I8ABMR

We bought a new 2013 Limited and went with it because it had all of the luxury and safety features of a higher end lexus but with massive room and convenience . Great vehicle. I believe in used car value but my wife prefers new cars with no issues or damage . If the 2010 makes you happy and the payment makes you happier I would do that . The new models are always nicer but how much nicer . That depends on the buyer.

Initial B

iTrader: (2)

I know of a really nice white one for sale in Phoenix on Autotrader, and the seller would be willing to deliver to SoCal.
It's originally from the San Marcos area, so it would be returning to its home state.

Great crossover; you'll love it if you end up buying one Good luck

rxonmymind

I appreciate the offer IB but after having test drove a 2014 there were several little things that turned my feelings against it. A big one was the thigh seat boosters. I have good size legs from cycling and sitting on the passenger side I found the "arc" of the bolster digging into the middle of my thigh. If I sat prim & proper with my legs tightly together then the seat was perfect. This probably had more to do with it being new, stiff, thus not broken in. Again if I were a freshman in high school it would be perfect. Then there was the dash. A sea of computer black plastic. Atrocious.
The wind noise was very pronounced especially around the side view mirrors. Then there was the obvious road noise coming from the "trunk" area which I don't think they insulated it back there. Also like the Mazda 6 attempting to get in butt first resulted in my hitting my head on the roof. I have to get in head first which resolved this issue. Finally the Bose sound. Horrible. The main center speaker literally flooded out the entire system. The only fix was to fade the front speakers to the back to help balance it out and that left the fronts not to good acoustically. Immediately after turning on the sound my mind said "rip these speakers out and put in some Focals, Dynaudio ANYTHING but listening to this.". No such issue when I turned on the ML system.
Which leads me to the RX350....
Saw on right across the street at the auto mall with my eagle eyes and told my wife let's go test one out. It was a 2010 with 55k on it. Having taken it on a mixed Freeway/ rough "country" but paved road that hadn't been keep up in years I felt a huge difference in ride quality. Same road as the Cx9 and back to back. Wind noise was less, quieter interior and in this case the same damn bolster that support the thigh BUT broken in thus laying down somewhat. Also a nice touch was the thigh power adjustment on the passenger side which Mazda seemed to have cheaped out on. Great for long road trips AND helps keep your butt planted in the seat if your unfortunate enough to come to a very hard stop. Nothing like sliding forward in your seat.

So I've pretty much eliminated the Mazda CX9 from the lineup. Also I wanted to add for posterity my 06 Sienna pulls VERY strong according to my butt dyno easily competing with the CX9. Now having looked up the numbers the Sienna is only a second slower. I'm not one to stomp to the floor the gas pedal but instead run the engine right to the edge of torque to get that strong steady pull. So the HP need to be bumped up for the Mazda IMHO. But to be fair that engine wasn't broken in yet Anyway, I wanted badly to root for them again but their quality control has to come up inside.

Now I see why people like the RX. Hmm. Cooling my jets for a bit as I've had all I can of running around.

I8ABMR

I think you'll be happy either way. We just spent a week at a beach house and our 2013 Sienna Limited did amazingly well ( as usual). Super comfy, plenty of room, power, and was a breeze to park in very tight spaces . I love the damn thing. The only thing is I wish the wheels were a little wider, but thats just cosmetic. I dont think I could get my wife to drive an SUV after she has had her Sienna for a year