This luxury flagship, positioned above CX-9, should officially bow next year.
MazdaAs far as cryptic teaser images go, this one from Mazda, ahead of the full debut of its (presumably) luxuriant CX-90 three-row crossover, sits right up there with the best of them. There’s a splash of lens flare obscuring a smidge of bodywork in Mazda’s signature dark red paint, and a little streak of chrome. Is this a fender? Looks like a fender! How exciting.
Ah, but one important detail has finally broken cover, courtesy of a mostly obscured badge that reads “INLINE 6.” This image confirms speculation that Mazda’s new inline-six will make its way to the American market.
Per Car and Driver, Mazda claims the 2024 CX-90 will ride on a new platform and that this inline-six will sit longitudinally. That makes this three-row SUV the first Mazda sold in the U.S. riding both on the company’s new longitudinal-engine platform and powered by an inline-six engine.
Mazda says this inline-six will be reserved for its “large platform” vehicles, the more “premium” models it sells in the big crossover space. Of course, we can’t help but let our minds wander. With a new inline-six that sits longitudinally, could there be a Mazda6 on the way? A handsome sedan power pumping through the rear tires and six thumping cylinders under the hood?
It may be a dream, but with this new ‘six confirmed, it’s a dream one step closer to reality.
Kyle Kinard The only member of staff to flip a grain truck on its roof, Kyle Kinard is R&T’s senior editor and resident malcontent.
Keyword: 2024 Mazda CX-90 Breaks Cover With Inline-Six Power