A Few Surprises from US 2018 Mazda CX-5

[yrwei52]

I think that if the US EPA MPG testing loop included more stop and go, it would be implemented here as well.

Honda has been using Auto Idle Stop on Pilot for several years to improve 1 MPG on EPA ratings. BMW 5 Series has been using similar feature to Mazdas i-stop for many years. Id think by implementing i-stop on CX-5, itd get similar increase on EPA ratings at least for city driving.

Remember 2018 CX-5 with added cylinder deactivation gets only 1 MPG gain for FWD and 0 MPG gain for AWD on combined EPA fuel economy ratings.

If I were Masamichi Kogai, Id choose proven i-stop and i-ELOOP instead of cylinder deactivation implemented on US 2018 CX-5 if my goal is to improve 1 MPG on EPA rating!

City: Represents urban driving, in which a vehicle is started with the engine cold and driven in stop-and-go rush hour traffic.

 

[jasong7131]

Speaking of cylinder deactivation, have you guys seen the new Silverado? It will deactivate 1-7 cylinders depend on use, sounds like a nightmare lol

 

[Xeler8ing]

I don’t think I would mind start stop. Yea it’s annoying sometimes like in drive through but you can disable. Who knows why i-eloop is exclusively on the 3.

You get used to it

 

[Xeler8ing]

Mazda6 has i-ELOOP regenerative engine braking system too included in GT Premium Package.

Standard features on all models here

 

[Xeler8ing]

I-stop is not the great hindrance many people think it is. To me o don't notice it and with its quick fire reactivation, I don't experience any issues when needing a quick acceleration off the line.

As always each to their own.

 

[TGS]

The Mazda Touring seems to have almost everything the GT has.

You still don't get any fog lights (or an option for them). Deal breaker.

 

[yrwei52]

Cylinder Deactivation

Speaking of cylinder deactivation, have you guys seen the new Silverado? It will deactivate 1-7 cylinders depend on use, sounds like a nightmare lol

I thought GM had learned the lesson on this in 80s, theyre going to try it again?

Just some posts from www.silveradosierra.com about GMs Displacement on Demand (DoD) cylinder deactivation:

Re: Cylinder Deactivation Tech Talk
Aug 23 2014, 10:24pm
In theory that sounds good. The thing is when the affected parts are replaced it is actually the DoD lifters, pistons and piston rings with the damage. Until you have personally seen this then your argument will not hold water around here. I was able to look at and touch the actual parts and was amazed at how much damage was there and this also created damage to the cam shaft.

Re: Cylinder Deactivation Tech Talk
Aug 23 2014, 10:32pm
Danny the video is great. Its definitely informative for those that don't understand how DOD works. While the "theory" sounds good, in reality it's bogus. The fact of the matter is this, engines with DOD enabled have a higher failure rate than engines with DOD disabled.

 

[7eregrine]

No, i-stop or any other similar systems won’t shut off the engine every time you stop the vehicle. It has to meet many criteria to make engine stop. And Mazda’s i-stop has been rated the best on smoothness while restarting the engine, you almost don’t feel it. Anchorman seems to have no issues using the i-stop all the time:

Give me a little credit. I'm not just randomly hating a feature I've never used. I drove a high end Volvo with this feature. It shut off at every single light. It wasn't very noticeable. I'd just prefer it didn't.

 

[muggles713]

Good Afternoon, I live in the USA and am fairly new to this site. I have just purchased my first Mazda. It is a 2018 MAZDA CX5 WHITE/white AWD with premium package. I do read everything I can on this site and you all do a great job chatting up Mazda, I have learned so much. I am not as mechanically savvy as most of you are, so I tend to read and not post. The deactivation of the 2 cylinders bothered me a little from what I have read on this site. One mechanic I spoke with said (again...I am not mechanical) the deactivation should not be a problem when it is deactivated with even numbers....2 versus 3 or 5 deactivated. Will continue to read and post any new info I hear on that in the deactivation forum. I have had the car for 5 days now and I must say I love driving it. It feels like a sturdy strong vehicle to me. I traded in my 2009 Acura tsx with technology pkg for this Mazda. Just wanted to say hello, and I am reading....I will be happy join in the chatter when I know more about the vehicle. Again bear with me.....not as mechanically savvy as most of you. Thanks for all the info. it has really helped me get comfortable with my new car!! (yippy)

 

[Xeler8ing]

I thought GM had learned the lesson on this in 80’s, they’re going to try it again?

Doesn't mean they shouldn't try it again if they have learned their lesson and have solved the issues

 

[Xeler8ing]

Good Afternoon, I live in the USA and am fairly new to this site. I have just purchased my first Mazda. It is a 2018 MAZDA CX5 WHITE/white AWD with premium package. I do read everything I can on this site and you all do a great job chatting up Mazda, I have learned so much. I am not as mechanically savvy as most of you are, so I tend to read and not post. The deactivation of the 2 cylinders bothered me a little from what I have read on this site. One mechanic I spoke with said (again...I am not mechanical) the deactivation should not be a problem when it is deactivated with even numbers....2 versus 3 or 5 deactivated. Will continue to read and post any new info I hear on that in the deactivation forum. I have had the car for 5 days now and I must say I love driving it. It feels like a sturdy strong vehicle to me. I traded in my 2009 Acura tsx with technology pkg for this Mazda. Just wanted to say hello, and I am reading....I will be happy join in the chatter when I know more about the vehicle. Again bear with me.....not as mechanically savvy as most of you. Thanks for all the info. it has really helped me get comfortable with my new car!! (yippy)

Thanks for advising re cylinder deactivation and congrats on the new CX-5!

 

[Puyapim]

Good Afternoon, I live in the USA and am fairly new to this site. I have just purchased my first Mazda. It is a 2018 MAZDA CX5 WHITE/white AWD with premium package. I do read everything I can on this site and you all do a great job chatting up Mazda, I have learned so much. I am not as mechanically savvy as most of you are, so I tend to read and not post. The deactivation of the 2 cylinders bothered me a little from what I have read on this site. One mechanic I spoke with said (again...I am not mechanical) the deactivation should not be a problem when it is deactivated with even numbers....2 versus 3 or 5 deactivated. Will continue to read and post any new info I hear on that in the deactivation forum. I have had the car for 5 days now and I must say I love driving it. It feels like a sturdy strong vehicle to me. I traded in my 2009 Acura tsx with technology pkg for this Mazda. Just wanted to say hello, and I am reading....I will be happy join in the chatter when I know more about the vehicle. Again bear with me.....not as mechanically savvy as most of you. Thanks for all the info. it has really helped me get comfortable with my new car!! (yippy)

Congrats on your new Mazda. For the most part, owners have problems with these systems due to lack of maintenance. Get your oil changed regularly with a good brand name synthetic of your choice and go.

 

[TheMAN]

Your post just reminded me why can’t Mazda North American Operations implement widely-used and proven technologies such as i-stop and i-ELOOP on 2018 CX-5 to improve 1 MPG on EPA ratings? Instead we now gets cylinder deactivation with very poor reputation on reliability? Is “the Segment First with Cylinder Deactivation on a 4 Cylinder Engine” that important for Mazda or is Mazda trying too hard to be different from everybody else? It makes no sense!

I think the issues are:

• EPA doesn't test/give credit for fuel savings benefitted from idling start-stop technologies. Thus, any gains does not get reflected on the estimated MPG numbers on the window sticker... deal killer for Mazda
• i-ELOOP is a unique technology that utilizes the same "enhanced flooded battery" that an idling start-stop car does, because of its deep cycle properties. But because idling start-stop technology is not common in North America due to said EPA testing rules, these batteries are rare and mostly limited to dealer only availability. Thus, battery replacement costs are very high. I can only assume enough US i-ELOOP owners bitched at Mazda USA about their surprising high battery replacement costs, plus the low sales numbers on this option, plus high production costs, plus a number of warranty costs, they decided to move away from offering this option in the US. The reason for using these batteries is because there are many times that an i-ELOOP car runs on battery and capacitor power only, rather than by alternator, and also that this battery can accept aggressive high current charges for quick recharging on top of its deep cycle capability. The problem though is, because these batteries go through a high number of cycles, electrolyte (acid) stratification and cell sulfation happens faster than a regular car battery. Thus, premature failures have occurred often due to lack of maintenance in many countries (doesn't help by the fact that Mazda USA is silent about the fact that these aren't maintenance free batteries). More explained here: https://www.mazdas247.com/forum/sho...er-battery-replacement)&p=6564483#post6564483

 

[TheMAN]

No, i-stop or any other similar systems wont shut off the engine every time you stop the vehicle. It has to meet many criteria to make engine stop. And Mazdas i-stop has been rated the best on smoothness while restarting the engine, you almost dont feel it. Anchorman seems to have no issues using the i-stop all the time:

that's right... i-stop won't kick in if the engine is cold, it needs the A/C, or it needs heat for the heater... in fact, sit at a light long enough, it'll automatically start the engine again to cycle the A/C compressor
real world though, owners have reported that the programming isn't always perfect on it

 

[Xeler8ing]

But it's one of the better start/stop systems out there

 

[Puyapim]

I think the issues are:

• EPA doesn't test/give credit for fuel savings benefitted from idling start-stop technologies. Thus, any gains does not get reflected on the estimated MPG numbers on the window sticker... deal killer for Mazda
• i-ELOOP is a unique technology that utilizes the same "enhanced flooded battery" that an idling start-stop car does, because of its deep cycle properties. But because idling start-stop technology is not common in North America due to said EPA testing rules, these batteries are rare and mostly limited to dealer only availability. Thus, battery replacement costs are very high. I can only assume enough US i-ELOOP owners bitched at Mazda USA about their surprising high battery replacement costs, plus the low sales numbers on this option, plus high production costs, plus a number of warranty costs, they decided to move away from offering this option in the US. The reason for using these batteries is because there are many times that an i-ELOOP car runs on battery and capacitor power only, rather than by alternator, and also that this battery can accept aggressive high current charges for quick recharging on top of its deep cycle capability. The problem though is, because these batteries go through a high number of cycles, electrolyte (acid) stratification and cell sulfation happens faster than a regular car battery. Thus, premature failures have occurred often due to lack of maintenance in many countries (doesn't help by the fact that Mazda USA is silent about the fact that these aren't maintenance free batteries). More explained here: https://www.mazdas247.com/forum/sho...er-battery-replacement)&p=6564483#post6564483

Thanks for that information. I was not aware of the higher costs of maintenance and replacement.

 

[Xeler8ing]

I knew about that

 

[7eregrine]

Nearly every car company has cars that have this feature in the US. I don't think battery or cost for consumer replaceables is a reason Mazda doesn't have it here.

 

[Xeler8ing]

Nearly every car company has cars that have this feature in the US. I don't think battery or cost for consumer replaceables is a reason Mazda doesn't have it here.

Just Mazda North America's baffling decision making skills

 

[TheMAN]

But it's one of the better start/stop systems out there

I say it is the best, because it doesn't use the starter... the only high wear item at that point would be the battery