2015 Mazda CX-9

midsize SUV / 4-door SUV

2015 Mazda CX-9 4-door SUV
2014 Mazda CX-9 shown

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Evaluation criteriaRating
Small overlap front: driver-side
P
Moderate overlap front: original test
G
Side: original test
G
Roof strength
M
Head restraints & seats
M

Crash avoidance & mitigation

Evaluation criteriaRating
Front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle
Not available

Seat belts & child restraints

Evaluation criteriaRating
LATCH ease of use
M

Other available safety features

  • Optional blind spot detection

Key

  • G
    Good
  • A
    Acceptable
  • M
    Marginal
  • P
    Poor
  • Superior
  • Advanced
  • Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Small overlap front: driver-side

Rating applies to 2007-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2014 Mazda CX-9 Touring 4-door 4wd

The Mazda CX-9 was introduced in the 2007 model year.

Evaluation criteriaRating
P
Structure and safety cage
P
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
A
Chest
G
Hip/thigh
G
Lower leg/foot
A
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics
The dummy’s head barely contacted the frontal airbag before sliding off the left side as the steering column moved 33 cm to the right, resulting in little airbag cushioning for the chest. Additionally, the side curtain airbag did not deploy, allowing the head to hit the intruding driver door window frame and window sill.
P

Action shot taken during the small overlap frontal crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the door frame, steering wheel, and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was not maintained well.

During the crash, the dummy's head and torso barely contacted the airbag before sliding off to the left as the steering column moved far to the right. Extensive intrusion and lack of a side curtain airbag deployment allowed the head to hit the door window frame, as indicated by smeared grease paint.

Door hinge pillar and instrument panel intrusion was extensive and contributed to a moderate risk of injury to the left knee.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Evaluation criteriaMeasurement
Test ID CEN1408
Lower occupant compartment
Lower hinge pillar max (cm) 43
Footrest (cm) 19
Left toepan (cm) 15
Brake pedal (cm) 8
Parking brake (cm) 25
Rocker panel lateral average (cm) 6
Upper occupant compartment
Steering column 12
Upper hinge pillar max (cm) 44
Upper dash (cm) 38
Lower instrument panel (cm) 33

Driver injury measures

Evaluation criteriaMeasurement
Test ID CEN1408
Head
HIC-15 137
Peak gs at hard contact 96
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.8
Extension bending moment (Nm) 7
Maximum Nij 0.28
Chest maximum compression (mm) 15
Femur (kN)
Left 4.1
Right 1.5
Knee displacement (mm)
Left 13
Right 5
Knee-thigh-hip injury risk (%)
Left 1
Right 0
Maximum tibia index
Left 0.68
Right 0.64
Tibia axial force (kN)
Left 1.3
Right 0.0
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 83
Right 35

About the small overlap front test

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2007-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2008 Mazda CX-9 Grand Touring 4-door 4wd

The Mazda CX-9 was introduced in the 2007 model year.

Evaluation criteriaRating
Overall evaluation
G
Structure and safety cage
G
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
A
Chest
G
Leg/foot, left
G
Leg/foot, right
A
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics
G

Action shot taken during the frontal offset crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained very well.

A high head acceleration occurred when the dummy's head hit the steering wheel through the airbag.

Forces on the lower right leg were high enough to indicate the possibility of injuries.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Evaluation criteriaMeasurement
Test ID CEF0802
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm) 3
Left (cm) 2
Center (cm) 7
Right (cm) 7
Brake pedal (cm) 5
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm) -1
Right (cm) -1
Steering column movement
Upward (cm) 1
Rearward (cm) -4
A-pillar rearward movement (cm) 0

Driver injury measures

Evaluation criteria Measurement
Test ID CEF0802
Head
HIC-15 687
Peak gs at hard contact 98
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.5
Extension bending moment (Nm) 27
Maximum Nij 0.42
Chest maximum compression (mm) 30
Legs
Femur force - left (kN) 0.9
Femur force - right (kN) 2.3
Knee displacement - left (mm) 1
Knee displacement - right (mm) 0
Maximum tibia index - left 0.34
Maximum tibia index - right 0.89
Tibia axial force - left (kN) 1.9
Tibia axial force - right (kN) 4.6
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 92
Right 104

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2007-15 models

Tested vehicle: 2008 Mazda CX-9 Grand Touring 4-door 4wd with standard head curtain airbags for all three rows of seats and standard front seat-mounted torso airbags

The Mazda CX-9 was introduced in the 2007 model year.

Evaluation criteriaRating
Overall evaluation
G
Structure and safety cage
A
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
G
Torso
G
Pelvis/leg
G
Driver head protection
G
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
G
Torso
G
Pelvis/leg
G
Rear passenger head protection
G

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the crash test.

View of the vehicle after the crash with doors removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side curtain airbag.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side airbag.

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CES0803
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm) -11.0
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Driver injury measures

Evaluation criteria Measurement
Test ID CES0803
Head HIC-15 81
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.8
Compression (kN) 0.0
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 30
Lateral force (kN) 1.5
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 23
Average deflection (mm) 21
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 2.09
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.23
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 1.5
Acetabulum force (kN) 2.6
Combined force (kN) 3.7
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.8
L-M moment (Nm) 105
A-P moment (Nm) 45

Passenger injury measures

Evaluation criteria Measurement
Test ID CES0803
Head HIC-15 117
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.2
Compression (kN) 0.4
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 34
Lateral force (kN) 1.9
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 31
Average deflection (mm) 24
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 3.22
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.36
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 0.8
Acetabulum force (kN) 3.0
Combined force (kN) 3.5
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.5
L-M moment (Nm) 81
A-P moment (Nm) -27

About the original side crash test

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2010-15 models built after June 2010

Tested vehicle: 2010 Mazda CX-9 Sport 4-door 4wd

Overall evaluation
M
Curb weight4,463 lbs
Peak force12,562 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio2.81

About the roof strength test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Grand Touring seats

Overall evaluation
M
Dynamic rating
M
Seat/head restraint geometry
G
Technical measurements for this test
Seat type Grand Touring seats
Geometry
Backset (mm) 60
Distance below top of head (mm) 26
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail Fail
Max T1 acceleration (g) 12.9
Head contact time (ms) 104
Force rating 2
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N) 132
Max neck tension (N) 682

About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.

Child seat anchors

Rating applies to 2015 models

Evaluation criteriaRating
Overall evaluation
M
Vehicle trimGrand Touring
Seat type leather

This vehicle has 2 rear seating positions with complete child seat attachment (LATCH) hardware.

It has 1 additional seating position with a tether anchor and the ability to borrow lower anchors from the other seating positions.

Note: When anchors are borrowed, they aren't available to use in their designated positions.

Evaluation criteriaRating
Overall evaluation
M
Vehicle trimGrand Touring
Seat type leather
1 2 3 6 4
Rating iconRating
GGood
AAcceptable
MMarginal
PPoor
Seating positions that rely on borrowed lower anchors or have only a tether anchor available are not rated.
thether anchor symbol
Tether anchor
lower anchor symbol
Lower anchors
shared lower achors symbol
Lower anchor(s) can be borrowed from adjacent positions(s)
No hardware available

Details by seating position

PositionRating
1
Tether anchor
hard-to-find location
other hardware could be confused for anchor
Lower anchors
too deep in seat
not too much force needed to attach
easy to maneuver around anchors
2
Tether anchor
hard-to-find location
no other hardware could be confused for anchor
Lower anchors
Can be borrowed from 1 and 3
3
Tether anchor
hard-to-find location
other hardware could be confused for anchor
Lower anchors
too deep in seat
not too much force needed to attach
easy to maneuver around anchors
Technical measurements for this test

Seat position 21

3

Lower anchor A
Open access rated No
Depth (cm) 2-4
Force (lbs) 20
Clearance angle (degrees) 60
Lower anchor B
Open access rated No
Depth (cm) 2-4
Force (lbs) 14
Clearance angle (degrees) 65
Tether anchor
Location Bottom seatback
Confusing hardware present Yes
Has contrasting label
within 3 inches of tether anchor
No
Tether anchors can be accessed
while seatback is properly positioned
for use of LATCH
Not measured

Seat position 22

2

Lower anchor A
Lower latch is shared for this seat position
Lower anchor B
Lower latch is shared for this seat position
Tether anchor
Location Bottom seatback
Confusing hardware present No
Has contrasting label
within 3 inches of tether anchor
No
Tether anchors can be accessed
while seatback is properly positioned
for use of LATCH
Not measured

Seat position 23

1

Lower anchor A
Open access rated No
Depth (cm) 4-6
Force (lbs) 14
Clearance angle (degrees) 66
Lower anchor B
Open access rated No
Depth (cm) 2-4
Force (lbs) 15
Clearance angle (degrees) 66
Tether anchor
Location Bottom seatback
Confusing hardware present Yes
Has contrasting label
within 3 inches of tether anchor
No
Tether anchors can be accessed
while seatback is properly positioned
for use of LATCH
Not measured

About the child seat anchor evaluation