RE: Mazda CX-7: Spotted
Discussion
PH article said:
the antidote to the family-spec car buying blues
This.At launch, this compact crossover offered most of the utility seen in other brands -- with athletic accents and a dollop of panache that almost nobody else had. By the end, Mazda had sold the better part of 200,000 units in the US (all petrol, no diesel offered).
From the team at Edmunds (similar to Parkers of the UK):
"...the CX-7 was designed to appeal to people who derive extra enjoyment from driving."
"... the CX-7's design was obviously inspired by the RX-8 and Miata. The stylish interior also reflects the Mazda CX-7's sporty aspirations."
"The sport-tuned chassis allows the CX-7 to remain stable in corners yet provides decent ride quality."
Buying JDM, arranging personal imports, or fitting Bilsteins and tunes to Subaru estates sounds right for the extreme enthusiast, but that's a niche play. Chalk and cheese, really.
Lots more people want / wanted something with a bit of sport, but greater emphasis on things like style, content, and comfort. And being a proper crossover, the CX-7 has the extra ride height that many find reassuring.
Regarding the school run: Most US children take the yellow bus to school. Mum may shuttle hers and her friends' kids around to afternoon and weekend activities. I'd say that the CX-7 is foremost a family car, with all-weather duties 24/7 including on long weekend getaways and annual holidays.
I had no idea that these existed until one popped up locally on Auto Trader. Early days yet, but so far I've been very impressed.
Good things:
Tall tyres do a great job of minimising potholes and speed bumps. The ride is very good, nicely firm without being back-breaking. Interior quality is good (black leather) and doesn't show it's age too much. Acceleration once up and running is very impressive, bearing in mind it's a big lump. Fantastic on the motorway. A lot of car for the money (I paid £4.2k for a ten year old one with 70k miles and full Mazda history). Anonymous.
Bad things:
Engine sounds meh, compared to a V8 X5 for example. Thirsty (trip computer showed 18mpg when I got it). Colour dependent (mines silver, looks much better in red or blue). It's much happier at motorway speeds than 30mph. Not as practical for carting kids as a Touran or S-Max. Anonymous.
I was really struggling to know what to replace my Touran with, so this ticked all the boxes nicely. I also looked at X5's, and whilst the interior and engine were a lot nicer, they were much, much leggier for the same money, and dare I say it slightly less classy than the Mazda.
Good things:
Tall tyres do a great job of minimising potholes and speed bumps. The ride is very good, nicely firm without being back-breaking. Interior quality is good (black leather) and doesn't show it's age too much. Acceleration once up and running is very impressive, bearing in mind it's a big lump. Fantastic on the motorway. A lot of car for the money (I paid £4.2k for a ten year old one with 70k miles and full Mazda history). Anonymous.
Bad things:
Engine sounds meh, compared to a V8 X5 for example. Thirsty (trip computer showed 18mpg when I got it). Colour dependent (mines silver, looks much better in red or blue). It's much happier at motorway speeds than 30mph. Not as practical for carting kids as a Touran or S-Max. Anonymous.
I was really struggling to know what to replace my Touran with, so this ticked all the boxes nicely. I also looked at X5's, and whilst the interior and engine were a lot nicer, they were much, much leggier for the same money, and dare I say it slightly less classy than the Mazda.
captain_cynic said:
Toyoda said:
rtz62 said:
If this is the same engine as the MPS models, aren’t they known to have problems with stretching or failing timing chains?
Indeed, it's very unlikely to be a trouble free purchase.My sister has one in Australia, they're sluggish and unwieldy due to their weight and high COG. As others have mentioned, better off getting the Subaru Legacy if you want faster shopping and school runs.
I drove one of these regularly for 3 years and had it to myself for the last year I quite liked it
For the following
1. Very comfortable but easy to place never felt that big
2. Quickish- felt close to quick as the golf gti from the same era
3. 30,000 Miles zero problems
4. Gear change always slick - Mazda usually get this right
5. Steering wheel not over rhimmed
6. Great stereo
7. No rattles
8. Trip computer average 27 mpg which I don’t think is so bad (I have an xkr now so perhaps I am biased)
If anyone has driven an evoque recently as I have I would say it was a superior drive to that just felt more planted and
For the following
1. Very comfortable but easy to place never felt that big
2. Quickish- felt close to quick as the golf gti from the same era
3. 30,000 Miles zero problems
4. Gear change always slick - Mazda usually get this right
5. Steering wheel not over rhimmed
6. Great stereo
7. No rattles
8. Trip computer average 27 mpg which I don’t think is so bad (I have an xkr now so perhaps I am biased)
If anyone has driven an evoque recently as I have I would say it was a superior drive to that just felt more planted and
TurboHatchback said:
No appeal here at all. I'd buy a 6 MPS instead, there you get the engine and drivetrain but without the tall wobbly ugly mummy bus body.
This. Which is what we did when child #2 came along and made the RX-8 somewhat less than practical.
I utterly hate the rise of the "Compact SUV" and Crossover. Do not want a tall wobbly ugly mummy bus...and neither does my wife.
rodericb said:
These would have been pretty exxy in Indo when new yeah? Imported so it would have copped that ~100% import duty.
Not at all, under 3 litres and a 4/5 seater so no ridiculous taxes.Difficult to do a comparison right now as the UK market doesn't have a CX-7 available new on the Mazda website, but I can compare the CX-5.
Cheapest automatic CX-5 in the UK is the 150 hp diesel at £27k. Petrol only comes in manual guise with165 hp at £24k
Price on the road in Jakarta - Petrol only 2.5 litre, 190 hp guise, and only available in Automatic is £27k
Fairly comparable I would suggest perhaps even cheaper if you could match the specs.
However, MX5-RF with 160 hp engine is £40k here vs £23k in the UK!
Some gems from the people at Parkers:
"...the CX-7 is a real rival to the BMW X3 when it comes to driving pleasure on the road."
"...feels like a sporty saloon rather than a 4x4 with responsive steering and excellent body control."
"It certainly looks distinctive and more athletic than traditional off roaders while the 260bhp petrol engine (borrowed from the high performance Mazda 6 MPS) gives it the performance to back-up those good looks."
"...huge space with and without the seats down and obviously the active 4WD..."
"...the CX-7 is a real rival to the BMW X3 when it comes to driving pleasure on the road."
"...feels like a sporty saloon rather than a 4x4 with responsive steering and excellent body control."
"It certainly looks distinctive and more athletic than traditional off roaders while the 260bhp petrol engine (borrowed from the high performance Mazda 6 MPS) gives it the performance to back-up those good looks."
"...huge space with and without the seats down and obviously the active 4WD..."
Wildcat45 said:
Anyone got experienced the CX-9?
It never came to the UK. It would have been on my list as a CX-7 replacement.
CX-9 is much larger than the CX-7. The closest Mazda replacement for the CX-7 would be the CX-5, size wise. The CX-5 doesn't have the snot that the CX-7 did so they're reasonably different performance wise. CX-9 is more a people carrier type of thing from that era where they were styling them to look more like large station wagons. They're just over five metres long and near two metres wide. The first generation had a Ford V6, the second generation (2016 on) running a turbo Mazda Sky-Active G four-banger.It never came to the UK. It would have been on my list as a CX-7 replacement.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff