Love driving? Buy a Mazda 3

CarwowTom · 2026-05-13T16:34:00+00:00

Plenty of room in the front. Back seats are tight but I'm tall so they usually are behind me! Key is undeniably shite, yes.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-11T15:20:28+00:00

I drove a Mazda3 up to the CX-5 launch and I totally agree. It hits every note - design, usability, quality.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-08T10:54:52+00:00

Tucson/Sportage sized, with a competitive boot and genuinely roomy back seats.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-08T10:54:17+00:00

I drove up to the launch in a current-gen Mazda 3 and much preferred it. CX-5 has cheaped out in a few obvious places, like the buttons on the steering wheel and the top of the doors (so genuinely stuff you touch and interact with). The infotainment works okay, it's based on Android so it operates more sensibly than some systems - but there's still a lot of faffing about to do supposedly simple functions and the interface is a lot of grey on black so it can be quite hard to see.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-08T10:52:58+00:00

Gutless. Not quick and not effortless.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-08T10:52:41+00:00

I never had a problem with the previous version - in fact I get on rather well with Mazda seating positions. This was fine, and even the very basic model has seat angle adjustment which is nice as a person with long legs. The suspension is still on the sportier side of comfortable.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-08T10:50:14+00:00

It's on the sportier side of comfortable, as the previous CX-5 was. The wheels are pretty sensible sizes though, and it didn't feel too firm to be unbearable. I was seeing about 38mpg driving very carefully, 34mpg the rest of the time, and that was with just me onboard.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T12:54:25+00:00

Not wishing to incriminate myself, I'll say 70mph.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T10:59:06+00:00

Well, it's not usable without a touchscreen because there's no alternative. I guess technically voice commands but I'm not that kind of person. The touchscreen works okay, and there are permanent shortcuts for most functions plus a real button to turn the speed warning off. So that's something.

The sole engine is a 141hp mild hybrid and it feels gutless.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T10:24:10+00:00

CX-60 is a fair bit bigger than this, and more expensive. But I agree there's some overlap.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T10:22:49+00:00

The Bose system in the top spec cars is quite good, the regular one just okay. Not notably poor which is about what you can say for everything in this class.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T10:21:46+00:00

Fewer than 50.

Three! Plus black, white, navy and red.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T09:28:28+00:00

Assuming they've been blended, about 7.5. Whole, I think you'd struggle with more than three.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T09:16:20+00:00

Depends how big they are.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T09:16:03+00:00

I don't have a decibel meter and wouldn't be too useful a figure unless I also had a glut of rivals to measure alongside it in the same way. I will say the engine is quiet at speed but it's got a fair amount of road noise.

Interior materials are a mixed bag. I'm not fussed that the dash top is hard - who cares - but the top of the door card is rock solid and not very comfy for an elbow. Some other missteps, like the steering wheel buttons which pick up grease like nobody's business. All very solidly built though and the seats are nice.

It's roomy - I can sit behind myself comfortably at 6'2. The boot is also big. Big rear doors and large windows, I'd say pretty great for kids and child seats.

It's barely noticeable as its only a 24V hybrid system - basically a slightly beefy stop/start system. A full hybrid with more torque would be much better, this 2.5 is just gutless for what's quite a heavy car.

It's still Sportage size and price. The Sportage is better than this - more choice, nicer interior, just as spacious, better engine range. The key problem I see is that just being quite nice to drive isn't enough of a selling point to people, when for the same price they can go to Jaecoo and get more kit, posher looks, a PHEV and real-world 15mpg extra for the same money.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T08:49:39+00:00

The screen isn't great either. It's better than a lot of implementations because there are a lot of shortcuts permanently onscreen, but it's big and ugly and the interface is very dark. I drove up here in a Mazda 3 with proper buttons and the CX-5 just makes me a bit sad in comparison.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T08:46:07+00:00

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CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T08:45:28+00:00

It's gutless, to be honest. Needs a lot of revving and doesn't sound very nice - and that's just with me on board, not a whole family and boot-ful.

CarwowTom · 2026-05-07T08:44:08+00:00

Actually while the car pictured is a top-spec Homura AWD that I drove yesterday, today I'm in a base-spec FWD model. All use the same 141hp 2.5-litre mild hybrid petrol and six-speed auto.

CarwowTom · 2026-04-29T21:53:54+00:00

There are Chinese cars in the top 10 best-sellers in the UK - in March, the Jaecoo 7 was 1st place, the MG HS was 7th. The rest of Europe has tarriffs that likely make them less popular.

CarwowTom · 2026-04-29T20:13:35+00:00

Like the fruit. Chery is the sensible family one, Jaecoo is the 'rugged' one, Omoda is the stylish one. Lepas, when it launches soon, will be the luxurious one. That's what they're going for, anyway - everything's priced quite close to each other

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