Recent content by scottj

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    Consumer Reports New Car Issue 2024

    Sooooo... RAV4 out-scored CX-5 in the road test? Horsepucky. This calls into question everything CR publishes.
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    CX-5 Year, Mileage and Repairs

    2020 Signature (turbo). 52k miles. No repairs, just a few firmware updates to fix infotainment issues and a cold shifting hesitation. Still original brakes all around, too.
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    2014 CX-5 owner looking to upgrade. New one worth it?

    We have had a 2018 RAV-4 (model prior to the silly Tonka redesign) and first a 2019 Signature CX-5 and then a 2020 after my dealer rang me up to offer a deal I could not refuse. They are not in the same class of vehicle. There’s nothing wrong with the RAV-4 but the CX-5 merits an “Oh, my!”...
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    Odd acceleration solved and maintenance question

    An elderly female relative bought a loaded Cadillac De Ville every year. She'd drive with one foot constantly riding the brake "because the engine is too powerful." SMH.
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    2021 CX-5 hesitation/back and forth feeling

    Thanks, @yrwei52. From what @edmole1 describes, if I did not know the Mazda's transmission, I'd assume he's describing DCT-tranny behavior as the internal clutches wear. Though Mazda's tranny is not a DCT unit, there might be a very similar root cause. There are several sets of clutches...
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    2021 CX-5 hesitation/back and forth feeling

    My 2020 Signature had symptoms just like OP's. I like his analogy to a manual tranny's clutch being dropped. The behavior has been consistent but intermittent in the 9 months I've owned the car. I mentioned it at my 5000 mile dealer oil change service and the report came back...
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    2017~2024 CX-5 Trailer Hitch recommendations?

    I researched pretty thoroughly and it came down to the Curt and the Draw-Tite (and identical models sold under different names). The Curt give about 1.5" more ground clearance but the Draw-Tite has a small amount of additional theoretical towing capacity, but both exceed the car's specified...
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    Firmware 70.00.367A

    That's unfortunate, isn't it? Even Toyota has an easy-to-update system with downloadable files that are easy to find and select-- see Toyota Downloads for example. A well-designed infotainment system would have built-in integrity checks to allow the update process to proceed safely. Mazda's...
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    Cabin noise reduced in 2020s?

    The door seal design is visibly different between my 2019 Sig and my 2020 Sig.
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    Cabin noise reduced in 2020s?

    I loved my 2019 Sig dearly, but my dealer offered me a trade-in deal that couldn't be denied, so now I'm tooling about in an identical 2020 Sig. It is definitely quieter. I note the door seals are different, and there are reports of many subtle changes such as a new headliner layer. My 2020...
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    AWD Systems Comparison With Europeans

    Thanks for digging into the numbers. My 40% came from chatting with friends there and what they said they'd have to pay to duplicate my 2019 CX-5 Signature. This was about a year ago so there may be some time variance too. (At the time the turbo option was very new for the CX-5 and commanded...
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    AWD Systems Comparison With Europeans

    The CX-5 may seem out of place to Americans in this test, versus Audi, BMW, etc. But in Germany, Mazdas sell for about a 40% premium compared to what we are used to here. A friend in Germany blanched when I mentioned my CX-5; it's considered a fairly expensive car there, pretty much as we...
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    Car and Driver Compact SUV rankings

    To my eye, Tiguan is like many European cars: really nice to own, until it isn't. Things tend to get costly after 50-75k miles with European cars. It's one reason why their depreciation is so steep. Japanese cars, until recent exceptions, just kept on keeping on. The recent exceptions so far...
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    Scripting iOS 'Shortcuts' App for CarPlay

    I've got a little Shortcuts thingie set up so my podcast app updates whenever I plug my iPhone into a CarPlay-enabled vehicle. Works a treat.
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    AWD Systems Comparison With Europeans

    Prior to my CX-5 purchase last year, I did a lot of reading about AWD systems. Mazda's AWD systems did well in snowy-road conditions, muddy fords, and so on. Mazda ground clearance isn't really off-road-worthy, but they'll do better than some, such as Hyundais/Kias with dual-clutch...
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