Mazda 6 Forums banner

Bluetooth (& Handsfree system), Pandora, and USB not working

124K views 91 replies 54 participants last post by  Steven T 
#1 ·
Hey all,

I purchased my 2014 Mazda 6 Sport AT on August 20th. From that day until last night, I had no issues with the infotainment system - all features were working perfectly (except for two times when the Bluetooth connection would end, and then I'd have to reconnect).

Last night, I started my car up and although FM/AM and CD were working, Bluetooth, Pandora and USB were not. When I try to pair, or use any of the hands-free features, it says "Starting Bluetooth Hands-Free System, please wait..." and then just goes back to the previous screen. When I press the Phone button on the console, nothing happens. I've got a flash drive plugged in, and the USB feature is inactive (dimmed out) so it's not as if the USB isn't detecting the device...the feature's just deactivated entirely.

I'm incredibly confused as to how this could happen to such a new car. I took it to the dealer and they told me I had to contact the Mazda Hands-Free System Customer Care center so that they could diagnose the issue before it came down to replacing the unit...which I'll do Tuesday as they're closed today and will most likely be closed tomorrow. Meh. Just being impatient...

Anyone else had this issue? If so, what was the outcome?

Thanks!
Moe
 
See less See more
#4 · (Edited)
Maybe they should call it Mazda Blame Free Customer Service. They are aware of the issues by many of the members here with the infotainment system but so far they aren't doing **** about it. They are not even admitting there is even an issue. Unless something had changed.

Supposedly Mazda engineer techs are working on getting a reflash/upgrade done but even their loaner models that they are giving reviewers are having the problem. One car reviewer totally blasted the Mazda tech/radio system. It took 2 minutes to connect to his iPod to download his songs. Most cars take 5-10 seconds.

Like mentioned Mazda is not admitting to anything right now but supposedly they are working in the background to resolve the issue. You figure they would have tested it prior to releasing it, especially to car reviewers but if you read or watch the car reviews, Mazda gets blasted about the poor infotainment system.

Sadly the Mazda techs have no clue what to do except reset the battery and replace the unit if that fails. The technology is coming out faster than the techs are learning on how to properly diagnose and fix the issues. They usually just throw parts at it with the hope that it gets fixed.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Yeah...I thought about doing that when this first happened, but then got into a rage about how this shouldn't have happened in the first place, which led to stubbornness and a trip to the dealership :p

Anyway, thanks! This fixed the issue :thumbup:

And LBear, thanks for the info. You are right about the techs...it's a shame they aren't trained properly and rely so heavily on trial and error. As far as all the "supposed" things you're hearing...until I see a press release or TSB from Mazda owning up to this and stating that they are definitely working on a fix, I'm going to stay a skeptic.
 
#6 ·
Opening BB Emails - worked for 24 hours then stopped

Am dealing with the dealership now on this. BB device downloaded emails perfectly for 24 hours. Was able to open them to either read them or have them read to me. Next day, the email messages mixed words with 'code/numbers' but were readable and could be read. Next day, the downloads were as SMS text message format. Next day, while the emails were downloaded they failed to open; this continues to be the case.

Dealership took the car for the day and disconnected/reconnected the battery. This failed to fix the problem. Service folks are baffled - are saying that they might need to replace the module. Tech support not helpful for Mazda's own Service folks. Pretty frustrating.

Advice appreciated!
 
#8 ·
There has to be someone here on the inside at any Mazda. At my dealership (not going to name names.), if there is a problem that we reported, corporate was all over it. The next thing we know, corporate sent out their tech guys, we explain the issues, they duplicate the issues and said we'll get working on it. We saw a fix come out in 2 months that remedy all the issues that we reported.
 
#9 ·
  • Like
Reactions: Mtnsummit
#21 ·
I have a CX5 with exactly the same problem. I spoke with the dealership today who denied any knowledge of this being a recurring theme, I advised them to view this forum. I now have the inconvenience of having to let them have my car for the day when presumably they will disconnect the battery in the hope of fixing the issue.
 
#11 ·
I had the same issue tonight on my 2014 Mazda6 that's less than 2 weeks old! This fix worked just fine but I had to reset every station preset and quick dial phone number in the system. I love my new car but I agree this system is very clunky and problematic. Thank you danstheman7 for the petition, I signed it and hope it does some good for all of us!
 
#70 ·
Thank you so much for posting this for the benefit of others that were facing the same frustration as you.

I have to vent about my experience however. I took my car to the dealership for this exact same issue and was told multiple reasons that didn't make any sense. These people at the car dealerships see a girl walk in and think they can feed her any bullshit about car issues they can think of. At least give me some quality bullshit if you absolutely must.

The mechanic I was interacting with told me that it was an issue with the phones I was pairing with the car. When I told him that I had a Samsung, the guy proceeded to tell me that this would only work with Apple devices (wtf?) and then when I called him out on that for not making any sense, he mentioned that the USB port is for mazda devices only to update the the software (WTF?). Why cant people just say I DON'T KNOW when they don't? There is no penalty for saying that instead losing your credibility over something dumb like this. I conveyed my feelings verbatim and he told me it was too tough to explain and that I wouldn't understand it. I told him he should help me understand something he actually knows instead of this horseshit.

This was indeed a simple fix. Thanks.
 
G
#15 ·
I've just had the problem of the blue tooth phone system failing to connect on my new Mazda 6. It was working, then stopped. No phone functions were available.
I saw elsewhere on the web the method of disconnecting and reconnecting the battery to reset the Audio unit. Instead, with the ignition off, I took out the 3 audio system fuses (No 38,43,44). When I put them back in and switched on the ignition the phone system was working again.
 
#18 ·
Mine was like that when I first picked it up from the dealership. They were all scratching their heads. I took it home and disconnected the negative battery cable and it fixed it. Too bad I've had to do this several times now.
 
G
#20 ·
I had the same issue happened twice and I've only had the Mazda CX5 2014 for four months. First time I took it to the dealer and they fixed it. Second time, my husband fixed it using these instructions (reset the stereo by unplugging the car battery but you only need to do the negative connector).

2014 Mazda6 Bluetooth Stopped Working - RoundelMike.com

I hope Mazda figures out what's going on with this issue and have recall to fix the root cause.
 
#22 ·
It seems there would be a reboot on any computer, but the reboot on this one is disconnecting the battery and then reconnecting it, not a very satisfactory solution when you are on the freeway and need your iPhone for navigation or just want to make a phone call or play some music.
 
#23 ·
Had exact same problem. I solved this by removing the fuses for the audio system for a couple of minutes. If i remember correctly it is fuse no 37 and no 38 (one 7.5A and one 15A fuse..consult your user manual. You'll see them in the manual as AUDIO1 and AUDIO2. This is also written on the inside of the fuse-box lid. Nothing was deleted or missing, and was done without the need for any tools.
 
#24 ·
Just ran into this problem for the first time with my 6, which is about 5 months old now. I'm tempted to take it to the dealer and make them "fix" it, simply so they're aware of the problem. But it's a pain in the ass and time out of my day, so I'll probably just do he disconnect/reconnect thing myself. It's the same thing they'll do, and it'll take me <5 mins instead of sitting in the waiting room for 2 hours...

Thanks to klistrian for the fuse idea. That sounds much better than disconnecting the battery since it won't reset the ECM or anything else in the car.
 
#26 ·
Just another addition to this fine thread. This happened to me a couple of weeks ago. I called the customer service number, they gave me a ticket number which I used to call my dealer. They replaced the module, BUT, its the same crappy experience of waiting a minute for everything to connect and so forth. I was sort of hoping that a new module would mean latest and greatest. Sadly no, same old shit... Should have just pulled the battery and plugged it back in. Oh well!
 
#28 ·
Thanks guys. Ive experienced ALL the other issues with this TERRIBLE infotainment system but only experienced this particular bug recently. I happened to try a different memory stick in the system and it wouldnt recognise it at all. When i put the irigional one back with a few extra albums it gave me this bug.
Fuses 38 and 44 fixed it for me.

Also prompted me to send yet another email to my Mazda dealer. However, at this stage, after 16 months of ownership and no fix on the horizon, i'm starting to think it will take an Audi dealer to fix this particular problem...trade in ASAP!

Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
 
#30 ·
That's a hell of a lot cheaper than taking the hit on a trade.
Obviously youre right.
But i had the car breakdown on me after three months and had to have it towed to a garage. I feel corners were cut with some very basic and obvious featured that should have been included considering i ordered the top of the line package. Add to that the refusal of Mazda to address the failings of the infotainment system two years after the car was launched!...
Just kinda fed up being treated like a fool really...bit fed up with Mazda's attitude.


Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
 
#31 ·
Frankly, the infotainment thing doesn't surprise me a bit. What DOES surprise me is when ANY sort of entertainment system receives ANY sort of update. EVER.

This is the history on these sorts of devices.

My BlackBerry Z10 is one of the few exceptions -- it's had FOUR material software updates since I bought it a bit more than a year ago. In one year, that's outstanding -- and that wasn't for bug fixes, but rather for feature enhancements.

But if you expect that sort of thing from any kind of electronics you're nuts -- it won't happen 99% of the time. When you buy anything in that vein you better be happy when you buy it or don't buy it at all, because the odds of a material upgrade to fix software problems are slim and none -- and Slim just left with your wife.

I bought knowing the infotainment had issues, bought a model without it and ripped the lower-end radio out rather quickly and replaced it. Now I have much better -- it's not perfect, but again, I don't EXPECT that Pioneer will fix the minor issues I have. I bought knowing they were there and I'm willing to live with them.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top