The second-generation Mazda CX-9 has been a success story for the Japanese automaker. Mazda’s 3-row crossover is spacious, posh looking, and has received a wide range of accolades since its introduction. Now for 2018, the CX-9 comes with a long list of technology updates and refinements.
“Mazda CX-9 is designed to provide peace of mind through its i-ACTIVSENSE safety technology suite and its passive features like a strong, lightweight SKYACTIV-BODY. The secondary benefit to its structure is that also helps it deliver uncommonly good, surefooted driving dynamics,” said Tetsu Nakazawa, CX-9 vehicle line manager, Mazda North American Operations (MNAO). “Families trust us to build vehicles that not only surprise and delight with how they drive but also with the engineering excellence that goes into making them, showing that there’s no need to compromise between needs and wants in a seven-passenger people-hauler.”
All 2018 CX-9 models will get G-Vectoring Control (GVC), Smart City Brake Support (SCBS), Blind-Spot Monitoring, and Rear Cross-Traffic Alert as standard equipment. GVC is new to the CX-9 models for 2018. The system actively adjusts engine torque in response to steering inputs, which the company claims helps to deliver “unified control of lateral and longitudinal acceleration g-forces, enhancing the vertical load on each wheel.”
Models equipped with electrically-adjustable front seats now get a new tilt function for the driver’s seat, adjusting the height of the cushion’s front edge – which also can be saved on variants with seat position memory.
Passengers will appreciate the added sound deadening to improve noise vibration harshness (NVH) levels, along with thicker noise-absorbing material on the underside of the headliner. There are new insulation materials that work at reducing tire noise and other noise from the rear of the vehicle. Meanwhile, higher-density fiber in the floor mats better absorbs noise and the insulation layer added to the ceiling headliner reduces the reverberation of sound in the cabin.
The second-row seats have been revised to allow better access to the rearmost bench, with the backrest now leaning 33 degrees when the seat is slid forward, increasing the space between each second-row seat and the rear wheel housing from 2.3 inches to around 7.8 inches. The slide rail retainers for the second row have also been changed from metal to plastic, reducing slide resistance by a claimed 30 percent – making it easier to slide the seats forward.
Models equipped with electrically-adjustable front seats now get a new tilt function for the driver’s seat, adjusting the height of the cushion’s front edge – which also can be saved on variants with seat position memory.
The last tidbit for 2018: The CX-9 is now available in Soul Red Crystal metallic – a dashing color that debuted on the new-generation CX-5 earlier this year.
For 2018, the CX-9 family crossover returns with Sport, Touring, Grand Touring, and Signature trim levels that include more standard equipment at each price point.
| MSRP 2018 CX-9 Models | ||
|---|---|---|
| Front-Wheel Drive | i-ACTIV All-Wheel Drive | |
| CX-9 Sport | $32,130 | $33,930 |
| – Sport Package | + $1,290 | + $1,290 |
| CX-9 Touring | $34,960 | $36,760 |
| – Touring Premium Package | + $1,890 | + $1,890 |
| CX-9 Grand Touring | $40,470 | $42,270 |
| CX-9 Signature | $44,315 | |
| Premium Paint Colors | ||
| Soul Red Crystal (new) | $595 | |
| Machine Grey Metallic | $300 | |
| Snowflake White Pearl Mica | $200 | |
About the Mazda CX-9
Introduced as a late-2016 model, Mazda’s second-generation CX-9 seven-passenger crossover has all the driving dynamics befitting of a Mazda. Power comes from a turbocharged 2.5-liter SkyActive-G four-cylinder that puts out 227 horsepower on regular 87 octane gas; 250 hp on premium fuel. The engine is hooked up to a six-speed automatic transmission There are four trim levels: entry-level GS, volume leader GS-L, high-grade GT and the new flagship Signature. With the exception of the front-wheel-drive GS, the rest of the lineup is fitted with i-Activ AWD, which can adjust power distribution to account for wheel slip in dry conditions. It can even route power to limit understeer during spirited driving, sending as much as 50 per cent of the engine’s power to the rear wheels.
The 2018 Mazda CX-9 goes on sale across the U.S. this month.
Watch this video to learn more about the 2nd generation Mazda CX-9:
