Mazda CX-5 Takami 2019 Car Review

The Mazda CX-5 has matured significantly since the previous generation. This top-spec model features a high-quality premium interior; the CX-5 greets you with sumptuous Nappa leather heated (and cooled) electric seats, which are very comfy and offer great support.

From the outside, the car doesn’t look much different from the lower-spec CX-5, with the only obvious difference being the Takami’s large high-gloss alloy wheels that set it apart from the cheaper variants.

The interior is peppered with satin chrome metal embellishers, as well as carefully placed dark wood inserts which help make the interior a very refined place to be.

The premium Bose sound system is impressive thanks to a beefy 249 watt amplifier that powers a ten speaker system. It also boasts Apple CarPlay and Android Auto from the get go, which means connecting your smartphone is a piece of cake. You can control the infotainment via a familiar click wheel or touch screen, but it’s a bit of a let-down when you realise you’re only getting a 7- inch display – we expected more considering the competition in this category.

Space wise, the CX-5 is reasonable at 455 litres, but it’s not the largest in this segment, falling behind the likes of the Toyota RAV4 by 87 litres. However, dropping the back seats flat improves things to the tune of 1,355 litres.

Considering this is the top-end model of the CX-5, the ride was much firmer than expected, which was most notable at motorway speeds on uneven surfaces, of which Auckland has plenty.

The engine really does elevate this vehicle to new heights thanks to its SKYACTIV-G 2.5l turbo engine with Mazda’s stop-start technology ‘i-stop’. The engine develops 170kW @ 5,000 RPM and 420Nm @ 2,000 rpm, this is a huge leap forward compared to the mid-level 2.5l CX-5 which only receives 252Nm at 4000 RPM.

The engine is mated with a solid, conventional six-speed automatic transmission with a sports mode that maximises the power output – and you have the confidence to use it thanks to the AWD system keeping you composed on the road.

The CX-5 embodies Mazda’s Kodo design which poses the idea of a vehicle being a living creature and attempts to recreate the traditional bond between that of a horse and its rider. By riding in the CX-5 Takami we can definitely understand this relationship between man and machine by either trotting through tight city car parks, or galloping onto the motorway with the powerful four cylinder engine which produces 228 horses.

Safety systems

• Lane Keep Assist (LAS)
• Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) 
• Smart Brake Support (SBS)
• Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA)
• Emergency Stop Signal (ESS)
• Driver Attention Alert (DAA)
• Advanced Smart City Brake Support Forward/Reverse (ASCBS-F/R)
• Forward Obstruction Warning (FOW)