Mazda CX-5: which model years to avoid
Complaint and recall totals for every Mazda CX-5 model year we track, ranked by severity.
| Model year | Complaints | Recalls | Crashes | Fires | Severity | Most-reported system |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 194 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 48.5 Medium | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM |
| 2014 | 377 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 20.2 Low | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM |
| 2015 | 133 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 75.2 Medium | STRUCTURE |
| 2016 | 507 | 5 | 31 | 10 | 56.8 Medium | EXTERIOR LIGHTING |
| 2017 | 148 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 29.7 Low | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM |
| 2018 | 115 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10.4 Low | ENGINE |
| 2019 | 261 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 30.7 Low | ENGINE |
| 2020 | 105 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 80.0 Medium | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM |
| 2021 | 138 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 63.8 Medium | ENGINE |
| 2022 | 62 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 64.5 Medium | EXTERIOR LIGHTING |
| 2023 | 59 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 122.0 High | UNKNOWN OR OTHER |
| 2024 | 41 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 92.7 Medium | UNKNOWN OR OTHER |
| 2025 | 25 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 192.0 High | SERVICE BRAKES |
Across 13 model years, the 2025 Mazda CX-5 carries the highest severity index (192.0, driven by service brakes), while the 2018 is the cleanest at 10.4.
Source. NHTSA public complaint and recall APIs. Complaint counts are not normalised by units sold; a high-volume seller will attract more filings than a rare trim.