I ended up getting out of work early yesterday and heading to the Mazda dealer for a test drive with my wife. The dealer was refreshingly casual and low pressure, even after saying we wouldn't be buying anything today, just checking out our options for when we're ready to buy in a month or two. He let us take the car for as long as we wanted, so we were able to drive some city and highway, play with the radio, etc... Here are my takeaways.
Noise. Definitely quieter than the XB, as some of you claimed it would be. On the highway especially, this was great! I got up to 80 mph before I knew it and it was very relaxed sounding inside the cabin.
Power. I was surprised how slow it felt when going 80 compared to the XB...which is a weird way of saying it felt fast, I suppose. It's a phenomena everyone feels when driving a car that isn't the one they are used to. As I mentioned earlier, I drive a lot of rental cars because I travel so frequently, so I'm slightly less sensitive to this than most people. I had no issue getting on the highway, lane changing, etc... There was one instance when I made a left and someone in the oncoming direction cut around a car taking a left from that direction. I floored the gas to zip out of the way before he hit me (he didn't, by the way), and for a split second I thought "uh oh". But the engine revved after a split second and got me out of the way. I believe I would have felt more in control of the situation in my XB. I also believe this is entirely related to driving an automatic vs a manual, which I'm used to. Just to ease people's minds, there was never really any danger here. It was a strange intersection, and he could probably see me before I could see him. I was just surprised when I saw him in the breakdown lane coming around the other car.
Comfort. We test drove a Touring model, but had a chance to sit in a GT model on the lot. I did not care for the fabric seats in the touring, but the leather in the GT was pretty nice. I also found the added adjustments in the GT seats to be a plus. I'm about 6'2" and 170lbs, pretty tall and slim by local standards. The seats were fairly good feeling. The bolstering around my upper back/lower shoulders could be a little narrower than I'd design for myself. It is very likely I would think differently with some more time in the seat. The seats in my XB have far less bolstering.
Size. The hatch area is larger than the XB, but that's about it. It certainly didn't feel huge compared to the XB, maybe a little bigger. I folded down the back seats, and thought the overall volume in that configuration was better. The rear seat area felt smaller than the Scions. I liked the 40/20/40 split seat config. It is clear to me now that I had an unrealistic expectation for size increase. I'm not looking at a Grand Cherokee, or extended Yukon. The CX-5 has more cargo space than the XB, and is still an overall smallish, easy to park, low MPG automobile. These things I would be happy with.
Amenities. The reviews are correct, the CX-5 seems spartan inside and maybe a little dated. This is a good and a bad thing. A lot of people, me included, are excited about having a huge touch screen and technical everything, and with these wishes in mind, sitting in the CX-5 can feel like sitting in a early 2000's car. However, I've learned that these techy advances come at a dramatic cost when things go awry. My colleague's 5 series BMW has a big screen and knob that controls everything, from the radio to the climate control. While it was very cool and modern feeling at first, guess how great it was when the screen malfunctioned and wouldn't show anything legible? And then guess how great it was when he had to bring it to the dealership to have it fixed. Yikes. It seems old fashioned to look at, but give me a knob to twist when I want to turn the heat down. I did not find the "infotainment" (ugh.. I can't even type that word without gagging) screen did not seem too small to me as some reviews state. It was OK. Bluetooth from my phone was able to play music and podcasts. The Bose system sounded decent for a factory system. I'm not an audiophile, but I do know about sound. It was too centered, largely coming from that dash speaker, but the tone was overall decent. I could see myself replacing the audio system down the road maybe.
Handling. Very good. Period. Very different feeling from my XB. The XB drives more like a Camry. The steering is light, but it goes where I want and isn't twitchy. The CX-5 was heavier but felt connected. It feel reminded me a lot of my first car, a Honda CRX, with rack and pinion steering. I loved that car.
That's all I can think of for now. I'm trying to wait before purchasing because I'll have a chunk of money coming in after mid April. Do you guys have any opinions on timing? I know the 2015s will be hitting the lots any second, which should provide incentives for the 2014s, but I have a specific model and color combo (GT AWD white with black leather) that almost no one around here seems to keep in stock. According to the Mazda dealer, there is only 1 in stock in any of the "local" dealers (within 40 miles or so). If I wait a month or more I'd probably be looking at getting a 2015, which may mean more money.
Love everything about it.. .
