Mazda CX-5 - A Small-Family Crossover SUV

After almost a year and 11,000 miles in Mazda’s crossover, we reveal if it really does mix a sporting character with fuel efficiency

On the long-term fleet at Autocar, the two most talked about cars usually fall into two categories: the most dynamically capable followed by the most economical. Each contender for these two accolades seems to get an equal amount of water cooler conversation.

The idea behind Mazda’s CX-5 was for a practical, family SUV to offer a great drive but with class-leading fuel economy, which meant that it was always likely to fit easily into the Autocar stable. So, over the past 11 months or so, has the CX-5 managed to impress us with its dynamic ability and frugality?

Considering that this is a compact SUV, the CX-5 has been incredibly impressive

Considering that this is a compact SUV, the CX-5 has been incredibly impressive. It’s remarkable, really, that a car with its dimensions has been one of our most fuel-efficient motors. It has also been flying the flag for diesel as a fuel, because the other long-termers with which it has had to compete – when people have needed a fuel-sipping motor have been the now-departed hybrid Lexus CT200 and the three-cylinder, 1.0-liter Ford Focus EcoBoost.

The most impressed that I’ve been with the Mazda’s efficiency has been when I’ve found myself on a fast-moving A-road, cruising at, say, 50mph and the trip computer’s economy readout has happily sat somewhere in the 50s. Around town, the figure drops to about 42mpg, and that’s even when you’re driving with a heavy right foot.

It was prone to understeer in wet conditions

During a particularly harsh winter, I wondered if we’d regret choosing the two-wheel-drive model. Luckily, the snow and ice never really caught me out (probably more down to luck than anything else), but I would have had more confidence in the wet and ice had all four corners had power. Still, the savings in weight and the benefit of driving just two wheels have meant that I’ve really saved money at the pump.

These benefits haven’t come at the cost of performance, either. The CX-5 has an impressive set of acceleration figures, and the engine is terrifically flexible; most of the performance requirements happily occur between 1500rpm and 4000rpm.

But what about Mazda’s claim that this is a ‘sporty’ compact crossover?

Well, when I first got in the car, the short-throw gearshift reminded me of an MX-5, but there the similarities pretty much end. Still, the CX-5 is a commendable drive. The damping is firm but the ride never intrudes to the point of being crashy, and the front wheels only ever descend into understeer when the conditions are wet. But other than that, the Mazda confidently turns in to a corner. So, great economy and not a bad steer: the soft-roader has pretty much fulfilled its remit, then.

The cabin looks somber but is well equipped

That’s the good news. Now, in the interest of balance, here’s some bad.

One of the complaints aimed at the CX-5 by our resident roads testers was that its interior is rather somber. I kind of have to agree. The cabin is smart, especially when you think about all the standard kit on this Sport Nav model – such as full leather trim, leather steering wheel and touchscreen controls. However, that doesn’t detract from the fact that you’re cosseted away in what is very much just a sea of grey and black plastic. The designers have tried to break it up with some chrome detailing and piano-black gloss trim, but these look more like afterthoughts than part of a cohesive interior design. The only bit of color inside is some red stitching on the black leather seats.

Despite the aesthetics, though, the Mazda’s cabin has been easy to live with as my regular driving companion. The seats are comfortable and even the bigger members of the Autocar team have praised the driving position. The driver’s seat is electrically operated and there is plenty of adjustment. It’s also heated, although in the depths of winter it took rather a while to warm up compared with those of more premium models. The audio system, though, was premium. In this Sport trim, you get an upgraded Bose audio with six speakers. And the Bluetooth system always connected with my now-ageing iPhone 4 and seamlessly streamed audio.

In town, the CX-5 never dropped below 40mpg

One thing I’m really going to miss, now that the Mazda’s time is over, is the keyless entry. Until you live with it day to day, you don’t realize what a faff retrieving keys from jeans or coat pockets can become. The only downside is that occasionally you play hunt the key, because you can’t remember if it’s on your person or in your coat pocket on the back seat. Unlike Andrew Frankel’s expensive Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake, though, on the odd occasion when I’ve shut the key in the boot, the CX-5 has happily done one of the following: started up, bleated at me about me my oversight or opened the rear to let me retrieve it.

I’m also glad that one fill-up can last you 550 miles, because one of the CX-5’s annoying quirks is the position of its fuel flap release. As on numerous Japanese cars over the years, it’s situated on the floor, adjacent to the driver’s door, and it just seems an impractical place to put it, even for the simple reason that one day someone’s foot might catch it and snap it. Our long-term Subaru XV was the same. At least our newer Mazda 6 has the release switch positioned more sensibly on the lower part of the dashboard.

The other bugbear that I’ve found with the CX-5 is its TomTom sat-nav. This is surprising, seeing as TomTom is a well-known name is the world of satellite navigation. Anyone who took the car for a weekend tended to come back griping about the system.

The problem is that once you’ve scrolled out to a reasonable degree for an overview of the area you’re driving through, all detail disappears and the display shows only the main trunk roads. This is extremely frustrating if you are trying to suss an alternative route. And if you have it set on night-time display, the map is almost impossible to see. Plus the scrolling has a slightly delay, which, when you’re trying to make quick decisions on the move, is just not acceptable.

Flexible engine made for easy progress

As a result, I rarely had the sat-nav on display. Which was probably just as well, because there were no physical buttons for the radio presets, so I tended to scroll through the station list on the touchscreen to find my favorites.

Tomorrow, the man from Mazda will come to collect the CX-5, and I’m going to miss its fit-for-purpose dutifulness. It’s not surprise to me that I’m now seeing many new CX-5s on the road. I’m glad that the car has been a good-news story for Mazda, since it doesn’t have the financial clout in its R&D budget that the likes of Volkswagen has. The company really invested in its SkyActiv program in a bid to produce cars that are far more lightweight than their predecessors, with far more fuel-efficient engines. I’m glad that at least its brainwork will live on in the Autocar fleet in the shape of the new 6.