2007 Mazda CX-7

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

AS THE PROUD OWNER OF A NEW MAZDA CX7, I FELT CONFIDENT AFTER THE FIRST YEAR OF DRIVING THIS SUV THAT IT WOULD CARRY ME AT LEAST 10YRS. UNTIL I BEGIN TO NOTICE ACCELERATION PROBLEMS AND NOTICING PUFFS OF WHITE SMOKE EXPELLED FROM THE EXHAUST PIPE WHEN IT FINALLY REALIZED I WAS TRYING TO INCREASE SPEED. TOOK SUV TO A MAZDA DEALER AND WAS INFORMED NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH IT. FINE, THEN BEGAN TO HEAR LIKE A RATTLING NOISE DURING ACCELERATION (SOUNDED LIKE A ROCK IN A TIN CAN) SOUND THEN GOES AWAY AFTER A FEW MOMENTS. TOOK TO DEALER AGAIN WAS TOLD NO PROBLEM. WELL, ON MY WAY TO WORK AT 70 MPH ON BUSY INTERSTATE, I LOSE ACCELERATION. COST SAFELY TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD WITHOUT BEING RAN OVER BY 18 WHEELER,, HAD VEHICLE TOWED TO MAZDA DEALER. I WAS THEN INFORMED THE TIMING CHAIN BROKE, YES AT 70,000 MILES. ONLY THEN TO BE INFORMED LATER THAT DUE TO TIMING BREAKING MY ENGINE WAS RUINED. I WAS THEN DEVASTATED, EVEN MORE SO AFTER I WAS TOLD IT WOULD 8000 FOR A NEW ENGINE PLUS 2000 FOR LABOR. I HAD NO OTHER OPTION BUT TO PARK THE VEHICLE AND ATTEMPTED TO SAVE MONEY TO HAVE IT FIXED. WELL THAT WAS 2 YRS AGO AND ITS STILL PARKED, AND 2 YRS NOW WITHOUT A VEHICLE. I HAD ROUTINE DOCUMENTED OIL CHANGES AT MAZDA DEALERS ONLY, I TOOK VERY GOOD CARE OF THIS TRUCK. AFTER SEARCHING THE INTERNET, I AM READING THE SAME INCIDENTS FROM THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE CONCERNING THE EXACT SAME ISSUE. MAZDA HAS FINALLY STATES THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE TIMING CHAINS AND HAS ISSUED AN EXTENDED WARRANTY ON IT. BUT FROM READING REPORTS, MAZDA IS GIVING PEOPLE A HARD TIME. MAZDA CX7 ARE DANGEROUS VEHICLES, SOMEONE COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED DUE TO THIS POORLY MADE SUV. I AM REPORTING THIS BECAUSE IT REALLY NEEDS TO BE LOOKED INTO BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED TO MANY PEOPLE ON THE INTERNET COMPLAINING ABOUT THIS FAILURE. PLEASE INVESTIGATE THIS VEHICLE< WE CANT ALL BE WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *TR

COMPLETE ENGINE FAILURE AT 75,287 MILES. ENTIRE ENGINE IS BURNED UP, OIL CHANGED REGULARLY, NO OIL LEAKS, TURBO SENSOR REPLACED IN APRIL 2011 BY DEALER UNDER EXTENDED WARRANTY, ENGINE NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY IN DECEMBER 2011, CITED LACK OF MAINTENANCE EVEN WITH RECEIPTS OF OIL CHANGES. AFTER RESEARCHING ISSUE, THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM IN MAZDA CX7'S, AND ENGINE FAILURE HAS BEEN REPORTED IN OVER 2000 CASES. NOT ONLY IS THE CONDITION DANGEROUS, AS THE VEHICLE JUST STOPS RUNNING WITHOUT APPROPRIATE WARNING LIGHTS, MODERN CARS DO NOT USUALLY NEED A NEW ENGINE AT LOWER MILEAGE. MAZDA HAS SENT NO NOTICES OR LETTERS STATING THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM ON THIS MODEL, AND HAS NOT RECOMMENDED USING SYNTHETIC OIL OR MORE FREQUENT OIL CHANGES. *TR

ON 12/19/11, I WAS DRIVING APPX. 60 - 65 MPH ON I-81 WHEN MY 2007 MAZDA CX-7 JUST SHUT OFF. I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC ON THE INTERSTATE, WITH A LARGE TRACTOR TRAILER BEHIND ME, BUT I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY MANEUVER MY CAR ONTO THE SHOULDER OF THE INTERSTATE. MY CAR WOULD NOT START AGAIN. I DID QUITE A BIT OF RESEARCH ON LINE REGARDING THIS PARTICULAR ISSUE AND FOUND A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF CLAIMS FROM OTHER PEOPLE THAT HAD THIS SAME PROBLEM HAPPEN TO THEIR 2007 MAZDA CX7. THE FINAL DIAGNOSIS IS TOTAL ENGINE FAILURE WITH A PRICE TAG OF $7200 TO FIX. THAT WOULD BE FOR A WHOLE NEW ENGINE. I FOUND A SERVICE BULLETIN FROM JANUARY OF 2008 THAT CORPORATE MAZDA SENT OUT TO THEIR DEALERS RE: A PROBLEM WITH THE TIMING CHAIN. THE BULLETIN SPECIFICALLY IDENTIFIES A SERIES OF VIN#'S AFFECTED, AND MINE FALLS INTO THE CATEGORY. THERE IS CURRENTLY ABOUT 65K MILES ON MY CAR (I CAN'T REMEMBER EXACTLY), AND I DID NOT BUY THE EXTENDED WARRANTY BECAUSE WHO WOULD THINK THAT A 2007 VEHICLE WOULD NEED A NEW ENGINE @ 65K MILES? I THINK I SHOULD'VE BEEN NOTIFIED THAT THERE WAS AN ONGOING ISSUE WITH THIS PARTICULAR MODEL AND YEAR. BOTH MAZDA AND THE DEALERSHIP ARE TELLING ME THEY WILL NOT DO ANYTHING FOR ME, BECAUSE THE VEHICLE IS OUT OF WARRANTY. MAZDA NEEDS TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY HERE. I'M LUCKY I WAS ABLE TO GET MY CAR THROUGH THE TRAFFIC AND OFF THE INTERSTATE. DOES SOMEONE NEED TO BE KILLED BEFORE THIS ISSUE GETS ATTENTION? MY CAR SHOWED ABSOLUTELY NO WARNING SIGNS THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG FOR ME TO PRO-ACTIVELY HAVE THIS CHECKED. *TR

DEALERSHIP MAINTAINED CX-7 EXPERIENCED MAJOR FAILURE WHILE DRIVING. ENGINE DIED AND MAJOR OIL LEAK WAS NOTICED. CAR HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP FIRST INDICATED THAT THERE WAS SOME TYPE OF FAILURE REGARDING THE #3 CYLINDER. DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THE PROBABLE CAUSE OF FAILURE WAS DUE TO TURBO OVERHEATING. LATER THE DEALERSHIP STATED THAT THE #4 PISTON FAILED AND CAUSED CATASTROPHIC DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE. THE CAUSE OF FAILURE WAS NEVER DETERMINED. THE ENGINE, TURBOCHARGER, THERMOSTAT, EGR VALVE, INTAKE MANIFOLD, STARTER AND O2 SENSOR WERE REPLACED. TOTAL COST OF REPAIRS (LABOR, PARTS, AND MISC CHARGES) PRIOR TO TAX WAS $10,557.49. PRIOR TO ENGINE FAILURE WE INFORMED THE DEALERSHIP THAT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS CONSTANTLY ON BUT STATED THAT IT WAS DUE TO THE GAS CAP NOT BEING PROPERLY PUT ON. THEY NEVER SCANNED THE COMPUTER DESPITE THE CAR BEING UNDER WARRANTY. ADDITIONALLY A TICKING NOISE HAS BEEN PREVIOUSLY BROUGHT TO THE DEALERSHIP'S ATTENTION BUT WAS TOLD THAT THE ENGINE NOISE WAS NORMAL FOR THIS PARTICULAR ENGINE. *TR

ENGINE CEASED ON THE HIGHWAY WHILE I WAS DRIVING. MAZDA SAYS IT IS MY FAULT FOR GOING 2000 MILES OVER THE OIL CHANGE. HOWEVER, OIL LIGHT NEVER CAME ON; CAR WAS NOT DRIVING ANY DIFFERENTLY THAN NORMAL; AND NO SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. EVEN THOUGH CAR IS UNDER WARRANTY, MAZDA IS REFUSING TO PAY FOR THE DAMAGE. IT IS HARD TO BELIEVE THAT A WELL-MAINTAINED CARD WITH A LITTLE OVER 50K MILES WILL CEASE IT ENGINE BECAUSE OF 2000 MILES OVER AN OIL CHANGE. *TR

THIS VEHICLE HAS CAUSED ME NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS! I HAVE HAD IT FOR 3 YEARS AND IT HAS BEEN IN THE SHOP 4 TIMES AND THIS LAST TIME IS THE TRANSMISSION AT 70,000 MILES! THIS IS RIDICULOUS...MAZDA NEEDS TO CLEAN UP IT'S ACT. CUSTOMERS SHOULD NOT HAVE CHARGES LIKE THIS EARLY ON IN THE LIFE OF A VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE IS GORGEOUS BUT PERHAPS THEY SHOULD HAVE SPENT A LITTLE MORE TIME PUTTING IT TOGETHER AS IT DOESN'T MATTER FOR EYE APPEALING IT IS WHEN IT DOESN'T RUN! *TR

JUST PURCHASED THE VEHICLE FOR MY MOM AS A PRESENT BECAUSE SHE HAS WANTED ONE SINCE THEY CAME OUT. IT HAS 81,000 MILES ON IT. THE VVT HAS GONE OUT, THE TIMING CHAIN NEEDS REPLACED AND NOW THEY ARE TELLING ME THAT THE ENGINE IS SHOT BECAUSE OF THE SLUDGE AND THE NEGLECTED CARE TO THE VEHICLE. I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE USED SO I DO NOT KNOW HOW IT WAS CARED FOR PREVIOUSLY, BUT SINCE WE HAVE HAD IT, IT HAS BEEN CARED FOR MAGNIFICENTLY. I HAVE READ NUMEROUS CONSUMER REPORTS WHICH STATED THE EXACT SAME PROBLEMS IM HAVING. I'M GETTING QUOTED OVER $7,500 TO FIX THE VEHICLE THAT I PURCHASED NOT EVEN 2 MONTHS AGO. MAZDA SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS. *TR

MY CAR (WHICH I BOUGHT IN AUG. OF 2010) STARTED MAKING A LOUD TAPPING NOISE AND 2 DAYS LATER IT JUST QUIT ON ME, I WAS PULLING OUT OF THE PARKING LOT WERE I WORK SO THANK GOD I WASN'T ON A MAJOR STREET OR ANYTHING BECAUSE IT JUST TURNED OFF OUT OF THE BLUE. I HAD TO GET HELP TO PUSH IT IN A PARKING SPACE AND IT'S BEEN SITTING THERE FOR THE LAST WEEK BECAUSE I HAVE NO MONEY TO GO FIND OUT WHAT IS WRONG WITH IT. THE WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED NOW SO I'M NOT SURE OF WHAT TO DO SINCE THIS SEEMS TO BE AN ONGOING THING WITH THESE CARS, NOT JUST MINE. *TR