2024 Mazda CX-50 Review

The Mazda CX-50 is the light upgrade from the CX-5. It's what you buy when you want to look a bit different, because not too many people drive this one versus the 5, which sells so much that it's one of the best-selling SUVs in the country. This one, it has that lower look. It looks more distinctive inside and out, and I'll show you all the little details that make it special. Let's go for a drive. The CX-50 came out for 2023, and it's meant to be the most rugged Mazda SUV. But what it really is, it's the most expensive-looking compact SUV without a luxury brand on it. Versus the CX-5, the CX-50 gets you a lower, longer, and slightly higher-off-the-ground SUV. Overall, this is just a very, very crisp-looking design. Mazda, everything they make looks good, and this one, I just really like all the distinctive elements. The front, familiar Mazda theme, wide open grille, thin LED headlights. You can spot this is the Turbo model because it has special LED tail lights, and, of course, those classic fading LED turn signals that look like incandescent bulbs. I love these little details all around the car. This one has 20-inch wheels. You're not going to go too far off-road with this. But doesn't it look dynamite? I mean, seriously, even if Zircon sand is not your favorite, there's a wide variety of color choices, and it just looks premium from every single angle. You can also tell it's a Turbo because the exhaust outlets are slightly larger than before. And while the standard CX-50 rides on the small 17-inch wheels, I do think that in this trim, this makes it look like you're driving a luxury SUV without paying that price tag. Other details, like how the satin silver roof rails and this chrome trim on the back window kind of mirrors the machined finish on the wheels. Everything else is black, including these fender flares. Now, it really just doesn't stand out too much at first, but when you look closer, you see this nice crease line above the rear door handle. That's also a nice little trailing edge to the back taillights. All of these things, yes, that's more expensive to make. But when you look closely, you do appreciate them, and as a whole, that makes the CX-50 look very good. There's an expensive engine underneath here to match those expensive looks. The Turbo model here, 256 horsepower and 320 pound-feet of torque. Easily the best in the segment. Now, the transmission on every CX-50, six-speed automatic, that's down a few gears from what many competitors are now offering. All-wheel drive is standard on every single trim. And if you get the baser models, you're getting the naturally aspirated inline four. The numbers are just adequate because this is still a heavy SUV. I do think opting for the Turbo is the best move. Check out the fuel economy numbers. They're adequate on both the naturally aspirated and the Turbo engines. But if you get the Turbo, you get more towing. Up to 3,500 pounds versus just 2,000 with the regular models. Behind the seats, there are 31 cubic feet of storage space. And with everything folded, 60-40, you got 56. That is on the small side of compact SUVs, which are now pushing 60 and even upwards of 70 cubic feet. A little tighter back here. The CX-50 is the premium economy seat upgrade. So you're getting nicer materials and nicer design touches than you would in the CX-5 for not that much more money. Look closely at the seats and you'll find these nylon cords in the side. It's meant to be more rugged looking, just like the cross hat stitching on the dash and the door panels. But this middle stitching on the seats kind of rides up in my back. But at least on this trim, the cooled seats and the panoramic moonroof definitely make the cabin feel airier. And even though it's not totally spacious inside, it feels like it. The legroom is pretty substantial up front and also so is the center cubby, which, like on Mercedes models, opens up both ways on either side. So your passenger or you can access it. It feels to me that there's slightly less headroom than competitors. Legroom is pretty good. But these seats, the quality of them is actually a lot better than the competitors. And on this trim, you're getting heated rear seats and USB ports. A 10.3 inch screen comes standard. It's only a touchscreen when you enable wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. But it's so far away from the seat that it's really not meant to be used this way. And say, for example, you want to use Google Maps. Well, on other cars with these features, you don't have to tap this button and use these arrows. You can actually just swipe. So not all the same gestures are here. And then you got to go back to the rotary controller and the buttons. And this is while I'm parked. This is how difficult this is right now. So imagine how distracting the system is when you're on the move. It even corresponds to when you're going into the radio. How do you change the, you know, the seeking? This is just favorites. So I'd have to go over here, tap the menu, tap tuner controls. By the time you do all this, you've probably traveled almost a quarter mile. And that's not a safe system. Even though it looks good, it doesn't function well. Get past all that. And the CX-50 has a lot of functionality. For example, an active driving display. That's a head up display straight on the windshield. It's very crisp and clear. A 12 speaker Bose stereo that sounds pretty darn good. I got to say, not all Bose systems do. This one's tailored for this car very well. All the vehicle systems before you can adjust on the fly. An example, rain sensing wipers and even a variable intermittent rear wiper. Those come standard. Also, wireless phone charging is now standard on premium and above trims for 2024. This is the CX-50's instrument panel, and it looks basically the same as the CX-30. A digital center screen for that speedometer, which you can see some limited information such as the driver assist. And I do like the analog gauges. You don't see that in cars anymore. But I do wish that this had some more functionality. Mazda has a new fully digital instrument panel on the new CX-70. You should check out that preview. But as it stands, this is very simple to use. And I do like the fact that it's easy to use, unlike the screen. The biggest difference with the CX-50 versus any of the competition, it moves. So long as you're buying the turbocharged engine, which really isn't much of a premium as you might think, because if you go to the higher trims of a RAV4 or a CR-V or any number of cars, you're going to be cresting $40,000 with options. It's the way things are these days. So if you're going to spend that type of money, get an engine. Get a proper engine. And only if you get the turbo models does Mazda put shift paddles here. There's not that many gears. It's only six. A lot of competitors are now doing eight speeds. And I mention that in every Mazda review because sometimes you can catch this car off guard. It doesn't seem as quick as it should be because it's kind of in between ratios. It's like there's not enough steps in between for you to get all the traction. But the response time is pretty good. And even though there's a sport mode that keeps the revs a little bit higher than normal, it's not really meant to be a sporty car. It's just meant to move. And that, to me, is the most secure feeling. Because anytime I've been in a Subaru Forester or any handful of SUVs just like it, they're loud and they don't get out of their own way. This CX-50 truly is a class above with this powertrain. It is. I'd like a better transmission. I really would. But who can complain when you get this much torque? And the nice thing is, is that if you don't want to spend money for premium gas, you can throw in regular. The CX-50 will downgrade some of the power and torque immediately. But so what? Still got a ton of power anyway. And unlike most luxury cars, where if you throw in regular and the engine starts to misfire and then it knocks. Not here. No damage, no problem. But the CX-50 isn't entirely in the luxury space because there's a lot of wind noise, especially with this car. I was expecting it to be a bit quieter and there's enough insulation from under the hood. But the wind and tire noise are kind of high. Doing highway speeds, you kind of have to, well, not yell, but talk maybe a little louder than you might think. A lot of driver assist features come standard, including adaptive cruise control and lane centering. Traffic jam assist is on the upper models. There's no hands off mode. And frankly, I'm kind of glad it doesn't have that because none of these systems really work all that well all the time. Mazda has been offering this for a while. So unless you want the very, very top upgrades like rear braking assist, say when you're going and parking into a space, pretty much every CX-50 comes loaded with every safety feature. I even like how these turn signals sound. Really is like an old mechanical switch, which I really like. And handling is a strong point. So is the torque coming out of turns, too. I like that. And you will find good sized brakes in the CX-50. And really good pedal travel, too. It's a nice feel, really is. The 2024 Mazda CX-50 starts at thirty thousand three hundred dollars. There's eight trims and mine, which is the turbo premium plus, is forty five one twenty five as tested with destination. The CX-50 competes with basically everything. The Subaru Forester, Honda CRV and the Toyota RAV4. And let's not forget Mazda's own CX-5. For me, I don't want to drive the same car that everyone else is driving. Not that I think I'm better, but I like the fact that this is unique. The CX-50 basically is a CX-5 in all but name. It has the same engines. It's got the same type of handling. You can basically not distinguish it if you were looking at it from just a technical standpoint. But when you look at it, when you feel all the surfaces, when you really check it out in person, this is the car that makes it feel really exclusive when you're driving it. And it feels more like a luxury SUV, better looking, in fact, than many luxury SUVs. So what do you think? Does this type of style matter to you? But to me, you know it does. Go to CarGurus.com to find your next Mazda or any number of competitors. Subscribe to the YouTube channel and we'll see you next time.