With the launch of the updated CX-5 Mazda shows they’ve finally outgrown the constraints of their ill-fated relationship with Ford and that they are ready to grow their market share in the burgeoning SUV market here.
Mazda takes its position in the local vehicle market quite seriously. I a few short years since its unbundling from the Ford South Africa mother ship began, Mazda has grown its market influence at a remarkable rate, breaking through the psychological Top Ten barrier within two years after the Mazda2 broke cover in late 2014.
With critical successes along the way – including two finalist nominations in both the 2016 and 2017 WesBank South African Car of the Year competitions – Mazda has captured a significant piece of the private vehicle sales pie.
For Mazda, though, it is not all about the numbers – in the medium SUV segment the previous generation CX-5 consistently mustered a 10% market share. Instead, they’re on a mission to raise the brand’s global profile to the point where its products will be considered in premium terms alongside the best in the world.
Their lofty ambitions beg us to raise the question: has Mazda done enough with the new CX-5 to nudge the brand along the road to ultimate premiumdom?
FRESH DESIRABILITY
It is sometimes hard to measure change in the motor industry. At first glance of the new CX-5, for example, you would be forgiven for thinking that it’s the old car with a new lick of paint.
The shape is much the same, at least from the front and rear, as is the interior design language, fit, and finish.
From the front, however, the CX-5 is unmistakably new. The sharper, extended nose with the wider and longer trapezoidal smile, the squinting eyes, and prominent shark-like features are fresh, even desirable in its chrome-accented glory.
It is evolution that speaks to Mazda’s if–it-ain’t-broke strategy, to prevent loyal buyers from losing touch with the Mazda identity. An approach that has worked for Volkswagen over decades.
BELLS AND WHISTLES
Not to say that the new CX-5 is not an excellent example of forward-thinking engineering, it is. It is also more refined than its predecessor in many respects, and Mazda South Africa has engineered the model line up to successfully compete with the car’s main rivals – the Volkswagen Tiguan, Hyundai Tucson, and Toyota’s RAV4.
Mazda also insists on listing the ill-fated Ford Kuga as a rival to the CX-5, but we’ve left it out of the mix for purposes of this report.
Seven derivatives make up the new CX-5 range, up by one from the old line-up. You can have it with any of three engine options ranging from the SKYACTIV-G 2.0-litre and 2.5-litre petrol, to the SKYACTIV-D 2.2-litre turbodiesel.
Although by Mazda’s admission, the market for manual cars in this segment is shrinking, they have kept stick shifts as an option on the 2.0L Active and Dynamic (also available in automatic), while the 2.5L petrol and 2.2L diesel engine derivatives are only available with automatic transmissions.
SHARPER TOOL
At launch we sampled three versions, the 1,998 cc petrol manual in entry-grade Active guise (R379,900), the 2,488 cc petrol automatic Individual (R491,900) and the 2,191 cc AWD turbodiesel automatic Akera on the road and at the Gerotek testing facility just outside Pretoria.
Offering a fair cross-section of the range – although we missed out on driving the 2.0-litre auto – our trip exposed some of the best characteristics of the new CX-5, and some of the not so great.
Ultimately, the 129 kW turbodiesel Active automatic would be our pick in the line-up, simply for purposes of the amount of low-down grunt it offers from its 420 Nm super smooth engine. That being said, there is loads of value in just about any of the 2.0-litre cars, where the bulk of the offering sits. Realistically, most sales will come from lower down in the range anyway, and from the autos. In a price sensitive market, people are likely to buy down on power and bulk up on standard spec, making the 2.0L Dynamic Auto (R416,900) a very attractive option over the R459,400 for the diesel burner. That’s more standard spec for less money…
In a direct comparison with the 1.4TSI Comfortline Tiguan (R472,900), the Tucson 2.0L NU Elite (R469,900), and the 2.0L GX RAV4 CVT (R381,400), the CX-5 trounces all on price, while it smacks the substantial RAV4 down on standard specification.
REFINED DEFINED
The theme of understated upgrades persists throughout the cabin. And, while it strongly echoes the design of the older version (many switches appear radically the same), the level of interior refinement has soared.
There is a touch of class to fabrics and surfaces; the materials are soft on the eye and to the touch. You feel like you are in a premium cabin, and for that, you easily forgive the subtlety of the changes.
As for the infotainment system … it didn’t impress. Too small a screen for the amount of real estate it occupies on (rather than in) the dash, and the awkward graphics made on-the-go operation less than easy. The HUD on the 2.5L Individual and 2.2L Akera is a nice touch.
But fumbling through the digital innards of the wireless aside, it took me a while to notice how quiet the cabin has become.
LAST WORD
Mazda is modest about the CX-5, perhaps too much. They’re projecting an increase to 12% of the overall segment tally in sales for 2017. At the current rate, Mazda would need around 340 buyers to opt into what is a very reliable vehicle with an excellent track record, every month. By all accounts, it should be an easy achievement for this newly-premium offering. Made easier by the fact that Mazda offers as standard a three-year unlimited kilometre service plan, a three-year factory warranty and roadside assistance, and a five-year corrosion warranty.
Report by BERNIE HELLBERG | Images © MAZDA SOUTH AFRICA