Second Scheduled Service, Suspension Noises - 2014 Mazda Mazda3 S Long-Term Road Test

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Second Scheduled Service, Suspension Noises - 2014 Mazda Mazda3 S Long-Term Road Test

Our long-term 2014 Mazda 3 is due for its second service, but there are some other issues that the dealer will need to address when we drop it off.

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ckuers

While fun to drive, and a good value, what ultimately led to me getting rid of my Mazdaspeed6 was the lack of sound deadening (similar to what you've mentioned previously), and suspension noises. It's ridiculous how much clanging, rattling, and thumping that car did. Swaybar endlinks, ball joints, and bushings wore way too quickly on that car, and it sounds like your 3 is doing the same. I'll stay away from Mazda until they can improve the longevity of their suspension components, and add a little more sound insulation to their vehicles (especially the roof...).

svensvic

So they still not control this by now?have a Mazda5 from 2007,bought it with 7000 mi.after 40.000 miles it started making noises at the suspension,went to a mechanic who only repairs Honda Toyota Subaru and Mazda.When I told him about it he printed out a bulletin from Mazda,they knew about it and advised to change all the bushings...The mechanic adviced me not to do it,because it would come back again after a while.It's a bad disign....110.000 miles further it's like you loose your wheels but it still drive's.So they started from scratch with this sky-active design and it's still crap.Tought about buying the Mazda 3 or 6,so this is not gonna happen than,also when they look nice and drive good.Honda it will be than........

jmick1

Since you aksed for guesses... Does sound like the rotors--have you done a track day with this car? The thump sounds like some kind of longitudinal instability causing a bit of unintended movement when relatively large suspension inputs are encountered--a link end perhaps? Also sounds like a good excuse for a suspension walk around.
FWIW, we're on Mazda number seven and the only one that had any suspension issues was the 1979 RX-7, and that one was relatively minor. Our current 04 6i just passed 130K without incident. The point being 2 or 3 reports don't indicate a trend or identify a design or manufacturing problem. Suspension parts wear out and their life depends upon (among other things) driving style, roads, tires, wheels, and vehicle loading.

chol92594

ckuers said:

While fun to drive, and a good value, what ultimately led to me getting rid of my Mazdaspeed6 was the lack of sound deadening (similar to what you've mentioned previously), and suspension noises. It's ridiculous how much clanging, rattling, and thumping that car did. Swaybar endlinks, ball joints, and bushings wore way too quickly on that car, and it sounds like your 3 is doing the same. I'll stay away from Mazda until they can improve the longevity of their suspension components, and add a little more sound insulation to their vehicles (especially the roof...).

I definitely agree with you on that. A friend of mine had an 07 Mazda3 hatch and it had one of the loudest and roughest suspensions of any car I've ever been in. Sure, it handled well, but when you weren't attacking corners, it felt really unrefined.

15mazda3

Does anyone know if the maintenance minder on the long term tester 3's computer system set on the "fixed" or the "flexible"?

I had mine by default on "fixed" but i did the first oil change on my own at 3000 miles hen switched the setting to "flexible". So my next oil change was not supposed to happen until 8000 after doing the reset procedure on the screen and on the dash but the wrench light comes up at 5000 miles. I had to switch the setting back to fix the do a reset for the wrench to go away

Thanks

stever

There's an update here. Too soon to tell if the suspension fix is "the" fix.