The 2009 Mazda CX-7 has 5 recalls, the most serious being a passenger frontal airbag inflator that can rupture and send metal fragments into the cabin, posing a risk of serious injury or death.
The airbag issue accounts for four of the five recalls and reflects the same underlying defect across multiple filings, including cases where prior replacement inflators of the same design were installed and remain at risk of the same failure. In every case, the danger is the same: the inflator can burst violently rather than inflate the bag in a controlled way, turning the module itself into a source of sharp, high-velocity debris directed at the passenger seat. The remaining recall involves the front suspension lower ball joints, where water can work its way into the ball joint fittings and cause them to corrode and degrade over time. If a ball joint fails while driving, the front suspension can lose its connection to the wheel, causing sudden and complete loss of steering control.