Mazda CX-7

Worst Car I've Ever Bought – It's great when it goes. Do yourself a favour, buy something else. Bought it used with about 120,000km on it. Very thirsty car. I barely managed 550km per tank despite the computer saying 650km estimate until empty. Brake rotors were warped, car yard offered to fix but over machined instead, got them replaced. Stereo was haunted. It would turn… Read more

off and on while I was driving, it would change radio stations and even pump the volume up on its own. Could not turn it down. Very dangerous distraction for the driver, especially when it tried to go up to full volume.

Engine had slight ticking noise. Got major service done, engine blew a spark plug not long after. Got spark plug replaced, all seemed well.

Less than a month later the ticking noise got louder. Took it to a mechanic that does more than just servicing. Timing chain and tensioner were faulty/stretched/damaged. Replaced the timing chain and tensioner.

All seemed fine.

Gear shifts were starting to lag both up and down. But still seemed relatively normal.

Driving home from work one day a few weeks after being serviced, felt a slipping either in the engine or the gearbox, limped home with check engine light on. Car has been sitting on the street for 2 weeks, engine oil leaking on the road now.

Pretty car with cool features, like seat warmers, sunroof, 9 speaker Bose stereo, but still the biggest motoring mistake I've ever made.

Nightmare – Constant (expensive) issues! It's like the car was fitted with parts purchased from a $2 shop. The car spends more time at the mechanics than my garage. The inconvenience, financial strain and stress this car has caused me and my family is unbelievable. Have reached out to Mazda several times about it and they don't care (didn't even bother… Read more

responding to my last written correspondence to them). Was quoted on Monday that the latest repair would cost $2700 (shock me). That was the final straw so in the market for a new car. Will never buy a Mazda ever again!

Started off a great car!! Next minute… – Brought a 2009 CX7 Luxury Sports, in 2010. Was a great car then the paint on the bonnet started to crack and fade, then had to replace A/C hoses, the headlight covers turned white. Then had to replace 1 injector and then paint on the roof virtually disappeared and now have rust, even though we paid extra for paint protection. Then another injector… Read more

failed so I replaced the remaining 3 injectors. Just blew the Turbo and have had to replace that and they couldn’t get the bolts undone so had to remove the whole engine to get the Turbo off to replace. Also had a flicker of the oil light every now and then when the turbo was failing, so checked oil and it was bone dry. Spoke to the mechanic and mentioned that no warning light came on for the oil, and he said that mazda is bad for that and usually the warning comes on once it is too late. Now that I have paid nearly $6000 I am going to keep it, as I won’t get much for it with the paint the way it is and the quote to respray was $10000. I may have had it 12 years but it is regularly serviced and only done 151,000 kms.

Very reliable car – Purchased new 2008. Mazda serviced first year. All following service and repairs have been conducted by me, a qualified mechanic. Vehicle now at 338,000 km and going very well. Used for short and long country trips. Secret of success is oil and filter change every 10,000km without exception. Only ever used Shell 10w 40 . If you do this and don't… Read more

thrash any car, you will get super reliability. Doesn't have to be Shell oil, just same oil every time. This maintains chemical balance of all componentry. The bad stuff- headlights blow every 200000 km Turbo lag when accelerating hard Brake pads rattle in the caliper, not an issue if you know this, but some people may find this worrying. Brakes work fine. Radio cheap and nasty. Upgrade if you want to enjoy music.

Excellent vehicle – Have owned a cx7 2006 2 3 turbo. Awesome vehicle for everyday use. No issues so far done 108000km on the clock bought secondhand. Bit thirsty on gas. But that is to be expected from a turbo Show details

Amazing Cx-7 Turbo – First bought 170,000km 2nd owner, maintenance & service history was excellent reliable. Until another 10,000km driven around, the turbo was leak oil, sludge pipe, turbo shaft play. Replace upgraded new turbo, and few upgraded modifications in it, and then perfect running. Smooth driving, love entertainment Bose system, luxury interior is amazing.… Read more

Love Japanese designed CX7. Always update with maintenance, keeping check oil and coolant level in every fortnightly while wash a car after.

Do not buy a CX-7 – Bought a 2007 CX-7 luxury from a used car dealer with 130,000 on the clock. Nothing but problems from the word go. Was in twice under the 3 month warranty they gave me for minor issues (thermostat stuck open so engine running cold, wheel bearings). From day one it sounded a bit like a diesel, but I just thought that was how it sounded. Turns out… Read more

the timing chain was already on it's way to failure. I haven't even put 10,000km on it and it's definitely on its last legs. Now it also has a major oil leak despite servicing every 5000km, and very likely that the turbo is also on its way. I just bought another car and Im giving up on the Mazda. At 140,000km catastrophic issues like this should not be happening, and certainly not be so common as to have mechanics who specialise in CX-7 turbo and timing chain replacements.

If you are unlucky enough to have just bought one, and lucky enough to not have major engine failure at less than 150k, the fuel economy should be enough to turn you off. I get 15L/100km driving at regular road pace. I managed to get it down to 13L/100km once driving from Brisbane to Sydney at 100km/h instead of 110, but at 110 back up it went. You will live at petrol stations. It was costing me $100 a week in fuel just to drive kids to school and run errands around town - a job which my previous Impreza would do for less than half the price.

I still have a year of finance owing, its almost dead and I just lost any patience I had for it. Yes it is responsive, has power when you need it, interior is comfy and spacious and the Bose sound system is amazing, but this car has cost me thousands more than it should for its age, and has done so with alarming regularity to a majority of other owners. Take your hard earned and invest in literally any other car you can find. There needs to be a class action over this lemon.

Worst decision I ever made. Still so mad about it! – I missed a service or two over 6yrs however I only ever drove locally. Once every few months I’d drive 2hrs to Bathurst to visit family. The car was the demo model and we bought it with 3000kms on the clock. In 6yrs I only put 80000 on it. The interior was absolutely immaculate, still like new.. next thing our mechanic is telling us to get the… Read more

hell rid of it like yesterday because the turbo is about to blow and take the whole engine with it. We lost so much money. The mechanic told us it was beginning to show as a common problem with this model and Mazda should have issued a recall however they did not. They keep blaming everyone else for a problem they created. Our mechanic said that the tube that takes oil from the engine to the turbo is as thin as the ink tube in a biro pen and it becomes very sludgy and blocked despite regular servicing and good engine upkeep/good driving habits/premium fuel etc. I am still sad about it. It was supposed to be our family car. We still had a year to go paying it off and our trade in was only worth $12,000 and it was 4yrs older than the Cx7. It’s also smaller and not a family car. It was all we could afford as we were not in a position to take another loan at that point especially since we hadn’t even finished paying the first one off yet. I’m still very upset about it all. My father in law had passed away the same week and I often think that if we didn’t have such a bad thing going on at the time I would’ve taken some time to get onto Mazda and ask them what the hell they were going to do about it. Our very good friends had the exact same car and the exact same thing happened to them only 2 months prior to it happening to us.

Never Ever !! – I'm still having this failure machine. It breakdown after 4 days I bought from dealer. Hard to find spare parts, Turbocharger is worst design Mazda ever done it since they build company. I spend more than half price to fix it but still has some problems on it. Don't buy never think of it. Don't fool oneself with cheap precises on market there is a… Read more

reason why it's so cheap. Because you need to spend half of it to use only few more months.

My case also did not solve by dealership even tough I have 5 year warranty. They are so lazy to fix this problems. 2 months already past and I'm waiting my car.

Love this car – I bought mine a year ago, a very good car when it comes to speed, design and engine performance. Being fuel-thirsty beast is the downside of this midsize suv. I drove it interstate for 4 times but still doing great. Never had any big issues with the engine since i bought it. I always make sure services are all up to date. Show details

Reliable – I bought my Mazda CX7 Turbo Diesel 5 years ago. Still love it. Economy on fuel, roomy and comfy inside and still not very old look outside. Very powerful engine and reliable steering and break system. Have never had any issue with it. Show details

CX& all good – Bought a Cx7 from a lady in Australia with 50k on the clock. White 2.5 litre I have since put 150K on it without a hassle. 220K on the clock going exceptionally well. Have spent almost zero on it save for tyres and rear brakes. Its not a turbo.... anyone who buys a turbo deserves to have issues. Show details

The Diesel is the bee’s knees – I bought the CX-7 MZR-CD (2.2 litre turbocharged diesel manual) as a demo in 2012. It has been an absolutely fantastic car for me. I chose it as it was one of the few manual SUVs that were still available. It is thoroughly economical - I travelled from Dandenong (SE Melbourne) to Adelaide on a tank and still had over 200km or range to go. I… Read more

understand the petrol version of the CX-7 was a fuel-thirsty beast. Not this car.

It has almost all the mod-cons one would expect in a top-of-the-range vehicle. Has an amazing stereo with a 6-stacker CD player plus Bluetooth to the iPhone for more music and to make & take phone calls.

There is tonnes of room in the back for kids, dogs, prams, shopping etc.

The back seat is just wide enough for two booster seats AND a small person between.

The only things it lacks are:

a) a reversing beeper (it has a camera),

b) seat position memory (for more than one driver) and

c) the maps on the in-built navigator don’t seem to get upgraded when the car is serviced.

It’s a pity they stopped making this car. It is sleek, efficient and I would have most definitely bought another diesel manual Mazda SUV (if they existed).

Pretty good SUV, – Not a bad all round SUV.. as others have stated, it is a very thirsty unit, but it is turbocharged so that’s the price you pay for performance. What I don’t get is all the bad reviews abs negative comments on here from owners who have had to replace things.. timing chains are a maintanence item.. turbos will need to be replaced.. cars will develop… Read more

oil leaks that need repairing,.. it’s not just CX7’s.. all cars require repair and maintainence.. there wouldn’t be any mechanics around if cars were perfect. If you are paying 6,7,8 thousand dollars for a repair at Mazda.. se another mechanic,. You don’t have to go through Mazda if you can save a few grand.. honestly I’m shaking my head and wondering what these people are thinking...

Money down the drain – I owned a Mazda 323 and loved the car. I purchased a 2007 Mazda CX 7 with 115000 km on it as an upgrade. Wow I made the biggest mistake of my life. One thing let to another from leaks to timing chain replacement to turbo replacement to finally total engine failure at 117000km. Yes, only owned this car for 2000kms. Spent more fixing this car than… Read more

it’s worth. As I’m writing this the car is currently at the mechanic getting a replacement engine put in. I am forced to spend $5000 for a replacement engine to have some sort of car. After owning this car for only 2000km I’ll be selling it and cutting my losses. Sorry to the next owner of this car.

So far so good – Just bought it a couple months back (bring about 8k since bought). So far the car behaves normally. Sometimes the engine light appears due to petrol 95 unlead from woolies and the cap not tight enough. Trans case was leaking when I bought it. I do think this model is a lemon but if you keep serving the car, they do serve you well. Interior is awesome. I really leave it!!!  Show details

Good car but get the history of service – So we have owned this car from new as obtained from the local Mazda dealer. Make sure you service via the dealer as it makes a world of difference. This model requires service every 6 months. Owned it 7 years now While I have read that for some the fuel economy goes, we never had that issue maybe because it was always dealer serviced. At 120k… Read more

we still get 8.7L diving in the city. However, the transmission giving out is common to a number of CX-7s and if serviced via dealer get Mazda to pay for it. I’ve read some went in a year or two, ours was in year 7 (this year). So check the service book to see if they have replaced it! Note a new transmission is around 10k and then labour to install. So if not fixed knock that off the price and keep it handy as it will most likely happen.

Electrics: we had issues with builbs fusing and getting so hot as to affect the housing. Why the fuse did not blow I do not understand. Upon inspections nothing found! Our globs in the front tend to go often but then we tend to run with lights on all the time. Issue with this is the right bulb must be accessed from the wheel arch by removing the panel around the wheel. So it’s off to your favourite service centre for any new right front globe unless you want to spend the hours trying to do it yourself - which we only did once and after 3 hours finished.

Horrible air con – As much as I love the style and drive !!! The air con is horrible  Show details

Good family car – I have had this car for 6 years now, bought new. My kids love it and nap well in it given it is so comfortable and quiet. We look after it well, service it once a year and no issues at all. It is quite sturdy and looks almost new. What we like is the big boots and fuel consumption (9L/100km) is ok for a 2.5L petrol engine of this weight. Really… Read more

happy with my purchase. Not sure if there is a pattern, but all the bad reviews seem to be about the 2.3L turbo engine purchased second-hand.

Terrible driving - terrible driving – Bad, bad, bad car. There are some cheap bad cars, some others are good expensive, some are mid-mid range... This is bad expensive car... Expensive service, only option for service... I don't want to buy Mazda anymore ever. If you ever choose a car please consider this review. Thank you  Show details

A great dependable drive – A great car from new, A well finished interior, drives well, almost sports car like with some off road capacity.. good fuel economy. I've had no issues, drives like a dream. All in all a dependable car with plenty of zoom still left in the tank @ 155,000klms On the downside was Mazda's service costs ( i changed to a quality independent… Read more

garage for services at 1/3 of the cost.)

The original tyre's composition cut out very quickly, so changed another brand no issues and long life.

Ad Blue top up costs and the diesel particulate system is all part of Mazda's long term money extraction regime, though this too can be got around through a good independent garage.

The built in GPS is a waste of time not all user friendly

Mazda's Worst Car – Even Mazda Service guys tell me the CX-7 is the lemon of mazda's. I have had mine for a year, purchased second hand from Ross Lewellyn motors. I now have a car loan on a car that I can not afford to fix. Gear box needs replacing - can't service the gearbox. What a con from Mazda - sell a crappy car and offer no extended warranties even though… Read more

they know these cars have faults. Turbo is also in need of replacement. $9,000 all up on a car I paid $12,500 for.

Complete transmission failure after 50,000km's – After only 50,000km's you'd expect a transmission to still be at least half way through it's life, but no, Mazda decide to build a quality that fails super early and out of warranty. You can't service transmissions, you just have to rebuild or replace them if they fail, costing $5000. Mazda should still cover this epic failure. I'm never buying Mazda again!!!  Show details

Love my car – I totally recommend the Mazda CX-7 2007 model I got it from Westgate motors for a good price The car drives well, it’s a solid safe car and I totally love it. Economical on fuel , large interior you can fit 7 people Great stereo system A Boss sound system.  Show details

Amazing Vehicle - Needs to be looked after carefully – The CX7 Turbo 2.3 engine in this car is powerful, great torque and a great driving experience. People that have problems with this vehicle are the types that take their car to the dealership, more than likely, 2oookms over the service time which is what causes the problem. The dealership uses cheap mineral oil, which in my opinion is the wrong… Read more

product for this car even if you follow their recommendations you will have problems. I only use Mobil 1 Synthetic oil which is designed for high-performance cars. Use good quality Synthetic oil and service regularly every 5000kms this thing will drive forever. Keep an eye on the timing chain also, but as mentioned if you look after all aspects of the car you will have no problems. There is no issue with the turbo, the problem is sludge build-up caused by cheap oil which gets so hot on its exit from out of the turbo its basically turns to foam which solidifies over time and causes a blockage in the oil lines of the turbo and inside the engine. Synthetic oils will never do this....simple problem solved. Also 98 octane fuel is a must, don't put anything less in the car and you will be rewarded with a great reliable car. My car has done 60,000kms so far, i have a friend with a mazda 6MPS which has the same engine he has done over 200,000kms with no issues using the synthetic oil strategy and changing oil every 5000kms.

The worst investment of my life! Mazda need to own up to making a lemon! – For the first few years this was my dream car. But now it's my worst nightmare. I got the luxury edition, with all the bells and whistles... For a 45kish car to last only 9 years of ordinary driving, is an absolute disgrace! I have knitwear that has lasted 30 years and is still going, and I'm sure my shoes have walked more kms! Everyone has had… Read more

the same issues, there are thousands of reviews all saying the same thing! Mazda seem to blame all the owners. I will never ever trust this brand again. Now I am stuck with a car that might be worth what a wrecker will pay, because if I spend the thousands and thousands required to fix the timing chain, transfer case and clean all the sludge yadaydayda, there is a pretty dam high chance that the turbo will die a few weeks later! Even though it is immaculate body and interior wise, it is not worth me risking a cent more on. Mazda have quite possibly made the worlds crappiest engine. I hear they use the same in the Mazda 3... Stay away peeps... I would happily be in the suggested class action against this lemon.

Perfect – Purchased as a family car. Great on fuel and cheap to run. Has so much room in the back and easy accessible. Easily fits 2 car seats for kids and still room in between. Perfect for moving house also as roof racks and large space in the back make it a breeze.  Show details

Great family car – Great service by Mazda, great size for busy family with kids, excellent boot space and interior space. Easily fits 3 across back seat. Very happy with this model and size, shame Mazda has discontinued it. Mazda honored faulty gearbox and had it replaced and offered replacement car for 2 weeks free of charge.  Show details

It almost killed me – At 115,000 miles something broke or locked up in the steering and almost killed me. I hit a bank head on the air bag deployed up instead of out. Had memory lost in and for two weeks cracked chest plate and now two surgeries on my back. It destored my life. Mazda did not want to take responsibility until I found out why it did it and it was a… Read more

defect in the car. I am in and out of hospital almost have lost everything I owned just trying to keep bills paid. They offered to help get me another car but want me to pay for it. This happened 07-24-2017. They was supposed to been a recall to fix it but Mazda corporation never sent the recall out. I am still trying to find help before long I will lose my home due to this wreck and the poor business and Mazda trying not to have to recall them. What is Mazda corporation wanting on for it to kill someone before they recall them. Well about 8MP faster I would not be here telling no one this and no one would no. I hope Mazda corporation does the right thing and take responsibility and fix them before they kill someone or even a child. And I hope Mazda corporation would c what I am going though right now and do the right thing with me. I had my first back surgery on 11-01-2017 and still got one more to go.

expensive vehicle for major services – very thirsty on fuel, road noise was ok but could've been improved. Cabin room was smaller than its predecessor the tribute. Small but practical boot. Services were expensive.Handle and cabin comfort was ok. Not made for a larger person to sit behind wheel comfortably. But it is a good car overall  Show details

CX-7 MZR-CD Diesel - Awesome vehicle – The Diesel should not be mistaken for the poor cousin "The petrol". The CX-7 diesel drives like a dream. Owned ours for 6 years and still like new. Never misses a beat. Handling is superb. Fuel consumption is great. Sydney to Melbourne on $70 of fuel. Towing is a dream. We pull a full trailer on the highway in 6th gear on cruise control, no gear… Read more

changes required (even on hills).

Just don't buy the petrol turbo version as the engines in those are trouble.

Broken turbo. Devastating – Bought a Mazda CX-7 luxury sports for 36,990 4 years ago (was 2 yrs old when purchased). Always serviced now the turbos broken at a 5000 price to replace. Going to trade back to Mazda, will probably lose 30,000 over 4 yrs. absolutely devastating. Please don't invest in one of these cars. I had a RAV4 which lasted 300000klms and barely cost me a cent  Show details

Biggest mistake of my life!!! – We bought the 07 model back in 2013, and have spent more than half of what we paid for it trying to repair the piece of junk and it still has the same issues that we started with, if not worse! I now have to drive my 2 babies around in this car as we can't afford another one, unfortunately we were naive enough to keep throwing cash to have this… Read more

one repaired. Will never buy a Mazda ever again! Of all the dumb things I have done in life, buying a CX7 was the worst. No wonder they stopped making them!

WASTE OF MONEY – There is a very good reason this lemon has been discontinued. Purchased brand new, paid for a 7 year warranty! Read the small print folks or it'll cost you. For a start, the Turbo will fail and cost you in excess of $7k to replace. Then there is the constant oil leaks, electrical problems and the brakes even failing whilst in motion! Let me… Read more

also mention that Mazda Service Centre absolutely failed to fix my problems and when i took the car back, they either could not fit me in for a week or i have to leave my car for the day - AGAIN!

So naturally, when the 7 year warranty expired, shortly thereafter everything went pear shaped and Mazda's response to pre-existing issues during the warranty was……"well your warranty has expired, that'll be $1200 for a basic service".

So i thought what better way to drive continuous improvement than giving feedback - as expected No Response whatsoever.

Never again will i buy another Mazda lemon - i cannot even give a good review about the Staff there.

They must pay peanuts!