2016 Mazda CX-5

THE LEFT FRONT HEADLIGHT ON THE VEHICLE IS FLICKERING AND SOMETIMES GOES OUT. THIS HEADLIGHT IS KNOWN TO HAVE ISSUES AND BASED ON THE PART NUMBERS FROM MAZDA, IT HAS BEEN REDESIGNED MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE PAST 2 YEARS. WITH THIS MANY REDESIGN ATTEMPTS I AM JUST ASSUMING THEY ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE HEADLIGHT AND SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL. THIS VEHICLE IS JUST OUT OF WARRANTY AS IT HAS 37,500 MILES AND THE WARRANTY IS ONLY TO 36,000 MILES. THE DEALERSHIP WANTS US TO PAY FOR THE HEADLIGHT WHICH IS $1,500 DOLLARS IN PARTS ALONE. THIS SEEMS OUTRAGEOUS FOR A VEHICLE THAT IS ONLY 2 YEARS OLD. SEARCHING ONLINE THIS IS A VERY COMMON ISSUE WITH MAZDA AND HAVING A HEADLIGHT GO OUT DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD IS A MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN LET ALONE A QUALITY OF WORKMANSHIP CONCERN. THIS ISSUE NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED WITH A RECALL.

SHORTLY AFTER GOING OVER 36,000 MILES (STANDARD WARRANTY EXPIRATION) THE DRIVER'S SIDE DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT (DRL) LED'S DIMMED AND THEN FLICKER CONTINUOUSLY. THIS SHOULD BE A SIMPLE LED BULB, TRANSFORMER, OR BALLAST REPLACEMENT, BUT THE MAZDA DEALERSHIP QUOTED $1,275 DOLLARS TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY. APPARENTLY THE DRL LED'S ARE NOT INDIVIDUALLY SERVICEABLE. AFTER DOING SOME QUICK RESEARCH, THERE ARE MULTIPLE MAZDA CX-5 OWNER FORUMS REPORTING THIS ISSUE BETWEEN 24,000 AND 36,000 MILES AFFECTING BOTH DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE DRL LED'S. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE IN THE FACT THAT THERE ARE COUNTRIES AND STATES THAT REQUIRE DRL USE. TYPICALLY, IF A HEADLIGHT BULB GOES OUT IT IS A MAINTENANCE COST OF SOMEWHERE AROUND $25 TO $50 DOLLARS. AN LED BULB WOULD TYPICALLY COST MORE, BUT TO POTENTIALLY SPEND $10,000 DOLLARS (8 HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLIES AT $1,250 EACH) OVER THE LIFETIME OF THE VEHICLE (TYPICALLY 120,000 MILES) SEEMS A LITTLE EXCESSIVE. I AM HOPING FOR A FUTURE SERVICE BULLETIN FROM MAZDA TO COVER THIS DESIGN DEFECT (SIMILAR TO THE ONE REGARDING THE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY GAS CLOUDING ISSUE).

I NOTICED RECENTLY IN TRAFFIC THAT ONLY ONE OF MY RUNNING LIGHTS WAS REFLECTING ON THE BACK OF THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME. I DID SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND A LOT OF STORIES OF THIS LIGHT GOING OUT PREMATURELY, AND THE REPAIR IS COSTLY SINCE THE ENTIRE HEADLIGHT UNIT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. MY WARRANTLY EXPIRED LESS THAN TWO WEEKS AGO, BUT I AM GOING TO TRY TO GET MAZDA TO COVER IT. I AM SUBMITTING THIS COMPLAINT IN THE HOPES THAT MAZDA WILL START COVERING THIS REPAIR FOR CARS EVEN OUT OF WARRANTY, AS THESE LEDS SHOULD NOT FAIL AT 3 YEARS OLD.

DAYTIME LED RUNNING LIGHTS FAILED ON PASSENGER'S SIDE. THIS IS A FREQUENT PROBLEM WITH THIS YEAR, MAKE AND MODEL ACCORDING TO A MAZDA OWNER'S GROUP AND OFTEN OCCURS WITH EITHER DRIVER'S OR PASSENGER'S SIDE LED DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHTS. HTTPS://WWW.MAZDAS247.COM/FORUM/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?123857122-DAYTIME-RUNNING-LIGHTS-DIM-FLICKERING&P=6537092&POSTED=1#POST6537092

THERE ARE TWO PROBLEMS WITH THE TURN SIGNAL. FIRST AND FOREMOST, ON VEHICLES THAT ARE EQUIPPED WITH LED HEADLIGHTS AND LED DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHTS, IT IS VERY HARD TO DISTINGUISH THE TURN INDICATOR SINCE IT IS AN INCANDESCENT BULB, IT IS NOT AS BRIGHT AS THE LED DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHTS THAT WHEN THEY ARE ILLUMINATED AND LOOKING STRAIGHT AT THE VEHICLE, IT IS HARD TO TELL IF THE TURN SIGNAL IS ACTIVATED. THIS COULD BE FIXED BY EXTINGUISHING THE DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHT TEMPORARILY WHILE THE TURN SIGNAL ON THE SIDE WHICH THE INDICATOR IS ACTIVATED. IN ADDITION, THE FRONT MARKER BULB IS HARD TO DISTINGUISH FROM THE SIDE, IT SHOULD BE A SEPARATE BULB ON THE ASSEMBLY. THE REAR MARKER LIGHT IS MUCH MORE PRONOUNCED AND VISIBLE NOT ONLY BECAUSE IT IS AN LED BULB, BUT BECAUSE IT IS A SEPARATE FIXTURE FROM THE TURN SIGNAL AMBER COMBINATION LAMP.