Q: Mazda CX-9 message function

I also just purchased my Mazda CX-9. The salesman of course gave me all of the details of the bells and whistles, but either did not know, or chose not to tell me about the issue with the Iphone's compatibility with the texting feature. I called the dealer and was told that they would get back to me. I called again and was told that it had been passed on to the service department to see if they could get some answers. After waiting and not hearing from them for several days, I did some more research on my own and discovered this:

http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/displayPage.action?pageParameter=bluetooth

If you put in your phone or carrier, you can see which functions will work with your phone. After reading that the Iphone was not compatible with the text reading feature, I wrote the following email to Mazda:

I have had my Mazda CX-9 for one week. I found it very disappointing to find out that the ability to receive and send text messages does not function with an Iphone. The salesmen need to be made aware of this issue. When showing me the car and pairing it with my Iphone he pointed out that feature which was one of the features I found quite high tech. To find out through forums that this has been the case and that both Mazda and Apple have been notified with no response is a disappointment to someone who has just bought their first car from Mazda. I feel that this would be understandable if the Iphones were some obscure device, but they are one of (if not the) most popular phone on the market. I would like to know if Mazda and Apple are working on this issue. I have also found the factory installed navigation system to be worthless. The fact that it is capable of being hands free, but is locked on safety mode when the vehicle is moving seems ridiculous to me. Speaking a voice command seems no more distracting when driving than having a conversation on a hands free phone system. Your response to these items is greatly appreciated.

Their response (not too helpful!):

Thank you for contacting us in regards to your Mazda HandsFree system.

Unfortunately, as you also stated, at this time the iPhones are not compatible with the texting features in your vehicle.  The HandsFree systems are not designed around any specific phone line or model.  If a phone is found to be not-compatible with features in the vehicle, the update to resolve the compatibilty issues would need to be applied to the phone, and would come from Apple.  The only time the HandsFree systems in the vehicle are updated is when there is an issue that affects all phones being used.  If the system was update to accomodate the iPhones on iOS 6.1.3, the next time that Apple came out with an update for the phones, that update could very well cause the phones to stop working with the texting again.  The operating system on the phones is generally what determines how the phone will work when connected to a bluetooth device.  We apologize for any inconvenience.

At this location, we are only able to provide technical support for the HandsFree Bluetooth system in your vehicle.  For questions regarding the Navigation system, you will need to contact Mazda Customer Service at 800-222-5500.