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Mazda CX-9 Transmission Problems
My 2007 CX9 is having a problem changing from 6 gear down to 5 gear on the freeway. When I am cruising along in 6 gear and I want to accelerate to pass someone. It changes down with a very hard banging , and in one case jumped straight into neutral, at 6o mph. It only does it from 6 down to 5. and not in any other change . The guys at the transmision repair shop cannot find anything wrong with it, because nothing comes up on the computer.
Has anyone else had this problem and know how to fix it?
Thanks for any help Bruce
See also: Transmission Fluid Level Check Mazda CX-9 (2007-2014)
Has anyone else had this problem and know how to fix it?
Thanks for any help Bruce
See also: Transmission Fluid Level Check Mazda CX-9 (2007-2014)
1
Comments
CX9 uses transmission from Aisin, who supplies transmission to Lexus/Toyota/Volvo.etc.
Maybe you should avoid Toyota and Lexus also, "neverbuymazda".
BTW, $6K for tranny is ridiculous. Don't let people rip you off. You do not need a brand new
tranny. Get a refurbished one for $2-3K.
Nowaday, TqC and tranny are in one piece. It might be more expensive then before.
My old '01 Honda Odyssey had 1st sign of transmission issue before I replaced it with CX9.
Honda's 5-speed tranny issue was infamous. Mine was a 4-speed, and I replaced fluid every 15K.
I have been on other Mazda forum for four years. Transmission issue on CX9 is rare.
Well-maintained? Did you change transmission fluid? Remind you that it is not
a maintenance item by interval. I doubt you did change the fluid. But, I could be wrong. Maybe you did.
When you find strange behaviour in gear shifting, the 1st thing to do is change the
fluid (drain and replace - DO NOT flush). Flushing will cause more problem if you
did not change fluid often before.
Flushing causes debris inside to dislodge and causing more issues
right after. If drain-n-refill does not help, then, you probably need a new transmission.
get a refurbish one. It usually costs around $2-3K including labour.
P.S. these transmissions have so-called "life-time fluid". Mazda recommends
inspection and/or change of fluid if "something feels wrong". As a smart owner, you should not believe in anything lasts a "life-time". I don't. I replace fuild
on a 30K/45K/60K/... schedule. It costs about $150 at dealerships.
As a result of this technique along with a few others automatic transmisison MPG often exceeds stick shifts.
FWD and/or F/awd vehicles, traditionally, would not downshift for fear the roadbed might not be tractive enough to prevent loss of directional arising from the use of to much engine compression braking. Once YOU use the brakes that "rule" goes out the window.
Transfer case failed at 3500 miles Whining sound at low speed (over 3 weeks in the shop national back order)
Transfer case failed again at 16,000 miles. Whining sound at low speed
Transfer case failed again at 16,800 miles. Loud whining sound at low speed
Whining is still there, but I am now told after Mazda USA contacted dealer, that it is within normal range.
Mazda USA will not return calls (never has) I have been told by insiders that 2010, 2011, 2012 models all have this problem. Keep in mind that the only issue I had was a whining sound at low speed, not a physical failure, I was told each time that the oil turned in to sludge from over heating. I also understand that you may drive 20-30K miles before it physically breaks, so be aware, if you have one have it checked, if you are buying one....well good luck.
Had dealership check it at 35,000, said they found no codes and couldn't dupe problem. Happens every day I drive it.
Any insight? Observing the tach, I see RPM goes up while shifting in each gear. When problem occurs, needle seems to bounce around within a range of a few hundred RPM. Almost like it is having difficulty picking a gear, or difficulty committing to next gear.
Any idea?
Thanks!!!!
After reading the posts here, it seems flush can do more harm than good, so maybe a drain and fill is better? Should I bring it to the dealership for a check up? It got me concerned since I love the car so far and would like to keep it for long time.
Thank you.
Jeff
Unlike oil, transmission fluid shouldn't look dirty so a second opinion would be a good idea.
Jeff
I recently brought my vehicle in for service regarding this issue and the service department informed that what I am experiencing (hearing/feeling) is "Normal" and it is the car "Breaking In". I think they are full of BS. I have never experience this with any other New vehicle that I have owned. Currently, the issue seems to persist (when warmed up) and the noise has gotten slightly louder and all shift positions to Drive especially Reverse to Drive seems more "Harsh" (as you explained it). I plan on calling the service department tomorrow morning to schedule another appointment to get this checked out because something is definitely not right. Please let me know how you make out with your car and dealer service department. Thanks again for posting. I thought I was the only one experiencing this problem.
1. I did let go of the gas as it shifted into 4th because i was going to slow down up ahead on a red light
2. I had just dropped off an empty 12' flat bed toy-hauler trailer that I had been using and towing all morning long with about 1000lbs of cargo
Any thoughts??
7/23/13 - (717 miles) Car clunks/jolts into drive from R/N/P
Performed: Auto Trans Electronic Diagnosis
Result: No Change
8/07/13 - (978 miles) Car clunks/hits hard into drive from R/N/P
Performed: Shift Shock - Reflash PCM/TCM
Result: Worked for ~100 miles then problem came back
8/15/13 - (1214 miles) Car engages harshly into drive from R/N/P
Performed: Replaced Trans. Control Module
Result: Worked for ~200 miles then problem came back
8/22/13 - (1345 miles) Car engages harshly into drive from R/N/P
Performed: Replaced Trans. Control Module Again
Result: Worked for ~200 miles then problem came back
8/26/2013 - Contacted BBB for assistance (Not much help at all)
9/10/13 - (1792 miles) Car engages harshly into drive from R/N/P
Performed: REPLACED Automatic Transmission
Result: New Trans. helped a little but CX-9 still shifted harshly
9/24/13 - (2290 miles) Car still engages harshly into drive from R/N/P after news Trans.
Performed: Mazda master tech drove vehicle acknowledged problem but said everything is working up to Mazda's specification
The new installed transmission created more/other problems: harsh downshifts into 4th gear, clunking/jerking out of 3rd gear, and the CX-9 would rev itself upto 4000+rpms when downshifting.
Mazda acknowledge the problem was present each time but after the 6th visit to the dealer, they changed their tune and know stated that everything is normal. I lost all respect for Mazda so...The end result: after taking numerous days off from work to get this car repaired, I was fed up. I could no longer put my family at risk in this dangerous/unsafe/unpredictable car so I ended up taking a loss and I traded in the CX-9 in for a different (better) brand. I hope Mazda can fix your CX-9. Best of luck.
15 months later, I am hearing the same noise coming from under the car. The Marietta Georgia Mazda dealership is telling me it is the transfer case and says my car & part is out of warranty. The info from Dothan AL indicates my car had 45,000 miles when they replaced the transfer case and now it shows 74,000, almost 30,000 in one year in Atlanta GA...no way.
The MAZDA USA customer service and the dealership said they show no known issues with the CX9 transfer case. When I searched on Edmunds.com, I find several postings and I see some postings on the Mazda247 site too.
Is there a more common problem with the transfer case? I bought this car wanting a safe/dependable car for my wife and children. She takes the children to camps, practices/games/matches/church retreats, etc. I cannot be expected to repair/replace a transfer case ($1,800) every year/two years and possibly have her & the children be stranded somewhere.
This is not a huge percentage of vehicles but actually a small percentage but when it happens to you it sucks and of course reading a dozen others with the same problem makes it seem like its worse than it is... Other MFG have much larger and wide spread issues but I agree big bills for any car never makes anyone happy..
Outside of the warranty period the best argument the consumer has is the ability to document 100% of scheduled maint being done at a Mazda dealership. This gives the dealer solid information to help argue your case with the MFG. This applies to all MFG, not just Mazda. Sketchy maint. history with any mfg will not lend itself to assistance outside of the warranty period.
I have an 07 Mzada cx-9 and have had the same prblem as Bruce (canam1212). Its the transmission. Parts $2k, labor $1k, dealer paid.
Our 2011 CX 9 with 41k miles just had the transfer case replaced under warranty. Mazda is extending the warranty on the transfer cases for 7 years and 90,000 miles. The tech told me they overheat and the synthetic oil breaks down, causing failure. He said a lot of in town driving typically causes this. They've already had 15-20 CX 9's in for replacement, and the dealership is brand new. The transfer case is not the transmission, but the part that allows the vehicle to shift from 2WD to AWD. It's constantly under wear and tear. Just make sure on AWD vehicles the transfer case is checked out before replacing the transmission. Mazda paid the dealer $890 to do the work. The retail cost, I was told, would have been over $1200.
We noticed a burning smell but didn't know what it was. Last week the drive train had some major issues, sounded like loud grinding gears sound going 1-2 mph in 1st gear. All gears seemed to have a problem. I drove it right away to the dealer, luckily it made it there. Just having the tech. drive it from the parking space to the garage, he heard the terrible sound. So far they have confirmed that the transfer case has gone bad and needs to be replaced. They say it will be under warranty.
Many forums say that the burning smell is caused by leaking transfer case fluid, that leaks on the exhaust and causes the smell. Possibly due to overheating of fluid that turns to sludge (for some reason?)
He said some of the vehicles they've seen that have come in with this issue have damaged transmission "splines" that mean the transmission would need to be replaced also.
Got a free loaner vehicle while I'm waiting.
If you google this you will find aerticles on edmunds.com forum and reddit.com forums mentioning this an an issue dating back several years.
You wouldn't expect a vehicle that is 14 months old with < 29k miles to have a transfer case / transmission problem!
This doesn't inspire much confidence in the Mazda brand.
Early this year, the car stalled once in the parking garage at work. I took it to the dealership as a precaution. They didn't find anything wrong other than dirty transmission fluid and changed/flushed it. For the last 3 days, I noticed faint buzzing sound when gear shifts. I can only hear it in quiet streets at work when I first drove it out of the garage in the afternoon. After driving less than half a mile, I can no longer hear it.
I bought the car new 4.5 years ago, so I hope anything major will still be covered under powertrain warranty. However, when I brought it in last time, I was charged a "diagnosis fee" for a total of almost $500 to just change the fluid. I was able to negotiate a discount after going back and forth with the sales person over the phone for over an hour, but still paid close to $400. Apparently, he had to "talk to the parts department" several times, reminding me car salesman talking to their managers... I'm not sure I want to go through that again. Should I take it to (another) dealership or a transmission shop (the AAMCO commercial comes into mind)?
Thank you for your help!
Jeff
To fire ,We took it in twice complaining of a smell and popping noises. They said it was the brakes and fixed something. Actually, they couldn't fix brakes and had to get help from another Mazda tech. And give us a loaner for a week.
5 weeks ago we took car in because we began hearing a loud whining after hitting 40mph. After 2 weeks they called and said bad transfer case and a wheel bearing. Another week later and they call and say my husband needs to come in . NOT GOOD! They found shavings from transmission and it needs to be replaced. We have 110,000 miles on it and it will be out pocket. Probably close to 6 or 7,000.
Mazda corporate said too bad. They said no warranty , can't help you. Even though the transfer case failed twice and never once did a warning light come on. Not even during the fire shooting out of backend!They said since we already had a part replaced under warranty , we can't be part of a recall! We now will have to trade it and loose a lot of money.
Mazda should be ashamed that they haven't recalled these vehicles.
I left and went to AAMCO on a recommendation for a 2nd opinion. I brought the dealer paperwork and luckily they knew what TCC meant and were able to feel the car shaking after test driving it. They recommended an additive called Shutter (sp?) Stop which is added to clean transmission fluid. It works 50% of the time and can stop the shaking. I had my transmission fluid drained/refilled in July and went back to have them redo it since I was having issues. Then had the Shutter Stop put in and it worked for a week, but then the shaking came back, although not as severe.
At this point I'm not sure what to do...do I have my transmission replaced or keep driving and hope that the shaking is only temporary? I really love my car, but I can't afford a $2-3,000 repair for a transmission if this isn't the true issue going on.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Recently we noticed the car would shudder as we drove between 50-70 km/h. We took it to the dealer who did a diagnostic at a cost of $150 but found nothing. We took it back at the next service and told them the shudder was still there. Probably the spark plugs. Got those changed and they recommended to clean the jets at another $200 (so all in $800 service). The car still shuddered like we were going across slight bumps in the road, which stopped when we took the foot off the accelerator.
Took it back to the garage, and drove with them in the car. Then they experienced it and said it could be the torque. Now they did some tests and say it's a mechanical problem and went to Mazda in Melbourne to see if they would cover it under warranty. Mazda have come back and say no that it is no longer covered. As the warranty expired two years ago. This was when they told me that the transfer case and transmission would need to be changed at a cost of $16,000 AUD!!
We nearly died. We don't have that kind of money and can't believe that this isn't a pre-existing problem that would have been a fault from day 1 when it was in warranty.
Reading the posts above I can see that this appears to be quite common. How can they be so callous when they know they have a design fault?
I have contacted Mazda Melbourbe and complained and my complaint has been issued to a case officer - but no date would be given when they would get back to me. They refused to commit.
The Mazda garage supports our claim and says that as far as they are concerned that the Mazda Melbourne should replace it as it is an internal problem and clearly a fault in the original car - but not sure whether the case officer will see it that way.
What can I do. We are not flush with cash and so taking them to court seems too expensive.
Does anyone have any ideas what we can do ?
Help - desperate
Ian
Buckeye fan, who did you call to get the extended warranty coverage from Mazda? Ours is less than 7 years old, and has less than 90k miles.
Thank you Mazda!