I think the interior is lovely. I'm very interested to see how the interior quality compares to the Q7s we rent out at my dealer. We're near Mazda's R&D center and they rented one from us that we delivered to them haha, the person picking it up told me their position is interior material//quality testing.

Regarding the third-row.. I'm seeing lots of complaints about it but I don't really see an issue with it myself. It looks completely fine given this competes against the Q7 which also has a mainly for kids third row.

Current 3rd row legroom/headroom measurements for the segment:
CX-9 - 29.7 inches of legroom and 35.4 inches of headroom
Q7 - 29.2 inches, 35.9 inches
MDX - 29.1 inches, 36.2 inches
QX60 - 30.8 inches, 35.7 inches
Aviator - 29.2 inches, 36.9 inches
Telluride - 31.4 inches, 38.1 inches

Considering the CX-90 has already been stated to have larger interior dimensions and 3rd row than the CX-9, this puts it very directly competitive with the cars it's going up against. I really don't see why the talk of the 3rd row is such a big deal haha. It'll do just fine against the MDX, Q7, QX60, and Aviator. Telluride and upcoming "TX" will be a different story however, as I don't believe the CX-90 will reach those in 3rd-row size.

If anything, I'd be worried about the trunk space with the 3rd row up yo. The Q7's trunk space is already small with the third row, but it looks smaller on the CX-90 with the third row up.

 

There are some of us that do. Even in AWD the RWD vs FWD matters a lot, it matters in layout, look and in driving feel.

And I disagree on the inline 6 in a world of 4 cyl. The engine and RWD alone would make me buy this over an RX or MDX. The Telluride/Palisade I would still choose for the larger interior volume.

 

that's why i said most. you're into car details. most are not.

my point about the inline 6 being too late isn't about 4 cylinder turbo's, it's about ev's.

did you see this 3 row volvo that's coming?


also, mazda will have a phev version of this new vehicle, right? have they even had a hybrid until now? i wouldn't want to be a guinea pig for their first phev.

understand, they're actual 3 rows, vs. 2.5 row mazda.

 

I love the Stinger. It's a Genesis with Kia badge pretty much. It's interior is rock solid! A bit bland like you would expect it from a Kia at the time but finish was top notch. It's my favorite Hyundai/Kia car besides og G80.

 

I don't think it's a misquote. The prices quoted in the article are still the same despite the article being edited one day ago. If the CEO was misquoted, they probably would have fixed it by now.

The Canadian CX-9 starts at $42k.


After adding freight and everything else, it goes up to $45k. The same thing will happen with the "mid-40k" starting price, where if it is $45k the actual starting price after freight, etc. will probably be $48k. Still a pretty modest price bump for what appears to be a totally different car from the CX-9.

This will convert existing CX-9 owners, few as they may be. As long as they can get over the more squared off rear end.

I agree that most shoppers will not pay attention to the new engine or platform. That said, the hp/tq numbers, paired with the entry level pricing and the ads/teasers may be enough to get potential buyers into a dealer for a test drive. The test drive will (probably) sell the CX-90 better than any ad could. PHEV option is a nice selling point as well, provided it has half-decent EV range. It should be fine after the backlash their first PHEV got (the Australian CX-60).

If they can get the CX-90 right, the CX-70 is poised to do really well.

 

Whats wrong with someone else building a vehicle with people who care in mind? Everything doesn't have to be built to the lowest common denominator. This vehicle signals that the only Japanese company that wants to actually compete with the Germans on some level is Mazda...thats something to celebrate not denigrate as car enthusiasts...

Plenty of lifecyle left for this engine.

 

I'm not the buyer for this car but I like what they're doing a lot!! I think it looks great and love the new platform/engine combo. I hope this goes somewhere for them and look forward to hearing about how this drives and compares to its rivals.

 

There's nothing wrong with that at all; it's commendable. But it won't be a "draw" for all but a small minority of buyers; which means that Mazda still has to hit it out of the park on all the other aspects of the vehicle, the same way Hyundai and Kia did in this class.

Honestly, Mazda should up their warranty periods. It's a really visible advantage over other Japanese brands, and if they truly want to end up in the near-luxury space, they'll need to do it anyway.

 

That's rather misleading since $45K is what the actual price is, but like you said, $3K would be a very modest bump for a brand new car sitting on a far more premium platform and powertrain. We'll have to wait and see what the actual price is when it comes out, but I would be shocked if they stick with that price since that would make it even cheaper than a base model CX-60 in Europe.

Exactly. It would have as much relevance to CX-9 buyers as the Explorer to its buyers when it switched to RWD for this generation. I understand Mazda wants to be a premium brand, but it has to be in a way that is relevant to buyers, and doing so with its existing consumer base is not enough.

 

Part of the problem is that it really doesn't look at that premium to me. I wouldn't have known they are trying to go upmarket because the styling doesn't seem that different than the economy cars like the Mazda 3.

If they want to go upmarket, it'll require a very long time to do it because most people think of Mazda as an economy brand.

 

I don't know if thats really true. I know quite a few people with Mazdas, and they kind of see the brand as an in between. For instance like I said, my friend traded his S550 in on one. A woman who works for me is on her second CX-5 and she cross shopped it with the NX, GLB/GLA Mercedes, BMW X1..

Mazda dealers feel quite premium now...

 

US pricing:
https://news.mazdausa.com/2023-02-07...24-Mazda-CX-90

There are a total of 11 trim lines in the US. Five with a low-power version of the 3.3 (280hp, 332tq with regular fuel), starting at $39.5k and topping out at $53k. Three PHEV trims starting at $47.5k and topping out at $57k. And three more trims with the 340hp engine (with premium fuel) that starts at $52k and tops out at $60k.

Canadian Pricing:
http://en.media.mazda.ca/2023-02-07-...24-Mazda-CX-90

Mazda.ca hasn't updated pricing on their site, but the Canadian pricing model shows nine different trim lines. The four low-power trim lines start at $46k and top out at $55.5k. Three PHEV trims start at $55k and top out at $64.5k. And two trims with the 340hp engine at $59k and $63.5k. There is a 10th trim line, but it's just the GS-L trim with Captain's Chairs.

Looks like Mazda Canada's CEO was quoted correctly, but it's strange that there's such a big discrepancy in pricing between US and Canada.

No range or fuel economy figures for the CX-90 PHEV are available - the media release says they will be shared "closer to on-sale".

Also, as far as I know, this is the first Mazda that will have lane-centering in the NA market.

 

top end at 57k seems quite reasonable.

 

exactly. this cx-90 is 'nice', but it's really just another 2 1/2 row suv. i can imagine a new pilot beating it, and i don't see how this threatens in any way the palisade/telluride duo.

the carpet dash though would turn me off.

 

$17K CAD cheaper spec for spec on the top trim in Canada. Safe to say dealers will be adding a non-export clause to these up here.