ADVICE needed - Looking to buy a 2015

[Sydney]

Hi all,

Im a newbie here so bear with me if i sound a bit naive when it comes to these cars. I have my eye on a 2014 CX-5 2.2L manual.  Mazdas are not common here in Ireland so had no idea of any issues.  No-one i know has ever had one so no real experience of how reliable they are. Everyone here buys Qashqais/Kias/Hyundais!  I dont want to be a sheep.

After doing a TONNE of research i see there were problems with some of the engines.  Can i get some advice on whether this car is for me?

Is the year of this car(2014) in the affected VIN year do you think or have the engines improved? From what I can see the affected engines are around the 2013 year?

These engines seem a bit high maintenance-so if i perform all the checks regularly will we make it through! ie checking for rising oil etc. Using the proper oil/additives....regular oil changes.

I drive a mixture of motorway(about 1 to 3 hrs at weekend) but during the week more twisty hilly b roads(10-20km perhaps). I have read that this engine hates short trips??  Why is this engine different to say any other diesel engine in say a Tuscon or Sportage? This one seems to be a bit precious!!

I test drove 2 last week but they were 2013 years. One was automatic AWD the other was manual. I love a punchy sporty car so right from the get go i loved the way the car drove. THis 2014 model is a much nicer spec (SPORT) but its about 2.5 hrs away.  Nothing else really drives as nicely as the CX-5 and i love its chunky boldness. So now Im torn. Do i bite the bullet and perhaps risk buying a heartbreak, or do i just do the sensible thing and buy a Qashqai???

I would love any advice you can give me(biting nails)

[twabrigs]

Welcome. As the owner of a 2013 model year 2.2 diesel manual I definitely recommend the CX5 over the Qashqai or a Kia.

Although I am conscious of the engine problems others have had. I found this on another thread on this forum: "The affected VIN number for possible camshaft problems is up to number 163230 as long as it starts with JMZKE."

I suspect if yours is a 2014 you, like me, are after that VIN range. The only other thing to watch with a car of that age is the mileage of course.

My experience would suggest your journey patterns are fine, I think it's more a worry if you ONLY do short trips week after week so the car never gets to do it's rengen sequence.

There are others on here much more knowledgeable than me so hopefully they will chip in too.

[Sydney]

thank you very much that gives me a bit more confidence. Am hoping to view at the weekend.  Mileage is 70,000m

I will let you know how it goes.

[twabrigs]

Good luck, I'm at 66k miles and all is well.

Check when the sat nav was last updated, and that all recalls (eg. rear hatch door struts) and software updates have been done

[Sydney]

well i scrapped the idea of travelling 250km away to view the 2014 one(Sport) and saw a 2013 today. Its 1k cheaper but is the entry level model. Very nice and i checked the VIN and it doesnt fit in the range of any of the effected engines. I also checked the VINS of all the recalls(struts, vacuum pump etc) and it dodged all them as well. So.....now im in a quandary.    this one also has 87000 miles on it so a bit higher than the newer one....

Thanks about the satnav updates.  i dont know how to check that but i will find out.