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Mazda CX-50 Review

Consumer Reviews for the Mazda CX-50

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  • 2
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Know what you want and you won't be disappointed.

Braden, 09/22/2024
2025 Mazda CX-50 2.5 S Premium 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
Mazda isn’t a luxury brand. Its four-cylinder engines aren’t racers. A vehicle like this—in this price range with the above-mentioned caveats—isn’t going to introduce a new paradigm in any single automotive category. The CX-50 takes everything that every other manufacturer has already done with smaller-sized crossover SUVs for two decades now, distills them down to their desired … functions, separates the chaff, then weaves it all back together with only the positive aspects remaining—and it manages to sell it for under $40k. I love my CX-50. I won’t pretend to be an objective auto-guru giving you my professional, dispassionate opinion. I had my last vehicle for 14 years and have been saving and searching for a replacement for the last five. I had a big list of five-seater SUVs I spent months researching and paring down. The CX-50 was at the top. There’s many reasons for that: The cost — I bought a brand new Premium model. $35k. You can get a lower trim for less, or a Turbo for more if you want the extra power. I struggled with the Turbo desire. Even though I don’t have one, I’m not upset after the time I’ve spent with mine. The safety — Check the NTSB reports and videos yourself. It’s phenomenal. The comfort — Premium trims and below come with 17” wheels instead of larger. These wheels combined with the higher suspension make for a stable ride without removing the feel of being connected to the road. Some want none of that feel, and that’s fair. I’m not like that. I need to feel what and how I’m riding. This vehicle allows that without making it uncomfortable. The interior seats and positions make it easy to enjoy the ride. The driver and passenger seats are bucket-style, my favorite. Being a small-not-mini cSUV, the seats may seem narrower than some might like—curved on each side, the actual space to "sink" into is more limited than it first appears. If you’re a bulkier person, you may want more room. But I’m skinny (and tall, yet I’ve never felt vertically cramped), and the seats provide me ample room and cradle my frame very naturally. Despite the Premium trim not sporting the premium leather that I've been used to for years now—they're a combo of synthetic leather and fabric weaved vertically down the center—I haven't felt a moment of discomfort, even on long drives. Most (maybe all?) trims feature power lumbar support, too, and that significantly increases the number of viable seat-and-back positions for your chair. I'm excited to try the seat warmers this winter, too, which will be a first for me. I will level some criticism at the placement of the front seat cup holders, though. You do get the option of holders placed in both the front driver and passenger doors, but your primary cup holders are located right under the dashboard instrument panel—directly in front of the shifter, tucked into a nook-like space. My initial fear was that it would be possible to easily nudge the shifter when you very much don't want to, which turned out to be overblown. But if you step out of your car and reach back in to take your cup of coffee with you, prepare to lean over the console awkwardly and then cautiously weave your arm (and coffee!) backwards to avoid snagging the steering wheel. It's a minor complaint, but one I deal with typically at least twice a day. The power — It’s a four-cylinder engine. This is why I say “know what you want” in the title. You’re not gonna win drag races (unless maybe you splurge for the Turbo), so if that’s your thing then look elsewhere. But it DOES have the giddy-up I need to feel safe overtaking and entering busy intersections and freeways. Unlike many fours, Mazda’s Skyactiv engine is naturally aspirated, drawing more power from ambient airflow, and combines it with a very active cylinder shutoff strategy that compensates for the more aggressive use of fuel, maintaining a balance of power with satisfactory fuel economy (but in 2025, the combined 28mpg average is admittedly leaning more to the lower end of acceptable). The tach kicks up higher than I expected, but nowhere near the redline. The actual output surprised me; it reaches 0-60 in 8 seconds, better than the spec sheet claims. I honestly expected weaker. Bonus! I also want to give special attention to Mazda's decision to include multiple drive modes that can be toggled on-the-fly with the MiDrive switch: Normal keeps the above-mentioned balance of responsiveness and fuel economy, Off-road appropriately summons the U in the SUV moniker and allows this vehicle a very satisfying drive experience on backroads and in inclement weather, and Sport mode (which I guess invokes the S?) keeps the engine running at a higher RPM to allow for more active shifting and decreases the latency between the clutch and the shift input. Plus, you have the option of manually controlling the gears with a simple lean of the shifter to the left; suddenly you're driving a standard without the clutch! (Or more accurately, you're getting about 65% of the manual transmission experience since you don't have to downshift.) The manual control significantly increases the control I have over the vehicle—but only when I want it. The tech — Lots of driver-assist features, but a lot of them feel like more basic versions of advanced systems other higher-tier vehicles offer. They’re still useful, though I don’t really feel that I “need” them. However, the Infotainment interface is wonderful! The screen IS touch-capable, but I hate touchscreens in cars, and Mazda offers Commander control knobs within arms’ reach of the center console. Adapting to them only took a couple hours, and I have touched the screen one time since first setup. I LOVE the Commander knobs and dials so much, and I know others don’t like them despite not giving them a chance. Give them a chance! They’re game-changers! The only tech I would advise on is the radar cruise control: It’s nice to have it and works well as long as you keep an active eye on it during drives with traffic that tends to exit in both directions frequently, and on stretches of hilly terrain. The CC attempts to maintain your set speed VERY aggressively and will suddenly drop you into the lowest gear that approaches the redline too closely for my taste. The reliability — It’s a Mazda. It’s reliable. They make cars knowing many of their drivers are “spirited” in their journeys. They’re even giving Toyota a run for their reliability rating money. And with the recent rocket in sales of Mazda’s CX-series of vehicles, there will be parts and knowledge a’plenty out in the wild. The 50 is, admittedly, a newer model for Mazda, the first model releasing just three years ago, so really only time will tell how durable it is. But it's reassuring to know that the broader engineering platform of this vehicle exists in many other forms across other Mazda models with a longer tenure on the road. Are there better vehicles? Yes, obviously—in every category. But for this price point? I would argue no. I was never gonna find anything else that met (and then surprisingly surpassed) my expectations for under $40k. And I expected quite a bit. I’m getting everything I bargained for, and after four vehicles through my life, this is finally the first one I’ve actually been consistently excited to drive day in and day out.
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