HomeMazdaCX-5 › 2023

2023 Mazda CX-5

Gas Compact SUV

20262025202420232022202120202019201820172016
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratings
A
Safety Signal
100 / 100
ASafety Signal · 100 / 100
0Recalls · NHTSA campaigns
62Complaints · owner reports
5★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
26 mpgFuel economy · best combined

The 2023 Mazda CX-5 is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact SUV with 2 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the CX-5 4WD, is EPA-rated at 26 mpg combined. NHTSA lists no recall campaigns for this model year so far (Safety Signal A). Owners have filed 62 complaints, most often about service brakes. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
CX-5 4WDGas4WD2.5L 4-cyl243026$2,400
CX-5 4WDGas4WD2.5L 4-cyl turbo222724$2,600

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

Out of factory warranty soon?

The 2023 Mazda CX-5 is in the years where transmission, electronics and drivetrain repairs land on the owner. Compare extended-coverage quotes in about two minutes.

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Recalls (0)

No NHTSA recall campaigns are on file for the 2023 Mazda CX-5. New campaigns appear here within a week of NHTSA posting them.

Owner complaints

62 complaints filed

8 involved a crash, 0 a fire, 5 injuries, 0 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2023: 13 · 2024: 11 · 2025: 20 · 2026: 18

Most-cited components

  • Service Brakes — 11
  • Unknown Or Other — 10
  • Engine — 10
  • Forward Collision Avoidance — 10
  • Electrical System — 9
“I bought a new Premium Plus CX-5 in April of this year. Since I bought the car, occasionally I hear a sharp click or snap from the dashboard, particularly when it's warm outside and I have the AC on. I have video footage of the sound multiple times, but Mazda says they cannot replicate it. It sounds like a rock hitting…”Oct 19, 2023 · Unknown Or Other · NHTSA owner report
“The sunroof spontaneously exploded outward while my wife was driving on the interstate. She was not near other vehicles or under an overpass for flying debris. We have had the vehicle for only 9 months and she works from home so it is kept in a garage for the majority of its life. It has not encountered any hail damage…”Oct 6, 2023 · Visibility/Wiper · NHTSA owner report
“At 2:00 on a clear afternoon I was slowly coasting into a right hand turn into a parking space, and lightly tapping the brake to finalize the stop, when the car accelerated HARD forward over a curb and a sidewalk into the brick wall of a building. Airbag was deployed. My injuries were a nasty wrist contusion and bloody…”Oct 2, 2023 · Service Brakes · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆17%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking.

Other CX-5 model years

A

2026 CX-5

0 recalls · 14 complaints

A

2025 CX-5

0 recalls · 27 complaints

A

2024 CX-5

0 recalls · 43 complaints

A

2022 CX-5

0 recalls · 63 complaints

A

2021 CX-5

0 recalls · 143 complaints

A

2020 CX-5

0 recalls · 106 complaints

B

2019 CX-5

2 recalls · 269 complaints

C

2018 CX-5

3 recalls · 348 complaints

A

2017 CX-5

1 recalls · 148 complaints

D

2016 CX-5

4 recalls · 510 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 45829, 45830). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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