Spied: 2017 Mazda CX-9
- Thread starter crikey
- Start date
Earlier in the week we went ahead and drove the Signature trim while test driving other vehicles as we consider a replacement for our 2012 Mazda CX-9. After driving it (New Orleans area - 95 degrees) a while my wife said that the AC does not seem to work as well as our 2012 or the other cars we test drove within the two hours before or after the CX-9 (Discovery Sport, XC90, Jaguar F-Pace, Explorer Platinum). I had not even told her that others on the forum have stated that. Any of the folks looking to purchase pay careful attention to the air condition if you live in a very warm climate. We did not drive another one to test. Most of the vehicle is much improved over the previous generation!! We were really wowed by the F-Pace (yes more expensive and only two rows but that is where we look like we are going to purchase). Believe it or not second on the list was the Explorer Platinum with the 3.5 Ecoboost. That was also extremely impressive for an older design.
We have had our 2016 Mazda CX-9 for about 2 weeks. I have noticed that the AC seems a bit anemic, especially for the first 5 minutes after start up. I plan to have it checked during our first oil change. I read the reviews about this issue prior to our purchase. My 2001 Toyota Tundra with 190,000 miles seems to blow colder air than the CX-9. I am hoping it can be improved. Other than that, no other issues thus far.
RedHotFuzz
Member
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- '16 Durango R/T, '10 VW Sportwagen
I'm no expert on AC systems but have noticed my vehicles with bigger engines seem to have more powerful AC. Direct correlation? The AC in my VW TDI Sportwagen (4-cyl turbo) is pathetic, the AC in my new Durango (8-cyl normally aspirated) can freeze your nads off. Perhaps the AC in the new CX-9 is sized to the engine and not to the passenger volume of the vehicle.
This is my observation, as well. The AC in our VW GLI takes a while to get the interior cold with its 4-cyl turbo, while our 2010 CX-9 GT takes all of maybe 2 minutes. I do think there is a direct correlation between engine size and AC performance. I don't know if the folks who bought the new XC90 have similar observations with its 4-cyl supercharged and turbocharged engine.
If the AC does not perform well, this would be a definite deal breaker.
Are you planning on getting your windows tinted? I'm pretty sure it would help, but not certain by how much. Since we live further South, it's kind of a necessity. Our 2010 CX-9 has dark window tints with a clear tint on the windshield. The clear windshield tint helps a lot, to my surprise.
Not to pile on but the AC is underpowered. I tested it with a thermal temp gun and it was blowing air about 10 degrees warmer than our 2016 Mazda 6
On another note, is there a tell tale sign when the turbo kicks in? When I first bought the vehicle I noticed it right away. But now I really can't tell. It still has power but it doesn't feel the same as when I bought it. It could be that I am just used to it more
I'm intrigued by that F-Pace. Most of the reviews I've read shows that Jaguar did its homework on the F-Pace. Sadly, it has only 2 rows and I'm not sure about Jaguar reliability. How much is a reasonably equipped model going for?
RedHotFuzz
Member
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- '16 Durango R/T, '10 VW Sportwagen
This is a real bummer if the new CX-9 doesn't only offer inadequate AC, but the lack of ventilated seats offered by its competitors as well. Not a great road trip vehicle in that case.
I am not planning on getting our windows tinted. The air coming out of the vents does not seem to be as cold as in our other vehicles (back of the hand test only). I am hoping the dealer does not tell us this is "normal for the vehicle". We have not purchased a new vehicle in 8 years. Why does the AC on a vehicle that is 15 years old with 190,000 miles (2001 Toyota Tundra) work better than the brand new vehicle? We really like the vehicle otherwise and to be honest, this is really a first world kind of problem to have. Hoping there is a fix in the future.
Yeah, hopefully this can be addressed by Mazda. If there is a correlation between engine size and AC power it may not happen. I consider the first importance of "luxury" to be comfortably cool in your vehicle. Especially if you're sitting on leather. Don't want a sweaty shirt in a $45K car.
I would definitely not want to own a Jaguar out of warranty.
Potentially very true, but we won't know until we try!! It will be a while because the specs we want are not available and with only under 10 F-Paces even available within 300 miles of me it will be a while for us to think about it.
I doubt the Jaguar can't be any worse than my two Saabs and Mini Cooper
The Jag comes with a 5/60 bumper to bumper and 5/60 maintenance included. If the AC in the CX-9 wasn't a problem and if it had a little more pickup we would be driving the Signature today. Everything else was near perfect.
The F-Pace I have configured is MSRP: $52,500. The F-Pace runs from about $43-near $70K. We are moving into our life where a two row will suit us just fine and the space in F-pace 2nd row is really impressive along with the cargo area. 50K is a lot as we are hardworking folks but my wife was really impressed and this will have been the first car we have bought that she "really wants". She will keep it most probably for 10 years. Thank goodness I do my own wrenching and hopefully by the time the warranty is up I will be able to!
We test drove the XC90 and it was much better than the CX-9 but weird enough not as good as our current CX-9 (from our observation).
I agree that it's disappointing that the CX-9 doesn't have vented seats--however, my last car had them, and on a typically hot summer day (in PA, so I can't even imagine down south), the vented seats really don't do very much, if anything. They are actually feel them the most when you are already sweaty--like coming back from the gym.
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- Plano, Texas, USA
lf your wife "really wants" a Jaguar F-Pace, don't hesitate and just go ahead to get one for her!Potentially very true, but we won't know until we try!! It will be a while because the specs we want are not available and with only under 10 F-Paces even available within 300 miles of me it will be a while for us to think about it.
I doubt the Jaguar can't be any worse than my two Saabs and Mini Cooper
If the AC in the CX-9 wasn't a problem and if it had a little more pickup we would be driving the Signature today. Everything else was near perfect.
The F-Pace I have configured is MSRP: $52,500. The F-Pace runs from about $43-near $70K. We are moving into our life where a two row will suit us just fine and the space in F-pace 2nd row is really impressive along with the cargo area. 50K is a lot as we are hardworking folks but my wife was really impressed and this will have been the first car we have bought that she "really wants". She will keep it most probably for 10 years. Thank goodness I do my own wrenching and hopefully by the time the warranty is up I will be able to!
F-Pace is really a nice looking compact CUV! I'm even tempting to get one for my wife to replace her CX-5! I do believe Jaguar's quality has been improved since Ford left (funny it sounds like Mazda's story) and sold it to Tata Motors from India. But you can always consider an extended warranty from Jaguar for a piece of mind.
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The same happens to me.
I believe this is it. My cx9 2011 had better AC. I'm OK because where I live (MX City) there is no hot temps, but I notice the old cx9 had better AC. The new AC in the new CX9 will need more time to cool the big interior.
astriuminc
Member
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- CX-9 2013 AWD
Well sorry to confirm guys, the AC is not as cold as the old CX-9, got a chance to test drive a brand new CX-9 from Wantagh Mazda in New York. Weather has been a heat wave and humid as hell (92 + deg F) for the last three days here in NY, it took a very loooooooong time to cool down the interior and even then it was still not cool enough, I think this is how it is due to the smaller engine, not a low charge refrigerant issue.
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