My Volvo, from pictures only is borderline Totaled. Pending disassembly at the body shop.

Looking at replacements.

The CX50 2.5 Turbo Premium Plus AWD is on my list. NEW, not used.

Any recent experience with Mazda?

We have a top of the line CX5 and I bought that specifically because it is built in Japan. We love it and it is my wife's vehicle. I work for Cadillac indirectly and have a Cadillac for my car. I really am impressed with the build quality and features without being crazy money. I thought about the CX50 and with the 5 being built in Japan, that sealed the deal. I would not hesitate to buy a CX50 after my experience with the 5 and think you will be happy with it.
I have been in the automotive business for 30 years so I have a lot of experience with many of the manufacturers over the years.

I had a 2015 CX-5 for 11 years and had not a single problem with anything in it.
The handling of Mazdas is awesome.j

Now, we have a 2025 CX-5 because of that experience.

In my opinion, they are great cars and a great value - you get a lot for the price.

I drove Volvos for 35 years before buying a Mazda. I won't buy another brand now.

The only negative, found in both cars, is a bit of an annoying rattle/buzz in the dashboard when accelerating from a stop.
Other than that, I think they are great.

You may have seen this already, but in case not -

https://www.edmunds.com/mazda/cx-5/

It's an interesting read as the CX-5 and CX-50 are very similar and they have high ratings with Edmunds.

Nice vehicles.

I have been considering a CX-50 for a while; I was given one as a loaner once when the CX-90 was getting a recall. Loved the steering, handling. It's lower and a little longer than the CX-5; more like a short station wagon. Car magazines rate it highly.
The CX-50, as I understand it, is made on the same assembly line as Toyota RAV-4's. In fact the new CX-50 Hybrid, just out recently, uses the RAV-4 engine and drivetrain and hybrid system. This hybrid is less expensive than the Turbo gas model. But the turbo model--according to reviews--is quicker, not as noisy, probably feels more upscale.
IMO it's a good looking, good handling car; it's a crossover, not really an off-road SUV although they pretend it's intended for some off-roading.

I was standing in line for a hybrid CX-50 almost a year ago. At the time, the local dealers had an additional mark-up since they were just beginning to be released. Those days should be over. I did test drive one and tried to get comfy in the showroom with another, but the roof/door frame height and shape was awkward for me. Bumped my head at every attempt to enter or exit. Check on that factor for livability.

Went with the CX-5 instead. No problems in eight months. I really liked how the CX-50 hybrid drove though.

Very positive comments! Thanks. It will help me make a decision if my Volvo is totaled.

When my 1999 Mercedes ML-320 finally bit the dust, 2024, I took a look at the CX-5 and CX-50. We already owned a 2016 and a 2022 CX-5.

The CX-5 was being marketed as the more rugged model with the ability to go off-road...more ground clearance. The CX-50 was the more urban model and rode slightly lower.

I thought the CX-5 handled better and more true to the "Mazda feel" while the CX-50 had a more high end feel to the interior.

I settled on a CX-30 Turbo since we already had two CX-5s in the family. I shares the same turbo engine that is in the CX-5...it's really more a slightly taller "hot hatch" than a CSUV

I drove a CX5 as a rental for nearly a month while the Jeep was at the dealership. Overall I really liked it with the exception of two things-

You can't use the screen as a touch screen while in motion. The knob thing you can probably get used to but I don't want to honestly.

The driver assist systems feel a generation behind the other stuff. Blind spot monitoring triggers if you drive near a wall, adaptive cruise is a bit clunky. But honestly none of that is enough to keep me from seriously looking at one if I were in the market for a small SUV.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeNH:
I drove a CX5 as a rental for nearly a month while the Jeep was at the dealership. Overall I really liked it with the exception of two things-

You can't use the screen as a touch screen while in motion. The knob thing you can probably get used to but I don't want to honestly.

The driver assist systems feel a generation behind the other stuff. Blind spot monitoring triggers if you drive near a wall, adaptive cruise is a bit clunky. But honestly none of that is enough to keep me from seriously looking at one if I were in the market for a small SUV.

What year? I just got my second daughter a CX-5, her older sister also got a cx-5. After test driving them, I loved them, great driving car and excellent value for the money. There is a menu item a little buried in the touchscreen,that once a phone is connected, you scroll into the settings under car play or something and check the box that says "allow touchscreen while driving". Extremely simple and took me like 1 minute to get it to work. There are many youtube videos on it.

I've got a CX-30 with the turbo engine from the CX-50, and my only legitimate complaint about the car is the 6 speed auto. It's a smooth transmission, but it's also a slow transmission. If you're in stop and go traffic, putting it in sport mode will keep you from tearing you hair out.

That's it.

I'll say this for it: it has tasteful styling. No front end looking like a fusion of the Predator movie character and a largemouth bass.

quote:

Originally posted by DanH:
I've got a CX-30 with the turbo engine from the CX-50, and my only legitimate complaint about the car is the 6 speed auto. It's a smooth transmission, but it's also a slow transmission. If you're in stop and go traffic, putting it in sport mode will keep you from tearing you hair out.

I found the paddle shifters in my 2024 CX-30 Turbo gave pretty good control of gear ratios while going up the Grapevine last month...completely forgot about flipping the switch to go into Sport mode

I’ve owned 3 Mazdas. The cars have been trouble free but the paint has just sucked. Apparently they don’t undercoat and the top coats are either too hard or too soft. My last one was a black Mazda 3 that took a lot of Dr. Colorchip before I sold it. Maybe things have changed since 2015.

The Mazda CX-5 and CX-50 are also on my list of possible new cars this year and this is what I’ve been able to research so far about the CX-50:

-Does NOT have an independent rear suspension, only a torsion beam setup so handling will not be as good as one with independent rear suspension like the competition: Forrester, CX-5, RAV4, CRV etc

-American built so build quality and fit/finish may not be as good as the Japanese built vehicles in its class

-Reviews say it’s not as “fun” to drive as the CX-5 and handling is not as good either

-This is just me but the vehicle looks great from some angles but downright weird from others. It’s definitely uniquely shaped and not so jellybean-on-wheels like as most SUV’s.

Claims adjuster has forwarded the findings to the TOTAL LOSS Department. I have not been informed of dollar value assigned yet. Lawyer is primed and on standby.

Local Mazda dealer found exactly what I want, having to transfer in from out of state. I have a copy of the window sticker. I didn't have to comprimise on anything. Pictures when I bring it home next week. It's red.

quote:

Originally posted by Johnny 3eagles:
It's red.

Sweet. Mazda's Soul Red is the best looking red car paint color on the market, hands down.

Just know that it's notoriously fragile, and complex to fix/touch up.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
Sweet. Mazda's Soul Red is the best looking red car paint color on the market, hands down.

Yes, it is!

I spent several weeks researching and looking at cars this spring before narrowing to the CX-5, the CX-50, and the Honda CR-V.

PASig's comments above matched my findings and I liked the drive on the CX-5 so I settled on a 2024 CX-5 Premium (rather than the Premium Plus that I wanted). I wanted the White or the Soul Red Metallic. I had trouble finding the white and Mrs. ST didn't like the red (claiming she'd get too many speeding tickets in it), so I ended up with the Machine Gray Metallic. Over about 4K miles since June, I'm really liking it.

Here is a link from back when my wife and I were looking at Mazda.
There is some good information, hopefully it helps.
https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...935/m/1590035405/p/1

Here are some links to other questions people had.
https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...210064605#4210064605

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...935/m/6200050015/p/1