2008 Mazda CX-9 Reviews

But there is nothing puzzling about the success of the CX-9. It has rapidly built a strong fan base since being released late last year, with sales enough to more than make up for the declining demand for the older, smaller CX-7.Never mind that the CX-9 is more than $10,000 dearer, it has rapidly established itself as the favourite SUV for Mazda buyers.Here is a roomy sleek-looker which delivers effortless performance without getting flustered.Dull, the CX-9 certainly isn't.Where the firm, turbo-boosted CX-7 feels like it wants to be a sports car, the CX-9 is akin to a refined, big sedan which happens to have a few rows of seats.Its comfort should come as no surprise, really, since it weighs more than two tonnes, even before anyone gets aboard, putting it among the heavyweights of the “medium-sized” SUV class.But the CX-9 always feels responsive and surefooted.Mazda has given it such a smooth and powerful V6 engine that the weight doesn't hamper performance (just as quick to 100km/h as the lighter CX-7), and it has such a well-sorted chassis that it feels positively nimble.However, weight means thirst, in this case officially rated at 13 litres per 100km, making it thirstier than even a Ford Territory. Helping reduce the fuel bill somewhat, at least the Mazda is content with regular unleaded.But there is no escaping its sheer size, noticeable when you tackle a crowded car park. Though the turning circle is commendable (same as the smaller CX-7's), it is longer, wider and taller than even the Territory, so there are some places it simply won't fit.The seat layout gets top marks for convenience. The centre row slides or reclines or can be folded flat. The back row can disappear to floor level by merely tugging on a couple of straps. Very clever and practical, very Mazda.The pair of rear-most pews actually can accommodate adults, and getting in back there is not too difficult.When all the seats are in place, rear luggage space is limited: less than in the CX-7. However, tuck away a seat or two — or five, even — and the CX-9's cargo area becomes vast.Up front, a wide transmission tunnel means it does not feel as spacious as you might expect in such a large vehicle.And though it is more than 5m long, Mazda couldn't find anywhere to fit in a full-size spare tyre. There is a spacesaver instead, which seems to be very much the trend these days.As the tail is such a long way from the driver, reversing is made easier and safer by a rear-view camera.So it's big, and it has a thirst. Both these drawbacks, admittedly, are hard-to-escape consequences of the CX-9 having all the room which seven people might require.

Double-takes from CX-7 drivers were not uncommon during my time in the biggest member of Mazda's SUV range - the CX-9. The exterior lines might be similar but there are big differences between the five and seven-seat Mazda kid-carriers.The slimming CX-9 styling hides quite a sizeable machine, which at just over 5m long and nearly 2m wide is no waif.While Mazda says it has 200mm of ground clearance it looks low-slung and almost sleek, suggesting snow-bunny locales and A-grade dirt are more this SUV's forte than rock-hopping.From behind the wheel its dimensions become more apparent - slipping into tight car spaces is helped by the presence of a rear-view camera but radar sensors would be a worthwhile addition to the features list.The drivetrain is smooth and quiet, although it has to shift two tonnes of Mazda, which means it has plenty of work to do.It's not the sweetest engine from the Mazda stable when working hard, nor is it the most frugal, returning figures in the 16 litres/100km (it's ADR claim is 13 litres/100km), which is about par for the petrol-powered opposition in the class.But the seven-seater has plenty to like. The features list includes 20 inch wheels, sunroof, front and rear airconditioning and cruise control.The Luxury edition also gets leather trim, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with audio and cruise control switch gear, electrically-adjustable heated front seats and rain-sensing wipers.The CX-9 also packs a good range of safety gear, including stability control (with roll-over sensing function) and dual front, front-side and full-length curtain airbags.The Luxury edition also gets a good-quality Bose sound system with sub-woofer, controlled by the touch screen that also carries the rear camera images, but sun glare from the heavily-raked windscreen can interfere.The big Mazda is reasonably nimble but the electronics kick in quickly if pushed hard, making sure the two-tonne machine is reined in early, but most drivers won't push it to the same degree.The passenger accommodation is comfortable, with the middle row of seats able to slide fore and aft to give the third row a little extra leg room.The third-row seats fold flat into the floor but even with them up there's still some room for cargo, although it won't be enough for a weekend away for seven, but five passengers and their bags will fit.Ride comfort is on the firm side - the is price for some agility.The new Mazda is heading into SUV segment that showed the most sales growth last year - up against Ford's Territory, Holden's Captiva, Toyota's Kluger and the new-look Subaru Tribeca - and it deserves to be on the seven-seater medium SUV shopping list.

A few years back, I spent a week behind the wheel of Volkswagen's then brand-new Touareg 4WD — and learnt two very valuable lessons about modern motoring.The first was that the Touareg's off-road ability, like that of many modern 4WDs, far exceeded what the vast majority of its buyers would ever need.The second lesson was how a vehicle's very brawn and bulk could compromise its ability where it would be used most — in the city.Exiting a sharp turn in a multi-level car park gashed one of the Touareg's expensive mag wheels.That can happen in any car, but if the vehicle's dimensions be fit an armoured personnel carrier, it raises the odds of contact considerably.Have a good look at the rims and bumpers of the large 4WDs and people-movers in your shopping centre and you'll see what I mean.So the first hurdle we placed before Mazda's CX-9 was what we call the Westfield test.To ensure the test is conducted under real-world conditions, I load my two children, aged two and five, and tackle the Westfield shopping centre at Burwood at peak time.Seldom have I not suffered damage here. Fortunately, with the exception of the Touareg, this damage has been confined to my central nervous system.At least I'm safe in the knowledge that, should there be an accident, it will be at such low speed the CX-9's vast array of safety features — the increasingly standard alphabet of acronyms — won't be troubled.The CX-9 comes with roll-stability control, traction control, dynamic stability control, anti-lock brakes, electronic brake-force distribution and emergency brake assist.These are combined with enough airbags to engulf you if the accident's bad enough. Unsurprisingly, the CX-9 won Mazda's first five-star rating in US front and side impact testing.Having put a procession of people-movers and larger SUVs — the Touareg, the Honda Odyssey, the Mitsubishi Grandis, the Ford Territory, the Subaru Tribeca, the Chrysler Voyager, BMW's X5, the Nissan Patrol and others — through the Westfield test I know there are three areas where they get caught out.The first test is the sharp entry/exit corners. Despite a couple of anxious moments, the CX-9, with its largish 11.4m turning circle, got in and out without losing bark.Still, it required full concentration and there was little margin for error.Parking a behemoth that's more than 5m long, 1.7m high and 1.9m wide is another matter.The standard-fit reversing camera made this a painless exercise; all manufacturers of vehicles this size should make it a fixture.After a couple of weeks behind the wheel of the CX-9, I'd become used to the dimensions and found it fairly easy to park — but you can't get away from the fact it's a very large vehicle that pretty much fills a standard parking bay.How are Americans, most of whom seem to own sleds of this size, able to open their doors and actually get out?The big Mazda (it tips the scales at around two tonnes) also passed the third test with aplomb.Tailgates that open vertically are great for loading bulky packages, but less so when the paintwork is damaged after belting into the low concrete roof of a car park.This is a genuine problem with tall vehicles, but although the CX-9's hatch lifts above the rounded roofline, it stopped well clear of the 2.5m concrete ceiling.Having passed the Westfield test, the CX-9 also proved class-leading on the open road.Its 3.7-litre V6 pumps out 204kW, making it Mazda's most powerful vehicle yet. It has enough herbs to get away from the lights at a good clip; Mazda claims it will hit 100km/h in 8.5seconds, although that would be contingent on really planting the foot, especially with seven people aboard.On a drive through the winding roads of the Royal National Park, the CX-7 lived up to Mazda's zoom-zoom catchphrase and had genuinely car-like handling.The all-wheel-drive set-up teams well with the six-speed “Activematic” gearbox, and the steering becomes much firmer as you pick up speed.This get-up-and-go comes at a price, and the CX-9 likes a good drink of fuel.The claimed 13litres/100km consumption figure is optimistic. Anyone who drives mostly around town and can achieve this figure would make a monk appear extravagant.Then again, anybody who needs a seven-seater family car and can stump up the cash for the CX-9 is unlikely to baulk at the fuel bill.That's not to say the CX-9 is outlandishly priced — far from it, given the quality of its fit and finish, which approaches BMW standards.The starting price of $49,990 for the Classic is within a lot of budgets, and for $57,265 the Luxury version buys you leather trim, a mini-sunroof, powered and heated front seats and a 10-speaker Bose sound system.Visually, the CX-9 leaves its rivals well in its wake and clearly highlights just how much of a styling bungle Subaru made with its first version of the now-reworked Tribeca.But don't be fooled into thinking the CX-9 is merely a stretched version of the CX-7, as the bigger vehicle sits on a platform all of its own.The front seats and the three in the second row have an abundance of space, easily accommodating three adults in comfort. With the third row of seats folded, there's also an enormous amount of luggage space.Despite some clever trickery in access and egress, however, the third row of seats is best suited to smaller children (like most vehicles in this class, with the possible exception of Chrysler's Voyager).If, like me, you feel claustrophobic in a confined space, it's best not to go there.That small niggle aside, the CX-9 has raised the bar for people-movers and is truly a class-leading machine.