2016 Mazda Mazda5 Reviews

I've spent enough time now with the CX-30 to find all the little day-to-day things that might help you decide for yourself whether I'm right about the CX-30's place as a small SUV benchmark for its price.

Some carmakers have some very conspicuous gaps in their product portfolios. There’s no rhyme or reason why, and no consistency across brands. Just the glaring holes that would surely make their lives – and not to mention their associated dealers – happier if filled with the right models. Here are the main offenders.

Mazda produced one of the hits of the 2023 Tokyo motor show with the Iconic SP concept car.Now, reports out of Japan suggest the wildly styled MX-5/RX-7 concept could become a reality sooner rather than later.Insiders suggest a production ready car could appear as soon as 2026 and usher in a new era of rotary-powered Mazda sports cars.Mazda has long teased fans about the return of its vaunted rotary engine but the Iconic SP does things a little differently.The sleek coupe could use a twin-rotor rotary engine as a generator to feed a battery that power a pair of electric motors driving the rear wheels.Nissan uses a similar concept with its Qashqai and X-Trail e-Power hybrids that use a small turbocharged petrol engine that juices up a battery with propulsion left solely to an electric motor.This rotary hybrid tech is an evolution of what is found in the MX-30 R-EV sold overseas, which uses a tiny petrol engine to charge a circa-18kWh battery matched to a 125kW electric motor.The Iconic SP concept’s electric motors would produce 270kW, which is about double that of an MX-5.Mazda said the concept weighs about 1500kg, which is significantly more than an MX-5 but would make it a lightweight in the electric car field.Mazda claims the Iconic SP would run on synthetic fuels to make it carbon neutral.The Japanese brand’s boss Masahiro Moro said at the car’s reveal that it would be more practical than a conventional sports car.He said drivers wouldn’t have to worry about range and it would be just as capable on the track as during the daily commute or shopping run.It has the added benefit of a vehicle-to-load function that allows it to power regular household appliances.

Owners of Mazda CX-60 models built between 28 March and 30 September 2023 are eligible for revised rear suspension parts. Mazda made running updates to the rear dampers of the CX-60 medium luxury SUV as a way to address criticism from media and owners about a firm rear ride. There is also a software update applicable to all CX-60s to smooth the operation of Mazda’s unique eight-speed automatic transmission that uses a multi-plate clutch in place of a torque converter. Both are being offered free of charge to owners. CarsGuide Senior Journalist Richard Berry had a CX-60 long-term test car and noticed the terse ride: “On Sydney’s roads the CX-60’s suspension is too firm and jostling for a family SUV. Then there’s the rough and jerky feeling transmission which Mazda has admitted could be better.” A Mazda spokesperson said: “this is a running change available to CX-60 owners allowing early customers to align their vehicle with the latest factory specification. This option includes a revised rear shock absorber fitted at no cost through the Mazda dealer network. “As CX-60 makes its way into more markets, we continue to study the vehicle and review customer feedback. There is no change in specification regards the CX-90, thus no running changes planned for this model currently”, the spokesperson added. The first shipment of new dampers arrived in March and some CX-60s have had the change applied. According to existing owners, there is more stock of the new dampers arriving in mid-May for those yet to have the update. Alongside running changes, the BMW X3 and Lexus NX rival has been subject to recalls since its launch in July 2023 including one for the steering system recall and another for loss-of-power in the P50e plug-in hybrid.As it does with all models from CX-3 to CX-9, Mazda will continue to incrementally update its Large Product platform vehicles, especially after making such a significant investment in the high-profit premium tactic.  

The fourth part of Mazda’s Large Architecture platform quartet will be revealed within a week, with a teaser image of the CX-80 large SUV joining additional confirmation the model will come to Australia.

With production of the Mazda 6 sedan and wagon for Japan ending this month, rumours of the midsize sedan’s reboot have been given yet another wind.

Mazda has updated its BT-50 ute sibling to the Isuzu D-Max with some altered styling and interior tech updates.

Not that long ago Kia was an afterthought in the Australian new-car market. Hyundai’s cheap little sibling that was unlikely to register as a blip on the sales radar. But it could become the number two brand in Australia - here's how.

Is the CX-30 the best-looking car in its class? This is one of the questions Chris hopes to answer in the second installment of his long-term review.

Easter is a time of rebirth and new beginnings, and naturally that turns our mind to cars (what can I say, we have a one-track mind).