Mazda will introduce an upscale new 2-row SUV, the CX-70, based on the same platform as its new flagship CX-90 at the end of the month.
Mazdas Defy Easy Categorization
A bit of behind-the-scenes info from the automotive press: car critics constantly debate what to do with Mazda. To make comparisons simple, we tend to sort automakers into two categories: mainstream (sometimes called affordable, lately with tongue-in-cheek), and luxury.
But every binary has tough calls. Mazda argues for a third category. Something in-between.
Mazda vehicles often share some traits, but not all traits, with luxury cars. But they’re priced like their mainstream competitors.
This One Will Resemble Another Rule-Breaker
No car makes this point stronger than the relatively new Mazda CX-90. A 3-row SUV with upscale looks, it reads, on paper, like something out of BMW or Mercedes. It uses a turbocharged inline 6-cylinder engine. That’s a rare type outside the luxury classes but fairly common to expensive European cars. Its all-wheel-drive (AWD) system is biased toward the rear in everyday driving -– a step that makes a car sportier but adds complexity Honda or Toyota rarely bothers with.
It boasts a surprisingly crafted interior, too, with unique touches like wide-grain wood trim and artistic stitching.
Driving it, the CX-90 doesn’t feel like a competitor to luxury cars. It doesn’t quite match their polish and poise. But it doesn’t exactly feel like a rival to a Chevy Traverse, either.
The best Mazda products are something like the fittest athlete in your local gym. No, she’s not headed for the Olympics in track and would be embarrassed by the pros who are. But you aren’t going to race her, are you?
Many Mazda vehicles are priced near the top of the mainstream market for their segment but more affordably than luxury cars. It’s a unique sort of ‘tweener. Automotive journalists sometimes ask whether we should create a category between mainstream and luxury – call it upscale – for Mazda and perhaps a few GMC and Buick products. At the end of the day, there aren’t enough of them to justify it.
But there will soon be one more.
Two-Row Midsize Version Coming Soon
A Mazda site aimed at the Canadian market spilled the news first, announcing that the brand will unveil the Mazda CX-70 on Jan. 30.
We expect the CX-70 to be, essentially, a 2-row version of the CX-90. Mazda sells a similar vehicle in Europe under the name CX-60 (pictured above). It will likely share the same powertrain choices – two inline-6 engines rated at 280 and 340 horsepower. The CX-90 also comes as a plug-in hybrid, making 323 hp and traveling up to 26 miles on battery alone.
We expect a similar level of polish, too. The combination should instantly make it one of the most intriguing midsize SUVs on the market.
Pricing, of course, will determine whether it’s truly an option for buyers looking at Honda Passport and Ford Explorer SUVs. And critics will determine that that’s its competitive set… maybe.
