Mazda CX-9 - Any Experience?

Will shortly be in the market for a small/mid-size SUV that can carry camping crap/kid crap/other crap and still be comfortable. The CX-7/RAV-4/CR-Vs of the world are a bit too small for our weenie/cityfolk camping (read: we bring everything), so one size up is preferred.

Test drove a bunch of stuff the other day: the Hyundai, Toyota, Nissan and Mazda variants on the theme. Of all of them, the CX-9 was a standout: good driving dynamics, good steering, same features as everyone else, etc. The V6 was even a pretty nice engine.

Anybody have experience with these? So far, the requirements are: More space AWD Decent fuel economy (AWD pretty much means high teens/low 20s. That works).

Plan to also drive a 2008/2009 to see if they disintegrate over a few years of use, but other than that I'm pretty sold.

Girl flashed me once from the passenger side of one. So yeah, they're awesome.

We had one as a rental in the field once, and it was pretty well received. The guy that drove it liked the smooth ride, good handling and plenty of power. It got decent mileage too iirc

My mom and a friend have identical 2011 FWD Grand Touring models. They have a lot more space than our Mazda5 and drive nicer. The downside being that the CX-9 is significantly larger on the outside and averages 20mpg in mixed driving. My brother took it on a road trip and was able to squeeze out 25mpg on the highway.

My mom and friend both love their CX-9s.

bluesideup wrote: My mom and a friend have identical 2011 FWD Grand Touring models. They have a lot more space than our Mazda5 and drive nicer. The downside being that the CX-9 is significantly larger on the outside and averages 20mpg in mixed driving. My brother took it on a road trip and was able to squeeze out 25mpg on the highway. My mom and friend both love their CX-9s.

Thanks for the feedback to everyone that posted.

As far as fuel economy, we're replacing a 2004 330i that gets mid/low 20s in mixed driving, takes premium and can't haul much. So fuel-wise we can take a hit and still be paying the same.

Yes I was surprised that the CX-9 came out on top in a comparison last year over the new Durango and Explorer considering it's an older design.

Everything I found was pretty positive. I'm surprised it doesn't come up more often - it looks like they haven't really changed it since 2007 and it was the best car we drove that day.

Only complaints seem to be around the technology: Bluetooth, iPod control, etc.

I didn't find the bluetooth or the Nav hard to use but I haven't used the latest stuff. I was able to connect my iPhone via bluetooth in just a few minutes and stream music from Pandora. This was on a 2011 so maybe the older versions aren't as intuitive. At the time my vehicle was rocking AM/FM cassette that only picked up Spanish stations so take it with a grain of salt. The system did work better than the NAV in my wife's Mini Cooper.

I think there may have been a slight change in the engine at some point but they are all pretty similar. If you buy a FWD with the tow prep package it includes heavy duty cooling and a trans cooler, all of the AWD ones have tow prep standard. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a soft roader SUV that has a more versatile interior and is actually a little entertaining to drive. Car and Driver said it drove like more of a tall sporty wagon than an SUV.