Not Your Typical Soccer Mom SUV: The Mazda CX-5

So a few months ago I was given the opportunity to take The Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring for the weekend. My husband and I took a long weekend up to Columbus (read more about that later this week) and we cruised down the interstate in a smooth, sleek and stylish ride in the Mazda CX-5.

The CX-5 is a 5 passenger crossover and Mazda’s best-selling vehicle in the U.S. It’s loaded with power, a rear liftgate, navigation, heated leather seats, a moon roof – and more.

It seems like most mid-level SUV’s lack on power – though most older CX-5 models followed this trend, I felt the 2018 Grand Touring had plenty of pick-up and I didn’t need to turn down the AC or worry about putting the petal to the metal to pass anyone on the highway.

A lot of concerns I’ve heard is the cost of fuel in any type of SUV – but with Mazda’s cylinder-deactivation tech which is included in the 2018 CX-5 model, fuel mileage is increased significantly. The Cylinder-Deactivation shuts down two of the engine’s four cylinders at cruising speeds in order to increase efficiency (I have to admit though, it’s a bit hard to get used to! You can feel the drain of power, at least I can, especially when you speed up. But still a great feature in my book, especially for highway travel).

Now what impressed me about the Mazda CX-5 was the sleek tech – I’m not easily impressed, as I have worked my way around some pretty nice SUV’s in the past few years. The navigation system was amazing, allowing us to toggle back and forth between seeing what was coming up and listening to the radio. It also gave us alternative routes when there was construction or upcoming traffic.

Mazda clearly is all about safety. With the traffic sign recognition option which which will show you the upcoming signs on the driving display,along with the  Blind Spot Monitoring with Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, it’s no wonder the Mazda CX-5 was the 2018 IIHS Top Safety Pick.

Ok so back to the infotainment screen which gives you your navigation/radio/cam, etc. This is something that blew my mind, but it TOTALLY makes sense – the CONTROL for the screen is actually on the center console. So you don’t have to worry about reaching forward across the steering wheel to mess with the radio or navigation, it’s literally just at your fingertips. It’s convenient, and probably also a great safety feature considering.

The only negative thing I have to say about the Mazda CX-5 is probably the lack of cargo space. It’s quite a bit smaller compared to competitive crossovers, and I would be willing to bet if you have one of those huge strollers , it’s not going to fit. At least not very well.
If they could open up the cargo space a bit, I would definitely consider a CX-5 for my next purchase.

 

Thank you DriveShop and Mazda for the opportunity to test out the Mazda CX-5.