Just Saying Hi

New to the forums here, but not new to MAzda. I'm a 2017 Mazda 3 GT Premium Tech owner in Canada. We've had our new CX-5 on order for about 3 weeks now and are patiently awaiting delivery - we are scheduled for pickup on Sat. It will be a white GS trim with comfort and i-activesense packages. It seemed to represent the best value for us while meeting the vast majority of our requirements.

In 10 days my 3 will be 6 months old and I've got 18,000 kms on it as of now - it's been an absolute treat. I've been a pocket Mazda guy for a while: I had a '10 3 GT before my '17 3 which was unfortunately written off, but the car did a great job keeping me safe from the GMC 2500 that chose to use my car to stop it vs it's own brakes.

The new CX-5 will be replacing my wife's current car - a 2014 Kia Rondo EX Luxury with 80,000 kms on it. We bought that car new, our first new car ever, and this CX-5 is bailing us out of what has been a terribly frustrating ownership experience with that Kia literally since day 1. In hindsight we should've walked away before taking delivery, but hindsight is always 20/20. The most recent issue with the Kia combined with the availability of the new CX-5 is what broke our back and made us comfortable with jumping ship from the Kia MUCH earlier than planned. I'll admit, not a wise financial decision but we're already more comfortable knowing that very soon we won't have to deal with it any more.

I've secretly been waiting for the new CX-5 to come out for over a year now and once the local dealer had them I got the wife in for a test drive - this was mainly due to my experience with my new 3 and how much I absolutely love that. We took our time and cross-shopped the new one vs the 2016.5 (I would've been ok with a clearout deal / incentives!) as well as the competition (Rogue, RAV4, CRV, Forester) and the Mazda was simply the winner for her - which I am absolutely OK with. For me the only cars I were willing to buy were either the Mazda or Suby, but she was the one who made the call.

The 17 was the only vehicle my wife actually wanted over her current car. Everything else was either "ugly" to her or she was indifferent of them vs her current car. She actually used the term "meh" on a couple of test drives, except for the Rogue, she (and I) despised that thing. The '17 CX-5 thoroughly impressed her to the point where she said "ooooohh" when getting on the highway with it and she had a smile on her face while testing it out.

The only thing the new one will be missing from her checklist is premium audio but we didn't want to jump up to the GT just for that. She was indifferent to the rest of the GT's enhancements and quite frankly with us purchasing a second vehicle quite so soon after my new 3 I was ok with saving some $.

Anyhow just saying hi. This is the spot with the most CX-5 info I've been able to find anywhere so I figured it wouldn't hurt to join up.

No real mods planned of any sort. Dealer is tinting the 2 front windows before delivery and before winter comes around we'll be getting some floor liners when the aftermarket catches up. I have a Curt hitch already waiting in the garage for bike rack use and light utility trailer hauling around town. Unfortunately I don't see a plug and play tail light adapter yet so I think I'll have to wire in a universal. Not sure if I can wait too long for that or not.

Thank all

Welcome!

Like you I have been watching and waiting for the 17s since last year. I was on a tight time table since I needed the car by 4/29 when my daughter got back from school and needed a vehicle, so I bought the second week the car was out. I don't get to drive it nearly as much as I like....racked up less than 300 miles in 30 days....but so far I can say its the BEST vehicle I've ever owned. Mazda delivers German Car handling and road feel with Japanese reliability which to me is a winning combination.

Hi and welcome!

Sup

I'm waiting for a diesel but otherwise right there with you on the GS vs GT points. Only thing I'd really want is the stereo. Actually prefer the 17" wheels/tires of the GS. Add moonroof/dual zone/heated seats and I'm good.

Welcome to a fellow Canuck

2017 CX-5 was on my watch list for a few months and I'm very happy with my decision.
Welcome fellow Canadian!


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J.R. said:

I'm waiting for a diesel but otherwise right there with you on the GS vs GT points. Only thing I'd really want is the stereo. Actually prefer the 17" wheels/tires of the GS. Add moonroof/dual zone/heated seats and I'm good.

Welcome to a fellow Canuck

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I'm unsure of the differences between the GS and GT trims, but a "feature" you can't live without once you have it are LED (or HID) headlights. I gained LED headlights in another car in 2014 and when I drove a car without them during the night, it was startling. I felt like I was pushing darkness with a flashlight as opposed to full visibility. YMMV, but I simply wouldn't spend ~30k if 31.5k could gain that feature.

Again, unsure on pricing and tiers.

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Thanks for the warm welcome everyone. Nice to know there's some fellow Canucks poking around.

A wonderful feature of the 2017's: All of the new CX-5's have LED headlights, they just don't turn with the steering wheel and don't have the accent lighting on models lower than GT. The GS gets auto-leveling still though, which is really nice.

FWIW I'm also a firm believer in having good headlights and confirming the above is what actually brought me into looking at the optioned up GS vs restricting myself to the GT.

The higher end lights are certainly pretty with their "signature lighting" and I admit AFS is truly awesome (have it in my 3), but they just weren't a must have for us. My last 3, current 3, and wife's Kia were all top-tier trims specifically to get the HID / LED headlights and I wholeheartedly agree that once you're off halogens you can never go back.

Price difference between an optioned up GS and optioned up GT (to retain the full i-activesense suite) was approx a $3,000 difference.

CLN, as Studum noted, it's LED across the board now.

Well, it sounds like I won't be able to get the diesel in the mid level GS initially anyway...

http://www.autonews.com/article/20170510/OEM04/170519977/mazda-sets-bar-high-for-diesel-powered-cx-5

Mazda, Moro said, will begin offering the diesel engine on high-end CX-5 models such as the Grand Touring variant, which starts at just under $30,000. He said the diesel engine could trickle down to other CX-5 trim levels over time.

“Starting from high and expanding, I think, is the right way,” he said.

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That's disappointing. I would prefer the mid level (GS in Canada) with the diesel. This could be the difference between me leasing or buying one. I'd be especially frustrated to buy one only to make the diesel available in the GS (AND/OR a manual) available the 2nd or 3rd year in.

Greetings and welcome!

I have a top of the line 2010 Mazda 3S GT and I am sorry to hear what happened to yours. I have been thinking about giving my Mazda to my daughter and getting a new top of the line Mazda 3 GT. PVQ is right saying Mazda 3's handle like German cars. I had 4 BMW's before buying the Mazda and my Mazda is just as fun to drive with great reliability. I would like to ask if you would tell me what your 2017 Mazda 3 has that is better or worse than your 2010. I hear the newer Mazdas aren't as well-made as the 2010 S GT's were. Is this true? I am thinking it may be that no other Mazda could compare to my 2010 - I really love it. I may just get a BMW 4 series and retire my Mazda to the other side of the garage when my daughter is through with it - IF I can actually part with it for a while. I totally see this generation Mazda becoming a classic.