2014 Mazda CX-9 vs 2014 Honda Pilot

Hi everyone,

I am researching my next car... thought about the 2014 Honda Pilot and 2014 Mazda CX-9. I test drove both vehicles and found the Pilot to be large and a bit scary when I tried to avoid hitting another car... I thought it would turn over. The CX-9 handled very well, but the ride was somewhat firm, unlike the Pilot which was smoother. The Pilot seem more practical, especially with the 8 seats and lots of storage. The CX-9 drove more like a car and seem smaller. The interior seem expensive. However, it did not seem practical like the Pilot.

This is difficult decision. Anyone here had to decide on which of the two vehicles to buy? And what motivated you to buy (since this is a Mazda forum, I suspect everyone may have selected the Mazda CX-9)?

jcsammy68 said:

Hi everyone,

I am researching my next car... thought about the 2014 Honda Pilot and 2014 Mazda CX-9. I test drove both vehicles and found the Pilot to be large and a bit scary when I tried to avoid hitting another car... I thought it would turn over. The CX-9 handled very well, but the ride was somewhat firm, unlike the Pilot which was smoother. The Pilot seem more practical, especially with the 8 seats and lots of storage. The CX-9 drove more like a car and seem smaller. The interior seem expensive. However, it did not seem practical like the Pilot.

This is difficult decision. Anyone here had to decide on which of the two vehicles to buy? And what motivated you to buy (since this is a Mazda forum, I suspect everyone may have selected the Mazda CX-9)?

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All I'll add in I feel the Pilot would be more reliable.I don't keep a vehicle to anywhere near 100K miles so long term reliability isn't too important to me.I also feel the Pilot is an ugly vehicle both in and out but it's a Honda and very reliable long term and to some that's all that matters..

You put it well: decide whether you want more driving fun or more practicality. Also, CX-9 is practically given away right now, so this might be a factor. Not sure about the Pilot. Safety ratings are abysmal on both, with apparently slight advantage to the CX-9.

I faced the same thing when I bought my '12. The cars haven't really changed all that much since then, and I was replacing an '04 Pilot.

I found the current Pilot extremely disappointing, especially since I previously had an '04. And, I don't even think I would call the Pilot a "smoother" ride. The Mazda definitely feels tighter when you drive it, but the ride, even with the 20" wheels, is not harsh or jarring at all. I find it a very smooth ride--and my wife is the primary driver, and she has NO complaints at all. I was also considering a Highlander (which has just changed this MY)--that was a very cushy ride. The Pilot had much more pronounced road noise than the Mazda (but Honda may have changed the OEM tires since then to address that issue).

I also was severely disappointed at the Pilot interior. Yes--it had lots of room; seats 8 if you must; has lots of well-thought storage compartments, cubbies, cupholders. But it looked really bland; the leather felt harsh and fake; the IP was uninspiring, and had a lot of buttons. I felt the Mazda had a nicer interior, but didn't do the "little" things like Honda as well. For example, my '04 Pilot had cupholders in the rear doors, in addition to the middle armrest; these were really handy. My CX-9 could use another power port in the rear seat; it would benefit from dedicated 1-6 preset buttons, instead of just on the nav screen; it would be nice if the audio had AM/FM/SAT hard buttons, instead, again, of making me hit "SOURCE" then select the input on the nav screen (although, nav controls may have changed with the '13 upgrades).

My MPG is atrocious, however, at 16.5 MPG in mixed driving. Honda should be better.

My decision in '12 came down to the Highlander Limited or the CX-9 Grand Touring; the Pilot was never a serious consideration. If I was in the market now, the Hyundai Santa Fe would be in the mix too. Frankly, with the CX-9 being basically a design that's been around since '07 MY, I'd probably lean toward the Highlander and Santa Fe if I was shopping today--still wouldn't bother with the Pilot.

joe427 said:

All I'll add in I feel the Pilot would be more reliable.I don't keep a vehicle to anywhere near 100K miles so long term reliability isn't too important to me.I also feel the Pilot is an ugly vehicle both in and out but it's a Honda and very reliable long term and to some that's all that matters..

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Consumer Reports shows that the reliability of the CX-9 has shot up as it has aged; the first few years were iffy, but the past 4 years have been above average to well above avg.

tex2670 said:

Consumer Reports shows that the reliability of the CX-9 has shot up as it has aged; the first few years were iffy, but the past 4 years have been above average to well above avg.

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That's good to know.
Honda & Toyota are always known great reliability.
I don't know too much about Mazda's reliability but made in Japan is nice.(yippy)

Your next Mazda will likely be made in Mexico.

joe427 said:

That's good to know.
Honda & Toyota are always known great reliability.
I don't know too much about Mazda's reliability but made in Japan is nice.(yippy)

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I've always tried to buy american build, I'm from Ohio, my last two Hondas were both build in Ohio. I switched to Mazda, because of their sporty looks and Sky-Activ seems to be a winning combination. But, I do feel a little bad, that they are purely Japanese build.

cybercruiser said:

I've always tried to buy american build, I'm from Ohio, my last two Hondas were both build in Ohio. I switched to Mazda, because of their sporty looks and Sky-Activ seems to be a winning combination. But, I do feel a little bad, that they are purely Japanese build.

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You spend that much money on a product, you should get the best for your $$$, regardless of where it is built.

I looked at the Pilot too but the interior just didn't do it for me. Also after driving the CX-9 it was a no brainer. I love driving a car, and the Mazda had most feel like a car then any SUV out there. I like the tight steering and sportier ride IMO.

We looked at the Pilot and Highlander (previous generation) when we bought. The Pilot dash felt like a wall in front of the driver and the hood/headlight was very much like a truck and the car is not a truck. Had a CRV before and knew to expect a noisy ride from the Pilot. They had noise cancelling that IMO just adds more noise and I could feel the annoying VCM vibration and also the Honda dealership nearby is not very friendly, so we passed. We almost bought a HL mostly due to good pickup and hoping for reliability and good resale. It had a lot of torque steer though and the one they were trying to sell us had the bumper repainted. While figuring this out we got a good deal on a 2010 (this was 1/2013) CPO CX-9 and could not be happier.

CX-9 hands down. Pilot is butt ugly, boring, old man's car. Highlander, same old same old. Every asian family has one or the other in the garage. I hate both, the drive is uninspiring. They take you from point A to point B alright, that's about it.
CX-9 resale value isn't bad, when I moved to europe two years ago, we had to get rid of the CX-9 GT, Carmax took our 2010 GT for 27k. Not a bad price for a two year old car. At that time, KBB valued our vehicle for about 33k private sale, so we got additional 6k from my employer to make up the difference. I paid 38k for the car, used it for 2 years and got back 33k, can't beat that.

Anyone know which of the two have a better AWD system?

Take a look at this youtube video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFGhjVha6Rc

It looks like the Honda Pilot higher road clearance and/or wider width (which allowed the front wheel to touch the ground) may have help it.

New Pilot is coming up this year.
If you can wait for a bit longer, end of this year is it as 2015.
New Pilot is always released 1 year after new MDX.

jcsammy68 said:

Anyone know which of the two have a better AWD system?

Take a look at this youtube video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFGhjVha6Rc

It looks like the Honda Pilot higher road clearance and/or wider width (which allowed the front wheel to touch the ground) may have help it.

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That's a meaningless test with so many unknowns. The tires look to be of different make, only the pilot was clearly shown to have snow tires, the other three are unknown. Even if all are equipped with snow tires, if they are not of the same brand and model, the test offers meaningless conclusion.

it actually did look like the pilot had snow tires; but maybe not.

either way, not too many people i know driving their cuvs like that in the snow! and all of them would have been fine with a little more speed.

i do wish the cx-9 had an awd lock (even up to a certain speed). i think the toyota and hyundai do; don't know about the pilot.

jcsammy68 said:

Anyone know which of the two have a better AWD system?

Take a look at this youtube video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFGhjVha6Rc

It looks like the Honda Pilot higher road clearance and/or wider width (which allowed the front wheel to touch the ground) may have help it.

Click to expand...

jcsammy68 said:

Hi everyone,
...... The Pilot seem more practical ...

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I test-drove 2013 Pilot and I did not find it more practical than CX-9. But it is a matter of individual vision and depends on your needs and your purpose of getting SUV vehicle. What I personally do not like in Honda Pilot most is its faceless and shapeless outdated Mastodon-like boring look and cheap interior.

As far as resale value goes, have a 2010 CX-9 in very good condition which we are thinking of trading in for a 2014, dealer will give us almost 18K on the trade.

Just thought I'd add that we always have 2 booster seats plus an additional baby car seat all in the second row. Plus enough room to haul 5 sleeping bags, 3 queen size air mattresses, 5 beach chairs, a huge tent, 13x13 canopy, firewood, clothes AND a large ice box for camping. Who says it ain't practical! =)

My 2 cents

I recently went through the purchase process. Evaluated the Honda Pilot EX-L, Toyota Highlander XLE and CX9 Touring. It's just the wife and I and the dog. So hauling kids and their associated stuff was not a factor.

The Highlander had a nice ride and decent looks. I think in the '14 MY Highlander the electronics were done the best. Lot's thought in to keeping you plugged into the matrix, good touch screen, nice shelf for you phone, cable routing ports charging stations, etc. The interior was nice but it screamed soccer mom that didn't want a minivan. Mileage was rated the highest of the three.

The Pilot is showing it's age. The ride was "floaty", felt like driving a truck. Interior was big and boring. The electronics not as refined as Toyota. Plus size lots of space inside the boxy body. Mileage about the same as the Toyota.

CX9 was the dark horse going in. Added it to the list based on reviews I read in my research. I was blown away with how it drove compared to the other two. Interior is nice, electronics are OK, like the Honda, need to be updated, but not horrible. Good looking vehicle. With the pricing discounts we went up to the Grand Touring fully loaded.

Based on TMV and current incentives, the CX9 GT with tech package came in 3 grand less than the XLE Highlander and I didn't think the Toyota was worth the price difference.

My biggest hits on the CX9 are gas mileage, under impressed with the Bose sounds system (its got a little better now that the speakers are burned in) and the cheap silver plastic trim on the interior door that all ready has a small scratch. Overall for the wife and I, it was the best of the three.