In an era when the crossover is not only the heir apparent to the minivan and the SUV, but downright deserving of being in such a high-profile position, it is not hard to drive a CX-9 crossover and be completely enamored with the level of classy sophistication and refinement being delivered by Mazda.
I know your first question, and the answer is: yes, I did say Mazda.
Mazda has been quite successful delivering on their Zoom-Zoom promises and the CX-9 is their most refined extension of that campaign. My Grand Touring (GT) CX-9 tester was dashing in its Crystal White Pearl Mica paint scheme and two-tone sand leather interior hues. Clearly, there's no more class to be had than with a black or white exterior hue, and this CX-9 was beautiful.
For the exterior, you cannot help but notice the distinctly bold 10-spoke, 20-inch alloy rims featuring 245/50 Bridgestones. That's a lot of rubber on the pavement. Best of all, it looks great.
Continuing the theme of great beginnings, the CX-9 is based on the Mazda6. This platform is a world-class performer that is capable of handling the 199.8-inch-long chassis. At 113.2 inches, this is one of the bigger wheelbases in the class and the exterior showcases every inch.
The most distinct styling in the Mazda barn belongs to the RX-8. Luckily for the CX-9, it gets at little of my favorite part of that car - the bold wheel well treatments. Along with the high-tech HID headlights that draw your eye from the wheels around to the chrome bar in the air dam, the CX-9 is really a classy piece of styling on a fairly large vehicle. It's not an easy task, and again, lucky for Mazda only a few crossovers in the class pull it off and at a relatively more expensive price.
It took me a little getting used to Mazda's Intelligent Key System, which is the size of a credit card. It slid easily into a pocket and as long as you are within range of sensors, you can just turn the ignition to bring CX-9 to life. I did find the buttons on the card to be a little small, but you eventually get used to it.
Inside the CX-9 you will find fine leather upholstery, wonderful sightlines and three rows seating seven. I was impressed with the build quality inside the cabin, though I was a little leery of some of the hard plastic face surfaces, especially the black-colored surfaces near the shifter. These plastic surfaces look nice, but usually fade and show wear early on.
The CX-9 cabin is roomy for both first- and second-row passengers. Third row is relegated to younger passengers, but access to the row is an easy flip of a handle and a tilt. Seats fold into the floor for exceptional utility and flexibility on loads.
Gauges and the center stack are easily visible and I especially love the illuminated red numbers playing nicely off a soft blue backdrop. This is attractive and easy to see day or night. Also worth mentioning are the cool blue hues illuminating the door handles. It is subtle, but quite functional at night.
My tester featured DVD navigation with voice command and touch screen. A highlight of every trip I took in my tester the entire week was firing up the 277-watt, 10-speaker Bose Surround Sound system with 6-disc changer.
Under the hood, my GT CX-9 has a 3.7-liter V6 with 273 horsepower mated to fine sport-tuned 6-speed automatic transmission. My GT tester featured the Active Torque Split AWD, which supplies up to 50 percent of the power to the rear wheels during low-traction situations. This system and those huge 20-inch wheels should keep the CX-9 well planted on the pavement in all weather situations.
Standard are dual front airbags, side airbags, and curtain airbags as well as a five-star crash test rating and a four-star rollover rating.
If the crossover is the heir apparent to the family haulers of the previous millennium, then this CX-9 combines everything a family could want with the sophistication and solid performance and safety expected from this class.
My tester base price was $34,655 and with reasonable options it landed at $39,785 before destination and handling charges. |
