The Best Never Rest

The Previous Edition Won Our Big Test. Now Mazda Releases An Even Better Redesign.

- Chris Walton

Since its 2012 debut, the Mazda CX-5 has been praised for its inspiring steering and confident handling, peppy and efficient four-cylinder engine, engaging exterior, and handsome interior designs. Even at the end of its first generation, the CX-5 continued to win comparisons such as our Big Test of 2016–2017 small crossovers. Three easy-to-navigate trim levels and short options lists have made buying decisions simple, so it’s no wonder it has surpassed the Mazda3 as the company’s best-seller at more than 112,000 units. For 2017, this excellence remains, yet myriad changes improve the redesigned CX-5.

Work Smarter, Not Harder

As a modest-sized automaker compared to its competitors, Mazda’s way is to analyze every component and system in the vehicle, find a way to improve its performance, efficiency, or appearance, and then engineer parts and methods to achieve its goals. One would think such a strategy would be pervasive, but it’s not—at least not on the granular (one might say obsessive) level that exists within Mazda.