Review: Mazda CX-5 GT SP turbo

The Mazda CX-5 is one of the great survivors. Making up a good chunk of Mazda’s stellar sales performance – it currently occupies the number two spot behind the Toyota juggernaut – it regularly sees off the never-ending series of competitors that have come its way since its giant-killing launch.

There are a number of very good reasons why the CX-5 continues to sell so well – Mazda’s shrewd obsession with little details, strong pricing, balanced chassis and, more recently, the addition of the turbo-petrol version.

For 2021, along with one of those detail-focused spec updates, Mazda added a new variant, the GT SP, nestled between the GT and the top-spec Akera.

Sadly, and this is quite the spoiler – it’s not a performance-oriented version like its similarly badged forbears the 323, MX-5 or RX-7. As ever, this is more of a specification and styling package. That’s not always a bad thing, though...

Pricing and Features

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You can get two versions of the GT SP, a 2.5-litre naturally aspirated version for $47,490 before on-road costs or the one I drove, the $49,990 turbo.

Both are all-wheel drive and identically specified, so all the money goes on the turbo engine, which is not a bad way to spend $1500. You can also have the turbo-petrol in the GT ($49,490) or Akera ($51,880). All prices before on-roads.

The SP adds to the GT’s specification with 19-inch black alloy wheels, black mirror caps and Mazda’s fake leather (Maztex, if you please) and synthetic suede combination on the seats. I quite like this combination because bare skin will neither burn nor freeze on contact with the suede and it holds you in place while you’re enjoying yourself.

Sadly, and this is quite the spoiler – it’s not a performance-oriented version, just like its similarly-badged forbears like the 323, MX-5 or RX-7.

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As part of the broader 2021 spec update, you also get a 10.25-inch widescreen Mazda Connect screen, which is just lovely to look at, but you have to get it through your head that it’s not a touchscreen and never will be.

It features wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and while I don’t have a great deal of experience with the latter, navigating CarPlay with just the rotary controller is a bit of a pain, especially as the number of CarPlay apps grows. The digital radio interface remains annoying, too. The 10-speaker audio set-up is nice, though, and fills the cabin well.

On top of that, you get dual-zone climate control (with rear air vents), reversing camera, keyless entry and start, front and rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, electric front seats with heating, sat-nav, auto LED headlights, power everything, auto wipers, power tailgate, head-up display and a sunroof.

The safety package is predictably full of the good stuff, something Mazda has worked very hard at over the past few years.

You get six airbags, all the usual braking and stability stuff, forward AEB (high and low speed, night and day pedestrian detection), forward collision warning, rear collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert, rear AEB, blind-spot monitoring, speed zone recognition, road sign recognition, two ISOFIX points and three top-tether points. The 2017 five-star ANCAP rating endures, but the rules have changed since then.

Comfort and Space

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The CX-5 isn’t the largest cabin in the class and even the huge facelift in 2018 couldn’t do much to improve matters, save for an increase in boot space. Most Mazdas suffer from small boots and tight-for-the-class rear seats, so it’s not like we don’t know these things on the way in.

Front seat passengers will be very comfortable on chairs that look over-stuffed but aren’t. The CX-5 has a great driving position with plenty of adjustment in the seat and the wheel to get things just right.

You have two cup holders, a space underneath the climate controls for your phone and a 12V port, big door pockets that will take a pretty decent water bottle and a usefully deep centre console bin under the armrest.

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Rear seat passengers have a very useful fold-down armrest with two cup holders and a lidded tray that is extremely shallow but also houses two USB ports so you can keep the cables out of sight when you’re not in there.

The doors swing open really wide (great for lugging kids in and out) and the doors will hold a bottle, but not much else. Legroom is adequate rather than luxurious, but headroom is good. Three across won’t be much fun, but that’s most cars.

The boot’s improved but still not amazing at 442 litres with the seats up and 1342 litres with the seats down. The space is easily accessed via the power tailgate. A space-saver spare lives under the boot floor.

The CX-5 has a great driving position with plenty of adjustment in the seat and the wheel to get things just right

On the Road

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The CX-5 has always been great to drive, if not particularly swift. The addition of the turbo engine didn’t suddenly give Mazda a sporting advantage, more of a sporting change. With a healthy 170kW and 420Nm, it’s far more about driveability than outright pace, and that’s fine by me.

I’ve always found the 2.0-litre versions really struggle with the heft of the CX-5 – at its heaviest, it reaches well towards the 1800kg mark. Add in the mechanical drag of all-wheel drive and even the 2.5-litre is at best up to the job rather than going for it. That’s not a criticism, it’s an observation because clearly not that many CX-5 buyers care about that.

The CX-5’s lovely chassis remains intact. It really is one of the better mid-sizers to drive and has been that way for a decade. The front end is very positive and the steering has just enough feel and communication to set it apart from the rest.

The body is very well controlled through corners and the damping is so good it virtually ignores mid-corner bumps. The trade-off is a slightly firmer ride than its rivals – the new Hyundai Tucson springs to mind – but it’s absolutely worth it.

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The GT SP’s turbo engine knocks a second or two off the 0-100-km/h time but it’s really the fat 420Nm of torque that wins the day.

A drive up to the Blue Mountains – a part of my regular extended drive loop (great coffee up there these days) – which takes in motorways (including the notoriously poorly surfaced M4), steep climbs and long fast bends was very relaxing.

The CX-5 is quiet in the cruise, the six-speed auto handles anything you can throw at it and you only hear the engine under load. Being a Mazda, it doesn’t make a particularly pleasant noise, but it’s well-damped.

Mazda’s official fuel figure of 8.2L/100km is much more achievable than either the 2.5’s or 2.0’s official figures, partly because you’ll find you rarely sink the slipper. It runs happily on 91 RON which is also good news.

My week with the car yielded an indicated 8.6L/100km and included a good mix of highway and suburban running. I’ve rarely got a non-turbo CX-5 to use less than about 10.5L/100km so the forced induction obviously does the job.

Ownership

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Mazda offers a solid five-year warranty with unlimited kilometres, which is on par with most of its rivals except the soon-to-be-replaced Kia Sportage with its seven-year warranty. Roadside assist is also available for the duration.

The CX-5 turbo insists on relatively short service intervals of 12 months/10,000km and you’ll pay between $349 and $375 per service for the first give services, meaning a total of $1797 over five services. That’s not bad if you don’t go mad on the miles.

VERDICT

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To survive in the mid-size SUV market is commendable. To do it for so long as wave after wave of new competitors keep coming over the top of the trenches is remarkable. Mazda isn’t a huge company, yet it consistently sees off giants like Ford, Hyundai, Kia and the Europeans without raising a visible sweat.

The CX-5 has also survived the brand’s upmarket push – and corresponding pricing – while steadily evolving every year to be a better car than the year before. It’s not cheap but it’s not bonkers, either.

To trail only Toyota in the medium SUV segment is a massive achievement, with almost one in five buyers in the market choosing the Mazda.

Sometimes the top sellers in a segment aren’t necessarily very good, but the CX-5 has established itself on quality, build, looks and value – and stuck to it. Chucking in the best engine in Mazda’s line-up hasn’t done it any harm either.

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2021 Mazda CX-5 GT SP Turbo specifications