[ttaidapos]

Hey everyone, have been monitoring for a couple of years and wanted to thank everyone!

We have been battling this issue since we purchased our CX3 and wanted to gather everyone's feedback and how we can tackle this together with Mazda USA.

Problem: Resting elbow on driver or passenger's door elbow rest over time creates a permanent indentation.

Goal: Gather enough ownership complaints on this specific issue from owners in the hopes to get it fixed once and for all by Mazda USA.

The story:
After 2 weeks of ownership and couple of hundred miles noticed the indentation forming from resting our elbows on the door's arm rest. At first we didn't think much of it as we thought more than likely it would "bounce" back to where it was. Another week goes by (week 3) and we noticed that it is definitely not going back to its original shape. Just to answer some of the basics, we did not lean on it at any time nor do we apply excessive pressure do that spot no more than any other car. My wife weighs no more than 115lbs at 5'5 and I am about 185 lbs at 6'0.

We contacted the dealership and initially they wouldn't cover this type of issue because the door rest has been designed to "crush" in case of a car collision. I thought this was BS personally so I contacted Mazda USA... Apparently they called the dealer and had them replace it for a one time but also agreed with the dealer that the area has been designed for car collision purposes. At this point we were extremely happy with the service and thought that we simply overlooked how we handled the car. The problem is that they needed to replace the whole door-panel which took more time than usual, not to mention the 2-3 visits that followed to get everything perfect. Regardless, after it was all said and done we babied both doors in the hopes not to create those permanent dents. Sure enough after 3-4 weeks the dents were back and we gave up.

Fast forward about a year, the CX3 is due for an oil change and need to replace the rear bumper guard (add on accessory) as it has built up rust and I definitely want to revisit the door rest issue. I will let everyone know on my updates as well as calling Mazda USA again.

Questions:

1. Has anyone else noticed the same issue?
2. Do you think this is normal after such a short time or are we just being annoying owners?

-Dented Owners

P.S We really love our CX3!!!

 

[anchorman]

You might be able to get it fixed under this warranty TSB.

 

[ttaidapos]

You might be able to get it fixed under this warranty TSB.

Thanks! I will keep this in our back pocket just in case we need it. I do have a scheduled visit the week of April 10th, I will let everyone know my findings. I did call Mazda USA to check on my case and they simply said that they have not received enough complaints but the warranty from the work last year should cover it.

I have noticed the same issue whenever I get a loaner car and have observed so far on the CX5 and Mazda 6.

 

[ttaidapos]

After taking it in for an oil change and them buffing out some minor rust spots on the bumper guard (accessory) we were stuck of course on the door indentation. The good thing out of this is that my call to Mazda USA recently caused a collaboration with my dealership. After a few calls back and forth from dealer to Mazda, they said they would contact me and bring the car in again. The story is to be continued unfortunately

P.S Below is a picture of the indentation and discoloration, not a good way to take a picture unless I'm pressing down on the actual spot. The picture below shows how the natural light curves around the indentation.

 

[TiGrayMSM]

My elbowrest has 0 padding left. It is a terrible design, so I feared getting it replaced would lead to the same problem. However, due to the complete incompetence of Mazda dealers I have not taken it in for this issue. My worry is that I will take the car in for the elbowrest issue, and then deal with scratches, rattles, and overall poor workmanship for an issue likely to come up again. Please keep us updated with how Mazda will take care of this!

 

[skyking]

My driver's door elbow rest does have a small indentation after seven months of ownership. However, so did my Acura MDX (which, oddly enough, had less padding). As long as the covering remain intact, I can live with this. BTW, the MDX armrest basically remained this way throughout the time (7+ years) I owned it.

 

[ttaidapos]

My driver's door elbow rest does have a small indentation after seven months of ownership. However, so did my Acura MDX (which, oddly enough, had less padding). As long as the covering remain intact, I can live with this. BTW, the MDX armrest basically remained this way throughout the time (7+ years) I owned it.

Through my 20 years of owning various cars with various build quality, this is the first time I'm encountering this. Funny thing is, I was playing around with a new CX5 display model and sure enough it also had an indentation from various customers sitting in it.

The more people we get to call Mazda USA the better it will be. See if you can spare a few moments to report the issue.

 

[ttaidapos]

My elbowrest has 0 padding left. It is a terrible design, so I feared getting it replaced would lead to the same problem. However, due to the complete incompetence of Mazda dealers I have not taken it in for this issue. My worry is that I will take the car in for the elbowrest issue, and then deal with scratches, rattles, and overall poor workmanship for an issue likely to come up again. Please keep us updated with how Mazda will take care of this!

Will sure keep everyone updated but definitely call Mazda USA. See if you can spare a few moments to report the issue. The more people we get to call the more likely they will do something about it.

 

[TallGuyNW]

After a year and a half, there is just a very small dent in my armrest. I don't use it much because with the seat all the way back and reclined, my elbow naturally rests at the very back of the armrest, and it's way too narrow there to be comfortable. Wish it was wider.

 

[ttaidapos]

Well two weeks later the dealer finally reached out to me again requesting pictures of the door because they lost theirs! Finally, the ordered the door today and will call me to schedule a replacement.

The whole door is one piece, so they can't just replace the arm rest! I'll keep everyone updated but make sure you do call Mazda USA. It literally takes 5min.

 

[ttaidapos]

And still waiting for dealer to arrange the repair. They do keep me posted every 6-7 days but nothing more.

 

[ttaidapos]

Picking up the car tomorrow, apparently it's all done. We'll keep everyone posted on quality.

 

[ttaidapos]

Picked up the car and they did a great job. Unfortunately this was a favor from the district manager, the Mazda USA rep only influenced him/her to replace it.

In order for this to be covered under warranty we will need more people to call in. Please please please, if everyone calls in to complain we will get this covered under warrant. It only takes 5 minutes to report the issue, they already have you registered by your VIN number. Below are the support numbers.

USA: +1 (800) 222-5500
Australia: 1800 034 411
Europe: https://www.mazdamotors.eu/en/mazda-in-europe/

 

[anchorman]

I believe it would be covered by warranty here in the U.K. if anybody was concerned enough to complain about it.

Glad yours is now to your satisfaction.

 

[greaseman85]

I can believe that something like that isn't covered under warranty. What I would suspect is that if the problem is widespread and enough people complain, it will become a recall issue.

Here in the US when you buy a car, dealers try hard to sell you extra warranties, and one such warranty is for the interior trims/seats and things of that nature that can be damaged by normal wear and tear. I suspect normally the elbowrest issue would be considered a normal wear and tear thing and not covered by the standard warranty, but since in your case (and others) it doesn't seem normal for it to get like that so quickly it needs to be addressed free of charge by Mazda.

 

[todd5]

I had a 2001 Protege5 with this issue.
Where my elbow rested started with a dent and then a full on hole.
Dealer called it wear and tear.
When I traded it in, the sales rep asked if a dog ate my arm rest.
I told him "no, it was my elbow."

I'm sure, given more time, that leather part with the dent would end up with a hole in it.
I'm not so sure the replacement door will resolve the problem.

I have boney elbows so it might be a body type thing since not many complain about this.

 

[ttaidapos]

I had a 2001 Protege5 with this issue.
Where my elbow rested started with a dent and then a full on hole.
Dealer called it wear and tear.
When I traded it in, the sales rep asked if a dog ate my arm rest.
I told him "no, it was my elbow."

I'm sure, given more time, that leather part with the dent would end up with a hole in it.
I'm not so sure the replacement door will resolve the problem.

I have boney elbows so it might be a body type thing since not many complain about this.

Thanks for this, I never though about "elbow type" and this does make sense considering there's not a huge volume of complaints. It's just so odd to me considering all the cars I have owned the last 20 years and rented and not one of them had the issue.