Dealer has a 2019 CX-5 Diesel Signature - Nobody will buy it

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2017 CX5 AWD Touring
Local Mazda dealership has a 2019 Mazda CX5 Diesel Signature but nobody will buy it. They have had it for a long time and it just sits there and the dealer said no interest in it. They said the diesels are a leper or maybe more like COVID-19. Nobody wants to touch them.

$42k is the asking price
 
The diesel model carries about an extra 250 pounds over the other models and doesn't have a dual exhaust for the diesel emission equipment where the dual exhaust would normally go. The fuel economy numbers are not impressive and diesel costs more than regular gasoline. And for all this, it costs $10-$15,000 more. It was always going to be a sales disaster in the U.S. where gasoline is king. The pricing of the vehicle is wrong, I can buy a base Lexus RX 350 AWD for low 40s, I'm not going to spend $40k+ on a CX-5.
 
Yep, our local dealer has a pair marked $10k off for at least 6 months now...
 
I bought one (brand new '19 cx5 diesel) for essentially $28900 ($30900 - about $2k extra on my trade). If you want one, you can get them for $30k.

My experience has been fantastic so far with it. I enjoy the diesel character, but not everybody does. Diesel's are about low rpm torque and pull not high rev horsepower. It's a laid back experience. It is better suited to longer runs. If you tow anything, diesel is the way to go. If your driving habits are mostly short city trips or mom-taxi you'll want to pass on the diesel. You'll want to take a nice test drive to see if the diesel character is a fit for you.

The real life efficiency in my experience has been better than advertised (which has been the case with every Mazda I've owned). My personal experience has been 32 city / 34 hwy in my first 6k miles. SUV aerodynamics just kill mpg at higher speeds. My wife and I did a 240 mile 2-lane backroad Sunday drive one weekend and was over 40mpg at those 55mph 2-lane speeds. As far as diesel fuel costs, it depends on the area of the country. I bought diesel yesterday for 10 cents cheaper than the going rate for regular unleaded gas. Around southern Ohio, I can get diesel for same or less as regular 87 octane gas. But generally speaking, diesel is usually more expensive than regular gas.

Only time will tell on reliability and repair costs of long term ownership. The diesel has been around for many years in other countries and has had some issues.

My personal opinion is if you pick one up for around $30k, you'll be able to drive it at least until the powertrain warranty limits with no problems and not loose out on value if you want to get rid of it. Plus, Mazda covers the first 2 years/30k miles maintenance for you.

What part of the country are you located? On CarGuru website they list 70 new diesel's for sale. (they listed nearly 400 for sale at the time I bought mine in February). Lowest listed price is in Easton PA at $32,235.

Good luck with your search and feel free to hit me with a PM if I can help.
 
A big unknow about diesel will be service and resale. Secondly - Mazda's diesels have started having issues in Australia and certain SE Asian countries. We do have few members here from Indoneisa and Australia - maybe they can chime in. 30K is a great price - but if its like Rav4 EV where Toyota did not service these outside Cali - or did so very infrequently and there are reliability issues - then it will be a nightmarish experience.
 
If they polled potential buyers Mazda would have seen no interest in the car.

It was a way to move a bunch of engines they had in stockpile. Also should have been priced identical to a NA GT/with PP.....not 10k more.
 
If they polled potential buyers Mazda would have seen no interest in the car.

It was a way to move a bunch of engines they had in stockpile. Also should have been priced identical to a NA GT/with PP.....not 10k more.

Diesels are all Signatures so they are going to be priced higher than a GT no matter what. I think they should have had a Sport version with a diesel to give a lower price point in addition to top of the line.
 
As far as diesel fuel costs, it depends on the area of the country. I bought diesel yesterday for 10 cents cheaper than the going rate for regular unleaded gas. Around southern Ohio, I can get diesel for same or less as regular 87 octane gas. But generally speaking, diesel is usually more expensive than regular gas.

Interesting... Here in Georgia we are at around 1.50/gal for 87 octane unleaded. Diesel is around 2.50-2.70/gal. I am surprised you can find diesel for less than unleaded.
 
A big unknow about diesel will be service and resale. Secondly - Mazda's diesels have started having issues in Australia and certain SE Asian countries. We do have few members here from Indoneisa and Australia - maybe they can chime in. 30K is a great price - but if its like Rav4 EV where Toyota did not service these outside Cali - or did so very infrequently and there are reliability issues - then it will be a nightmarish experience.
Yes Mazda had stopped selling once the most popular CX-5 diesel model in Taiwan due to sudden overheating problem without any warnings on older MYs.
 
What part of the country are you located? On CarGuru website they list 70 new diesel's for sale. (they listed nearly 400 for sale at the time I bought mine in February). Lowest listed price is in Easton PA at $32,235.
Yeah, I noticed that. That is where I purchased both my 2019 GTR's as well as 2 previous VW's one of which was a diesel. The dealer has had that since last summer. They had it around $6k off until just recently.
I still miss the Golf diesel. That was a really fun little car, but when VW did the diesel buyback I got almost what I paid for it after driving it for almost 6 years. Too much money to pass up.
 
If they polled potential buyers Mazda would have seen no interest in the car.

Interesting statement. On this very forum, back in the day, there was TONS of interest on when Mazda would bring the diesel engine here. Lots of delays and 'maybe next year' statements from Mazda, which seemed to disappoint many folks here.

I think the kill shot was the increase in purchase cost vs. the negligible increase in economy/running costs.
 
Don't be fooled by the high MSRP.
My local Mazda dealer has one with $12.5K off. (2019)
 
I bought diesel yesterday for 10 cents cheaper than the going rate for regular unleaded gas. Around southern Ohio, I can get diesel for same or less as regular 87 octane gas.
I'm going to call BS on this.
List a specific gas station or two in southern Ohio that has diesel for the "same or less as regular 87 octane".

I live in SW Ohio as well and haven't seen diesel priced lower than regular in many many years.
In my area, diesel is 50-70 cents higher than regular unleaded.
 
I'm going to call BS on this.
List a specific gas station or two in southern Ohio that has diesel for the "same or less as regular 87 octane".


Lol, I can assure you I have better things to do than make up stories about the cost of diesel fuel. Yesterday's purchase was at Kroger in Milford where it is currently today $1.79/gal and regular unleaded 87 octane is $1.87/gal. I haven't paid over $2/gal for diesel since I bought it in February.

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My dealer still has 3 of the 4 they got last August. All are now listed as service loaners with minimal discounts. All over $40k, which is crazy.
 
I'd buy a diesel if the tow rating was higher and if I could get it with cloth seats, Sirius/XM, without Blose and with LED headlights. I loved the appointments of my GT, but bought a sheepskin to sit on.
 
I bought one (brand new '19 cx5 diesel) for essentially $28900 ($30900 - about $2k extra on my trade). If you want one, you can get them for $30k.


My personal opinion is if you pick one up for around $30k, you'll be able to drive it at least until the powertrain warranty limits with no problems and not loose out on value if you want to get rid of it.
This thing is an orphan in the car world.
Nobody is buying the new ones, even at a discount, so I'm guessing five years from now, even less people will be shopping for a used one.
I'm going to stick my neck out an guess that the depreciation rate for these things will be huge, and getting "rid" of one after the warranty expires will be difficult and expensive.
Might as well hang onto it for as long as you can. At least that way you'll get your moneys worth.
 
This thing is an orphan in the car world.
Nobody is buying the new ones, even at a discount,

Well, that's not true. Hundreds have sold that have been discounted. Hundreds of people have bought them. I think the market found the price equilibrium for it.

I think Mazda missed the mark trying to make it this upscale "premium" thing in America.

It'll be years before we know how this all shakes out but I'm not afraid ;-)
 
Well, that's not true. Hundreds have sold that have been discounted. Hundreds of people have bought them.

It'll be years before we know how this all shakes out but I'm not afraid ;-)
Wow. Hundreds have been sold. Sorry, but that pretty much defines orphan in my mind.

Personally (and here we can agree to disagree, which is fine), I think they'll tank in value in the future as a used vehicle.
Time will tell. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.
(As a Mazda owner, I kind of hope I'm wrong.)
In the meantime, I hope yours hangs in there and gives you years of trouble free motoring.
Cheers.
 
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