One of the major points of newness to
the CX-5 is its styling. It's the first Mazda vehicle to bring the company's
new Kodo design language to production, and you'll want to get used to this new
corporate face – it'll quickly spread throughout the entire lineup. The
swoopy-smiley Nagare design
has been ditched in favor of "Soul in Motion" styling that
incorporates a more aggressive trapezoidal black grille with subtle wings that
extend into the wraparound headlamp clusters. From the side, the CX-5's Kodo
styling features a prominent shoulder line that rises up towards the hind
quarters, complemented by an accent line above the rocker panel to further draw
your eyes upward as they move along the rear doors. Combined with relatively
short front and rear overhangs, Mazda says this makes the CX-5 look like an
animal up on its haunches, ready to pounce.
Hyperbole aside, at 178.7 inches long, 65.7 inches tall and 72.4 inches wide, the CX-5 is nearly identical in size to the redesigned 2012 Honda CR-V, but because of its more aggressive design, the Mazda looks decidedly more compact. To further that point, know that the CX-5 rides on a wheelbase that is a full three inches longer than the CR-V. Just by looking at the two CUVs, it's not immediately noticeable. Sport (read: Base) and Touring models come standard with 17-inch wheels, while Grand Touring models (what you see in the pics) ride on handsome 19-inch alloys that fill out the large wheel wells nicely
The bold and interesting part
of a fairly industry-standard plan is that, to begin with, the firm has opted
not to leap on the expensive and complicated hybrid bandwagon, but instead
refine and gently rethink the conventional internal combustion blueprint.
That might raise eyebrows among other Japanese car makers who
have nailed their colours firmly to the hybrid mast. But on the surface it
appearsMazda could be on to something: official
figures as low as 119g/km and 61.4mpg on the combined cycle are impressive for
anything, never mind a high-riding SUV.
Those
figures are derived from the CX-5’s low-power diesel engine driving the front
wheels through a manual gearbox. Compared to that, the rest of the range seems
costly to run, although next to its rivals it remains pretty parsimonious.
At the
heart of the CX-5 range sits an advanced 2.2-litre diesel engine, which has an
exceptionally high compression ratio resulting in improved fuel efficiency and
torque. A similarly advanced petrol engine is also offered, but is destined for
niche appeal on these shores.
Both
engines are mated to either a compact and lightweight six-speed manual gearbox
or an efficient auto. Power is transferred to the front or all four wheels,
depending on specification.
No preview of coming
attractions would be complete without a few gripes. We noticed ample wind noise
in these early prototypes in addition to the aforementioned boomy engine. (In
contrast, the diesel demonstrated model behavior except for some idle rattle.)
The front headrests are mounted in annoyingly close proximity to your head to
ensure that they protect against whiplash in a severe rear collision. And
although we were impressed by the tenacious grip of the V-rated 19-inch summer
tires fitted to the all-wheel-drive CX-5 prototypes, a slight downgrade to
four-season rubber will be inflicted on U.S.-market models. (The base
front-drive version rolls on 17-inch wheels and tires.)
So the CX-5 is not only
a major stride forward for Mazda but also a compelling reason for die-hard SUV
haters to reconsider whether fun and function can co-exist in one vehicle.
Credits:
caranddriver.com, autoblog.com, autocar.co.uk
Source:
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