An early first taste of Mazda’s new flagship three-row SUV
The Mazda CX-90 is boldly going where no Mazda has gone before. The flagship three-row SUV is the ultimate expression of the company’s push upmarket, with sleeker proportions, a rear-biased all-wheel drive system, powerful new six-cylinder engines and an interior that hopes to tempt buyers out of the traditional premium European choices. For an early taste, Mazda invited carsales to sample a left-hand prototype ahead of the car’s August launch.
How much does the Mazda CX-90 cost?
Pricing for the Mazda CX-90 starts at $74,385 (+ORCs) but this prototype vehicle is representative of the flagship Azami which lists at $95,185 (+ORCs).
But wait, there’s more. It also includes the $5000 SP Package and $995 for Artisan Red Metallic paint for a total of $101,180 (+ORCs). Uncharted territory for Mazda.
The CX-90 will benefit from Mazda’s five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty but it’s too early to know servicing prices.
What equipment comes with the Mazda CX-90?
As you would hope at this price point the Mazda CX-90 comes loaded with equipment, especially in flagship Azami guise. We covered what each variant scores in our Mazda CX-90 pricing story but the Azami is the burger with the lot, especially with the optional SP package.
There are 21-inch wheels, the front seats are electrically-powered, heated and ventilated, the steering wheel is heated and electrically-adjustable, the rear seats are heated, there’s a panoramic sunroof, triple-zone climate control, 12-speaker Bose stereo, ambient interior lighting and nappa leather seat trim, as well as extended exterior leather trim.
The Azami is also the only CX-90 with body-coloured wheel arches and lower cladding instead of the typical black strip. Sonic Silver, Jet Black, Deep Crystal Blue and Platinum Quartz (a kind of light beige, better than it sounds) are all no-cost options, while Rhodium White, Machine Grey, Soul Red and Artisan Red attract a $995 surcharge.
Adding the Azami-exclusive SP package converts the CX-90 into a six-seater with the addition of second-row ‘captain’s chairs’ with ventilation, split by a centre console. The seats and interior trim become tan instead of black, there’s a suede dashboard finish and two-tone steering wheel.
The $5000 Takumi package, likewise limited to the Azami, uses white leather, white maple wood for the centre console and door trims, cloth dashboard and the same second-row arrangement as the SP.
How safe is the Mazda CX-90?
The Mazda CX-90 is yet to be tested by ANCAP locally but as you’d expect for an all-new vehicle its safety offering is comprehensive, with 10 airbags, including coverage for the third row, and all the latest active safety systems.
These include auto-emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, forward collision alert with junction assist, blind-spot monitoring with safe exit warning, active cruise control with traffic support, driver monitoring, intelligent speed assist, lane-keep assist, lane-departure warning and rear cross-traffic alert.
Three ISOFIX points are standard with two on the centre outboard seats and one on the passenger side of the third row, while there are five top tethers in seven-seat guise and four with six. A 360-degree camera is standard with parking sensors front and rear.
What technology does the Mazda CX-90 feature?
Upper grades of the Mazda CX-90 use a pair of large 12.3-inch displays, one for the digital instruments and one for the infotainment. Wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto are standard and there’s wireless charging, as well as USB-C ports for all three rows.
AM, FM and DAB+ radio are all standard, as is satellite navigation, with instructions able to be shown in the head-up display ahead of the driver.
The Azami grade also uses Mazda’s new Driver Personalisation System that uses facial recognition to figure out who is driving and adjust more than 250 settings to their preferences, including for the seats, volume and climate control settings.
What powers the Mazda CX-90?
This is our first exposure to the 3.3-litre turbocharged straight-six in the Mazda CX-90. It can be had as a diesel with 187kW/500Nm but this test vehicle is fitted with the petrol version with 254kW/500Nm.
It’s attached to the Mazda’s new all-wheel drive system that sends the majority of the power to the rear wheels for improved handling, as well as the Mazda-developed eight-speed automatic gearbox, which uses a wet-clutch arrangement instead of a traditional torque converter.
How fuel efficient is the Mazda CX-90?
While a large-capacity turbocharged six-cylinder petrol sounds like a recipe for a thirsty best, the wide ratio spread of the eight-speed gearbox and the application of 48-volt mild-hybrid technology means Mazda claims just 8.2L/100km for the combined cycle, though the diesel is much more frugal with a claim of 5.4L/100km.
What is the Mazda CX-90 like to drive?
These first impressions obviously come with the caveat that our initial drive of the Mazda CX-90 constituted a handful of laps of the ride and handling course at the Lang Lang proving ground. While this stretch of road is designed specifically to test various aspects of a car’s performance and dynamics, it’s far from a comprehensive test.
Nevertheless, we can glean plenty about the CX-90 from our time behind the wheel and let’s start with that new engine. A turbocharged straight-six tends to be a great engine configuration and Mazda’s new 3.3-litre continues that tradition.
It’s smooth, responsive and powerful with a pleasant note. If we accept BMW’s 3.0-litre B58 straight-six as the benchmark, this engine doesn’t feel a match for that, but it certainly does a reasonable imitation.
Don’t expect performance fireworks – Mazda claims 6.9sec from 0-100km/h, which is acceptably brisk without being stunning – but it’s certainly an enjoyable powerplant. Part of the reason the CX-90 isn’t perhaps as muscular as the strong outputs suggest is that it’s a simply enormous car.
The styling and proportions hide its bulk somewhat, but at 5120mm long, 1994mm wide and 1745mm tall with a 3120mm wheelbase, the CX-90 stands toe to toe with the likes of the BMW X7 and Mercedes-Benz GLS. It also weighs in at a hefty 2220kg.
With this in mind it drives impressively well. Clearly there is a lot of car around you but there’s plenty of grip, a nice balance and the steering is worthy of note, being quick and quite weighty but not in an artificial sense. Clearly Mazda has wanted to give the CX-90 some dynamic talent and it feels an appropriate match for this six-cylinder petrol engine.
As a result the ride does feel quite reactive. It’s still quite compliant with solid body control – there’s a series of high-speed undulations designed to throw cars out of whack and the CX-90 only began to get a little flustered at the very end – but poor road surfaces might result in some jitteriness. We’ll wait until the final launch to properly assess.
One area that does deserve praise is Mazda’s new eight-speed gearbox. It’s a traditional automatic but with a wet-clutch arrangement rather than a torque converter, very similar in concept to AMG’s MCT, and while its stop-start behaviour can’t yet be determined, it’s very responsive to shifts in driving style and the shifts themselves are quick and virtually imperceptible.
What is the Mazda CX-90 like inside?
In the cabin is where the Mazda CX-90 really needs to make a big statement to justify that premium price tag and by and large it pulls it off. The materials are varied and feel high quality – plush leather, grainy wood, soft suede – the steering wheel does more than a passing imitation of a Bentley and Mazda has helpfully retained plenty of physical buttons for ease of use.
There are two potential areas of concern. The menus in the infotainment screen look a little low resolution, like the fonts are designed for a smaller screen and stretched to fit, but given this US-spec car didn’t have navigation or radio setup and time precluded playing with smartphone mirroring we’ll reserve judgement.
The other point is that among all the lovely materials some of the minor switchgear – the column stalks, for instance – stand out as basic, looking like they could be from a $30K Mazda 3.
Move to the second row and there’s plenty of room, though the front seat-runners do impinge on foot room slightly. The captain’s chairs are comfortable, heated and ventilated, move fore and aft and recline and the central centre console offers handy storage space. This is in addition to a pair of USB-C ports, fan and temperature controls and built-in window shades.
It would be nice if the centre console was removable a la Nissan Pathfinder to provide through-access to the third row and while shifting the seats forward is easy enough via a lever on the upper surface, it’s not quite as simple as the one-touch button found in the Pathfinder, Palisade and Sorento. The rear doors open extremely wide, though.
The third row is very impressive. The CX-90 puts its size to good use with decent space for even adult occupants and air vents, USB-C charging and cupholders to ensure a reasonable level of comfort back there.
Even with all three rows of seats in place the boot has sufficient space for bags or perhaps a couple of small suitcases – it’s one of the larger areas in the segment. Drop the third row and this expands to a giant 608 litres, though this includes the underfloor storage and the spare wheel is only a space-saver spare.
On the plus side there is an AC outlet in the boot as well as a 12-volt, though on the downside there’s no way to remotely drop the second row from the rear.
Should I buy a Mazda CX-90?
The Mazda CX-90 is certainly an appealing package if you’re in the market for a car like this, but just how appealing is still unclear. There’s a lot to like here, a powerful engine, impressive dynamics and a spacious, well-equipped and quite lavish interior with plenty of room.
While for many a Mazda with this price tag will require a second glance, our gut feel is that the CX-90 is positioned quite well. It definitely feels more special than top-spec Hyundai Palisades and Nissan Pathfinders and anything European of similar size and performance is a lot more expensive.
The first impression is positive and the CX-90 gets a reserved thumbs-up, but we look forward to bringing you the full verdict from the car’s local launch later this year.
2024 Mazda CX-90 Azami at a glance:
Price: $95,185 (plus on-road costs)
Available: August 2023
Engine: 3.3-litre 6-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 254kW/500Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Fuel: 8.2L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 189g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested
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Keyword: Mazda CX-90 Prototype 2023 Review