Which one, and which years, drew fewer problems per car sold
The short answer
Across the 2012 to 2022 model years, the Mazda CX-9 drew fewer owner complaints per car sold: 286 per 100,000 against 418 for the Honda Pilot, or 32% fewer. The gap holds for the newer 2019 to 2022 cars too. The best years to target are 2020 and 2022 for the CX-9 and 2015 and 2022 for the Pilot.
Mazda CX-9
Honda Pilot
By age group
| Model years | CX-9 | Pilot | Fewer problems |
|---|---|---|---|
| Older (2012 to 2015) | 442 | 138 | Pilot |
| Middle (2016 to 2018) | 413 | 763 | CX-9 |
| Newer (2019 to 2022) | 102 | 409 | CX-9 |
Owner complaints per 100,000 cars sold, pooled across the years in each group. Lower is better. A model counts as ahead only when it is at least 10% lower.
Year by year
| Year | CX-9 | Pilot |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 904 | 150 |
| 2013 | 276 | 216 |
| 2014 | 292 | 107 |
| 2015 | 194 | 80 |
| 2016 | 635 | 1,430 |
| 2017 | 236 | 739 |
| 2018 | 453 | 277 |
| 2019 | 197 | 687 |
| 2020 | 69 | 399 |
| 2021 | 126 | 317 |
| 2022 | 32 | 176 |
| 2023 | Too new | Too new |
| 2024 | n/a | Too new |
Complaints per 100,000 sold for each model year. Green is a good year for that model, amber average, red a year to watch out for.
Most reported problems
Questions
Is the CX-9 or Pilot more reliable?
Across the 2012 to 2022 model years, the Mazda CX-9 drew fewer owner complaints per car sold: 286 per 100,000 against 418 for the Honda Pilot, or 32% fewer. The gap holds for the newer 2019 to 2022 cars too. The best years to target are 2020 and 2022 for the CX-9 and 2015 and 2022 for the Pilot.
Which CX-9 and Pilot years should I avoid?
For the CX-9: 2012, 2016. For the Pilot: 2016, 2017, 2019.