2022 CX-5?

It will be interesting to see if the camouflaged Mazda is the Mazda is the CX-50 or rumoured CX-7/70 (Japanese CX-8). Some observers think it’s a larger FWD-based vehicle.
Upon further review that camo does appear longer than the current CX-5. The second row door's rear seam on the camo appears to come down toward the front of the tire. The current CX-5 seam comes down further to the rear of the tire. This suggests the camo's cabin is longer.

The camo does not appear coupe-like as the CX-50 is purported to be. Could be that 7/70. Or maybe a 2023 next gen CX-5 on the long architecture chassis.
 
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Though minor changes, I don’t see this as a step forward in design. I hope the seats are wonderful, otherwise why bother.
i never really liked the "Refreshed" models done by Mazda, the 2014 Mazda3 to me looked better than it's refreshed 2017 version, the same goes for the cx-5 after looking at these new leaked pictures.
 
i never really liked the "Refreshed" models done by Mazda, the 2014 Mazda3 to me looked better than it's refreshed 2017 version, the same goes for the cx-5 after looking at these new leaked pictures.
It's like they make the perfect design but struggle to improve since it was perfect in the first place
 

Wow. I kinda miss the black. Will have to wait to see it in person.

And I wonder what this is:

Mazda Intelligent Drive Select technology (Mi-Drive)
 
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I am happy they tweaked the exhaust tips. I suspect it will look really good. Also, looks like the grey plastic trim is shiny black if not painted the vehicle colour. I don't know about those new rims.
 

Wow. I kinda miss the black. Will have to wait to see it in person.

And I wonder what this is:

Mazda Intelligent Drive Select technology (Mi-Drive)

Sounds like they are different traction control modes, based on the site.

AWD is now standard. The question is how much the base price will go up for next year. AWD is currently a $1,400 premium.

Signature lighting looks worse IMO, doesn't have the same presence, looks more generic. I do like the new 19" wheels.
 

Wow. I kinda miss the black. Will have to wait to see it in person.

And I wonder what this is:

Mazda Intelligent Drive Select technology (Mi-Drive)

And it's official. Thanks for posting @dougal!

As mentioned by @Chocolate, AWD is now standard with Mi-Drive (drive mode/terrain selector). Just like the leaked Chinese CX-5, exterior changes include a new grille and grille surround, new headlights and taillights, slightly altered front and rear bumper. But it looks like the Signature trim will get body-coloured plastic moldings, and a new 19" wheel design. There is also a trim level that offers a gloss-black grille/grille surround, gloss-black trim, and black leather interior with red stitching.

Price will likely increase with making AWD standard, but I'm glad that they're doing the body-coloured/gloss black plastic trim now. The exhaust tips are also a nice touch. No mention of any other interior changes at the moment..

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The Signature with the body-colored plastic look ugly imo. I like the turbo version with the gloss black and black wheels though.
 
I will wait to pass judgement until I see it in person. I think these changes could be good and hopefully will help maintain the sales momentum.

The red, as usual, looks great. The all white looks funny. Someone had posted somewhere how a CX-30 would look all color matched and it looked dull. This looks similar.
 
Article by Motor1: 2022 Mazda CX-5 Revealed With Updated Design, Standard All-Wheel Drive

They state that the Grand Touring Reserve trim has been renamed to 2.5 Turbo, and that the seats have been redesigned to be more comfortable.

The article also mentions some transmission tweaks to help make acceleration smoother and some suspension changes (new dampening control structure and higher frame rigidity).
 
Article by Motor1: 2022 Mazda CX-5 Revealed With Updated Design, Standard All-Wheel Drive

They state that the Grand Touring Reserve trim has been renamed to 2.5 Turbo, and that the seats have been redesigned to be more comfortable.

The article also mentions some transmission tweaks to help make acceleration smoother and some suspension changes (new dampening control structure and higher frame rigidity).

Where do you think they put the Mi-Drive knob/switch. Does it replace the sport switch? I do wonder why they are making all their vehicles AWD. That has to impact their MPG numbers and even a slight drop (1 MPH) can have an impact.
 
Where do you think they put the Mi-Drive knob/switch. Does it replace the sport switch? I do wonder why they are making all their vehicles AWD. That has to impact their MPG numbers and even a slight drop (1 MPH) can have an impact.

It would make sense to put the knob where the Sport mode switch was. Unfortunately none of the photos I've seen give a good look at the shifter panel. I just hope it doesn't crowd that area.
 
⋯ I do wonder why they are making all their vehicles AWD. That has to impact their MPG numbers and even a slight drop (1 MPH) can have an impact.
I do wonder the same. Sales on FWD CX-5 have to be significant. AWD CX-5 is almost non-exsistent in Texas and I’d to special-order one to get mine. It’d jack up the MSRP for $1.200 on lower trims, and that would scare away some potential buyers. Not a smart move by MNAO IMO.
 
Not a fan of the color match, nor the missing fog lights.

I do agree that selling only AWD will hurt sales in the south, but it will have little impact up here in the Midwest.
 
Not a fan of the color match, nor the missing fog lights.

I do agree that selling only AWD will hurt sales in the south, but it will have little impact up here in the Midwest.
Like you, I have the 2019 Signature and don’t like the changes. Miss the fog lamps and the detailing across the front bumper ending in the fog lamps. Also the color match is trouble. As well as looking like I got a can of white spray paint from Walmart, it will show every shopping cart bump that the black rubber protected. Maybe it will look better in darker colours like grey or black.
 
Not a fan of the color match, nor the missing fog lights.

I do agree that selling only AWD will hurt sales in the south, but it will have little impact up here in the Midwest.
Hard to believe Mazda would eliminate the fog lights. Could it be just hidden behind the redesigned front grille somewhere?

Sales in Texas for MNAO is either no. 1 or no. 2 in the States. The same in California. Most friends and family I know in Texas and California owning FWD CX-5. I’d say at least 50% of the CX-5 sales in the US is FWD. Without FWD CX-5 the impact to CX-5 sales will be significant IMO.
 
Hard to believe Mazda would eliminate the fog lights. Could it be just hidden behind the redesigned front grille somewhere?

Sales in Texas for MNAO is either no. 1 or no. 2 in the States. The same in California. Most friends and family I know in Texas and California owning FWD CX-5. I’d say at least 50% of the CX-5 sales in the US is FWD. Without FWD CX-5 the impact to CX-5 sales will be significant IMO.
Strange move. RDX introduced FWD option to increase sales when they originally had AWD only.
 
On the matter of lost MPGs for CAFE purposes with the elimination of FWD, the MX-30 EV is being released in CA ahead of 2022 CX-5. It won't take many MX-30 sales at 100 MPGs equivalent, give or take, to make up the difference. Currently, FWD vs. AWD is about 1.5 MPGs. Even if half of sales are FWD, the loss of FWD is only about 0.75 MPGs.

I think the biggest complaint in these pages regarding driving characteristics in the current generation must be the less that smooth shifting when driving in less than zoom zoom fashion. I wonder if that's the result of some FWD/AWD compromise in the hardware not amenable to software tweaks.

I do wonder if the purportedly smoother shifting in the 2022 involves hardware tweaks for a dedicated AWD unit. Regardless, for many drivers, smoother shifting in daily driving mode would be the #1 item on the list of changes.

Further, a dedicated AWD design may have facilitated more drive modes to supplement Sport.

One thing is for sure--doing one dedicated thing rather than serving two masters simplifies the job of improvement.
 
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On the matter of lost MPGs for CAFE purposes with the elimination of FWD, the MX-30 EV is being released in CA ahead of 2022 CX-5. It won't take many MX-30 sales at 100 MPGs equivalent, give or take, to make up the difference. Currently, FWD vs. AWD is about 1.5 MPGs. Even if half of sales are FWD, the loss of FWD is only about 0.75 MPGs.
Yeah I wouldn’t worry about the minor decrease on CAFE MPG requirement by featuring only AWD on CX-5, but I do believe it’ll hurt the overall sales on CX-5. Just ask the Mazda dealers in Texas and see how many potential customers are willing to pay $1,200 for an AWD here. The same in California, other than some who may be interested in skiing. Like MX693 mentioned above, Honda introduced FWD option on its RDX to increase sales.

I think the biggest complaint in these pages regarding driving characteristics in the current generation must be the less that smooth shifting when driving in less than zoom zoom fashion. I wonder if that's the result of some FWD/AWD compromise in the hardware not amenable to software tweaks.

I do wonder if the purportedly smoother shifting in the 2022 involves hardware tweaks for a dedicated AWD unit. Regardless, for many drivers, smoother shifting in daily driving mode would be the #1 item on the list of changes.

Further, a dedicated AWD design may have facilitated more drive modes to supplement Sport.

One thing is for sure--doing one dedicated thing rather than serving two masters simplifies the job of improvement.
I don’t believe the rough shifting complaints are related FWD and AWD setups. It only started happening when Mazda introduced cylinder deactivation which also had to modified the transmission.
 
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