The problem is not limited to Ipods but extend to non-Apple MP3 players as well. I've been using Cowon and Sansa players and the result is the same. It takes forever for the CX-5 to read the player and always starts back at the top each time it starts. Additionally, it will randomly reset while up and running kicking it back to the beginning even without the vehicle being turned off. I too tried the flash drive and the result is the same. The work around has been the AUX cable which works but surrenders a lot of flexibility and utility. Hard to believe that my $60.00 Sansa Clip can remember where it stopped each time and starts up in less than 10 seconds but this $26,000 vehicle cannot. Ridiculous and unacceptable.

 

Someone brought this work-around to my attention and I'm happy to report it worked in my 2014 CX5! Simply press the voice command button on your steering wheel and say "Shuffle All." This should shuffle your music on our iPod or iPhone.

 

Purchased a 2014 CX-5 GT a few months ago...I'm currently using a 64GB Kingston DataTraveler with 2,000+ songs in the USB port. It generally "works"...but there are some problems:

1. The more songs on the drive, the longer it takes to initially load whenever you turn the car on. With currently 2,500 songs, it takes about 2 minutes to load up before it's able to play. Not horrible...but why not save a snapshot of the drive so you don't have to do this every time? I originally tried an iPhone 4 through the USB port, and that took 5-10 minutes to load approximately 3,000 songs...so in my experience a USB drive is much faster.

2. After waiting a few minutes for the drive to load, it starts playing the first song alphabetically on the drive, and doesn't resume playing where you left off. This is very annoying...why did they not think this simple feature was important?

3. When shuffling all songs on the drive, the shuffle order will sometimes be exactly the same. Although, I think I have found a way around this by skipping a few tracks first, then turning on shuffle.

 

In an earlier post, someone suggested the Muxica application for iPhone as a workaround to the non-shuffle, always-resets-to-the-same-place iTunes interface. I tried it and it works really well, $2 well spent. You can find it in the iTunes App Store.

Agree that the audio/BT/voice recognition in the CX-5 (mine is 2014 GT) is incredibly substandard. When I tried to explain the problems to my local Mazda dealer service manager, he looked at me like I'd just dropped in from another planet. "I've never heard of any of these problems." Right. For an otherwise great car, this has been a real disappointment.

 

As I have said before, it is almost certain that the Mazda radio does not have the capability to save information about playlists and last song played. If this is correct , then there will NEVER be a software fix for this problem. Only a future hardware change in next year model or a complete head unit replacement will fix the problem.

I'm so glad I bought the 2014 Ford Escape. It's electronics are excellent!

 

We live in Sweden,and I took delivery of a 2.2 diesel auto in Sept 2013.It is excellent in every way. when we plug in the IPod we just go to shuffle and click where you want it to start.

 

How pissed am I just picked up my new cx5 and the shuffle all on my iPhone music doesn't work , it worked perfect on the mazda 5 that I traded in so why not the cx5 , it's a mazda problem so please sort it out ASAP

 

Ian, this fix just came to my attention recently. It's not ideal but it works:

Someone brought this work-around to my attention and I'm happy to report it worked in my 2014 CX5! Simply press the voice command button on your steering wheel and say "Shuffle All." This should shuffle your music on your iPod or iPhone. I have noticed that if you switch modes (ie. switch to FM and then back to blue tooth) you'll have to reset the shuffle, but, again, it works. Hope this helps.

 

I gave up using the IPOD. I downloaded all music to my phone and just use the bluetooth feature. Now when i start my car, music starts immediately on the song I was listening to when i cut off the engine previously. This is how the IPOD should work.

 

Unfortunately, I don't believe you can use the shuffle feature with Bluetooth. For me, listening to the same music sequence all the time is just too boring.