Mazda has been on a roll lately and despite not having the most powerful cars in their class, they do have some of the best models on offering. This is exactly the case with their latest car, the 2017 Mazda CX-9, a car which has been rumored for nearly two years and it has just been released at the LA Auto Show. The car rides on the same Skyactiv platform as the smaller CX-5 or the Mazda6 and it does come with a lot of neat features for its class. Just like with the model it is replacing, the new CX-9 offers three rows of seats as standard as well as a lot of features for its passengers.
2017 Mazda CX-9 Price and Release Date
The price has not been released just yet but the car will go on sale in the second month of 2016 at a similar price to that of the ongoing CX-9. This means it will probably cost between $31,000 and up to $45,000 which is well in the boundaries of its class.
2017 Mazda CX-9 Engine
In order to make a usable car, Mazda did their best in order to create something more than just a spec-sheet. They spent months following three rows crossovers in order to learn how people drive these cars and they found out that most of them usually never exceed 3,000 rpm. In order to make a great car for them, they decided to ditch the old V6 in the favor of the first turbocharged Skyactiv engine. This is an all new 2.5 liter turbocharged inline 4 which has been tuned to offer the best driving experience at very low rpm. The engine will provide 250 horsepower at roughly 4,000rpm on 93 Octane fuel while on the lesser 91 it will only make 223 horsepower. This is much lower even than the previous CX-9. However, the 2017 Mazda CX-9 offers a very impressive 310 lb-ft of torque at just 2,000rpm on any type of fuel so it feels much faster than pretty much any of its direct competitors.
The engine is mated only to a 6 speed automatic gearbox which drives the front wheels in the base model. People will also get the chance of getting an all wheel drive system which will be controlled via a computer that will monitor the road surface. This will send as much as 50% of the car’s torque to the rear wheels in order to aid it with traction. While the performance or fuel economy numbers have not been released, thanks to the massive 200 to 300 pounds of weight loss we expect the new 2017 Mazda CX-9 to get at least 20 MPG in the city and more than 28 MPG on the highway, thus becoming the most fuel efficient three rows crossover.
On the outside, the 2017 Mazda CX-9 closely follows the Kodo design scheme first launched on the Mazda6. The front end is very similar to the smaller CX-5 but at the back we find a cleaner more mature design which also includes a pair of exhaust tips. The standard wheels are 18 inches but the buyer will also get the chance of getting 20 inch wheels wrapped in higher performance tires than usual.
The cabin is very clean and quite minimalistic for a car aimed at people with larger families and this is a bold move from Mazda. The dashboard is similar to that of the Mazda6 with a clean looking center console and a knob-based infotainment and navigation system which will also controls some of the more basic functions of the car. The base model will come with more space than before thanks to a 2.2 inches longer wheelbase and a lot of equipment such as four USB charging points, a surround audio system as well as premium cloth seats.
