The Mazda CX-5 has been revised for 2022 – will it finally top the family SUV charts?
Verdict
Overall, the facelifted Mazda CX-5 is still a well-rounded family SUV. The brand’s chassis changes have made it more comfortable to live with on a daily basis, the styling tweaks have added a little more kerb appeal and, when considered alongside its rivals, the price really doesn’t seem to match the level of equipment and quality you’re getting. Our only complaint is the engine’s lack of torque, but that just gives you an excuse to exercise the car’s excellent manual gearbox.
The CX-5 is one of Mazda’s best-selling cars in the UK. It accounts for around 25 per cent of the company’s total volume and played an instrumental role in boosting the brand’s sales by almost 14 per cent between 2020 and 2021, during the make-or-break business period after the worst stages of the coronavirus pandemic.
However, the market it occupies is incredibly crowded – and it’s growing by the day. There are plenty of other likeable family SUVs to choose from, such as the class-leading SEAT Ateca, the Skoda Karoq and the recent replacement for the Nissan Qashqai.
In addition to maintaining Mazda’s record-breaking sales performance throughout 2022, the facelifted CX-5 has to beat back a newer competitor from the brand that practically invented the family SUV segment. So, what does it have that it’s rivals lack?
For a start, the CX-5 is arguably a more comfortable place to be than its rivals. The cabin is very well screwed together and all of the materials within your wingspan feel stout and premium. Hammer a button on the dashboard and the switchpanel won’t move a millimetre. It certainly doesn’t feel cheap, but more on that later.
More importantly to the point we’re making now is that, for this updated model, Mazda’s engineers have dedicated a lot of time to making the CX-5 ride better than the old model and, therefore, making the cabin a much more pleasant place to sit.
There are new dampers, slightly softer springs and redesigned seats that offer a little more support – and, for the most part, we’d say Mazda’s efforts have been worthwhile. It makes for a decent motorway cruiser. The suspension changes even filter out more road noise, too.
However, there’s a trade-off to the CX-5’s new-found comfort, as the softer springs mean there’s a bit more body roll through corners. We even managed to unstick the rear end on a couple of occasions at surprisingly average speeds over rough patches of tarmac. We’re talking just 40mph on an A-road, around quite a gentle corner.
The engine also leaves a little to be desired. Our test car was fitted with Mazda’s naturally aspirated 2.0-litre Skyactiv-G unit, which is the same basic engine you’ll find in the smaller CX-30 crossover. You do get more power in the CX-5 – 163bhp compared to the CX-30’s 120bhp – but it’s still not quite enough poke for the CX-5 to get out of its own way.
Once you’re up to speed and cruising, it’s great. Decently quiet, smooth and reasonably economical considering the lack of a turbocharger. We saw around 40mpg on the trip computer when holding a steady 60mph.
It’s not exactly quick, though, especially if you ask a lot from the engine in a high gear. Torque remains the same as the lighter CX-30, at 213Nm, and very little of that is available from low down in the rev range, meaning you always have to change down at least two gears to overtake lorries and coaches.
If you’re prepared to hustle the engine, it can whisk the CX-5 along well enough – just expect your fuel economy to dip below the 30mpg barrier as punishment. The engine really doesn’t deliver its best performance until 5,000rpm, which is well past the engine’s ideal economy range.
But the CX-5 is all about give and take. So, while the entry-level 2.0-litre engine might be a little gutless, the manual gearbox it’s bolted to is a cracker. The throw is excellent, the clutch travel is nigh-on perfect and there’s a satisfying mechanical clunk as you drive each gear home. Which is great, because you’ll be constantly rowing through the ‘box to keep the engine in its sweet spot, especially on windy roads.
Suspension changes aside, Mazda’s tweaks for the revised CX-5 are fairly conventional where facelifts are concerned. There’s some new front and rear bumpers, a little bit more safety technology and an expanded trim-level range which features three new specifications called Newground, Sport Black and GT Sport.
Mazda expects the middling Sport variant to be the best seller in the UK, so that’s the car we spent the most amount of time with. Prices start from £30,765, which is a few hundred pounds more than you’ll pay for mid-range versions of the Nissan Qashqai and SEAT Ateca.
You get plenty of equipment, with 19-inch alloy wheels, a reversing camera, electric sunroof, electrically adjustable front seats and an electric tailgate all coming as standard on Sport model. The equivalent SEAT Ateca FR doesn’t get any of this equipment as standard – the electric tailgate, for example, only hits the spec sheet on the flagship Xperience Lux model.
You don’t need to compromise on practicality with the CX-5, either. There’s tonnes of headroom and legroom in the back, and the boot can swallow 522 litres of luggage with the rear seats in place. So, that makes the Mazda’s boot 18 litres larger than the Qashqai’s and 12 litres larger than the Ateca’s.
The Mazda CX-5 is a bit of a mixed bag then, but the net result is certainly a positive one. If you can live with the rotary engine-like torque curve, you’ll get a comfortable, refined and reasonably economical family SUV which far outstrips its rivals on the equipment front for very little extra cash. And what’s not to like about that?
Next Steps
New car deals
Keyword: New Mazda CX-5 2022 review