Affordable electronics like heated seats and head-up displays are as easy to replicate in Mazdas as in Cadillacs. Meanwhile, five-door SUVs may be sweeping the planet for their practicality, but the resulting box-on-stilts restricts the tools available to designers to distinguish one brand from another. SUVs have turned dealer lots into the automotive equivalent of tract housing. How do you make your house stand out?<\/p>\n
Take our compact-ute testers this week: the all-new, $34,000 2017 Mazda CX-5 and the $54,000 2017 Volvo XC60.<\/p>\n
I won\u2019t beat around the bush. The Mazda is the superior vehicle.<\/p>\n
The XC60\u2019s 2018 successor \u2014 introduced at last week\u2019s New York Auto Show and due on dealer lots later this year \u2014 will finally get a platform upgrade after eight years on the U.S. market. It comes none too soon when you consider how the $20,000 cheaper Mazda has caught up \u2014 and often surpasses \u2014 the Volvo in metric after metric.<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n
This is not to shame the Volvo, which is a lovely sculpture chiseled out of Scandinavian beech wood. Few luxury makes can hold a candle to the CX-5 in handling and design, not to mention value. Like its big brother, the CX-9 \u2014 the best-looking large SUV on planet Earth \u2014 the CX-5 is the prettiest, most athletic small ute this side of the seductive BMW X1. Dip it in Soul Red Chrystal paint and it\u2019s more tempting than Elizabeth Hurley playing the devil in \u201cBedazzled.\u201d<\/p>\n
You feel the Mazda difference the moment you seize the steering wheel: It feels rooted to the pavement. It\u2019s a sensation more often associated with a performance sedan. Not that the outgoing CX-5, which debuted in 2012, was a dog. Like Porsche\u2019s SUVs and Panamera sedan, Mazda\u2019s entire lineup is inspired by a sports car \u2013 in this case, the Miata. It\u2019s a little like Mowgli being raised by wolves: He\u2019s got their instincts. The CX-5\u2019s father is Dave Coleman, a motorhead veteran of rally and sports car racing who also happens to be Mazda North America\u2019s chief engineer.<\/p>\n
Throw the CX-5 into an interstate cloverleaf and its Haldex-like AWD system bites like a Rottweiler on a postman\u2019s leg. There\u2019s push, sure \u2014 this is a front-wheel-drive biased chassis. But the finely tuned suspension (MacPherson strut up front, independent multi-link in rear) rotates with minimal body roll, tires protesting only at their limit. This little SUV thinks it\u2019s a Miata.<\/p>\n
The Mazda is not only the best-handling mainstream compact crossover, but it\u2019s superior to everything short of high-performance crossovers like the Macan and Jaguar F-Pace. You\u2019ll have to go a size smaller \u2014 subcompact utes like the BMW X1 or Audi Q3 \u2014 to find comparable handling. Yet even those vehicles are $10,000 north of the CX-5\u2019s modest price tag.<\/p>\n
The Volvo XC60, meanwhile, rolls leisurely through turns. Its steering chatters rather nervously as you approach the limit, then dissolves into a wail of tire screams as it senses the envelope\u2019s edge.<\/p>\n
Volvos have always been safety leaders and the XC60 is a Secret Service agent on wheels, always ready to protect with its state-of-the-art City Safety automatic braking. But the Mazda is hardly a potted plant: Using similar radar and camera tech, it is ready to intervene in perilous situations. The emergency-assist system isn\u2019t standard like the Volvo\u2019s, but the optioned Mazda still costs considerably less.<\/p>\n
Volvo understands its brand is synonymous with safety and goes the extra mile. It boasts integrated child booster seats in the rear. Dogs are members of the family, too, and can be housed in a cage that has been crash-tested for safety.<\/p>\n
But is the difference worth $20,000?<\/p>\n
Perhaps Mazda\u2019s most shocking accomplishment is in the beauty department. Design is what\u2019s supposed to separate luxury from mainstream. The once-boxy Volvo has come into its own in recent years with sculpted lines and sultry grilles. Next year the new XC60 will get the cool Thor\u2019s-hammer headlamps seen on the XC90.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s the Mazda that has the luxury looks. Avoiding the grille clutter that defines many mainstream brands (I\u2019m looking at you, Honda CR-V and Chevy Equinox), the CX-5\u2019s face is a work of art. The headlights pierce the five-point grille like arrows; the LED work is evocative of Audi\u2019s designer peepers. The body sweeps backward over high wheel-arches and deeply scalloped rocker panels \u2014 under blacked-out B and C pillars \u2014 to a chrome-punctuated fastback.<\/p>\n
And did I mention it\u2019s wearing a Soul Red Chrystal dress?<\/p>\n
Inside, the Mazda is as whisper-quiet as the Scandinavian, but can\u2019t match the Volvo\u2019s carved-wood console. The CX-5\u2019s design is more businesslike (think Audi) with attention to detail and material.<\/p>\n
The XC60 and CX-5 both have meek infotainment systems that neglect Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. These oversights that are common among luxury brands. Despite these blind spots, the Mazda still one-ups its more expensive opponent with heated rear seats and a head-up display.<\/p>\n
My favorite detail is the Mazda\u2019s rear doors: They open to 80 degrees for easy rear egress. That solves a common ute challenge.<\/p>\n
I have left the powertrains for last, because that is where the Volvo\u2019s 300-horse, super- and turbocharged inline-4 clearly separates itself from the Mazda\u2019s normally aspirated, four-cylinder 187-horse unit. But in practice, the CX-5 \u2014 though much buzzier under the cane \u2014 is a joy thanks to \u201cG-vectoring control,\u201d which cleverly manages engine-torque inputs for smoother acceleration and steering inputs.<\/p>\n
Mazda execs call their strategy \u201cmoving to premium,\u201d and it has all but eliminated the gap with more expensive SUVs. The high-tech Ford Escape and nimble Honda CR-V also play in the luxury league for thousands less. The pressure is on Volvo & Co. to justify their worth.<\/p>\n
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.<\/p>\n
2017 Volvo XC60<\/strong><\/p>\n\n
\n\n\nVEHICLE TYPE<\/strong><\/td>\n| FRONT-ENGINE, FRONT- AND<\/p>\n ALL-WHEEL DRIVE, FIVE-PASSENGER SUV<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPower plant<\/strong><\/td>\n| 2.0-liter, turbo- and supercharged<\/p>\n inline 4-cylinder<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nTransmission<\/strong><\/td>\n| Six-speed manual or automatic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nWeight<\/strong><\/td>\n| 2,875 pounds; 3,046 pounds<\/p>\n (with manual transmission)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPrice<\/strong><\/td>\n| $41,945 ($53,555 Inscription<\/p>\n as tested)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPower<\/strong><\/td>\n| 302 horsepower,<\/p>\n 295 pound-feet of torque<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPerformance<\/strong><\/td>\n| 0-60 mph, 6.4 seconds<\/p>\n (Car and Driver)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nFuel economy<\/strong><\/td>\n| EPA 20 city\/27 highway\/<\/p>\n 22 combined<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n Report card<\/strong><\/p>\n\n \n\n\nHIGHS<\/strong><\/td>\n| VAULT OF SAFETY SYSTEMS;<\/p>\n SCANDINAVIAN WOOD ACCENTS<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nLows<\/strong><\/td>\n| Dull to drive; aging chassis has us<\/p>\n longing for update<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n Overall:<\/strong>\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\nGrading scale<\/strong><\/p>\nExcellent \u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605Good \u2605\u2605\u2605Fair \u2605\u2605Poor \u2605<\/p>\n 2017 Mazda CX-5<\/strong><\/p>\n\n \n\n\nVEHICLE TYPE<\/strong><\/td>\n| FRONT-ENGINE, FRONT- AND<\/p>\n ALL-WHEEL DRIVE, FIVE-PASSENGER SUV<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPower plant<\/strong><\/td>\n| 2.5-liter, inline 4-cylinder<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nTransmission<\/strong><\/td>\n| Six-speed automatic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nWeight<\/strong><\/td>\n| 2,875 pounds; 3,046 pounds<\/p>\n (with manual transmission)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPrice<\/strong><\/td>\n| $24,985 ($34,060 Grand Touring<\/p>\n as tested)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPower<\/strong><\/td>\n| 187 horsepower, 185 pound-feet<\/p>\n of torque (2.0-liter)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nPerformance<\/strong><\/td>\n| 0-60 mph, 7.6 seconds<\/p>\n (Car and Driver est.)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nFuel economy<\/strong><\/td>\n| EPA 23 city\/29 highway\/<\/p>\n 26 combined (AWD)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n Report card<\/strong><\/p>\n\n \n\n\nHIGHS<\/strong><\/td>\n| AN SUV THAT HANDLES;<\/p>\n PREMIUM FEATURES<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nLows<\/strong><\/td>\n| Tardy off the line; Apple CarPlay<\/p>\n and Android Auto, please?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n Overall:<\/strong>\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome, dear reader, to another edition of \u201cWhat\u2019s it Worth to Ya?\u201d It\u2019s a little game I like to play comparing the ever-shrinking gap between luxury and mainstream brands. We\u2019ve played this game before with the Audi A4 and Ford Fusion. The latter\u2019s roomier, more powerful, more affordable design really makes one think twice about […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20456"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20456"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20456\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20457,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20456\/revisions\/20457"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20456"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20456"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20456"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}} | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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