Seats for me are a big deciding factor for buying a car. My 2017 Subaru has fabric seats as it is the lesser Premium model but I found that they were far more comfortable than the leather seats in higher models being less stiff and a little more supportive in the legs. Motormouth, a Canadian UA-cam channel also likes Mazda CX-50 a lot but they also focused on how uncomfortable the Mazda's seats were when it came to thigh support (sized for Japanese drivers perhaps?). The one problem with the CX-50 is also its strength: it is a car originally designed as a gas engine car rather than as a hybrid. So, fuel economy, while very good, will not be quite as good as the Toyota's, with different weight, aerodynamics and slightly larger (but better) tires. I would love to see Mazda adopt the Toyota plug-in hybrid model of this car but that will require a very large battery pack fitted underneath like the RAV4 Prime. Always appreciate your reviews. You recently evaluated the Tesla Model Y performance. I would love to see your take on the BZ4x by Toyota. Many car reviewers have given abysmal ratings for this vehicle including poor range, no glove box, a weird steering wheel and gauge cluster positioning, and the lack of storage including no frunk up front. Toyota is so good with hybrid technology so I am curious as to how really bad their electric only offering is. Also it would be interesting to see reviews on the RAV 4 and the Prius Prime models... are they even worth considering as compared with the well established hybrids?
A PHEV CX-50 would be cool! I appreciate that and your recommendation. I did do a Solterra, but I need to revisit that shared EV platform. I also have a couple more videos of the Model Y Performance to share. It’s a very cool car haha.
Just test drove a cx-50 and it was great except for the braking. You really needed to step on the pedal and it felt really detached. I wouldn’t recommend just for that issue.
Nice! Curious.... your side mirrors do you use the SAE method? Basically just making the mirrors wider so you cover your blind spots. Not the traditional Standard View where you leave a little bit of your car showing. Perhaps that would help with those side mirrors that are less large than say the RAV4. Some people are mentioning the seats with the Mazda hybrid. Long drives would be something affected by that.
The visibility isn’t great. That’s a Mazda thing. Every model’s visibility is poor due to high belt lines, thick pillars and small window styling. Mazdas also have longer hoods than you’d think, and wider wheel fenders than you’d think. I live in NYC, so this is of huge importance to me. I own a Rav4 hybrid, but my in-laws are a Mazda family and I’ve had to park a few different ones for them. More difficult than the Rav, for sure.
Great summary! I would agree. The 360 camera system in some other Mazda models is a very welcomed feature, but you’ll quickly learn to manage without it.
I really like having lane centering in a vehicle, but they don’t all work the same. For instance my old Subaru did lane centering much better than my current RAV4. If you’ve not had it before then you may not know what you’re missing. But if you’ve have had it I think it would stink a bit to pay so much for a new car and to not have it, even if it’s not a perfect system.
@ Odd that the Subaru system is better for you as the Eyesight system has had a lot of reported problems whereas the Toyota/Lexus system is often considered the best outside of high end EVs like Tesla FSD or Mercedes EQS Drive Pilot.
Does he ever drive them in normal mode? Not everyone is gonna drive them in sports mode. It's not a sports car 😆 some of us like to know the true fuel efficiency and that's something you won't achieve in sport mode and trying to be fast and furious
Haha good point. In my RAV4 hybrid I can get 28-35 at interstate speeds (80mph) and 38-50 around town. I’m sure the Mazda is 2-3mpg less like they’re rated. Thanks for watching!!
Seats for me are a big deciding factor for buying a car. My 2017 Subaru has fabric seats as it is the lesser Premium model but I found that they were far more comfortable than the leather seats in higher models being less stiff and a little more supportive in the legs. Motormouth, a Canadian UA-cam channel also likes Mazda CX-50 a lot but they also focused on how uncomfortable the Mazda's seats were when it came to thigh support (sized for Japanese drivers perhaps?). The one problem with the CX-50 is also its strength: it is a car originally designed as a gas engine car rather than as a hybrid. So, fuel economy, while very good, will not be quite as good as the Toyota's, with different weight, aerodynamics and slightly larger (but better) tires. I would love to see Mazda adopt the Toyota plug-in hybrid model of this car but that will require a very large battery pack fitted underneath like the RAV4 Prime.
Always appreciate your reviews. You recently evaluated the Tesla Model Y performance. I would love to see your take on the BZ4x by Toyota. Many car reviewers have given abysmal ratings for this vehicle including poor range, no glove box, a weird steering wheel and gauge cluster positioning, and the lack of storage including no frunk up front. Toyota is so good with hybrid technology so I am curious as to how really bad their electric only offering is. Also it would be interesting to see reviews on the RAV 4 and the Prius Prime models... are they even worth considering as compared with the well established hybrids?
A PHEV CX-50 would be cool! I appreciate that and your recommendation. I did do a Solterra, but I need to revisit that shared EV platform. I also have a couple more videos of the Model Y Performance to share. It’s a very cool car haha.
Just test drove a cx-50 and it was great except for the braking. You really needed to step on the pedal and it felt really detached. I wouldn’t recommend just for that issue.
Thanks for sharing this experience!!
I have a CX-50 hybrid and the brakes are great. You get instant braking as soon as you tough the pedal.
Nice! Curious.... your side mirrors do you use the SAE method? Basically just making the mirrors wider so you cover your blind spots. Not the traditional Standard View where you leave a little bit of your car showing. Perhaps that would help with those side mirrors that are less large than say the RAV4. Some people are mentioning the seats with the Mazda hybrid. Long drives would be something affected by that.
Mazda’s definitely seem to be more on the sporty side of things and that unfortunately means worse visibility and smaller mirrors. 🤪
I found the cabin too noisy.
How is it parking the car without parking sensors and a 360 camera?
The visibility isn’t great. That’s a Mazda thing. Every model’s visibility is poor due to high belt lines, thick pillars and small window styling. Mazdas also have longer hoods than you’d think, and wider wheel fenders than you’d think. I live in NYC, so this is of huge importance to me. I own a Rav4 hybrid, but my in-laws are a Mazda family and I’ve had to park a few different ones for them. More difficult than the Rav, for sure.
Great summary! I would agree. The 360 camera system in some other Mazda models is a very welcomed feature, but you’ll quickly learn to manage without it.
How’s highway driving without the lane centering tech exclusive to the top trim CX70/90?
I really like having lane centering in a vehicle, but they don’t all work the same. For instance my old Subaru did lane centering much better than my current RAV4. If you’ve not had it before then you may not know what you’re missing. But if you’ve have had it I think it would stink a bit to pay so much for a new car and to not have it, even if it’s not a perfect system.
@ Odd that the Subaru system is better for you as the Eyesight system has had a lot of reported problems whereas the Toyota/Lexus system is often considered the best outside of high end EVs like Tesla FSD or Mercedes EQS Drive Pilot.
Seats are brutal. Backbreaking.
😢
Does he ever drive them in normal mode? Not everyone is gonna drive them in sports mode. It's not a sports car 😆 some of us like to know the true fuel efficiency and that's something you won't achieve in sport mode and trying to be fast and furious
Haha good point. In my RAV4 hybrid I can get 28-35 at interstate speeds (80mph) and 38-50 around town. I’m sure the Mazda is 2-3mpg less like they’re rated. Thanks for watching!!