2013 CX-5 - How to get heat in the cabin?

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hooked

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2013 Mazda CX-5
I started driving our CX-5 more now that we replaced our older car and my wife is driving that one. In my old Honda, if I wanted heat, I*d just turn the temp knob to the red zone and hot air would come out of the vents. It didn*t matter if I had the AC on or not. I used it mostly to clear the condensation on the outside of the windshield in defrost mode.

With the CX-5, if I switch the temp to hot, I don*t feel the air coming out of the vents is very hot. I notice that the recirculate light turns off when I raise the heat setting. Then I turned off the AC and I did feel the air get warmer but not especially hot. It*s not a big deal since I live in South Florida, but this would be a big issue if I lived up north. It is an issue because I can*t clear my windshield in the mornings.

What am I doing wrong.
 
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I'd get your cooling system checked out if you think its not hot enough. I'd let the engine/coolant get fully heated up, put the vents on full floor (not defrost) and turn the fan on the 2nd setting. Put your hand down by the pedals or where the passenger foot well and see how it feels. I've never had an issue with the heat, even when its below freezing. I have noticed, that unlike many of my past cars, it does seem to take the CX-5 longer to warm up, but only slightly and probably very subjectively, but once going the heat is usually warm enough.

If you are running the heat in one of the defrost modes, it takes even longer to get warm as the AC comes on at the same time to dry out the air. Until the coolant is hot enough to overcome the effects of the A/C, the air will be noticeably cooler. When A/C is on, the system forces outside air to avoid fogging up the car worse with excess humidity.

It does seem to take longer to clear my windshield in the mornings too. I either have fog on the inside or outside. I even have noticed it freezing on the inside (something I've never seen in another vehicle) I think Mazda uses extremely thin glass that doesn't have a lot of insulation.
 
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If the coolant is low, there could be an air bubble in the system. If there is, coolant won*t reach heater core and no heat or weak heat will result. Happened with my MX5,
1 check coolant level, refill to max fil line. Leave cap off coolant reservoir
2. Turn car on, preferably with front end higher than rear
3 let car iidle for 5 minutes o get temperature up
4 Raise revs to 2,500 rpm for 5 minutes
5. Alternate throttle from idle for 10 second, then 3,000 for 10 seconds. Repeat 5 times. Should feel heat by now.
6. Check coolant level. It likely went downhill wn. Refill, repeat if necessary.

This process worked for my MX5. Same basic engine, so should work for CX5 too.
 
Cx5 has weak heat. 2.0 is probably weaker still. However, its hard to say if yours is abnormally weak, without being there.
 
Heat is plenty hot in my 2013 2.0L (central Florida). I really like the coolant suggestion above. I had to add more coolant a couple months ago. Mine was at the L since purchase, but it finally dipped below the minimum threshold. I wouldnt have noticed a difference in heat at that time because I hadnt used it since winter.

I refilled to the H. Drove it for a week. The level dropped a little below the H and has been steady ever since.

Dont expect heat when the low temp blue light is on though. Really cant use the defroster effectively until the blue light turns off.
 
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Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I will have to check the coolant. I drove it this morning (around 70 degrees). I put the temp all the way up to 90, mode was in Upper/Lower, fan speed was on 2, and the AC was on. After a while, I could feel the passenger side center vent pushing out warm-ish air and definitely warmer than the driver*s side. The dual zone was not turned on.
 
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If the coolant is low and I need to add, what kind of coolant do I need to get? Is there a specific kind for Mazdas or the CX-5 (2013)?
 
hooked said:
If the coolant is low and I need to add, what kind of coolant do I need to get? Is there a specific kind for Mazdas or the CX-5 (2013)?
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's a little pricier, but you'll want to top off with Mazda FL-22 coolant. I wouldn't go mixing what's in there now with something cheaper as my research into what other coolants may be compatible has left me scratching my head. I need to top mine off as well.
 
I topped off used premixed Ravenol FL22 *hangs head in shame*

More seriously though, when I flush the coolant at 100k or 10 yrs OEM fluid is going back in.
 
ruthrj said:
I topped off used premixed Ravenol FL22 *hangs head in shame*

More seriously though, when I flush the coolant at 100k or 10 yrs OEM fluid is going back in.
Click to expand...

Oh I forgot about that stuff. Should be the same is it not?
 
A quick amazon search came up with this Ravenol product. I*m guessing from your shame that this is not the best choice?

Can I get the genuine article somewhere else other than the dealer? Mine is not close and is a pain to get to.
 
It should be the same, and yeah, got it on Amazon. Super easy. The price was right and I didnt have to pay out the nose for more than what was required at the local dealer. Didnt get the concentrate as I needed only the quart of ready to use coolant.

Ive learned to be extremely careful recommending anything other than OEM supplies on this forum, hence the shame :D Its been suggested before I was chasing a couple dollars worth of savings at the cost of potentially sacrificing vehicle longevity on things as simple as oil filters and spark plugs. I cringe to think what topping off with aftermarket FL22 coolant could do to my vehicle, lol!!!
 
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ruthrj said:
It should be the same, and yeah, got it on Amazon. The price was right and I didn*t have to pay out the nose for more than what was required at the local dealer. I*ve learned to be extremely careful recommending anything other than OEM supplies on this forum, hence the shame :D
Click to expand...

Yeah. Sometimes it's just hard to figure out what's compatible, for instance transmission fluid seems to be an OEM only affair.
 
Just checked my coolant. The car was cool so I don*t know if that makes a difference, but it was below the fill level. YIKES!

So is the dealer the only place to pick up FL22 coolant? I*ll have run by there soon to get some if so.
 
Yeah, dealer for FL22 or Amazon for Ravenols FL22. I havent seen that coolant carried at local parts stores.
 
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