2012 Mazda CX-9 Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other CX-9 years
- Far more complaints than other years 1st of 17 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 4 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 221 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Mazda CX-9. That is the most of any CX-9 model year in the database (17 years). The most reported problem area is service brakes (139 complaints, 63%), typically at around 56,622 miles. Complaints mention 9 crashes, 8 injuries. There are 4 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 2 defect investigations involving it.

- 221owner complaints
- 4safety recalls
- 2NHTSA investigations
- 9complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2012 Mazda CX-9 problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes problems | 139 | 63% | 56,622 | “brake booster” (33%) | — |
| Engine | 25 | 11% | 65,000 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 23 | 10% | 75,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 18 | 8% | 52,527 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 11 | 5% | 54,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 9 | 4% | 36,000 | — | — |
| Steering | 7 | 3% | 17,804 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 6 | 3% | 52,436 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 5 | 2% | 60,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 4 | 2% | 58,000 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 3 | 1% | 13,695 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 3 | 1% | 36,500 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 2 | 1% | 52,000 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 2 | 1% | 150,709 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 1 | 0% | 4,000 | — | — |
| Equipment | 1 | 0% | 900 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 0% | 4,000 | — | — |
| Structure | 1 | 0% | 38,000 | — | — |
| Visibility | 1 | 0% | 36,802 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 1 | 0% | 75,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2012 Mazda CX-9 recalls (4)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Problem: Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2007-2012 CX-7, CX-9, and 2009-2012 Maza6 vehicles. These vehicles had their passenger frontal air bag inflators previously replaced under a prior recall using inflators of the same design. The inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. The recall began December 3, 2019. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 1317F. Note: This recall supersedes recalls 16V356 and 17V012.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Problem: Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Mazda CX-9 vehicles sold, or ever registered in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, unless covered in "Zone A," Mazda is recalling certain 2011-2013 Mazda6, 2011-2012 CX-7, and 2011-2015 CX-9 sold, or ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia, or "Zone B." Additionally, unless covered in Zone A or Zone B, Mazda is recalling certain 2010-2013 Mazda6, 2010-2012 CX-7, and 2010-2015 CX-9 vehicles ever registered in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began November 9, 2018. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, Option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 1317F.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Problem: Mazda North America Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2012 CX-7, CX-9 and Mazda6 vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Mazda is recalling certain 2009 CX-7, CX-9 and Mazda6 vehicles sold, or ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" or "Zone B" above, Mazda is recalling certain 2007-2008 CX-7 and CX-9 sold, or ever registered in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy is performed. Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger side air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began October 4, 2017. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 1317F. Note: This recall supersedes recall 17V-012.
Suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint; suspension:front:control arm:lower arm
Problem: Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2007-2014 CX-9 vehicles manufactured October 24, 2006, to December 28, 2013. The affected vehicles have front suspension ball joints that may corrode from water leaking into the fitting.
Risk: Over time, the ball joint corrosion may result in the front lower control arm separating from the ball joint, causing a loss of steering control and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Mazda will notify owners, and dealers will replace both the left and right lower control arms, free of charge. The recall began on September 14, 2015. The recall will begin with model year 2007-2009 vehicles registered in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington D.C., West Virginia, and Wisconsin. The second phase will be for model year 2010-2014 vehicles in the same states. Finally, all remaining vehicles will be remedied. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500. Mazda's number for this recall is 8515G.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Inadvertent Curtain Air Bag Deployment (PE19006) — opened May 2, 2019, closed Jan 15, 2021.
- Lower ball joint separation (PE15022) — opened Jun 9, 2015, closed Aug 20, 2015, led to recall 15V451000.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
While drive i feel like there is sticking something below the car when i am accelerating. And the acceleration became hard. Also i heard a weird noise at that time. Then a saw a leakage below my car.
My driver and passenger side curtain airbags randomly deployed without a collision. Thankfully I was at a stop sign when this happened. If it happened while I was driving, Iâm sure I would have wrecked and could possibly be dead. It was loud! I thought Iâd been shot or that Iâd driven over a…
Ball joints replaced due to tear in both rubber covers and driver side ball joint very loose. Was previously repaired in July 2015 under recall Number: 15V451000.
I was driving normally when I started sowing down and noticed the brakes were harder to push. I finally stopped just before almost rear-ending a vehicle in front of me. It turns out the brake booster, a known problem that was not communicated to me a few years ago, failed and makes braking the…
The water pump suddenly started leaking and the mechanics I talk to said this is a very common problem with this vehicle and type of engine. Sounds like owners are left to foot the bill for this costly and difficult repair of a defective product. Hopefully more owners come forward and report their…
Other Mazda CX-9 years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 CX-9 | 13 | 0 |
| 2022 CX-9 | 10 | 0 |
| 2021 CX-9 | 39 | 1 |
| 2020 CX-9 | 19 | 1 |
| 2019 CX-9 | 53 | 2 |
| 2018 CX-9 | 128 | 2 |
| 2017 CX-9 | 61 | 0 |
| 2016 CX-9 | 107 | 0 |
| 2015 CX-9 | 35 | 2 |
| 2014 CX-9 | 54 | 3 |
| 2013 CX-9 | 68 | 4 |
| 2012 | 221 | 4 |
| 2011 CX-9 | 170 | 4 |
| 2010 CX-9 | 195 | 6 |
| 2009 CX-9 | 59 | 6 |
| 2008 CX-9 | 172 | 5 |
| 2007 CX-9 | 86 | 5 |
See all Mazda CX-9 problems by year, every Mazda model, or the Mazda VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2012 Mazda CX-9?
Owners most often report service brakes, engine, air bags problems. The top one, service brakes, accounts for 139 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2012 Mazda CX-9?
Yes, 4 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2012 Mazda CX-9 a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other CX-9 model years, the 2012 has far more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.