2012 Mazda CX-9: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
221 NHTSA owner complaints · 4 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Reviewed by the MotorJury data desk · 2 sources · Last updated 2026-08-20
221 NHTSA owner complaints · 4 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Complaints per year on the road: 15.79
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
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, I’m sure I would have wrecked and could possibly be dead. It was loud! I thought I’d been shot or that I’d driven over a bomb. We did take the car to someone that’s certified in airbags and it was stated that this was due to a manufacturer’s defect…
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.
What the community is saying right now.
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 18V717000 | Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator | Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Mazda CX-9 vehicles sold, or ever registered in the states of Alabama… |
| 17V457000 | Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator | Mazda North America Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2012 CX-7, CX-9 and Mazda6 vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of A… |
| 15V451000 | Suspension:Front:Control Arm:Lower Ball | Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain model year 2007-2014 CX-9 vehicles manufactured October 24, 2006, to December 2… |
| 19V782000 | Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator | Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2007-2012 CX-7, CX-9, and 2009-2012 Maza6 vehicles. These vehicles had their p… |
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Service Brakes (143 complaints in our indexed sample).
Our data verdict is CAUTION with a reliability score of 55/100, computed from 221 NHTSA complaints and 4 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
Yes — NHTSA lists 4 recall campaign(s) for the 2012 Mazda CX-9, 3 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 12/10/2018. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorComplaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-08-20.