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2007 Mazda CX-9 Preview

Mazda Goes into SUV Mode with New CX-9

At this years New York International Auto Show, Japanese automaker Mazda introduced an all-new sports utility vehicle called the CX-9. Its the third new production vehicle that Mazda will be launching for 2007, and its the second SUV that will be launched this year. After launching the CX-7 crossover this past January at the NAIAS, putting the Ford Escape-based Tribute on hold, the CX-9 is the latest product to expand Mazdas ever-growing range, its clear that Mazda is trying to get a stiff foothold on the SUV segment. The CX-9 takes the similar driver-oriented theme of the car-based CX-7, but in an enlarged physical form for

Does it look like a new CX-7? Any similarity to Mazdas smaller ute was purely intentional. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

improved practicality and family friendliness, offering seating for seven.

The CX-9 was designed primarily for the North American marketplace; like the CX-7, to make it stand out in this SUV-saturated playing field, Mazda chose to give the exterior dramatic styling, replacing boxy corners with sleek, swooping lines. One look at

Side-by-side, its easy to see the size difference between Mazdas two SUVs. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

the CX-9 and you can tell that Mazdas designers tried to make a direct visual link to the CX-7. Its profile and shape are surprisingly similar to the CX-7, but its body is smoother, adorned with fewer bulges and muscular curves. The angle at which the windshield is set is also more vertical than that of the CX-7, while the details that fill in the nose and the tail - headlamps, taillamps, grille, and even exhaust tips - seem to be more reserved in

Mazda went extra lengths to give the CX-9 an upscale appearance. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

style. As the CX-9 was designed to be a road-going SUV, with zero intentions of being able to go off-road, it has a low ride height in order to improve stability, road-biased tires to improve grip, and no off-roading gear to weigh it down.

Because the CX-9 is aimed at a more matured audience than most other Mazda products, it is dressed to give a good first impression. Mazda wants to market it as an upscale product, and has paid good attention to detail on the exterior, which features such premium-like features as chrome-plated window sills,

Enough space? (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

chrome door handles, mirrors with integrated turn signals, and highly stylized head lights and tail lights, not to mention 18-inch diameter alloy wheels as standard equipment, and 20-inchers as an upgrade option. A rearview camera for reverse parking, automatic HID headlamps, rain-sensing windshield wipers, power heated memory leather seats, as well as a one-touch open and close mechanism for the tailgate are two of the high-end luxury options, normally found on prestige vehicles, available on the CX-9.
Overall, the CX-9 is 199.6 inches long, 76.2 inches wide and 68.1 inches tall with 18-inch wheels, and has a 113.2-inch wheelbase, which

Larger families will appreciate the flexible seating. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

should be more than sufficient for providing comfort in each of its three rows of seats. Unlike most seven-seater SUVs, once the third row has been erected, theres normally little by the way of room for cargo volume; not so with the CX-9, which maintains 17.2 cu-ft of volume, even in this configuration.

Mazda has also made sure to make entry and exit of the CX-9 as easy as possible, as complicated and fussy third-row access is one of the major issues that most owners have with this class of vehicle. Mazdas system allows for the second row seat to slide, fold and tumble with one easy movement, using just one hand. Both the third and second row seats are capable of folding flat into the floor; the third row has a 50:50

High style and high quality should attract entry-level premium buyers. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

split-fold, while the second row is configured in a 40:60 split.

Like the exterior, the inside of the CX-9 can be described as similar to the CX-7; sporty, but classy and luxurious. The CX-9 has a T-shaped dashboard that puts the main controls from the center console within close reach of the driver. The instruments are akin to those in the CX-7, with blacked-out gauges, indirectly illuminated with blue LEDs. Mazda strived to make the cabin of the CX-9 its best interior to date, promising plenty of soft-touch plastics, high-quality materials, unique trim accents, and warm-looking ambient lighting.

As the CX-9 is targets a different audience than the sporty CX-7, it wont be featuring the same turbocharged, direct-injection inline-four engine. Instead, the CX-9 strives to promote a driving

New 250-hp 3.5L V6 should provide ample power thanks to its new six-speed automatic transmission. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

experience that is more relaxed through a smooth and torquey 3.5-liter MZI V6 engine, which makes its Mazda debut in this car. While Mazda hasnt said anything about the source or the development of the engine, it only makes sense that it comes from Ford Motor Companys Ford Edge/Lincoln MKX crossover and Lincoln MKZ midsize luxury sedan. In the description, Mazda boasts about many of the same technologies that the Ford 3.5-liter engine incorporates, such as variable valve timing and electronic throttle control, and, like the Ford engine, has a preliminary power rating of 250 horsepower, though torque has been estimated at 240 lb-ft. The only gearbox available to the CX-9 is a six-speed automatic with a manual mode available. Again, Fords 3.5 is also mated to a new six-speed auto, developed in-house at its Dearborn R&D center, unlike the six-speed used in the Fusion and Mazda6 sedans, which is sourced

Now thats a nice looking SUV. (Photo: Mazda Motor of America)

from Aisin of Japan. Buyers of the CX-9 can purchase it in either front-wheel drive guise for improved fuel economy, or with all-wheel drive. The system is the same one used in the Mazdaspeed6 and CX-7, featuring an electronically-controlled torque-sensing system that is capable of directing up to 50-percent of power to the rear wheels.

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