The left-sidesecond-row seat may unexpectedly slide forward during a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 210, "Seat Belt Assembly Anchorages."
Risk: A seat that slides forward during a crash can transfer excessive force onto a belted occupant, increasing their risk of injury.
The fix and full notice
Fix: Dealers will replace the internal parts of the affected second-row seats, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 4, 2021. Owners may contact Mazda customer service at 1-800-222-5500, Option 4. Mazda's number for this recall is 5221I.
Mazda North American Operations (Mazda) is recalling certain 2020-2021CX-9 vehicles equipped with 60/40 split bench second-row seats.
Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What owners report
Owners have filed 19 complaints with NHTSA about the 2020 CX-9. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.
Problems owners describe
Hesitation or slow acceleration3 · 16%
Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these.
Areas named in complaints
Engine5 · 26%
Electrical system4 · 21%
Fuel and propulsion system3 · 16%
Brakes2 · 11%
Forward collision avoidance2 · 11%
Powertrain2 · 11%
Air bags1 · 5%
Unknown or other3 · 16%
A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%.
Mazda CX-9 recalls and complaints by model year
The highlighted bars are the 2020 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2021 CX-9 drew the most (21) and the 2020 drew 6.
Owner complaints
2020: 19 complaintsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Owner complaints by model year, Mazda CX-9
Model year
Complaints
2016
105
2017
61
2018
128
2019
53
2020
19
2021
39
2022
10
2023
12
Safety recalls
2020: 1 recallTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Safety recalls by model year, Mazda CX-9
Model year
Recalls
2016
0
2017
0
2018
2
2019
2
2020
1
2021
1
2022
0
2023
0
Crash test ratings
NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.
Tested version
Overall
Frontal
Side
Rollover
Mazda CX-9 SUV AWD
Rollover risk 15.9%
Mazda CX-9 SUV FWD
Rollover risk 15.1%
Questions
What are the most common 2020 CX-9 problems?
The areas owners name most often in NHTSA complaints: engine (5), electrical system (4), fuel and propulsion system (3). NHTSA does not verify complaints, and one complaint can name several areas.
Is the 2020 Mazda CX-9 safe?
In NHTSA crash tests every tested version of the 2020 Mazda CX-9 earns 5 stars overall. The table above lists each tested version.
How do I check if my CX-9 has an open recall?
Enter the 17-character VIN from your dashboard, door jamb or registration at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup lists unrepaired recalls for that exact vehicle. Safety recall repairs are free at Mazda dealers.
Sources and method
NHTSA recalls file (NHTSA datasets), dated Sep 29, 2026; every campaign checked against NHTSA's recalls API.
NHTSA owner complaints file, dated Sep 28, 2026. Counted by complaint number, so a complaint naming three components counts once in the total.
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP).
NHTSA model names covered: CX-9.
Complaint counts are unverified owner reports. They rise with sales volume and time on the road, so compare model years with care. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.