The Mazda CX-90 Is Bruising People’s Knees

I recently had a chance to drive a Mazda CX-90 while on vacation in Iowa, while I have lots of good things to say about it, today I have to tell you about a strange vent-design choice that has resulted in far too many bashed knees, including my own.

The interior of the Mazda CX-90 three-row SUV is actually quite nice; the three-spoke steering wheel is gorgeous, the fabric-wrapped dash is elegant, and I like the gauges and switches and mechanical vents. The CX-90 feels like a luxury SUV. And yet, there is one design choice that is driving people mad, and it’s found at the very outer corners of the dashboard. It’s the vents.

These:

I admire what Mazda was ostensibly trying to do here. One of the challenges interior designers face when dealing with the part of the dash that meets the door is getting the fitment just right to the point where there’s no obvious gap that makes the dash feel like a separate piece from the rest of the interior. By wrapping the dash at the corners so that it meets the door, you end up with quite a nice, seamless fit that makes everything feel cohesive.

The problem is that wrapping the dash means the vents on the edges jut out, and when even a shorter 5’8″ guy like me hops in, my knees tend to bash right into those vents. This can happen one of two ways; normally I slide my interior leg into a car and then swing my outboard leg in and tuck it under the dashboard. It’s the swinging of that outboard knee (an action that is shortly followed by closing the door) that causes the issue, as the vent is just within the arc of my knee-swing:

My friend, who is over six foot, likes to sit down with his butt on the cushion, then swing both legs under the dash. This, too, yields vent-knee contact:

I noticed this when driving in the CX-90 plug-in hybrid I piloted around Iowa (more on this soon):

And it wasn’t just me; dozens of CX-90 drivers have been complaining about this issue online. Here’s a Reddit thread titled “I’m curious to see how many people hit their knee by this vent piece that sticks out. ???????????? Mazda should have this recalled and redesigned perhaps. Because it really really hurts.”

I’m curious to see how many people hit their knee by this vent piece that sticks out. ???????????? Mazda should have this recalled and redesigned perhaps. Because it really really hurts.
by
u/Junspd3 in
MazdaCX90

While many of the commenters on that thread say they’ve never hit their knees, or if they have they’ve adjusted appropriately to avoid doing it again, lots of others commiserate with the Original Poster (OP) and many write about actually injuring themselves. Here are some quotes from the comments; some folks seem to be really hurting themselves:

“caught me right under the knee cap and I could barely walk the next day.”

“I did once in late May/early June really hard. Like, really really hard. It still hurts whenever I kneel on that knee. It was in the soft spot right below the knee cap”

“My single biggest complaint with this vehicle…I have hit it so many times I’m not sure how it hasn’t cracked yet.”

“This thing has changed the way I enter the car.”

“I’m 6’3 and haven’t done it as a driver but I did as a passenger and that mother f’er hurt.”

“I’m 6’4” and I’ve hit it once and since then I’ve been very respectful of its authority and control over my life, up until the day that I sold it.”

“I’m 5’8″, wife is 5″3. Both of us have changed how we live our lives based on the pain induced by this vent….love the car though lol”

“It’s so stinking pointy and painful..!”

“Yes, I hit it all the time! Sharp and painful. My wife never hits it, so must be the way I get in”

“6’2″ and I hate it. I had acl surgery years ago and this monstrosity is the only thing that makes me limp for a solid 2 hours.”

“Every single person who gets in my car hits that damn thing. It’s obvious that only short people were used in designing the vehicle.”

“It does hurt! I thought it was just me. Haha ????????”

“Im afraid I will break it one day”

“Yes. Almost every time. And it fucking kills.”

“I’ve hit my knee three times in the same exact spot three weeks ago and it still hurts.”

“My husband did and did it HARD. I didn’t know what happened because I wasn’t looking. He literally had to get out and collect himself because it hurt him so bad????”

“I NAILED that corner with my knee twice. The first time it was painful, but the second time bruised the crap out of my knee in the soft region just below the patella. I practically fainted and it hurt badly for a few days…I was still in pain when I returned the loaner and we decided we could never buy a CX90 for this very reason. Super bad design”

Here’s another Reddit post titled “Smashed my knee on the pointed corner getting into the car.” The body of the post says “One of the worst design choices ever. My knee has a deep bruise & is throbbing. I’m so mad.”

Smashed my knee on the pointed corner getting into the car
by
u/wordsuponwords in
MazdaCX90

Commenters on that post, too, have been feeling the pain:

My fiancé and I have both rocked our knee caps getting into our 2026 cx90. I currently have a dark bruise forming while typing this after saying I needed to search this flaw up on Reddit. RIP knee cap

I am 5’10 and I have a permanent bruise on my knee cuz I never remember. I always blame my husband thinking he moved the seat on me. Yet I drive it 90% of the time lol

Same thing happened to me a few times. It was so bad !

When I first got the car I smashed my knee about 4 times, I learned my Lesson and now I enter the car butt first then drag my legs into the car. Shit is not fun

That is the biggest design fly. I’ve ever seen in a car. Whoever designed the car was obviously extremely short and didn’t have an issue with this. Both myself and my sons are constantly hitting our knees on this stupid pointy thing.

While I can’t guarantee that all the complaints are unique (i.e. that the same people aren’t commenting on the Reddit threads and all the forum posts), there are so many comments that it’s clear this is a real issue. Here are some of the wildest comments from the above forum posts:

“It has crushed my knee on more than one occasion to the point of seeing stars.”

“Yes! ;/ It hurts me when i remember. I did it so good i couldn’t walk right for 2 weeks….”

“Slam my knee on that thing every single time when I get in I practically have a permanent black and blue mark”

“get in I practically have a permanent black and blue mark”

“I am very careful with how I get into the car after hitting it once. I kinda back into the seat. I put my back to the car, sit down, then slide my legs in while kind of sliding, hopping in. It’s a process.”

“It has happened to me a few times, especially when I am in a hurry, and even with the driver’s seat assist activated. Hurts like hell and a few curse words will follow.”

“Just happened to me yesterday morning, practically brought tears to my eyes it hurt like hell and is still swollen. I am 6ft tall, have the car for almost a month. I have the entry/exit assist turned on.”

“Good old Knee Destroyer 3000!”