6MT Endangered?
- Thread starter skeener
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Even on their SkyActiv promotional web pages and videos, Mazda states that the SkyActiv manual transmission is designed for FWD vehicles. So right there is a limiting aspect to that tranny. Now they have come along and not offered the MT on the FWD 2.5L CX-5s. Probably to simplify production.
I don't know what Mazda is seeing in sales, but few SUVs are sold in the USA with MTs. Only a very small minority of customers want them in this type of vehicle. Thus I would not be surprised if Mazda dropped it from the entire CX-5 line. I continue to believe that the ONLY reason it is offered at all is so that Mazda can advertise that the CX-5 has an EPA estimate of up to 35 mpg. If it continues to survive, it will because Mazda feels that advertising jingo is worth still having it around.
I don't know what Mazda is seeing in sales, but few SUVs are sold in the USA with MTs. Only a very small minority of customers want them in this type of vehicle. Thus I would not be surprised if Mazda dropped it from the entire CX-5 line. I continue to believe that the ONLY reason it is offered at all is so that Mazda can advertise that the CX-5 has an EPA estimate of up to 35 mpg. If it continues to survive, it will because Mazda feels that advertising jingo is worth still having it around.
Canadian-ES-GT
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- Protege
Once the diesel is out, they'll advertise the better mpg numbers and won't need the manual to deliver 35 mpg. I could see it happen loosing the manual.
Funny... The MT is the main reason I'm interested in the CX-5... I nearly sold myself on the BMW X1, but after fiddleing with the stupid mouse like thing that talks to the computer that controls the transmission, I decided to give it a pass. If Mazda drops the MT, I will be sad (but I will already own one 
. I guess most americans would rather just sit and watch then really be involved in "driving" a car. Not me. But I know I'm a minority... I'm sure my next car will be electric or some other fantastic "improvement" and I can drive it around like it's a golf cart. I can't wait. While they're at it, wouldn't it be better for everybody if we all just rode the bus?
. I guess most americans would rather just sit and watch then really be involved in "driving" a car. Not me. But I know I'm a minority... I'm sure my next car will be electric or some other fantastic "improvement" and I can drive it around like it's a golf cart. I can't wait. While they're at it, wouldn't it be better for everybody if we all just rode the bus?popeyecahn
Member
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- Ex CX5 Owner
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- '23 3 PRM HB MT
^^^Yuuuuuuup!
I went onto Cars.com, to advanced search. Set my miles to "ALL" (so it does a national search) for a new Mazda CX-5 with manual transmission. It located 117 in the entire USA. Not all cars are listed on cars.com, but a lot of them are. Resetting my search to automatic transmissions, I found 6,343 in the USA. So 98.2% of them have automatics.
Normally you wouldn't keep a model around if it were just 2% of your inventory. This just goes that it is largely out there for advertising purposes.
Normally you wouldn't keep a model around if it were just 2% of your inventory. This just goes that it is largely out there for advertising purposes.
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Funny... The MT is the main reason I'm interested in the CX-5... I nearly sold myself on the BMW X1, but after fiddleing with the stupid mouse like thing that talks to the computer that controls the transmission, I decided to give it a pass. If Mazda drops the MT, I will be sad (but I will already own one
same here, if there was no MT, I probably will not buy one. right now CX5 is the biggest manual car you can get in united states. I can imagine they drop the manual if the sales are not there, that is what happened to all manual BMW and Audi's, all their Suv like cars only comes with auto.
I'm going to teach my kids how to drive a manual, my son is already programmed that slush box sucks, unless DSG, but what do you do with your left foot?
dad of jon
Member
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- cx-5 se-l 2.2D
fortunately 6MT is available in FWD in both the petrol and lower powered diesel in europe. if you want the higher powered diesel its AWD. Strangely enough the new 6 has the higher powered diesel in FWD so it's a shame they didn't do that on the Cx-5.
While I don't want to see manual option going away and can sympathize, I totally prefer an AT.
Not all AT are the same, far from it and it is a shame magazines and reviewers don't really cover the AT transmission well. If anything, I'd like to see AT becoming better at reading driver's intent and find the right balance between saving gas and feeling (and being) responsive. I'd like to see the AT CX-5 get better millage with an AT and weigh about the same as MT and get better rolling start 5-60.
Not all AT are the same, far from it and it is a shame magazines and reviewers don't really cover the AT transmission well. If anything, I'd like to see AT becoming better at reading driver's intent and find the right balance between saving gas and feeling (and being) responsive. I'd like to see the AT CX-5 get better millage with an AT and weigh about the same as MT and get better rolling start 5-60.
popeyecahn
Member
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- Ex CX5 Owner
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- '23 3 PRM HB MT
Yeah "American Exceptionalism" is at play, we always get screwed in the trim level charades game.
When I went to buy CX-5 last July, my dealer said that those were not available at all. Morons.
I insisted that MT is the only version that I was willing to buy and then suddenly they were able to find one and get it in 4 days.
Yes, MT's are Sport only but why would have Mazda introduced those in the first place?
None of my local dealers had a manual model, so I gave up on it for a while. Then I found one when on holiday in Orlando (200+miles away) I put down a deposit on the spot and bought it the next weekend. The 6MT is always going to be rare as the number of manual drivers diminishes in the USA.
I haven't seen a number of what % of CX-5 with 6MTs are made for the US. One could look at cars.com search (set miles to all) and see that there are 11,000 Nissan Pathfinders and 10,000 Dodge Durangos in inventory then conclude that since both have similar #s, both are doing pretty well. In reality, January stats show almost twice as many Pathfinders sold however.
While Mazda may do away with the US 2.0 option when the diesel option comes out, some of us who have the 2.0 6MT and enjoy it don't accept that it is a given yet. Mazda does have a history "doing things differently" and have not just built vehicles based on the US demand (which is predominantly high HP and automatic trans).
My point is that if there are 6,460 CX-5's found from a sampling of new vehicles found from dealers who use cars.com, and only 117 have MTs, then that is a very strong data point that Mazda is not making many with MTs for USA distribution. Perhaps only enough to be able to legally claim that they are making the vehicle and continue to advertise the gas mileage of it, without being accused of fraudulent advertising.
If the low number was due to MTs selling like hotcakes and so there weren't many around, then Mazda, who really wants to sell more vehicles, would be making a lot more of them. But this isn't true. I've spoken to Mazda dealers and they tell me that MTs are difficult to sell and they don't try to get them. The fact that Mazda only puts the MT on their base model is a statement that they are not committed to it. Because Mazda wants to sell more Tourings and Grand Tourings as the profit margins are better on those trim levels.
I think Mazda is offering the MT for 2 advertising reasons. So they can state that the CX-5 gets up to 35 mpg highway and that prices start at $21,195.
Now they do sell more MTs on the Mazda3. For that vehicle the MT is available across all trim levels.
Unfortunately American buyers of SUVs don't want MTs. Look at the brand new Toyota RAV4, which just came out in January. Toyota offers it with a MT in many countries all over the world, but not in the USA or Canada. We get AT only. Because they don't sell enough MTs here to bother with it.
IMHO, if less than 2% of all CX-5s in inventory in the USA have MTs, then we are talking about a near mythical vehicle. Too bad, because I think the CX-5 would be a lot of fun with MT and I was very disappointed to find out that they were not going to offer the MT on any of their 2.5L models.
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I'm not sure what the take rate for manual CX-5s is. Last year, the manual take rate for Mazda 5s in Canada was 11%.
Even if only 1.8% of CX-5s are in stock at any given time, is it because people special order them because they want a specific colour and don't mind waiting, or do they get snatched up as soon as they hit the lot?
Even if only 1.8% of CX-5s are in stock at any given time, is it because people special order them because they want a specific colour and don't mind waiting, or do they get snatched up as soon as they hit the lot?
