2014 CX-5 New Owner Observations: Detailed Review (2.5L Touring AWD)

[MikeM.]

The 2014 cars have a kick down switch, you should feel a resistance just before it operates, from what I've read.

So planting to the floor should give you the reaction expected.

But say your cruising along at 35-40 mph in 6th gear. If you floor it, it will shift down three gears but, with less drastic pedal action it will shift down 2 gears and if you just ease the accelerator down a moderate bit it might only shift to 5th.

I don't have the kickdown feature but I believe it is simply a tactile pedal that assists the driver in defining the point at which severe downshifting occurs? In other words, I'm guessing, in some situations, pressing the pedal to a point before the kickdown point could still effect a moderate downshift? I would be interested to hear if it behaves this way or not.

 

[MikeM.]

I just caught this old-but-new-to-me "The Fast Lane Car" youtube video of a 0-60 MPH test of the 2013 CX-5 2.0L Manual.

Their original video of the 2013 CX-5 2.0L Automatic got a fairly slow score of 13 something seconds, partially attributed to altitude. This is one of the factors that pushed me towards the 2.5L engine which also meant away from the Manual transmission.

Those guys are fun to watch and they sum up vehicle differences in a useful way but their 0-60 testing is done in such a way as to make the numbers useless for any purpose. I did notice their AWD auto was equipped with 19" wheels which provides a very measurable slowdown in 0-60 timing.

Your decision from the 2.0L FWD Manual to the 2.5L AWD Auto is quite a big difference in fuel economy (from highest MPG CX-5 to the lowest).

 

[Chas]

This is quite true. In fact, not only can you feel it click, you can also hear it click. Our salesman took pains to highlight this as a feature, and you get the kickdown in the last 10% of throttle demand, and encouraged us to "try it out" on the test drive.

The 2014 cars have a kick down switch, you should feel a resistance just before it operates, from what I've read.

So planting to the floor should give you the reaction expected.

 

[vroom]

I didn't even know I had the kikdown switch untill I read about it in this forum. I tried it out, and to me it does not make any difference. It seems to me that when I finally reach the floor where the switch is located, the car is allready in the correct gear reving high, so the "click" does nothing to further rev the engine...

 

[Dr_Watson]

In my golf dsg it's a pain in the arse. Lets say you are cruising at 50mph and want to pass someone with full throttle, there is enough torque from the engine not to change gear but by pressing the too hard and clicking the kickdown, the gear jumped to lowest possible, 2nd, then with a second goes to 3rd as you pass. 2nd gear at 50mph isn't much use with so little revs left, it should just go to 3rd.

The worst part if you switch to manual using the stick or as I do, the paddles, if u click the kickdown, it still changes to lowest possible gear even when in manual!

Maybe the cx5 system isn't so aggressive and works better.

 

[deepfriedsushi]

For the keyless entry with out the advanced system I got into the habit of putting my keys into my pocket with the buttons on the keyfob facing out. So when I approach the car and want to unlock, I feel where the key is from the outside of my pants and find the unlock button and press it. I do the same when leaving the car. That way, I don't even have to take out the key from my pocket!

The trick is to not look like you're touching yourself inappropriately when trying to find the button. (lol)

 

[MikeM.]

The trick is to not look like you're touching yourself inappropriately when trying to find the button. (lol)

LOL! I can see the police blotter now!

 

[b_scott]

thanks for the long review - helps to make our decision

 

[ta240]

For the keyless entry with out the advanced system I got into the habit of putting my keys into my pocket with the buttons on the keyfob facing out. So when I approach the car and want to unlock, I feel where the key is from the outside of my pants and find the unlock button and press it. I do the same when leaving the car. That way, I don't even have to take out the key from my pocket!

The trick is to not look like you're touching yourself inappropriately when trying to find the button. (lol)

I just reach into my pocket and go by feel for the buttons to avoid having to pull the fob out and put it back. Although if I fumble around for it too much i could give a bad impression too. With the Mazda emblem at the top of the fob it is pretty easy to find which button to push quickly. Which makes it easy to do things like put away an umbrella, take off a jacket or stow a parcel while getting into the car without having to mess with having a set of keys in one hand.

At first I did occasionally leave my keys in my pocket when getting in to start our other cars but only in the garage at home where I didn't have to unlock the doors as it quickly became second nature which fobs I needed to pull out of my pocket and which ones I leave there when getting in.

Although, Even with our other cars I don't tend to always pull the keys out of my pocket when I lock or unlock the car as most remotes are pretty easy to go by feel with. Especially if I'm heading to the back of the car to put in groceries or things like that.

 

[nXt]

I can't believe people complain so much about the freaking keys.
How old are you people...

The regular fob should be of no issue. The ADVANCED Key system I would understand, requiring extra brain-power to figure out how many times to push the button on the door handle, etc.

 

[b_scott]

I can't believe people complain so much about the freaking keys.
How old are you people...

The regular fob should be of no issue. The ADVANCED Key system I would understand, requiring extra brain-power to figure out how many times to push the button on the door handle, etc.

I don't even own a car and do I-Go to rent hourly cars once a month maybe. The one near us is a Prius and has that - it took no time to get used to

 

[nXt]

Seems like most of people's "complaints" is having to take the key fob out and put it back in your pocket. Well guess what, you don't have to.
If it's so troublesome, put a velcro on it and stick it on the start button! There you go, you can pretend like it's a real key you have to push against the start button!
Or you can simply put it on the dash, in the cubby hole, next to the shifter if you have to.
(shaking my head)

 

[jjmckay]

It's not about brain power, one's reflexes need to be reconditioned. I've had a 2014 CX-5 Touring for a month.

Old process on my 2005 Mazda3 which I had for 175K miles. Unlock car with my FOB. The key is in my hand when I start with the key in the ignition: always use the FOB to lock and unlock: and never use the buttons inside on the arm rest. That way, I won't lock my keys if I accidentally set them on the passenger seat or if they fall out of my pocket while getting out. Of course the car is always turned off when I turn the key off and take my keys out. Lock with FOB.

The problem is I'm conditioned to the old way for so long that I mix old habits with new procedures. On two occasions, I've locked my key in the car (I carry the second set so I got back in.) On two more occasions, I've left the car running (in park)just about to walk away from it. The engine is very quiet and I'm tipped off when I can't get it to lock with the FOB (that's the old way I'd lock my Mazda 3). Both times were after I had turned off the radio, triggering my old conditioning that it means the car is off. (Of course, that's no longer true.)

What I'm going to do thanks to the constructive comments here: 1) Definitely still carry the second key with me all the time just in case and 2) leave the key in my pocket, even when unlocking. Make sure car is off and not just radio. Use lock buttons on inside car handle to lock. I do wish there was an option to program sounds so that there was ding-ding-ding if I opened the drivers door with the engine running in park.

I'll follow up in a couple of weeks. Many thanks to those who offer constructive ideas.

 

[CX-SV]

I have 3 vehicles with 3 different systems (Mazda advanced keyless, Lexus version of keyless, Mercedes key/remote), and I adapted easily. No prob switching cars and driving them back to back. I also rent cars, no prob.

Yes, I do touch my pocket to confirm I'm carrying device (remote or key) for car being driven and my iPhone in other pocket, no arrests so far.

 

[socalcx-5]

great write-up. I've owned my FWD GT w/tech for a week and have some similar observations.

-the advanced keyless entry system: I'm already used to it and love it, though I'll always prefer a traditional key ignition rather than the push button. As someone else mentioned, I'm paranoid about that button getting stuck.

-transmission/engine: honestly this was always my biggest complain about the car and the only real reason I continued to shop around after driving the CX-5 initially. I've always driven manual transmissions as well, and just came out of a V6 accord coupe with a 6-speed. I'm used to wringing out the gears when I want to, so I was very frustrated initially with the CX-5's insistence on upshifting so early and often. I've gotten more used to it, though I still prefer to drive in 'manual' mode in my CX-5. In this mode, I actually find the engine to be sufficiently powerful, whereas full automatic mode makes it feel underpowered to me.

-handling: this is the car's single biggest asset IMO. Our other car is a BMW 3 series and honestly the Mazda is at least comparable, whereas no other cars in this class are. I loved every other thing about the new Hyundai Santa Fe Sport, but the handling in that car is disturbingly vague/numb and requires constant corrections.

-interior fit & finish: a poor man's BMW really, but that's not the worst thing. It looks nice enough and most things are as functional as they should be.

-stereo/navigation: honestly, the tom tom navi is pretty awful, but my wife and I knew this going in, so we're not too irritated. Everything else about the unit is acceptable without being great.

All in all I think it's a great little car and I feel like I made the right decision. It's great fun to drive. I'll always wish it had more power, and that the navi was more sophisticated, but every car has its issues.