I'm new to Mazda. I have always admired and love them but been a truck guy. I need a 3rd row now so I found a 2007 CX9 with 219,000 miles. Test drive it runs great, checked it out mechanically myself and a shop and it seems too good to be true. I've read many mixed consumer reviews so hoping I can get some more insight here. Does anybody know of any major issues or things to worry about? Is 220k a number to stress on? Any advice or tips etc would be greatly appreciated.
It's impossible to say that any vehicle with 220k miles will be trouble-free. But I would feel much more comfortable with the Mazda than a GM, Chrysler, Ford, Nissan or anything German with the same mileage. If you had it checked out by a shop and you also gave it a thorough inspection, then I would probably go for it if the price was right.
You didn't mention what trim level (Sport, Touring or Grand Touring) it is and whether it's FWD or AWD. I went middle-of-the-road and priced a 2007 CX-9 Touring FWD with Moonroof and 219k miles. KBB gave a Suggested Retail Price of $6,145 (and fair purchase price of $5,745). Edmunds returned a Dealer Retail Price of $5,883. I would suggest checking the value of the specific one you are consdering before agreeing to a price.
The CX-9 only has two primary weak spots- brakes (the front rotors overheat and warp very easily) AND on some 2010-2012 models, the power brake booster failed prematurely on thousands. My 2012 GT FWD was one with the defective brake booster and it was replaced under warranty in May 2015 with 44k miles on it. They issued a warranty extension on that particular part to cover vehicles that might be affected.
The front brakes drove me crazy for the first 25k miles or so. At 8k miles, they were 'warped' and the dealerl installed replacements. Those made it almost 10k miles before the brake pedal started vibrating my right foot off! Another trip to the dealer and all they did was offer to 'turn the rotors'. While that would make the surface smooth again, it also means that the rotor is thinner after having part shaved off. A thinner rotor would have only made the problem worse (since it's thinner, it would warp again in no time and I'd be right back to the same spot. I finally decided to spring for a set of $200/pair high-performance front rotors and, after 46k miles and several years, they're still working great!
As for the transfer case, if you're looking at a FWD model, it's a non-issue. If it's an AWD, my gut tells me that it probably would have been replaced by now. But there's no guarantee (unless you have the service/repair paperwork), but the transfer case does seem to be the most common issue on AWD CX-9 models. Some last less than 100k miles, others make it closer to 200k.
It's also worth mentioning that 2007 was the first model year for the CX-9. It has the 3.5L MZI V6 (aka- Ford Cyclone 3.5L), which was upgraded to the 3.7L version of the engine for 2008 and later. Not that it matters, but Mazda assembled the 3.7L engine at their Hiroshima factory for 2008 and later, but the 3.5L for the 2007 was built by Ford (if I'm not mistaken). Regardless, both engines have been used in millions of Ford models (Edge, Flex, Taurus, F-150, Explorer, Mustang) and they're held up very well if they're well maintained. Mazda wisely used an Aisin 6-speed automatic on the CX-9, not the 6-speed used by Ford with these engines. The Aisin has been very reliable, especially if you ignore the 'lifetime' transmission fluid (that supposedly never needs to be changed) and change it every 60k or less.
Averaging the 219k miles by the 9-year old age of the CX-9 equals 24-25k miles per year. It's very likely that some/most of those miles are highway and highway miles are much easier on the entire vehicle than stop-and-go city/suburban traffic.
Be sure to pull a Carfax and/or AutoCheck history report before you buy. As long as it hasn't been involved in a major accident in the past, I say go with your gut!
