NHTSA Complaint #11494956 — 2014 MAZDA CX-9

Sudden failure of water pump located inside the engine caused engine to shut down immediately while driving 70 mph on busy expressway. Extremely dangerous situation due to heavy traffic and high speeds traveled. Only by sheer luck were we able to coast across 4 lanes of traffic to an exit ramp and barely make it into a parking lot after crossing 2 more lanes on the frontage road. Very difficult to steer and brake due to no engine power. Repair cost was $4,433. Two subsequent follow up repairs for check engine light and oil control valve issues related to water pump failure were required and covered under initial repair warranty. Research on web indicates this is a common problem with this engine with many complaints occurring soon after 100k miles. In many cases customers reported having to replace the engine or sell the car for parts due to the high cost of repair. Locating the water pump inside the engine block was a terrible design fault and extreme safety hazard when it fails.