Mazda’s lineup of SUVs offered on-road manners that are the envy of many an automaker, but the company was missing something with more capability to capture a burgeoning market of utility shoppers looking to get away from it all.
Enter the all-new 2023 Mazda CX-50, which is meant to offer more off-road capability and ruggedness than the street-oriented CX-5. If you didn’t know that, all of the additional black body cladding is meant to inform you.
This isn’t the first time that Mazda has doubled up on crossover class. The company introduced the CX-30 on top of the CX-3 in 2019 and that development put the CX-3 out to pasture. Mazda insists that this time is different, because the CX-50 was designed for the North American market (the CX-3 was meant for Europe) and will only be sold in the U.S. and Canada initially. Mazda CMO Brad Audet said flatly, “we’re not going to kill off our best-selling car.”
I believe him, but after heading to Santa Barbara, California, to put the newcomer through its paces, it seems inevitable that the CX-50 will take a bite out of the CX-5’s market. It adds more ground clearance without any compromise to on-road dynamics, making it my preferred performer between the two on any surface.
2023 Mazda CX-50
2023 Mazda CX-50
Changing angles
The CX-50 is a curious sight to behold in person. It looks attractive from some angles but awkward at others. The widened version of Mazda’s grille feeding directly into the headlight clusters makes the front more cohesive and it looks great in profile, but those prominent fenders make the diagonal views less convincing.
The CX-50 shares a platform with the CX-5 and the smaller CX-30, but it’s been stretched out to make the CX-50 longer and wider than the CX-5 by a fair margin. The CX-50’s 110.8-inch wheelbase is 6.4 inches longer than the CX-30’s and 4.6 inches longer than the CX-5’s. At 185.8 inches long and 75.6 inches wide, it’s also 5.7 inches longer and 3.0 inches wider than the incumbent CX-5.
Even with the added ground clearance, the CX-50 stands shorter than the CX-5 by a hair, and that makes the body look a bit more compressed. It gives the CX-50 more of a wagon-esque look, like the Subaru Outback, rather than a traditional SUV design with an upright stance.
2023 Mazda CX-50
2023 Mazda CX-50
How it drives
The CX-50’s powertrain offerings are lifted directly from the CX-30 and CX-5. A 187-hp, 2.5-liter inline-4 is standard, with a 2.5-liter turbo-4 optional. The turbocharged engine makes 256-hp and 320 lb-ft of torque on 93 octane fuel (which you can’t even buy in some states, including California), but those figures drop to 227-hp and 310 lb-ft with the 87 octane most buyers will use. A 6-speed automatic remains the only transmission and all-wheel drive comes standard, like on every Mazda SUV.
My test vehicle, a 2.5T Premium Plus, came with the more powerful of the CX-50’s two engines. Mazda’s insistence on sticking with its 6-speed transmission is starting to wear thin as transmissions with 7- or 8-speeds have become more refined. The CX-50 also feels slower off the line than its CX-30 counterpart (and even more so than the Mazda3). While maximum torque comes on early at 2,000 rpm, there’s still noticeable lag even in the more aggressive Sport mode. Once it gets going, the engine is well tuned for passing maneuvers and the transmission does a good job of downshifting only one time, but for city driving I’d like more immediate responsiveness from the powertrain.
The CX-50’s dynamics are much better. It seems to combine the best attributes of the CX-30 and CX-5. Lengthening the wheelbase has smoothed out the ride, and yet the CX-50 also retains the agility that is a hallmark of both of those SUVs. It’s an excellent highway cruiser, with great road manners and a solid steering feel on center that makes it easy to keep the CX-50 tracking dead straight with minimal effort.
Our drive route also featured a jaunt on a twisty canyon road and the CX-50 performed admirably. For a vehicle without any kind of adaptive damping or air suspension, it still manages to be both comfortable and composed in corners. Its handling prowess makes it one of the most enjoyable vehicles in this class to drive on a mountain road—an important attribute for a crossover with overlanding aspirations. Even if you’re headed to a trail, most of your time is spent on pavement, and the CX-50 excels at getting you to the start of an adventure.
2023 Mazda CX-50
We also had a chance to test out two of the CX-50’s new drive modes: Off-road and Towing. Off-road sends more torque to the rear wheels and smooths out steering wheel inputs. It worked well on a gravel road and made the front of the car feel more stable though that does come at the cost of feedback. It also makes it harder to get the CX-50 to slide around, so if that’s your idea of fun, leave it in Normal mode. Ground clearance on the CX-50 increases from the CX-5’s 7.6 inches to 8.3 with the base engine or 8.6 inches with the turbocharged engine. But this isn’t a purpose-built off-roader. It’s still more comfortable on a gravel or dirt road than a hardcore trail.
With the more powerful engine, towing capacity increases from 2,000 to 3,500 pounds. When I towed a box trailer loaded with cement to reach the CX-50’s maximum capacity in Towing mode, the CX-50 stayed about a gear lower in most scenarios to provide more power. This mode also shifts power away from the rear for greater stability and switches up the steering in a similar way to the Off-road mode, both of which make it easier to center the CX-50 and trailer in its lane. CX-50s with the base engine don’t get a Tow mode because 2,000 pounds doesn’t affect the crossover’s dynamics as much, according to Mazda. But it’d be nice to have to get the more aggressive transmission mapping for the naturally aspirated engine, since it struggles with low-end torque delivery.
The company’s focus on the driving experience is laudable. You can tell that a lot of work has gone into dialing in the steering and throttle response, but that’s just part of the equation. Cabin noise is a problem as both wind noise and road/tire noise are prominent. If Mazda’s stated goal of becoming a more premium brand is to come to fruition, it needs more powerful engines and the cabins have to be quieter.
2023 Mazda CX-50
Touchscreen returns, sort of
The CX-50’s interior will feel familiar. It keeps the same basic themes and look as other Mazdas with minimalistic dark styling and an infotainment screen pushed back high on the dash; it measures 8.8-inches on the base model and 10.3-inches on all others.
There is some exciting news, though it comes with two rather large caveats: the touchscreen has returned. Mazda’s last large change to its infotainment system in 2019 eliminated touchscreens from its vehicles, leaving only a circular knob behind the gearshift to interact with the infotainment system. But the CX-50 now features a touchscreen as well, though it only works with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. To use any of the native functions, you’re still stuck with the knob. On top of that, the screen sits far away from the driver. I stretched my arm out toward the screen and ended up about 5 inches short of reaching it. It’s so far that I ended up using the knob anyway to control Android Auto.
Mazda declined to say if this would be a change that comes to the rest of the lineup, but it’s a fair assumption that it will. Hopefully, it’s combined with moving the screen closer so it’s not only reachable by Inspector Gadget.
2023 Mazda CX-50
2023 Mazda CX-50
2023 Mazda CX-50
Despite the differences in exterior dimensions, most of the CX-50’ passenger room dimensions are within an inch of those of the CX-5. The back seat is large enough to fit a pair of adults for roadtrips. A panoramic moonroof, a first for Mazda, is also available and it helps to open up the feel of the cabin.
The CX-50 has a bit more cargo room than the CX-5 with the rear seats up (31.4 versus 29.1 cubic feet ), but slightly less with them folded down (56.3 versus 58.1 cubic feet). But the cargo area is both longer/wider than the CX-5 as well and Mazda says configuring this space in this fashion makes it more useful, since it allows owners to load in cargo lengthwise.
2023 Mazda CX-50
Pricing and conclusion
At launch, which is happening now, Mazda offers the CX-50 in nine trim levels, with a starting price of $28,205, including a $1,225 destination charge. That’s $820 more than the CX-5, which comes with the same 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine and standard AWD as well.
My test vehicle was a high-end 2.5 Turbo Premium Plus that ran the price all the way up to $42,775. ne more trim is on its way, the Meridian, which will offer all-terrain tires, crossbars on the roof, and even more rugged styling. Mazda declined to quote a starting price or timing for the Meridian, but its equipment list would suggest that it will become the most expensive trim level (if equipped with the turbocharged engine, which could come standard.
The CX-50 sets out to be more rugged and off-road oriented than Mazda’s other utility offerings, but the new compact crossover ends up being better on the road as well. But as much as I liked the CX-50’s dynamics, more than $40,000 is a lot of money for an SUV that doesn’t offer any kind of powertrain electrification or a technology advantage over competitors. That’s why it was disappointing to find out that the CX-50 would launch on an old platform, instead of Mazda’s Skyactiv Multi-Solution Scalable Architecture that’s capable of supporting inline-6 engines and rear-wheel drive, as well as a mild-hybrid system. It seems like Mazda missed a golden opportunity to make the CX-50 distinct versus the rest of the lineup. It also leaves room for the CX-50 to replace the CX-5 and retain that vehicle’s sales, even if Mazda denies that will happen.
Mazda provided a hotel with an ocean view and meals for Motor Authority to bring you this firsthand drive report.
