AutoUtility currently tracks 126 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2018 Mazda CX-9. Engine & Cooling issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 73 complaints (57.9% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 4 filings cite a crash, 1 cites a fire, 2 report one or more injuries.
Factual proportion of owner complaints categorized by automotive subsystem in NHTSA records
73 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
15 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
13 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
11 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis
31 complaint narratives describe this symptom.
4 complaint narratives describe this symptom.
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"I was driving home from work and may car started overheating out of nowhere. I was stuck in traffic and white smoke was exiting my exhaust. I pulled over and all of my coolant leaked out of my car. Took it the shop and they said I had a cracked head and need a whole new engine. I seen that there..."
"The cylinder head on this 2018 Mazda CX-9 (Skyactiv-G 2.5T engine) cracked, allowing engine coolant to leak and intermix with engine oil, causing loss of coolant and catastrophic engine failure. The vehicle became undriveable in the first week of November 2025 at approximately 125,019 miles and has..."
"My passenger heated seats malfunction while I was driving. As I was driving on the highway I smelled something burning. I didn't know where the smell was coming from it was strong . Then while I'm driving on the highway my seat started to smoke a lot I got scared and pulled on side of the road. I..."
"My wife was driving the vehicle when the emergency lights started going off. She had to pull over because the car wouldn't run and said it was overheated. All the maintenance has been done to the car. We took it to the dealership and they said it is a cracked head and it is a known issue. They even..."
"My 2018 Mazda CX-9 with the SKYACTIV-G 2.5T engine has been diagnosed with a cracked cylinder head, cracked exhaust manifold, and cracked turbocharger at approximately 88,000 miles. This is a known design defect documented in Mazda TSB 01-002/23 and addressed by Customer Service Program CSP11,..."
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Mazda CX-9 | 35 | 1 | 2 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 Mazda CX-9 | 99 | 3 | 0 | View 2016 Problems → |
| 2017 Mazda CX-9 | 61 | 0 | 0 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Mazda CX-9 Current Page | 126 | 4 | 2 | Current |
| 2019 Mazda CX-9 | 53 | 1 | 2 | View 2019 Problems → |
| 2020 Mazda CX-9 | 19 | 1 | 1 | View 2020 Problems → |
| 2021 Mazda CX-9 | 37 | 7 | 1 | View 2021 Problems → |
| 2022 Mazda CX-9 | 9 | 1 | 0 | View 2022 Problems → |
| 2023 Mazda CX-9 | 12 | 3 | 0 | View 2023 Problems → |
| 2024 Mazda CX-9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | View 2024 Problems → |
| 2025 Mazda CX-9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | View 2025 Problems → |
| 2026 Mazda CX-9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | View 2026 Problems → |
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 35 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Injury Entries | Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 58 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel System NHTSA category: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES,VISIBILITY/WIPER | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,BACK OVER PREVENTION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,CHILD SEAT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,LANE DEPARTURE,BACK OVER PREVENTION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,BACK OVER PREVENTION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year
Key performance indicators, EPA fuel economy specs, powertrain variants, and summary ratings.
Official recall campaigns, safety defect descriptions, and manufacturer free remedy instructions.
NHTSA 5-Star NCAP crash test results, driver assistance systems, and rollover resistance ratings.
EPA fuel economy ratings, electric range, and annual energy cost benchmarks.
Direct, deterministic answers synthesized from verified United States government databases for the 2018 Mazda CX-9
In official NHTSA consumer records, the most frequently cited issue area for the 2018 Mazda CX-9 is Engine & Cooling, appearing in 73 records (57.9% of submitted filings).
Secondary reported categories include Electrical System (15) and Powertrain & Transmission (13).
AutoUtility does not issue subjective reliability scores or commercial ratings. In official United States government records, NHTSA tracks 126 consumer defect complaints and 2 safety recall campaigns for the 2018 Mazda CX-9.
Reviewing documented component complaint distributions, recall remedy notices, and active federal investigations provides an objective, evidence-based view of the vehicle's historical safety and defect record.
Among consumer complaint records on file with NHTSA for the 2018 Mazda CX-9, 4 filings cite a crash, 1 cite smoke or fire, and 2 report one or more injuries.
Incident entries represent consumer descriptions at the time of submission to federal authorities and do not establish mechanical causation or legal liability.
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database under 49 CFR Part 576.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.