It feels like every week for as long as I’ve been writing about cars, someone’s asked me what new compact crossover they should buy. The answer, if they didn’t want or need hybrid efficiency, was almost always a Mazda CX-5. Throughout its first two generations, it’s been nicer than a Toyota RAV4, a bit less expensive than a Toyota RAV4, and carried a remarkably solid track record of reliability. With frequent incentives and subvented financing, it was where the smart money went. For these reasons, and my recommendation, there are now five CX-5s in my extended family. If you put your granddad and multiple aunts in essentially the same car, it had better be good. Otherwise, it’s your head on the line, and they’ll bring up gripes every Thanksgiving. So far, so good, but for the third-generation model, though, things have changed slightly.
The CX-5 still uses the same proven powertrain as before, and it’s roomier than ever, but a series of decisions have cheapened the model and made many secondary controls more difficult to operate. Is it still shortlistable? Definitely. But is it something I’d recommend to just go ahead and buy? Not anymore. Let’s get into why.
[Full disclosure: I tested this Mazda CX-5 as part of pre-voting proceedings for Canadian Car of the Year voting, a process that I’m deeply involved in. I’m on the board of directors for the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada which facilitates Canadian Car of the Year, along with the Canadian Car of the Year committee, and I want to disclose this in full transparency to give context to the day of testing cars I took part in. The vehicle itself was supplied by Mazda Canada, but the opinions expressed here are purely my own. Plus, I drove up to the test day and paid for my own fuel to get there.]
The Basics
Engine: 2.5-liter naturally aspirated twin-cam inline-four.
Transmission: Six-speed conventional automatic.
Drive: Full-time all-wheel-drive.
Output: 187 horsepower at 6,000 RPM, 186 lb.-ft. at 4,000 RPM.
Curb Weight: 3,856 pounds (1,749 kg).
Fuel Economy: 24 MPG city, 30 MPG highway, 26 MPG combined (9.9 L/100km city, 7.9 L/100km highway, 9.0 L/100km combined).
Fuel Grade: Regular 87-octane.
Base Price: $31,585 including freight ($39,290 in Canada).
Price As-Tested: $41,180 including freight ($50,190 in Canada).
Why Does It Exist?
The compact crossover is now simply the default shape for a car, and for the past 14 years, Mazda has campaigned in this red-hot segment with a model known as the CX-5. Now in its third generation for 2026, it’s still taking direct aim at models like the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage, Subaru Forester, Volkswagen Tiguan, Nissan Rogue, Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain, Ford Bronco Sport … you get the picture.
How Does It Look?
If the new Mazda CX-5 looks bulkier than the old one, that’s because it is. To meet demands for extra space, Mazda’s stretched the wheelbase and overall length by 4.5 inches, widened the body by eight-tenths of an inch, increased overall length by 5.5 inches, and raised the silhouette by six-tenths of an inch. The end result from a visual standpoint is more surfacing to fill, and Mazda’s trying something new.
A smaller shield-shaped grille sits within a wider outer bezel that joins both of the L-shaped headlights. The front valence has been stretched out by additional detailing, the wheel arch trims now feature little bumps to break up their semi-circularity, and a diagonal character line on each front door adds a fin-shaped surface that attempts to cheat the dash-to-axle ratio. Around back, a more upright hatch features a Mazda wordmark instead of the brand’s logo. Add it all up, and it’s not quite as sharp as the looks of the old model, but still one of the better-looking compact crossovers on sale.
What About The Interior?
Slide behind the wheel of the new CX-5, and in typical Mazda fashion, you’ll be greeted by a mix of largely nice materials. Stitched textiles across the dashboard and door cards, satin accents on the air vents and center console, matte plastics instead of high-gloss surfaces, and wonderfully smooth leather on the steering wheel and shift knob. However, there’s a whiff of cost-cutting compared to the previous generation model. The tops of the door cards are no longer clad in the same soft-touch material, for instance. Still, a split console armrest is an unusual luxury for this class of car, the front seats are properly comfortable, and there’s more headroom on tap than in any CX-5 before.
Moving to the rear seat, it’s a mixed bag. On the one hand, there’s more room back here than ever, and the optional panoramic moonroof really lets some extra light into the cabin. On the other hand, the squab for the middle seat is rock-hard and was already displaying some quality control concerns on my low-mileage production-spec test car. The leather had gone all lumpy, feeling as if it was actually separating from its backing material.
Speaking of separation, the build quality of the A-pillar tweeter pods really doesn’t inspire confidence. Not only do they fit poorly within the jamb, but the fascia of the driver’s side assembly isn’t held to the back panel particularly well. This can result in the unsightly panel gap seen in the photo above, and a relative lack of solidity means trying to clip it back down is best done with a light touch, and it may still not sit properly. Is this a minor detail in the grand scheme of things? Sure, but I haven’t seen this issue on any other model of compact crossover, and how these assemblies fare in the long term is anyone’s guess at this point.
On the other hand, you do get an extra 4.6 cu.-ft. of cargo volume with the seats up compared to the old CX-5, with the new figure clocking in at 33.7 cu.-ft. which is a few cubic feet less than a RAV4 but several cu.-ft. more than in a Subaru Forester. A 40:20:40 split-folding rear seat facilitates through-loading of long items even with four occupants aboard, and a flush load lip makes sliding cargo in and out a breeze.
How Does It Drive?
Mercifully, Mazda’s sticking with what it knows under the hood of the new CX-5. While rivals like the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, and Volkswagen Tiguan offer brawnier standard engines than the CX-5’s 186-horsepower naturally aspirated 2.5-liter unit, this familiar inline-four has a fairly solid track record of reliability and comes hitched to a well-programmed conventional six-speed automatic. It might not be the most efficient powertrain on the market or imbue the CX-5 with particularly swift acceleration, but it’s plenty refined enough and should soldier on for the long haul. Figure zero-to-60 MPH in a shade over eight seconds.
As for ride and handling, this is where the CX-5 excels. The spring and damper tuning’s beautifully judged, offering excellent control without coming across as harsh. Accurate, natural, beautifully-weighted steering makes placement on the road a cinch, and there’s real confidence when the road gets bendy. Mazda’s mainstream compact crossover is still the varsity athlete of the class, the deftest at managing its 3,856-pound curb weight while providing genuinely car-like handling. Even though “Zoom-Zoom” was more than a decade ago, some of that spirit clearly lives on in the chassis tuning department.
Does It Have The Electronic Crap I Want?
Yes and no. Load a CX-5 up to the gills and you’ll get just about every gizmo you could want in a compact crossover. Heated and ventilated power front seats, a heated steering wheel, a panoramic moonroof, a Bose sound system, a 360-degree camera system that even works with the mirrors folded, heated rear seats, leather upholstery, a programmable power liftgate, a front wiper de-icer, a head-up display, and a full brace of driver assistance features. However, to use a bunch of technology aboard, Mazda’s relying heavily on touchscreen infotainment, and here’s where the problems start. Not only does the screen house virtually all the climate controls, but it can be agonizingly laggy at times, even with the top-spec 15.6-inch display. This could be sidestepped with enough redundant controls, but real buttons are few and far between, making operation of secondary functions a hassle.
Let’s start with a simple task: Turning up (or down) the stereo volume. Mazda has included steering-wheel mounted audio controls, but they aren’t arranged optimally. I wear a size-large nitrile glove, but even still, it’s a stretch to the steering wheel-mounted volume switch. If you have smaller hands, you’ll probably go reaching for a volume knob somewhere in the center stack, only to find that Mazda’s left it off entirely.
Instead, the central volume control’s been relegated to the passenger side of the touchscreen’s bottom menu, and it’s not programmed particularly well. The virtual tile for volume is relatively small, and while the CX-5 lets you swipe to increase or decrease volume, the touch input isn’t damped adequately. It’s possible to crank the volume through moving your finger by mere millimeters, so if you go over a bump while adjusting the volume, it might end up absolutely blaring or completely silent. That’s annoying.
Guess what also ended up on the touchscreen? That’s right, controls for the heated seats and heated steering wheel, and not only are they in a sub-menu, but you’ll need fingers like cocktail sticks to touch the skinny little bar that brings up said sub-menu. Once you’re in the sub-menu, the virtual tiles for the heated seats and heated steering wheel are also minuscule, rendering the whole affair hopeless if you’re wearing (touchscreen-compatible) winter gloves.
Three Things To Know About The 2026 Mazda CX-5
- There’s no volume knob anymore.
- Parts of the infotainment are harder to use than the old knob-based system.
- It still drives wonderfully.
Does The 2026 Mazda CX-5 Fulfil Its Purpose?
Sort of. While it still features the same proven engine and gearbox as before, and it’s roomier than ever, obvious cost-cutting measures no longer make the Mazda CX-5 the non-hybrid sleeper of the compact crossover segment. Especially when, if you’re going for a mid-range-or-above model and can live with slightly less refined torsion beam rear suspension, you can walk across any Mazda showroom in America and buy a CX-50. It features either the same naturally-aspirated powertrain or a far punchier turbo motor, real buttons and knobs, nicer interior materials, and sharper styling. Better still, it’s price-competitive with the CX-5, meaning you can get a better car for not much more money.
In Canada, the situation’s more complicated. Tariffs sidelined the CX-50, leaving the new CX-5 as the sole Mazda compact crossover. If you want the best-handling model in its class, the CX-5 is still the one to have, but otherwise, this new decontented model faces some stiff competition. A Kia Sportage has far less fuss to its operation and comes with a ten-year warranty. A Toyota RAV4 has standard hybrid efficiency, a Mitsubishi Outlander feels like a weirdly smart bet for a non-hybrid model, a Volkswagen Tiguan is more richly appointed, a Subaru Forester rides oh-so-comfortably and has fantastic visibility, and that incoming next-generation Hyundai Tucson sure looks slick. It’s still worth driving a Mazda CX-5 to see if you can live with its annoyances, but when it comes to the second-most-expensive thing you’ll likely buy in your life behind a house, it shouldn’t annoy you. You deserve better for $50,190 as-tested.
What’s The Punctum Of The 2026 Mazda CX-5?
A real-life example of how solid fundamentals can be undermined by cost-cutting.
Top graphic image: Thomas Hundal
Damnit Mazda, “You were the chosen one!”
Mazda’s infotainment system peaked in the CX-90. I have no idea why they decided to immediately take this step backwards.