2021 Mazda CX-9 vs Subaru Outback

What's the difference?

The CX-9 is still a great option for families looking for a large SUV, even if it is starting to show its age as new rivals continue to launch with newer technologies.

That said, the availability of a luxury-focused six-seat configuration (Azami LE AWD) for the first time might be enough to convince some buyers to give it further consideration.

But for others who need the versatility of seven seats, this is still the CX-9 we’ve all come to know and love – but just a little bit better – particularly in its best-selling Azami AWD form.

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring does its intended job of balancing city and suburban duties with having more than enough dirt-driving ability to take you to your favourite National Park campsite, within reason, of course.

This adventure wagon is nice to drive, comfortable, has improved safety tech, and it also manages to carry on the Subaru tradition of being practical without pretensions.

Given its latest update is relatively minor, the CX-9’s exterior largely looks the same as before, which, depending on your point of view, is a very good thing. As far as we’re concerned, it certainly is.

That said, train-spotters will notice some differences, with the GT SP (new), Azami and Azami LE (new) grades getting a refreshed grille that’s slotted and available in two grade-specific finishes unlike the insert their carryover Sport, Touring and GT siblings still have. 

And aside from the GT SP, Azami and Azami LE’s new sets of 20-inch alloy wheels (again in grade-specific finishes), the only other exterior change is the Azami and Azami LE’s larger-diameter chrome exhaust tailpipe extensions. Sporty!

Inside, the CX-9 has more changes in store, headlined by the new ‘floating’ 10.25-inch central display all but the Sport and Touring get (they stick with 7.0- and 9.0-inch units respectively).

The new set-up is powered by Mazda’s latest multimedia system, which is certainly an improvement over its predecessor, and a much needed one at that.

Worth noting, touch is not an input method, with the rotary controller on the centre console the only option, which is actually great for safety, so we’re all for it.

The Azami and Azami LE also get new quilted Nappa leather upholstery, which looks and feels great, and adds to the overall high-quality theme.

Otherwise, it’s pretty much business as usual, which is great because the CX-9 has always had a well-designed interior. Yep, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

This new Outback looks suitably and unmistakably like an Outback – it’s adventurous-looking and inoffensive enough to satisfy those who prefer their high-riding SUV-wagon with a touch of low-key styling.

Design changes are generally subtle, but the use of LEDs (in the daytime running lights, self-levelling headlights, front fog-lights, and rear brake-lights, as well as inside), as well as roof rails incorporating stow-away roof racks are nice touches.

Being an SUV that’s 5075mm long, 1969mm wide and 1747mm tall, practicality is arguably the most important thing for the CX-9, and with the option of six seats for the first time with the new Azami LE, it’s even more versatile.

All seven-seat grades have a 60/40 split-fold second row that manually slides and reclines the same as before, with only the Sport missing out on one-touch tumble operation, which makes accessing the 50/50 split-fold third row even easier, even if it’s still not graceful.

But the six-seat Azami LE is configured differently, given its second row has two captain’s chairs instead of a bench. That said, it operates in a very similar manner, just with power adjustment.

I still had around eight centimetres of legroom and four of legroom behind my 184cm (6'0") driving position, while the large transmission tunnel that’s a foot-space issue in seven-seat versions... isn’t.

One key difference with the very roomy and comfortable Azami LE is it only has four top-tether child-seat anchorage points, while all other grades have five thanks to their extra seat. Either way, four ISOFIX child-set anchorage points are split across the second and third rows.

Alternatively, the third row can be used by adults on shorter journeys, although they won’t have a lot of space to enjoy. Again, I'm 184cm tall and it’s tight back there, with no headroom or legroom on offer, but children will, of course, fare much better.

The CX-9’s boot is still pretty usable with all three rows in action, with 230L of cargo capacity available, but you can stow the two rear seats to get 810L in total.

And if you want maximum cargo capacity, the middle seats can also be folded, but not in the Azami LE, annoyingly.

Either way, the CX-9 doesn’t have a load lip but does have a flat floor, so loading bulkier items is a cinch, while two bag hooks and four tie-down points are on hand for securing loose items if they can’t fit in the double map pockets on the front seat backrests.

There are two cupholders in the third row, another two in the second row’s fold-down armrest (seven-seater versions) or large centre console (Azami LE), and another two in the first row’s larger centre console, while the front and rear door bins can also take bottles – and other knick-knacks.

All grades get USB ports in the first row, while the Touring and above also have them in the second row, and the GT and above also feature them in the third row. It’d be nice if there was no differentiation, though.

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring has five seats, two in the front and three in the rear. 

There’s plenty of room in the front and in the rear, in terms of being able to actually stretch about a bit and roll your shoulders without feeling cocooned.

The driver's seat is eight-way power-adjustable with dual memory; and the front passenger's seat is eight-way power-adjustable. 

The rear seat is a 60/40 split folding configuration and is equipped with three child-seat anchor points, and two ISOFIX child-restraint anchor points.

The interior, in Nappa leather trim, looks and feels pleasant.

The new multimedia system’s 11.6-inch touchscreen dominates upfront, bringing to mind the portrait-style unit of a Tesla, or even a Ram 1500 Limited I recently tested. It’s easy enough to use after you get your head around the fact you have to operate buttons on the screen and off of it to keep everything working to your satisfaction.

Connecting my Android Auto smartphone was simple and we experienced few issues with this set-up in the time I had this Outback.

Charging facilities for your devices include four USB ports: two upfront, and two in the rear.

Storage spaces include a small shelf under the multi-media screen, a shallow grippy, textured shelf for the front passenger, a lidded centre console, cup-holders between the front seats, as well as the usual bottle holders in the doors.

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring's cargo capacity, with five seats in use, is listed as 522 litres. With the second row stowed away, cargo capacity increases to 1267 litres.

And most of the cabin’s handy life-friendly additions I reckon are in the load space and those include cargo hooks, flip-down tie-down points, cargo nets, cargo cover, and a power socket.

All in all, the interior is a pleasant mix of practicality and comfort, with a nice premium feel about it. 

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring is the top dog in a three-variant Outback range. It has a Manufacturer’s Suggested List Price of $47,490 (excludes on-road costs).

Standard features include LED headlights, LED foglights, push-button start, keyless entry, electric park brake, rain-sensing wipers, heated and power-folding side mirrors, heated seats (front and rear outboard), sports pedals, dual-zone automatic climate control, and power tailgate.

It has a new 11.6-inch touchscreen multimedia unit, with satnav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. 

It also has a heated leather steering wheel, steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters, Nappa leather interior trim, driver’s seat memory settings, a nine-speaker Harman Kardon sound system, an electric sunroof, satin-finish door mirrors, silver highlight roof rails (with stowable crossbars), and gloss-finish 18-inch wheels.

Driver-assist safety tech includes Subaru’s EyeSight forward-facing camera system (comprising AEB, lane keeping, adaptive cruise control etc), as well as a driver monitoring system (which alerts you if your eyes stray from looking ahead through the windscreen for too long), a reversing camera, and more.

Colour options on the AWD Touring include Storm Grey Metallic, Crimson Red Pearl, Crystal White Pearl, Magnetite Grey Metallic, Ice Silver Metallic, Crystal Black Silica, Dark Blue Pearl, Autumn Green Metallic and Brilliant Bronze Metallic. These are all at no extra cost.

All CX-9 grades are powered by a carryover 2.5-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine, which produces 170kW of power at 5000rpm and 420Nm of torque at 2000rpm.

A six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission is standard, and again, you get the option of front- or all-wheel drive for all grades but one, the AWD-only Azami LE.

If you’re after a diesel-powered seven-seater, Mazda also has the similarly sized CX-8 in its line-up, but it still doesn’t offer a hybrid option in any of its SUVs, even though many rivals are moving in that direction, including the aforementioned Kluger, Santa Fe and Sorento.

All of the new Outbacks have a 2.5-litre four-cylinder horizontally-opposed Boxer petrol engine – producing 138kW at 5800rpm and 245Nm at 3400-4600rpm – and that’s mated to a continuously variable transmission (CVT).

The Outback has permanent (aka “symmetrical”) all-wheel drive and Subaru’s X-Mode system that includes Normal, Snow/Dirt and Deep Snow/Mud modes. These driving modes adjust engine torque, throttle response and traction control, among other things, to suit the conditions.

According to the official combined fuel consumption figures (ADR 81/02), FWD variants of the CX-9 sip 8.4 litres per 100km, which isn’t too bad for a petrol-powered large SUV that weighs just shy of 1900kg. Claimed carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are 197 grams per km.

And given they weigh a whisker more than two tonnes, AWD versions of the CX-9s drink a slightly higher 9.0L/100km and emit 211g/km.

We covered 188km in the Azami AWD and Azami LE AWD at the CX-9’s launch and recorded 11.5L/100km after primarily driving on country roads and highways.

While that figure is nearly 30 per cent higher than Mazda's claim, it’s not outlandish considering the type of vehicle the CX-9 is. Either way, results will vary.

For reference, AWD variants have a slightly large fuel tank (74L) than their FWD counterparts (72L), but they all take more affordable 91RON petrol at minimum.

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring has an official combined-cycle fuel-consumption figure of 7.3 litres per 100 kilometres.

On test, we recorded actual fuel consumption of 9.0L/100km, from fill to fill.

The Outback has a 63-litre fuel tank.

As far as large SUVs go, the CX-9 is one of the better ones to drive. It’s certainly not confused; it knows what it needs to do and does it well.

The engine is properly punchy down low, serving up plenty of initial torque, so much so that you rarely need to chase its top-end power. In that way, it’s very diesel-like, despite being petrol. Needless to say, acceleration is surprisingly brisk. Not bad, then!

And the transmission it’s matched to also does its job well. Gear changes are pleasingly smooth, if not quick, while it's receptive to heavy applications of the accelerator, kicking down a ratio or two with little hesitation. Yep, don’t bother with its Sport mode.

The CX-9 also rides pretty well thanks to its independent suspension set-up, which consists of MacPherson-strut front and multi-link rear axles with passive dampers. Indeed, the kids aren’t going to be upset when they’re onboard.

Again, we mainly drove on country roads and highways, but it proved to be comfortable, particularly at high speed. And even during those rare, in-town, low-speed moments, it still impressed, on lower-quality roads or not.

And while the CX-9’s electric power steering is well-weighted, some buyers might be left wishing it was a tad lighter, especially when parking, but that’s more about personal preference than anything else.

What is more universal, though, is the system’s lack of feel. Obviously, we’re not dealing with a sports car here, but a little communication through the wheel wouldn’t go astray, particularly on a twisty road.

Speaking of which, the CX-9 handles its mass pretty confidently around a corner. That said, while it is relatively tied down, it still regularly exhibits a fair degree of body roll to remind you that you’re dealing with a large SUV.

Pretty impressive.

For starters, visibility is good with a clear view in all directions from the driver’s seat.

Steering is well weighted, at low and high speeds, making it an easy steerer for parking and when on-road scenarios demand livelier rudder action.

This boxer engine is claimed to produce 7 per cent more power and 4.2 per cent more torque than in the previous generation, but, sans any turbo influence, it feels underpowered and is consistent rather than gutsy, with a rather lazy delivery of power and torque. Still, an unfussed workmanlike performance that you can rely on is better than a lacklustre alternative.

The Outback’s CVT works fine most of the time, although it can sometimes hunt energetically for the sweet spot – but, to negate that, the driver can use the paddle shifters to cycle through manual shifts.

Ride and handling are generally fine, with a suspension set-up – MacPherson struts at the front; double wishbones at the rear – that’s aimed at yielding a compliant, comfortable experience and, for the most part, succeeding. 

The Outback’s low (compared to most other SUVs) and wide stance lends itself to achieving that goal of settled and trustworthy ride and handling.

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring does not yet have an ANCAP crash test safety rating, but its safety gear includes eight airbags (dual front, front side, driver’s knee, passenger centre-front, and full-length curtain), AEB (between 10km/h and 160km/h), as well as pedestrian AEB (1km/h to 30km/h) cyclist detection AEB (60km/h or less) and rear AEB.

It has lane keeping assist with emergency lane keep assist that can steer the car away to avoid collisions with cars, people or cyclists (approximately 80km/h or less), lane departure prevention works from 60km/h to 145km/h, blind spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, speed sign recognition, as well as a driver-monitor camera that alerts the driver if their attention span is not up to the vehicle’s high standards.

As with all Mazda models, the CX-9 comes with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty with five years of roadside assistance, both of which are average when compared to Kia’s market-leading seven-year terms with ‘no strings attached’.

Service intervals are 12 months or 10,000km, with the distance on the shorter side, although capped-price servicing is available for the first five visits, costing $2022 in total at the time of the writing, which is very reasonable.

The Subaru Outback AWD Touring has a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty.

Service appointments are scheduled for every 12 months/12,500km.

CarsGuide-sourced services cost details are $345 (12 months/12,500km); $595 (24 months/25,000km); $351 (36 months/37,500km); $801 (48 months/50,000km); and $358 (60 months/62,500km) – that’s an average of $490 per service.