2007 Mazda CX-7

I WAS ON MY WAY TO WORK, WHEN ALL THE SUDDEN MY CAR STARTED FLOWING MASSIVE AMOUNT OF SMOKE FROM THE PASSENGER SIDE OF MY CAR. I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN MY CAR STOPPED WORKING. THANK FULLY THERE WAS NO ACCIDENT OR INJURIES. I CALLED A TOW TRUCK TO GET OFF THE ROAD AND BACK TO THE DEALER. TELLING ME THAT MY A/C COMPRESSOR WENT. COSTING ABOUT 2000$ TO FIX!. AFTER SOME INVESTIGATION, I REALIZED THIS IS A HUGE PROBLEM WITH 07' AND 08' MAZDA CX-7 CARS. I BELIEVE MAZDA FIXED THE PROBLEM ON NEWER CX-7S BUT COMPLETELY IGNORED THE OLDER MODELS. PLEASE HELP ME FIX THIS! *TR

I RECENTLY BOUGHT A USED MAZDA CX-7 GRAND TOURING EDITION VEHICLE. I BOUGHT IT ON NOVEMBER 8, 2008 WITH 18,000 MILES ON IT. AFTER OWNING IT FOR A YEAR AND A HALF I WAS DRIVING TO WORK ONE MORNING WHEN I HEARD A POP AND CLANKING SOUND. I CONTINUED TO DRIVE UNTIL MY CAR STARTED LOSING POWER HOWEVER I MANAGED TO MAKE IT TO WORK. NO LIGHTS CAME ON, NOTHING. MY HUSBAND CAME THAT MORNING TO DRIVE THE CAR TO THE MECHANIC AND WITHIN 2 MILES ALL THE DASH LIGHTS CAME ON AND THE CAR LOST ALL POWER. IT WAS TOWED TO GRAPPONE MAZDA IN CONCORD NH FOR WHAT I THOUGHT WOULD BE WARRANTY WORK SINCE WE WERE STILL UNDER THE WARRANTY. WE WERE TOLD TO PRODUCE ALL SERVICE RECORDS WHICH WE DID, AND THEY FOUND SOME GAPS, HOWEVER, NEVER OVER THE RECOMMENDED 7500 MILES THAT THEY RECOMMEND FOR AN OIL CHANGE. OUR WARRANTY COVERAGE WAS DENIED TWICE. TO THIS DAY, WE STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT IS WRONG WITH OUR ENGINE. THERE HAVE BEEN SUGGESTIONS AND ALSO WE'VE BEEN TOLD THAT THE TURBO DEFINITELY WENT. WE OBTAINED A CARFAX TO SEE WHAT WAS DONE TO THE CAR BEFORE WE OWNED IT AND FOUND OUT THE TURBO HAD BEEN REPLACED BEFORE WE BOUGHT THE CAR WHEN IT WAS ONLY A YEAR OLD WITH 18,000 MILES ON IT. MAZDA IS REFUSING TO WORK WITH US ON THIS AND HAVE LEFT US WITHOUT A CAR NOW FOR 2 MONTHS. *TR

DRIVING HOME FROM WORK DURING RUSH HOUR. SMOKE BEGAN POURING OUT OF ENGINE COMPARTMENT OUTSIDE VEHICLE AND INTO THE CABIN. FEARING AN ENGINE FIRE, PULLED OFF TO LEFT SHOULDER OF HIGHWAY AND SHUT OFF ENGINE. OPENED HOOD (WITH MUCH TREPIDATION) TO OBSERVE PROBLEM. SMOKE CONTINUED TO EMANATE FROM PASSENGER SIDE OF ENGINE COMPARTMENT NEAR SERPENTINE BELTS - NO OBVIOUS FIRE. LET VEHICLE SIT FOR 5 MINUTES AND RESTARTED - SAME PROBLEM. SHUT OFF A/C, AND SMOKE AND NOISE DISCONTINUED. IDLED FOR 5 MINUTES - NO MORE APPARENT PROBLEMS WITH A/C OFF. PULLED BACK ON TO HIGHWAY AND CONTINUED TRIP HOME. DID SOME ONLINE INVESTIGATION AND DEDUCED THAT A/C COMPRESSOR HAD SEIZED. ANECDOTAL EVIDENCE OF WIDESPREAD PROBLEM, INCLUDING CATASTROPHIC FAILURES FOR OTHER MAZDA CX7 OWNERS. ANECDOTAL EVIDENCE OF A COMPLETE COMPONENT REDESIGN FOR 2008 MODEL YEAR. BROUGHT CAR TO DEALER FOLLOWING MONDAY - A/C COMPRESSOR HAD SEIZED AND REQUIRED REPLACEMENT TO THE TUNE OF $1300 AT MY COST (12,000 KM OVER WARRANTY). NO HELP FROM THE DEALER, AND NO HELP FROM MAZDA. ZOOM-ZOOM APPEARS TO REPRESENT HOW QUICKLY MAZDA RETREATS FROM CUSTOMER SUPPORT. *TR

AFTER DRIVING ROUGHLY 38,000 MILES, MY MAZDA CX-7'S A/C STARTED TO HAVE PROBLEMS. IT STOPPED BLOWING COLD AIR AND STARTED TO MAKE A GRINDING SOUND. WHILE I WAS DRIVING TO A PLACE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG WITH MY CAR, A BURNING SMELL BEGAN TO ARISE. IT WAS EVENTUALLY FOUND THAT THE COMPRESSOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AND THERE WERE METAL PARTS IN THE COMPRESSOR. THIS CAUSED HUGE DAMAGES TO THE CAR AND IT WAS ESTIMATED TO COST ROUGHLY $17,000 IN DAMAGES. IT HAS YET TO BE FIXED, BUT THE CAR HAS ONLY BEEN DRIVEN FOR 38,000 MILES AND HAD REGULAR MAINTENANCE INTERVALS. THERE WAS ALMOST NO INDICATION OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING BECAUSE I DID NOT TURN ON THE A/C OFTEN. *TR

2007 MAZDA CX-7 GRAND TOURING. (FAMILY CAR)! 43,636 MILES(OUT OF WARRANTY) FIRST OFF, MY WIFE AND I HAVE A HAD OUR CAR SERVICED AND OIL CHANGED EVERY 3000 MILES! AND WE HAVE TAKEN THE CAR IN NUMEROUS TIMES FOR THE A/C NOT WORKING IN OVER 90 DEGREES TEMPERATURES. AND HAVE BEEN TOLD BY 2 DEALERSHIPS THAT THE CX-7'S A/C DOESN'T WORK WELL OVER 90 DEGREES. LIVING IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ITS OVER 90 DEGREES FOR ALMOST 6 MONTHS OF THE YEAR. A COUPLE DAYS AGO, MY WIFE, YOUNG DAUGHTERS AND I WERE DRIVING OUR CAR TO A DESTINATION ONLY 3 MILES FROM HOME. (THE CAR HAD BEEN SITTING ALL DAY, IN THE GARAGE.) WE HAD THE A/C ON HALF WAY(85 DEGREES OUT). ABOUT READY TO GET OFF THE FREEWAY AND ONLY GOING 60 MPH. THE AIR BLOWING OUT OF THE A/C STARTED BLOWING HOT, EASILY OVER 100 DEGREES. THE A/C STARTED WHINING, THOUGH IT WAS A BELT SLIPPING. IMMEDIATELY TURNED OFF THE A/C AND FAN MOTOR. AND THEN BEGAN TO SMELL BURNING PLASTIC. DROVE 1/4 MILE TO DESTINATION AND RIGHT BEFORE PARKING IT, A PLUME OF WHITE SMOKE STARTED COMING OUT OF THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND A/C VENTS. I OPENED THE HOOD TO PUT OUT THE FIRE, I THOUGHT WOULD BE THERE. BUT THE CAR JUST KEPT SMOKING WITH NO VISIBLE FLAME. SMOKED-NO IT "PLUMED", FOR ABOUT 15 MINUTES. I CALLED AAA , AND HAD THE CAR TOWED TO A LOCAL MAZDA DEALERSHIP. WHEN I TOLD THE SERVICE WHAT HAPPENED, HE SMILED AND SHOOK HIS HEAD AND TOLD ME THAT THE A/C COMPRESSOR BLEW. WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING! HE SAID, HE COULDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY MAZDA HAS NOT RECALLED THIS PROBLEM YET. AND THAT HE HAS HAD A LOT OF UPSET CX-7 OWNERS SPENDING OVER $2500 BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T TURN OFF THE A/C WHEN IT STOPPED WORKING. RESULTING IN TIMING CHAINS, BLOWN ENGINES AND OTHER EXPENSIVE PARTS GOING OUT DUE TO THE STRESS CAUSED ON THE A/C BELT WHEN THE COMPRESSOR BLOWS. AND IF I HADN'T BEEN READING BLOG AFTER BLOG ONLINE SINCE 2007 WHEN WE GOT THE CAR, ABOUT THE A/C COMPRESSOR PROBLEM, I WOULD OF BEEN PAYING $2500 OR MORE TOO! ONE DAY OF SERVICE AND $1025 LATER. THE CAR SEEMS TO BE FINE. *TR

I HAVE A 2007 MAZDA CX 7. I BOUGHT IT NEW IN FEBRUARY OF 2007, SO THE CAR IS ONLY 3 YEARS OLD. TWO MAJOR THINGS HAVE HAPPENED TO MY CAR WITHIN THE PAST TWO MONTHS ONE OF WHICH SERIOUSLY PUT MY SAFETY IN JEOPARDY. I WILL START WITH, TWO MONTHS AGO, MY AIR CONDITIONER WENT OUT COMPLETELY. THE AIR COMPRESSOR HAD TO BE REPLACED. THEN, ABOUT A WEEK AGO AS I WAS DRIVING DOWN INTERSTATE 75 (GOING ABOUT 70 MPH), THE ACCELERATION ON MY CAR COMPLETELY WENT OUT. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO GET OVER THE 5 LANES OF TRAFFIC AND PULL THE CAR OFF TO THE SIDE. AFTER I TURNED MY CAR OFF, IT NEVER CRANKED AGAIN AFTER THAT. LONG STORY SHORT, I TOOK MY CAR INTO JIM ELLIS MAZDA IN MARIETTA, GA AND THEY SAID THERE WAS INTERNAL DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE AND THE ENGINE WOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED COMPLETELY. THEY COULDN?T EVEN TELL ME WHAT EXACTLY WENT WRONG OR REALLY DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM FOR ME. THEY JUST SAID THE ENGINE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE KICKER TO THIS STORY IS, WHEN I WENT IN A COUPLE MONTHS AGO TO GET MY AIR FIXED, I ASKED THEM TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE ENGINE BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT SOUNDED LOUD. THE SAID IT WAS COMPLETELY FINE AND NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH IT. WELL TWO MONTHS LATER THIS HAPPENED. I HAVE TALKED TO MAZDA CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY WILL OFFER NO ASSISTANCE FOR FIXING MY CAR (WHICH I HAVE BEEN QUOTED $8,000 TO FIX!). I WAS TOLD THAT MAZDA HAD REVIEWED MY CASE AND I WAS DECLINED BECAUSE THERE WAS SLUDGE AROUND THE ENGINE, WHICH APPARENTLY GIVES THEN REASON FOR NO ASSISTANCE. THEY SAID THAT IS PROOF THAT MY CAR IS NOT MAINTENANCED ON A REGULAR BASIS, HOWEVER I HAVE DOCUMENTED PROOF THAT IT IS MAINTENANCED REGULARLY. THEY JUST DIDN'T SEEM TO CARE. *TR

I OWN A 2007 MAZDA CX 7,WITH 40,000 MILES ON IT. I HAVE TAKEN IT IN TO THE DEALERSHIP MULTIPLE TIMES FOR THE AC. I HAD BEEN TOLD IT WAS NORMAL AND FINE. LAST NIGHT I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK WHEN SOMEONE ON THE ROAD INFORMED ME THAT MY CAR WAS SMOKING. MY HUSBAND CAME TO WHERE I WAS AT AND FOUND OUT THAT MY AC COMPRESSOR HAD LOCKED UP CAUSING MY CAR TO NOT RUN. TOOK IT TO THE DEALER THEY SAY IT MAY NOT BE COVERED AS IT IS NOT A POWERTRAIN ISSUE. AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED, IT IS. WITHOUT THE AC COMPRESSOR THE CAR WILL NOT WORK OR DRIVE THEREFORE IT IS A POWERTRAIN PROBLEM, IT WONT DRIVE AND IT INOPERABLE. I THINK MAZDA NEEDS TO RECALL THIS PART AS IT LEADS TO SAFETY ISSUES, OR MAYBE THEY SHOULD REPAIR THIS PART FOR NO CHARGE. I AM NOW ONE UNHAPPY MAZDA OWNER...... *TR

FOR QUITE AWHILE I HAD BEEN HEARING A "TICKING" NOISE WITH MY 2007 MAZDA CX-7..BROUGHT IT TO THE DEALERSHIP IN LAFAYETTE, LA. TO HAVE IT CHECKED OUT. THEY CHECKED IT OUT, UPDATED RECALLS IN AFFECT, STATED THEY FOUND NOTHING. CONTINUED TO HEAR IT OFF AND ON, HAD MY OIL CHANGED REGULARLY. ON JULY 10, 2010 MY CAR BROKE DOWN (4 YRS OLD, 33,000 MILES) HAD IT TOWED TO DEALER IN BEAUMONT, CLOSE TO WHERE IT HAD BROKEN DOWN. THE SERVICE DEPT. ASKED FOR MY SERVICE RECORDS AFTER IT WAS DETERMINED THAT PROBLEM WAS WITH THE ENGINE.. DID NOT HAVE EVERY RECEIPT DUE TO DEALER IN AREA CLOSING WITH NO RECORDS THERE, BUT PROVIDE THE LAST FEW.. AFTER TAKING AN "IMAGE" AND SENDING IT TO MAZDA, IT WAS DETERMINED THEY WOULD NOT HONOR THE WARRANTY BECAUSE I HAD EXCESSIVE "SLUDGE" AND WANTED ME TO PAY FULL COST OF A NEW ENGINE/MOTOR. NO ONE WANTED TO LISTEN TO ME..I DO REMEMBER THAT WHEN MY OIL WAS CHANGED, THE MECHANIC HAD TOLD ME IN THE PAST THAT IT SEEMED TO HAVE "SLUDGE", BUT THAT WAS ONLY BETWEEN 3,000 MILES. I HAD TAKEN CARE OF MY CAR, AND THEY WERE TELLING THAT IT HAD "POOR MAINTENANCE" AND WOULD NOT HONOR THE WARRANTY! *TR

PURCHASED A USED 2007 CX-7 WITH 31,000 MILES (STILL UNDER WARRANTY, ALLEGEDLY). DROVE IT FOR FOUR MONTHS TO THE DAY, 34,000 MILES ON IT NOW. WHITE SMOKE, KNOCKING ENGINE. MAZDA REQUESTS PAST OIL CHANGES WHICH I HAVE ONE. MAZDA PRESENTS ME WITH A $4,100 ESTIMATE TO FIX REPLACE THE TURBO, ENGINE REPAIR AND TIMING CHAIN. NOTICE THAT IN JANUARY OF 2008, MAZDA NORTH AMERICAN OPERATIONS PUT OUT A SERVICE BULLETIN NO. 01-002/08 DESCRIBING THIS EXACT PROBLEM. HOWEVER THE BULLETIN CLEARLY STATES "ONLY TO VERIFIED CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS ON VEHICLES ELIGIBLE FOR WARRANTY REPAIR." GREAT! IT CAN BE FIXED, MAZDA SAYS SO! OH, WHAT? NOT SO FAST. MAZDA TECH SAYS THERE IS A SLUDGING PROBLEM THEREFORE VOIDING THE WARRANTY. BUT THE SERVICE BULLETIN SAYS IT CAN BE FIXED DUE TO MY COMPLAINT. AFTER FURTHER RESEARCH I DISCOVER THAT THE TURBO SYSTEM IN THIS CAR HAS AN ENGINEERING PROBLEM CAUSING WAY! TO MUCH HEAT FOR NORMAL USE, THEREFORE BURNING OIL, THEREFORE CAUSING SLUDGE. MAZDA USES THIS "EVIDENCE OF SLUDGE" CAUSED BY THEM! TO CLAIM THAT THE OWNER DID NOT MAINTAIN THEIR VEHICLE, THEREFORE "YOUR WARRANTY HAS BEEN VOIDED." MAZDA IS TRYING TO AVOID A RECALL ON THIS FOR OBVIOUS COSTLY REASONS. I HAVE CONTACTED AN ATTORNEY AND HE IS CURRENTLY WORKING ON MY CASE. *TR