2016 Mazda CX-5 - What do you not like?

[Kaps]

I was in a center lane with my indicator on going to left, a car from right most came behind me then zipped past in the left lane - My initial reaction was - what a prick.
Went home and verified - the rear turn signal location is pathetic - more so if you live in a sun shine state like Texas - not sure how bad it is for GT but for Touring - that mini bulb location and brightness is awful.
Stand directly behind the car and you wont even see the blinkers, turn the left blinker on and step right by a foot - now you wont even know if the car has indicated that it will be turning left.

People cry about power lift gate, you are not gonna die if you dont have one. But safety is something else. Very poor from Mazda. Look at a lot of other CUV designs from back - they have accommodated this very well. And on Touring that small red triangle which is part of rear light is a joke at night. It is so dim.

 

[banjos-n-beer]

Kaps- I thought the rear tail lights on my 2014 3 HB Touring were too small and lacking in overall brightness. The rear LEDs on my 2016 CX5 GT were far superior. Can't really comment on the turn signals though. Didn't observe them enough.

 

[yrwei52]

I was in a center lane with my indicator on going to left, a car from right most came behind me then zipped past in the left lane - My initial reaction was - what a prick.
Went home and verified - the rear turn signal location is pathetic - more so if you live in a sun shine state like Texas - not sure how bad it is for GT but for Touring - that mini bulb location and brightness is awful.
Stand directly behind the car and you wont even see the blinkers, turn the left blinker on and step right by a foot - now you wont even know if the car has indicated that it will be turning left.

People cry about power lift gate, you are not gonna die if you dont have one. But safety is something else. Very poor from Mazda. Look at a lot of other CUV designs from back - they have accommodated this very well. And on Touring that small red triangle which is part of rear light is a joke at night. It is so dim.

This's something you'll find graduately of those "hidden virtues" after you're getting familiar with a new vehicle. Unfortunately after 2 years of ownership on our 2016 CX-5 GT AWD with Tech Package, I have to say I've been finding more negatives than positives. The visibility of my LED taiplights is better than your Touring taillights. But if you think your rear turn signals are bad, check out the 2nd-gen front turn signals especially on GT. That weak and small front amber turn signals are hidden behind the LED Signature DRLs and they're really hard to be seen!

 

[Anchorman]

I must admit, I was curious why some cars dim down the DRLs during the use of indicators but it turns out that it isn't a requirement of legislation, it's a nice to do. However, when thinking about it, no cars dim down headlights at night when a light source is intensified in a dark surrounding and we still manage to pick out indicators. The front and rear indicators on the CX-5 are perfectly compliant.

 

[7eregrine]

Agree Anchorman.

The only thing that still really annoys me almost a year in is the carpets. It's obviously a pretty cheap material and the way it holds dog hair? My God. Need to brush your dog? Just put him in your car for 30 minutes.

 

[Kaps]

Yrwei on a single lane road I saw a GT with one signature DRLs out coming from the other side. I almost wanted to turn back and ask the older lady to get it fixed before her warranty is over. Ouch that DRL fix will run into a few thousands, the Windshield being very expensive and tires costing 200 bucks extra every time they wear out. Plus the ton sensors - I am very very happy to get a Touring.
Also - the problem isnt the lights being dim, you can swap out for a nice LED and hope it works well but the housing's location itself is pretty bad. Nothing and no LED will indicate through the opaque rear hatch obstructing the view.

See the signal lights for Rav4, you can see it if you are directly behind the car and offset as well.

Now the CX5 - the two transparent triangles are reverse lights - the turn signals are invisible. Big big safety issue.

 

[7eregrine]

If you can't see a CX-5s turn signal you may need a vision test...

 

[Tccox]

If you can't see a CX-5s turn signal you may need a vision test...

+1

 

[yrwei52]

If you can't see a CX-5s turn signal you may need a vision test...

Didn't you say you counted only 3 failures on 2016 LED Signature DRLs in a LED DRL thread not long ago (actually should be 10 at the time)? Since then we've seen many more reported failures and Kaps now just spotted another one!

I don't mind people who love Mazda products want to say all nice words on CX-5 in a Mazda forum. But we still need to face the negatives. The LED DRLs on 2016 CX-5 definitely is a big issue and can be a huge expense for many 2016 CX-5 owners with LED headlights. That poor old lady Kaps saw and many others having similar problems may not be aware the issue, and will be a victim once the warranty soon expires. That's why I urge those who have failed LED DRLs do file a complaint at NHTSA website and hopefully forces Mazda to have a recall on this issue eventually. This's to protect ourselves from these problematic LED DRLs on 2016 CX-5 unfortunately which costs so much to fix!

As for Kaps complaint about rear turn signals on his 2016 CX-5 Touring, you can't use your GT LED taillights to compare as they've different designs. I can see Kaps' point as I believe the turn signal bulb is seated too deep inside a tunnel without any reflector helping the weak 21W 7440NA bulb. And for Touring the location is too much toward the side. The result is you may be able to see it directly behind the turn signal location, but not very well with an angle as the lens is curved toward the side on turn signal location, especially during the day under bright sunshine.

Besides, these turn signals have nothing to do with poor vision of ours, but this's for other drivers who may have poor vision or may not pay too much attention to those weak turn signals!

And I'll repost the taillights picture from Kaps directly behind a 2016 CX-5 Touring and you tell me where are the rear turn signals?

 

[7eregrine]

So we're up to 15 now Yrwie? Come on man. It's hardly endemic. I don't believe it's a flaw that we're all going to have to deal with. Time will tell. But why is your answer to everything "report it to the NHTSA"?

 

[yrwei52]

So we're up to 15 now Yrwie? Come on man. It's hardly endemic. I don't believe it's a flaw that we're all going to have to deal with. Time will tell. But why is your answer to everything "report it to the NHTSA"?

99% of CX-5 owners don't come to this forum. We've seen too many reports about failed LED DRLs so far from less that 1% of CX-5 owners who're here within 2 years of 2016 CX-5 lifespan. Reporting to NHTSA is the only hope to force Mazda having a recall about this issue which is too expensive to fix once the warranty has expired! Only a recall can protect us for any possible LED DRL failures after the warranty period.

 

[banjos-n-beer]

We were behind a first gen Touring CX5 today. The turn signals weren't too hard to notice. But I can see how they can be washed out by sunlight due to the clear cover over the bulbs.

 

[Jaadamz625]

I just got a 2016 cx5 gt leather seats. I dont think the seats are comfortable. The lumbar doesnt seem like its low enough.

 

[7eregrine]

I just got a 2016 cx5 gt leather seats. I dont think the seats are comfortable. The lumbar doesnt seem like its low enough.

I was behind a Touring and have no clue why anyone thinks those are hard to see.
I have come up with something I don't like. If you use the windshield washer squirter and heat is set to pull air from outside, the smell comes inside. Was this fixed in 17 or 18?

 

[bmninada]

I would have loved if there was an indicator stating the wipers are in AUTO mode. Most times they take some time to kick in and only then I realize its NOT in AUTO mode. I end up flipping it up just to check if its AUTO or OFF.
Also - can't figure out why they couldn't put the rear wipers also sensor driven. Not like they'd need a 2nd. sensor. If the sensor says to turn on the wipers it means raining @ rear too I guess?

 

[Jonno21]

I just got a 2016 cx5 gt leather seats. I dont think the seats are comfortable. The lumbar doesnt seem like its low enough.

Weren't you able to test drive a GT with leather seats?

 

[jhu8]

Weren't you able to test drive a GT with leather seats?

A short test drive doesn't tell you everything. Especially not the whole story with the seats. Your brain is processing and taking in so much when you're that driving. That's what I think it's critical to really take multiple test drives. And just sit in the car for at least 30 min, even if just parked. Will give you a great opportunity to really play with the interior and learn the insides.

 

[xtrailman]

Yes I had four test drives before buying.

A short test drive doesn't tell you everything. Especially not the whole story with the seats. Your brain is processing and taking in so much when you're that driving. That's what I think it's critical to really take multiple test drives. And just sit in the car for at least 30 min, even if just parked. Will give you a great opportunity to really play with the interior and learn the insides.

 

[7eregrine]

I didn't need 4 (!?!?) test drives. The Mazda seats felt like home to me the minute I sat in them. One (longish) test drive did me in. [emoji106]

 

[yrwei52]

I just got a 2016 cx5 gt leather seats. I dont think the seats are comfortable. The lumbar doesnt seem like its low enough.

Yeah the lumbar support is positioned too high and not strong enough for me too on my CX-5 GT. I wish Mazda can copy BMW or Honda CR-V offering 4-way lumbar support on driver seat!