The clips on both my rear molding over the tires have broken causing the molding/trim to fall off while I have been driving
2016 Mazda CX-9
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2016 Mazda CX-9 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 61.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all CX-9 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
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When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
29 reports with mileage · 75 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Engine. Review the 65 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 14 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
104 reportsEngine Coolant Leaking from rear of engine near Exhaust / turbocharger at Cylinder Head. No Warning Lights indicating problem until coolant level low causing overheating and fire risk. Rear Brakes not releasing completely from "City Mode" where brakes are kept close to rotor "to increase braking response in City driving" - caus…
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Engine Coolant Leaking from rear of engine near Exhaust / turbocharger at Cylinder Head. No Warning Lights indicating problem until coolant level low causing overheating and fire risk. Rear Brakes not releasing completely from "City Mode" where brakes are kept close to rotor "to increase braking response in City driving" - causes premature brake wear, warped brake rotors (reoccurs within 10K miles from new / replaced rotors) Front Bumper Fascia keeps coming loose at clips near headlights on both Driver and passenger side. Had replaced at dealership 3 times, but continues. Bumper coming loose and can obstruct headlights while moving around at highway speeds
Rear wheel trim partially detached from car while driving, safety risk of large plastic part being caught in rear wheel. Did not hit any debris but heard a loud noise as the part detached. Part is supposed to be held in place by 12 clips but multiple owners of Mazda CX-5 and CX-9 models report this problem. Mazda dealers deny th…
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Rear wheel trim partially detached from car while driving, safety risk of large plastic part being caught in rear wheel. Did not hit any debris but heard a loud noise as the part detached. Part is supposed to be held in place by 12 clips but multiple owners of Mazda CX-5 and CX-9 models report this problem. Mazda dealers deny there is a problem even when some new cars have only 3 clips installed. When I called Mazda USA to report, and asked them specifically for a federal government contact to report safety issues, they said calling them was the ONLY way to report an issue, which was not correct. Was told I would have to pay for the repair of this safety issue. See this website for the experience of other owners and a description of the problem: https://mazdas247.com/forum/t/2016-cx-9-wheel-well-trim-became-detached.123861160/ I also personally know another Mazda owner who had the same issue with the part falling off while driving.
2016 cx9, after reviewing online. Known issue with coolent and engine cylinder. Water coolent leak to engine head. Dealer asking 75k to replace engine. Mazda refused to acknowledge the known issue.
Our head gasket is needing to be replaced and sounds like this is an apparent Mazda problem how wide spread it is. The cost is over $5,000 for this single repair, possibly over $6,000 if head is cracked. I only have a parts list showing $1,700 in parts. Service manager said about 18 hours at $189hr totalling $3,402.
On 04/21/22, I took my car to the dealer after noticing antifreeze on our garage floor and a burning smell. NO check engine lights had illuminated. They proceeded to tell me that there was a coolant leak from head/block and cavity leak (something about channel pressure). They also stated this was a casting flaw during manufactur…
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On 04/21/22, I took my car to the dealer after noticing antifreeze on our garage floor and a burning smell. NO check engine lights had illuminated. They proceeded to tell me that there was a coolant leak from head/block and cavity leak (something about channel pressure). They also stated this was a casting flaw during manufacturing of the engine. They told me I needed a whole new engine for $8,479.97! Mazda corporate refused to replace the engine at their cost because I had 64,575 miles on it and it was out of powertrain warranty. I called them and asked to speak to a supervisor and never heard from them. I called on 4/26, 4/27, 4/28, 5/4, 5/5 (5 times), 6/9, & 6/20. I finally gave up agreed to pay $7,479.97 (the dealer gave me $1,000 off). I received the car back on 05/20 and it would not start later that day. They towed it back to Mazda and they replaced the crankshaft sensor that was damaged upon install of the new engine. I received it back again on 05/31 and later in the day, the check engine light came on and the automatic braking system engaged while I was driving (thankfully only 40 mph). I managed to pull over in a turn lane before the engine died. I was so thankful I did not make it onto the interstate I was about to enter! Mazda came and picked me up and later got my car. They could not figure out why it was dying and finally got it to recreate it. They replaced another engine sensor and then drove it a lot to make sure it was truly fixed. I finally received my vehicle back on 07/07. I am afraid to take my car out of town and it makes me nervous it will die and automatically start braking again. They KNOW this is a manufacturer issue and they refuse to take responsibility. I am so disappointed in them. This is a huge safety issue. I am also lucky I didn't blow a head gasket before I took it into the shop the first time.
Traveling on the highway going on a road trip. Had vehicle inspected prior and no fuel system problems were noted. I was going 75mph with my family when there was a coasting feeling in the car. I looked and my check engine light popped on and my car immediately would not accelerate and we quickly lost speed. By the grace of God …
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Traveling on the highway going on a road trip. Had vehicle inspected prior and no fuel system problems were noted. I was going 75mph with my family when there was a coasting feeling in the car. I looked and my check engine light popped on and my car immediately would not accelerate and we quickly lost speed. By the grace of God were we able to pull over safely! Code P0132 was the engine code and after an hour, the engine light went back off and we were able to keep a safe speed traveling home. After speaking with a mechanic and dealership, I learned that this was a common problem with the Denso fuel system. My vehicle was not included in a recent recall that included a different year of my vehicle. If manufacturers are aware that a major defect is out there, how many people have to have an accident or potentially cause a huge accident because a car made 2 years prior with the same part from the same manufacturer has the same dangerous problem? It’s ridiculous and I hope you look at this near fatal issue that has effected thousands of people, whose vehicles’ were made in 2017, 2016, 2015 and are not included in the recall.
I droved my 2016 cx-9 off highway and idled it at front of restaurant, suddenly the engine coolant overheat light came on, shut engine off and found leaking coolant on the ground near the rear of engine bay. Brought the car to Corpus Christi Mazda, found out leaks come from cylinder head crack, happens to cx-9 manufactured befor…
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I droved my 2016 cx-9 off highway and idled it at front of restaurant, suddenly the engine coolant overheat light came on, shut engine off and found leaking coolant on the ground near the rear of engine bay. Brought the car to Corpus Christi Mazda, found out leaks come from cylinder head crack, happens to cx-9 manufactured before June 20, 2020 according to Mazda TSB 01-013/21. I was quoted $3380 to replace the cylinder head out of pocket because the car is just out of powertrain warranty. I contacted Mazda headquarter for covering the cost out of goodwill since this is due to manufacture defects of cylinder head. Mazda refused to pay.
Cracked cylinder head due to manufacturing defect, left stranded at car wash with no engine coolant due to issue, took several months without a vehicle before it was replaced by Mazda. The vehicle has been repaired. I was left unable to drive in hot weather and could not use air conditioning while waiting for assistance. Dealer …
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Cracked cylinder head due to manufacturing defect, left stranded at car wash with no engine coolant due to issue, took several months without a vehicle before it was replaced by Mazda. The vehicle has been repaired. I was left unable to drive in hot weather and could not use air conditioning while waiting for assistance. Dealer had seen the issue before, reported by many on online Mazda forums. There were no warning lamps prior to the incident happening.
I have noticed cracks on both sides of the front bumper on my 2016 Mazda CX-9. Mazda has issued a TSB 09-022-20-3720, however, the cracks recently appeared and my car is no longer under the manufacturer's warranty.
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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