MAZDA CX-60 (2023) MAZDA’S ALL-NEW FLAGSHIP SUV

Imagine a vehicle that uses an advanced facial recognition technology and interior cameras to immediately detect your eye position as soon as you sit in the driver seat and turn the ignition ON. A vehicle that can automatically adjust your driving seat, steering wheel, heads-up display, and the side mirror angles to provide an ideal driving position to create a harmonious driving experience. A vehicle that can also automatically adjust the climate control and sound system settings to your preferences.

You don’t have to envision such a vehicle because Mazda’s all-new Mazda CX-60 is already available in South Africa and is equipped with the revolutionary Mazda Driver Personalisation System (MDPS), which can save customised profiles for up to six users (plus one guest) and set up more than 200 settings.

The Mazda CX-60 is an improvement over the CX-5 and Mazda’s newest large five-seater family SUV from the Japanese automaker. Starting out with dimensions, the new CX-60 is 4745mm in length, with a height of 1687.5mm, and a width of 2134mm (mirror to mirror), and with a wheelbase measuring 2870mm. The CX-5, in comparison, is 4575mm long, with a height of 1680mm, and a width of 2115mm, and has a wheelbase of 2700mm. This clearly shows that the CX-60 is longer and wider than the current CX-5 and has a longer wheelbase too.

The five-seater Mazda CX-60 continues to uphold Mazda’s philosophy and exterior design’s pleasant simplicity. There are currently two 8-speed automatic versions of the new CX-60 and are powered by Mazda’s 2.5L petrol engine, which produces 141kW at 6000 and 261Nm of torque at 3000.

MAZDA CX-60 EXTERIOR

The Mazda CX-60’s exterior design is remarkably simple yet elegant-looking, and is easily recognisable as a Mazda product. The massive gloss black Bar-Type radiator grille design dominates the front end with a newly designed semi-circular automated adaptive LED headlights, daytime running lights, a power sliding/tilt panoramic sunroof, and the large front Mazda emblem which incorporates the front radar.

The side profile features matt black plastic cladding and large 20-inch grey metallic alloy wheels with meaty 235/50/R20 tyres. The combination lights with distinctive illumination and discreet quad exhaust tips are the focal points of the rear styling. Colour-coded door handles and electronic heated exterior side mirrors with auto folding feature come standard too.

MAZDA CX-60 INTERIOR

The interior features premium finishes, high-quality leather upholstery, and Mazda’s customary minimalist design with a clean layout and a few physical buttons to keep the interior uncluttered. Most features including the 12.3-inch infotainment system with 12-speaker Bose premium sound system, and 12.3-inch TFT LCD digital instrument cluster are operated by buttons on the mulitifunctional steering wheel and rotary dial in the centre console. Click here to check out our Spotify playlist and find out what we were listening to during our trip. 

To uphold the Mazda philosophy of Jinba Ittai, which translates to “Person [and] horse [as] one body” and refers to the sensation of a rider bonding with their horse, the infotainment screen is not touch-operated. Just as a horse responds to its rider, that’s the perfect harmony you may anticipate when driving the all-new Mazda CX-60. The sense of connection and oneness is the intention, seemingly making every drive enjoyable. The infotainment system supports both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay via USB-C.

The Mazda CX-60’s cabin feels spacious thanks to the automated panoramic folding roof which allows plenty of natural light inside the vehicle. The Mazda CX-60 interior feels premium and high-end thanks to simple dashboard design, soft-touch leather finishes, and stitching around the dashboard, armrests, and door panels. Both the driver and front passenger seats are power-adjustable, and the designs are comfortable with special attention being given to the back support for those longer journeys.

The boot space is a spacious 570L with the rear seats upright, and 1726L with the 40/20/40 folding rear seats folded down and with a full spare wheel inside. One thing that stands out about the tailgate is the hands-free feature that allows you to open and close the tailgate (boot) by swinging your feet under the rear end of the vehicle – Watch video here. A great feature you would appreciate when using both hands to hold items.

MAZDA CX-60 FEATURES

The Mazda CX-60 is equipped with seven airbags (driver, passenger, sides, curtain, and driver knees), automatic emergency braking, dynamic cruise control, lane-keeping assist, and cross-traffic alert – a system that detects and alerts the driver of any approaching/crossing vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians. To help you prevent bumping into curbs and obstacles when parking or driving out of the parking bay, the Mazda CX-60 has a 360° degree monitor feature that displays a bird’s-eye view of the car from above on the centre display, as well as a choice of front, rear and left or right-side views. It includes a see-through view of the front and rear corners, making it easier to spot objects obscured by the vehicle’s exterior panels.

The revolutionary Mazda Driver Personalisation System (MDPS) uses facial recognition technology and interior cameras to detect your eye position as soon as you sit in the driver seat and automatically adjusts your driving seat, steering wheel, heads-up display, and the exterior side mirror angles to your ideal driving position to create a harmonious driving experience. Additionally, it automatically adjusts the climate control and sound system settings to your preferences.

Other features include automatic rain-sensing windshield wipers, push start/stop technology, exterior mirror position memory, hands-free and remote-operated power tailgate (open/close), electronic steering wheel adjustment, Driver Monitor System (DMS), 2 x USB-C charging ports for both front and rear passengers 4 in total), 12V socket under the climate controls, and wireless charging capability. Driver and front passenger seats power adjustment (tilt, lift, slide, and recline), two-position driver seat memory, and a high resolution head-up display.

MAZDA CX-60 ENGINE, DRIVE, AND HANDLING

Thanks to its excellent suspension and handling, the Mazda CX-60 is a pleasure to drive and is very well balanced, with little noise, vibration, or harshness entering the cabin. It has Mi-DRIVE drive mode selector with NORMAL MODE (suitable for normal driving and gentle accelation), SPORT MODE (to enhance vehicle’s responsiveness when the accelerator pedal is depressed), and OFFROAD MODE (to help prevent drive-wheel spinning during off-road driving and improves driving performance). The TOWING MODE was not available in my test model – This helps you to reduce the loss of driving performance due to increased weight when towing a trailer and improves vehicle stability). Powering the all-new Mazda CX-60 is a non-turbo 2.5 litre 4-cylinder petrol engine producing 141kW of power at 6000 and 261Nm of torque at 3000. This is paired with a smooth 8-speed automatic transmission. Power is sent to the front wheels in the Dynamic model and all four wheels in the Individual (featured) variant.

The manufacturer claims a combination fuel consumption of 7.3L /100km for the Dynamic variant and 7.7L /100km for the Individual variant. I was able to maintain an average of 7.5 – 8.9L/100km with Individual variant, which is great for a large vehicle with a 2.5L engine. Both variants come with a 58L fuel tank capacity.

SAFETY FEATURED

• Front radar
• Driver Monitor
• Rear side radar
• Front-side radar
• Stability Control
• Hill Hold Control
• See-Through View
• 360⁰ View Monitor
• Smart Brake Support
• Trailer Stability Assist
• Driver Attention Alert
• Blind Spot Monitoring
• Traffic Sign Recognition
• Rear Cross Traffic Alert
• Lane-Keep Assist System
• Forward Sensing Camera
• 2 x ISOFIX child seat anchors
• Front and rear parking sensors
• Lane Departure Warning System
• Advanced Smart City Brake Assist
• ABS, EBD, Emergency Brake Assist
• Distance and Speed Alert (Display Only)
• Intersection Brake Support: Front Cross Traffic Alert and Traffic Jam Assist

COLOUR VARIATIONS

• Jet Black
• Sonic Silver
• Arctic White (featured)
• Machine Grey
• Rhodium White
• Soul Red Crystal
• Platinum Quartz
• Deep Crystal Blue

THE VERDICT

Even though the Mazda CX-60’s interior and exterior designs are simple and neat, the CX-60 still feels and looks refined, luxurious, and sophisticated. The ride quality is comfortable on both tar and gravel roads and is easy to drive around town too.

There are a few things I did not like about the Mazda CX-60:

• Although its 2.5 liter 4-cylinder non-turbo petrol engine can produce 141kW of power at 6000 RPM, it felt overly heavy in normal mode, especially when accelerating from a stop. Driving on sport mode felt better but then that brings me to my next thing I did not like about the Mazda CX-60;
• It has a 58-litre fuel tank which I feel is insufficient for such a large and heavy vehicle with a 2.5l engine especially on longer trips. You only get around 500km per tank.
• The two hidden exhaust pipes are great and I feel like adding artificial quad-pipes was just superfluous to install. The rear would have still looked fantastic with just two exposed exhaust pipes.
• The electronic panoramic sunroof doesn’t open all the way to back of the vehicle. Only the driver and front passenger enjoy the full open feel and the breeze when the sunroof is opened.
• Sun visors are made of cream white fabric material. These are the first things that will get dirty because they will be used frequently. I wish the roof lining was also black to protect it from greasy fingers and to match the interior.
• Front fog lights could have also added a more sportier and aggressive look – but that’s just my opinion.

Don’t just take my word for it, click here to book a test drive.

PRICING

Mazda CX-60 2.5L Dynamic – R739 800.00

Mazda CX-60 2.5L AWD Individual – R844 500.00

Prices include a 5 years unlimited kilometres warranty, 5 years unlimited kilometres service plan, and 3 years unlimited kilometres road assistance. Service intervals are set at 15000km.

CONNECT WITH MAZDA SOUTH AFRICA

Website: www.mazda.co.za

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