I would also rate the CX-5 a B. There are some questionable interior choices such as the cup holders and armrest not being padded. I can live with most of that, but the infotainment & navigation system is so sub-par. I feel that its operation is dangerous. I have problems with while I am entering a destination via voice while driving and I come to a stop, it resets as the safety lock disengages. I fiddle with the zoom levels to try to see street names around me while navigating. I guess that is what they mean by zoom-zoom.

Ugh, the whole stereo & nav makes me dislike an overall fun to drive vehicle. I did email Mazda and they acknowledged that the problem does exist and a fix is in the works.

Regarding the iPod, my biggest issue is when using USB, in addition to always starting with the first song, it also doesn't like to play audio from other apps (I am not counting the Pandora app) Basically if I use Spotify, as soon as it starts playing a song, it jumps back to the first track stored on the iPhone. I am using an iPhone 4. Yes, I can use BT, but audio quality is better through USB.

I do hope they fix these issues. I know the new Mazda 3 with have a new infotainment system which will probably fix all of this, but I know I will be annoyed if the 2015 CX-5 gets it and they don't address the issues with the 2014. Then I will probably be dumb and trade in my 14 for a 15. Maybe if the add diesel and a sub-woofer, it might seem worth it.

If I didn't like the way it drove so much, I would probably trade it in for something else.

 

As an engineer, I should know better than to specifically blame the problem on the USB interface. It is just as likely to be related to software implementation in the head unit.

Anyway, I tested a new 2014 CX-5 touring today. It had all the relevant options, except Nav.

I had no issues using my iPhone 4s over bluetooth and hands-free phone worked very well. But when connected to USB, I encountered major, critical issues.

I found that if I had the engine running with music playing, when I turned off the ignition and restarted the car, the audio system refused to recognize the iPod/iPhone at all. It was absolutely unable to see it. This was 100% reproducible. I had to unplug the device and plug it back in.

I was also able to confirm that under ALL conditions under which the system DID see the iPod, it restarted at the first song in the play list each and every time. Normally, this wouldn't be that big a deal to me as I always play my songs on shuffle. So it would just mean I need to hit a button to advance to the next song. BUT...I found that the shuffle option was OFF every time I restarted the system. That really killed the deal.

 

The USB interface installed in the 2014 CX5 is something you might have expected to see in a 2008 model. I am really regretting the purchase of my 2014 MAZDA CX5.

 

I really should have placed more importance on this when I bought the car. I knew the problem was there, but I thought I could live with it since I liked the car so much otherwise. I guess I have leaned to live with using bluetooth. It works pretty well with the iphone and Spotify, which is what I use primarily now.

Still the screen resolution, screen size, overall flakieness of the interface, annoys me whenever I use the car. It looks like the new Mazda 3 fixes a lot of that, although I don't know if anyone has used the new system firsthand. It doesn't help us though.

In the Escape, the MyFord Touch interface worked quite well with the iPhone and USB interface. I did see a couple bugs with Album art and occasionally no audio when using Spotify, but the fact that it even picked up audio art from Spotify was really cool.

Would I be crazy to trade in the CX-5 I just bought for an Escape? It has crossed my mind and the main reason is the radio/nav

 

After test driving all of the crossover SUV's, it came down to the Escape and CX5 for me.
I loved the electronics on the Escape. First class all the way. I loved the interior, but hated the exterior. Even though i knew the electronics on the CX5 were not as good I pulled the plug on the Mazda. Regret it today but Im prob stuck with my 2014 CX5 for at least 24 months. I'd prob take too great a hit to trade it in now and it's not like it doesn't drive great. I love the ride. Live and learn. Im just hoping they do some kind of update

 

Similar story here, but I like the exterior design on the Escape. Not as much as the CX-5, but I like it. Honda CRV wasn't even close to either of these.

I thoroughly tested the iPhone interface and operation on the Escape and it impressed me. Now I'm placing a factory order for a 2014 Escape and I'm going with the 2.0L Ecoboost. Mazda in Melbourne, Florida wouldn't negotiate under MSRP. Seriously? I walked out and headed straight over to Ford!

One other note about the Mazda dealership in Melbourne...The price started off about $4K OVER MSRP! They claimed that at MSRP they could barely keep the lights on!

 

I'm no fan of the Escape's (and recent Ford in general) Cylon-esque look. It's too over the top. Ford does make a good head interface though, best I've seen of all the manufacturers.

Also the CX5 handles better and has good price/performance:mileage.

I don't have issues with my old iphone 4. I would suggest using a bluetooth capable device while waiting for the forthcoming software update. If you send a message to Mazda they will tell you one is coming though no ETA yet.

The 14 Mazda6 uses the same unit and has the same problem, and it looks like the new 3 may also use it. My guess is they rushed the '14 out so as to have the 2.5L engine available and the software just wasn't ready.

 

Although Ford's system is very buggy: Move over MyFord Touch apologists, it truly is a reliability issue

A quick google about the MyTouch makes the Mazda problems seem minor.

 

I'll add my name to the list of new CX-5 owners extremely perturbed by the USB issue. I haven't used the CD player yet, but I understand for searching around for these problems that if you're listening to MP3s through the CD player, it will actually resume playing from where you left off, AND allow folder-level access.

So will the CD player also play DVDs? Or are we limited to sticking 800MB of MP3s on a CD?

 

I though I'd just chime in here because I was running into the "iPod error" issue with a 5th gen iPod Classic and came here looking for answers. I had absolutely no connectivity issues with my iPhone 4 when I was at the dealer and was a bit perplexed when my CX5 kept spitting out the error message when the iPod was connected. I was able to fix the problem by doing the following:

1) On the iPod, remove all menu items except for Playlist, Artist, Genre, Song and Album. this can be done in the iPod's "Settings" menu
2) Prep the iPod so that it is in one of the above menus (not sure this is necessary but it's what I did)
3) connect the iPod to the CX5 USB port and select iPod from the display when it is accessible
4) Let the CX5 sync with the iPod (mine took a good minute to sync)

When the CX5 connects correctly, the first song on your iPod should play automatically. Once I did this I haven't had any issues since.

I don't know if these steps will work on other models, but it worked for my 30GB 5th gen iPod Classic.

Hope this helps for some of you.