to say about the matter.

I know that you like the car and all, but you need to get this thing resolved soon. Don't let the time pass by. It is in your best interest to just try to get them to buy back your vehicle. Then go to another dealer, but before that research to see if the products they sell have problems.

Meeting with my attorney today, we'll see how this one goes.

Well, it's close to being up to the legal system.

The BBB program simply isn't working, especially since the BBB Auto Line has a predefined process with each manufacturer (and paid for yearly by the manufacturers). I'm should have read up more on this program. I keep seeing more and more complaints about the Auto Line process (basically a private company paid from the other private company that has the complaint and doesn't explicitly follow appropriate state lemon laws).

I don't understand why Mazda refuses to work with me. I didn't want a refund, just have it replaced for one that doesn't leak! Heck, I still have accessory parts sitting in my dang dining room! After all this, I'm thinking twice about that replacement part of it. I've always had Mazda's and I've never been treated this poorly by ANY car manufacturer.

Oh, and the last time it was supposedly at the dealer for this issue (just recently, drove it into the service bay, dripping water in, they sent pics to the district rep)..... it wasn't at the shop! The engineer had picked it up and had it... at his house and returned with almost 200 more miles on it!!! *dumbfounded*

Good luck!

It kind of sucks when you save up your hard earned money for a down payment on a vehicle that you think wouldn't give you a problem for at least 8 or 9 years only to go through this. I really feel for you. They don't make automobiles like they used to. I hope that the result is in your favor.

Wow, sad story here. I would expect a replacement/buyback.