Wheels Australia — August 2016

@wheelsaustralia 49

AS A rule, purely

functional seven-seaters

are a snooze-fest.

Space-hungry families

requiring a third row

are often forced to choose

between lacklustre high-riders

and the coma-inducing boredom

of owning a people-mover.

Driving either is like an early

night on New Year’s Eve – there’s

a lot you’re missing out on.

Mazda is taking aim at the

status quo, its all-new CX-9

loaded in the chamber. And the

car’s second coming injects a

welcome dose of design flair to a

large-SUV segment dominated by

the dowdy and drab.

It is almost a decade since its

predecessor launched, and CX-9

is now an entirely grown-up and

genuinely interesting proposition,

still majoring in practicality and

providing an image-conscious

choice for more discerning buyers.

It’s also cheaper, lighter (by as

much as 162kg), thriftier, quieter

and is available in a broader range

than before.

For 2016 the line-up consists of

Sport ($42,490), Touring ($48,490),

GT ($57,390) and Azami ($59,390),

and for the first time Mazda is

making all-wheel drive available

on them all as a $4000 option.

That means a new CX-9 Sport

AWD costs a full $10K less than

the cheapest AWD of the previous

generation.

It’s quite a big change, then,

and we haven’t even mentioned

the 2.5-litre turbocharged four-

cylinder centrepiece. This engine

is the first to couple Mazda’s

SkyActiv engineering philosophy

with forced induction, producing

outputs of 170kW and 420Nm.

Fuel economy is where it

excels, sipping 8.4L/100km in

FWD models, and 8.8L/100km

in AWDs. That’s markedly down

from the 11.0-11.3L/100km of the

outgoing 3.7-litre V6.

The turbo-petrol four-pot

the only engine available. It

34kW deficit to the silky V6

replaces is made up for by t

effectiveness and delivery

extra 53Nm.

Adding a turbo hasn’t muffled

the four pot’s vocal nature, with

a harsh edge to its note that

can be intrusive at higher revs.

Thankfully, the full force of its

torque is available from a low

2000rpm so there’s little need to

approach the redline.

Even before the CX-9 has

turned a wheel, it’s ahead

of its competitors in terms

of showroom sizzle. In top-

s ec Azami trim with an LED

FIRST
AUSSIE
DRIVE

02

03

01

GO TO THE SOURCE

Starting over for the

second generation allowed

Mazda to make big strides

in cabin comfort. New

approach to lowering NVH

minimised the number

of noise sources to begin

with, rather than leaving

engineers to mask them.

AUSSIE FEEDBACK

Mazda involved Aussies

in development from

day one, visiting local

customers in their homes

to study the way they use

their cars. CX-9 packaging

is well considered and

legitimately useful as

a result.

FIVE-STAR SAFETY

CX-9 is armed to the teeth

with safety tech. Every

variant gets six airbags,

blind-spot monitoring,

auto braking, brake-force

distribution and cross-

traffic alert. Azami adds

lane-departure warning

and lane-keep assist.