2016 CX-9 cargo capacity question

V

Vancouver_MTB

Member
:
2017 CX-9 GS-L
Hi guys - first post on this forum. Currently vehicle shopping for a mid-size SUV. Originally thought we wanted a Toyota Highlander but after test driving a CX-9 we figured out that we preferred the CX-9. Really nice vehicle but one thing that I am worried about is cargo capacity. The total cargo space is fine overall but the (short) height of the cargo space worries me a little bit. I do a lot of mountain biking and would like to be able to fit the bike inside the car for longer road trips. I would be taking off the front wheel and putting the bike in the trunk (with one side of the seats down - both 2nd and 3rd row). Any idea if my bike would fit like this? It's a large men's 29er mountain bike.

Is there are detailed list of all the cargo dimensions online for the 2016 model? A quick google search wasn't coming up with much. If I could find the measurements I could answer this question myself.

Thanks in advance!
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
Hi guys - first post on this forum. Currently vehicle shopping for a mid-size SUV. Originally thought we wanted a Toyota Highlander but after test driving a CX-9 we figured out that we preferred the CX-9. Really nice vehicle but one thing that I am worried about is cargo capacity. The total cargo space is fine overall but the (short) height of the cargo space worries me a little bit. I do a lot of mountain biking and would like to be able to fit the bike inside the car for longer road trips. I would be taking off the front wheel and putting the bike in the trunk (with one side of the seats down - both 2nd and 3rd row). Any idea if my bike would fit like this? It's a large men's 29er mountain bike.

Is there are detailed list of all the cargo dimensions online for the 2016 model? A quick google search wasn't coming up with much. If I could find the measurements I could answer this question myself.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

Don't know the exact dimensions of the cargo area only the volume in terms of cubic ft but if you are putting in mountain bikes then it might not be the vehicle for you as cargo space for highlander and pilot are better but if you can live with the limited space in cx9 then it might be better for you in terms of driving dynamics, etc. I suggest ask your dealer for an extended test drive as ours allowed us an overnight test so we can fit in our garage and do other tests with the vehicle before buying it. This way you can find out if your bikes do fit...
 
tekbis said:
Don't know the exact dimensions of the cargo area only the volume in terms of cubic ft but if you are putting in mountain bikes then it might not be the vehicle for you as cargo space for highlander and pilot are better but if you can live with the limited space in cx9 then it might be better for you in terms of driving dynamics, etc. I suggest ask your dealer for an extended test drive as ours allowed us an overnight test so we can fit in our garage and do other tests with the vehicle before buying it. This way you can find out if your bikes do fit...
Click to expand...

Good point about the extended test drive - I was going to bring my bike to the dealership but this sounds like a better option. The Highlander does have better cargo space but it would be overkill 99% of the time so I think the CX-9 would be a better fit for us in general. We live in the city so the agility of the CX-9 would come in handy. The cargo space in the CX-9 isn't a deal breaker but it would be reassuring to know that the bike does fit in there that way.
 
Hi Vancouver. I registered just to comment on this post as I am also looking for a mountain bike carrying vehicle so I can bring my bike to work and ride immediately afterwards. I don't think you're going to be able to stand a large bike upright in the back but it would be worthwhile to test. I measured the vertical height at the midpoint of the second row with the seats folded down to be only 26". Now that is at the protrusion of the ceiling for the moonroof. If you put a fork mount at the rear, the max height of your tire and seat might be far enough rearward so that it does not hit the moonroof hump, but even then we're only talking about 28-29" of interior height. I have Trek Fuel EX 19.5 with a 125 mm dropper seatpost and I measured that I would need 34" of vertical clearance to stand the bike upright with the front wheel removed. The good thing about the cargo area in the cx9 is that you can easily remove the cargo platform behind the third row of seats allowing you to drop the front fork about 3 inches lower, but your rear wheel will still be on the back of the second row of seats. In the end, I think that if I had a 170 mm dropper post and put a fork mount at the back of the cargo area in the lowered compartment, it probably would still be too tall, but it would be worth a test.
 
Iwantfood4321 said:
Hi Vancouver. I registered just to comment on this post as I am also looking for a mountain bike carrying vehicle so I can bring my bike to work and ride immediately afterwards. I don't think you're going to be able to stand a large bike upright in the back but it would be worthwhile to test. I measured the vertical height at the midpoint of the second row with the seats folded down to be only 26". Now that is at the protrusion of the ceiling for the moonroof. If you put a fork mount at the rear, the max height of your tire and seat might be far enough rearward so that it does not hit the moonroof hump, but even then we're only talking about 28-29" of interior height. I have Trek Fuel EX 19.5 with a 125 mm dropper seatpost and I measured that I would need 34" of vertical clearance to stand the bike upright with the front wheel removed. The good thing about the cargo area in the cx9 is that you can easily remove the cargo platform behind the third row of seats allowing you to drop the front fork about 3 inches lower, but your rear wheel will still be on the back of the second row of seats. In the end, I think that if I had a 170 mm dropper post and put a fork mount at the back of the cargo area in the lowered compartment, it probably would still be too tall, but it would be worth a test.
Click to expand...

One other option is to install a trailer hitch behind the vehicle and just attach a bike rack instead just like what I see in other smaller SUVs...yes the bikes are outside when travelling but a lot easier to mount than trying to cram and fit in the cargo area without any disassembly.
 
Here's some pics...not ideal for bikes plus passengers, but it could work.
Diagonal, 57 inches
3ad61901af5a92fa2a99c2388edc0a0d.jpg


As mentioned above, hatch opening.
8c8a50218666027f7d08092a2401ff12.jpg


One side down...21 inches

3397bdb1318f25468b13cf8abdb9b5b6.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
Hi guys - first post on this forum. Currently vehicle shopping for a mid-size SUV. Originally thought we wanted a Toyota Highlander but after test driving a CX-9 we figured out that we preferred the CX-9. Really nice vehicle but one thing that I am worried about is cargo capacity. The total cargo space is fine overall but the (short) height of the cargo space worries me a little bit. I do a lot of mountain biking and would like to be able to fit the bike inside the car for longer road trips. I would be taking off the front wheel and putting the bike in the trunk (with one side of the seats down - both 2nd and 3rd row). Any idea if my bike would fit like this? It's a large men's 29er mountain bike.

Is there are detailed list of all the cargo dimensions online for the 2016 model? A quick google search wasn't coming up with much. If I could find the measurements I could answer this question myself.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Honestly, you will do yourself a favor to take an afternoon, make some appointments at dealers, and bring your bike with you to see precisely how if fits. Dimensions don't always tell the entire story--there could be a bump out, or a sloping rear hatch. Any good dealer should be happy to let you pop your bike in the back of their demo. Even better dealers might let you take it home to see how it fits in your garage.
 
tekbis said:
One other option is to install a trailer hitch behind the vehicle and just attach a bike rack instead just like what I see in other smaller SUVs...yes the bikes are outside when travelling but a lot easier to mount than trying to cram and fit in the cargo area without any disassembly.
Click to expand...

I am planning on getting a hitch mounted rack as well but I just want the option to fit the bike inside the vehicle as well. For example, for longer road trips where I might need to leave my bike in the car while going to a store/restaurant or even leaving it in there overnight if a hotel doesn't allow bikes. It's not really a deal breaker because I know I could fit the bike inside the vehicle one way or another (laying it down, with all the seats down), but I just figure that if I am buying a 3 row SUV it should be big enough to fit my bike inside, since it is possible to do it like that in much smaller vehicles (hatch backs & station wagons).
 
Iwantfood4321 said:
Hi Vancouver. I registered just to comment on this post as I am also looking for a mountain bike carrying vehicle so I can bring my bike to work and ride immediately afterwards. I don't think you're going to be able to stand a large bike upright in the back but it would be worthwhile to test. I measured the vertical height at the midpoint of the second row with the seats folded down to be only 26". Now that is at the protrusion of the ceiling for the moonroof. If you put a fork mount at the rear, the max height of your tire and seat might be far enough rearward so that it does not hit the moonroof hump, but even then we're only talking about 28-29" of interior height. I have Trek Fuel EX 19.5 with a 125 mm dropper seatpost and I measured that I would need 34" of vertical clearance to stand the bike upright with the front wheel removed. The good thing about the cargo area in the cx9 is that you can easily remove the cargo platform behind the third row of seats allowing you to drop the front fork about 3 inches lower, but your rear wheel will still be on the back of the second row of seats. In the end, I think that if I had a 170 mm dropper post and put a fork mount at the back of the cargo area in the lowered compartment, it probably would still be too tall, but it would be worth a test.
Click to expand...

Yeah that's another reason why I want to be able to carry my bike inside - so I can leave it in there during work and ride immediately after. So you are saying that the distance between the top of the second row of seats and the ceiling is only 26 inches? My bike is a 29er so right off the bat it sounds like it would be a tough fit. Dammit! I really like the CX-9 but I feel a bit stupid buying such a big vehicle, which can't even fit my mountain bike in properly.

I'm going to try to do a longer test drive and check it out just in case... maybe I can find a way to squeeze it in there.
 
Thanks for taking those pics!! What is the measurement on the 2nd pic for the hatch opening? Can't see it with the glare.
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
I am planning on getting a hitch mounted rack as well but I just want the option to fit the bike inside the vehicle as well. For example, for longer road trips where I might need to leave my bike in the car while going to a store/restaurant or even leaving it in there overnight if a hotel doesn't allow bikes. It's not really a deal breaker because I know I could fit the bike inside the vehicle one way or another (laying it down, with all the seats down), but I just figure that if I am buying a 3 row SUV it should be big enough to fit my bike inside, since it is possible to do it like that in much smaller vehicles (hatch backs & station wagons).
Click to expand...

At end of the day it all depends on your priority and main reason/purpose for the vehicle so if cargo space isn't an issue then you wouldn't be disappointed with the CX9. I used to drive a Volvo XC60 with 30cu ft of rear space vs 38.0 on the 9 and 64 total cu ft of space vs 71 on the 9...not a huge difference vs our Volvo but I still wanted the extra 2 seats when needed and the updated safety features. So far we're happy with our decision but cargo space wasn't our main purpose.
I'm sure a dealer in YVR will allow an overnight test drive...btw our location is winterpeg and I found a dealer who allowed us their demo for 24hrs
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
Thanks for taking those pics!! What is the measurement on the 2nd pic for the hatch opening? Can't see it with the glare.
Click to expand...
Sorry! Opening is 26" high.

More height inside, maybe another 2-3 inches. But it's irregularly shaped, with curves on the sides, and the bulkhead for the sunroof.
 
We need more cargo capacity but more so because we now have a baby with a big stroller, etc. and thinking about having a second kid in the next 1-3 years. We are coming from a 2007 Accord (rear seats don't even fold down) so the CX-9 will be a huge step up for us in general in terms of cargo space. Having the bike inside the car isn't a total deal breaker, more just an annoyance because a bike should be able to fit inside a "mid-size SUV". I know I will be able to jam the bike inside one way or another but ideally I would like the 3 of us (me, wife, baby) to be able to go on a roadtrip and have the bike inside the vehicle. I'm just being picky, but I think you have to be picking when spending close to $50k CAD on a new vehicle!

I do much prefer the way the CX-9 drives vs. the Highlander though. I think I would still go for the CX-9 regardless.
 
Lots of room for our family, with the 3rd row stowed. We went to Chicago, over the break:
3 suitcases, cooler, groceries, bins of kids toys. Overkill, but my wife packs for everything!

b6d38953badd9b170cfd302c27914381.jpg




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
We need more cargo capacity but more so because we now have a baby with a big stroller, etc. and thinking about having a second kid in the next 1-3 years. We are coming from a 2007 Accord (rear seats don't even fold down) so the CX-9 will be a huge step up for us in general in terms of cargo space. Having the bike inside the car isn't a total deal breaker, more just an annoyance because a bike should be able to fit inside a "mid-size SUV". I know I will be able to jam the bike inside one way or another but ideally I would like the 3 of us (me, wife, baby) to be able to go on a roadtrip and have the bike inside the vehicle. I'm just being picky, but I think you have to be picking when spending close to $50k CAD on a new vehicle!

I do much prefer the way the CX-9 drives vs. the Highlander though. I think I would still go for the CX-9 regardless.
Click to expand...

To be honest, there are not many vehicles where you can fit three people and a mountain bike inside vertically without taking off the rear wheel. Honda Element and maybe Land Rover come to mind. I think know even the current 4runner would struggle with that. I haven't physically looked at the highlander, but I think any vehicle where the second row seatback folds on top of the seat bottom will have limited cargo height. Those where the seat bottom flips forward and the seat back tucks down behind the seat bottom like in a Mercedes GLE would have more vertical space.
 
Iwantfood4321 said:
To be honest, there are not many vehicles where you can fit three people and a mountain bike inside vertically without taking off the rear wheel. Honda Element and maybe Land Rover come to mind. I think know even the current 4runner would struggle with that. I haven't physically looked at the highlander, but I think any vehicle where the second row seatback folds on top of the seat bottom will have limited cargo height. Those where the seat bottom flips forward and the seat back tucks down behind the seat bottom like in a Mercedes GLE would have more vertical space.
Click to expand...

Yeah after looking at the numbers based on the pics posted above for the CX-9 it had me questioning whether the Highlander would fit my bike this way either. I think you are right that the SUVs where the 2nd/3rd rows seats fold down on top of the seat bottom would have a limited height to the ceiling for cargo. I guess taking both wheels off and flipping the bike upside down isn't a bad option either. Surely my bike would fit in a CX-9 with both wheels removed... right? It's a big bike (Large Specialized Enduro 29) but the wheels make a good chunk of the overall size so it's gotta fit in there without them I would imagine.
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
I just see pics like this and wonder why a bike fits in a station wagon but not a much bigger SUV:

honda-fit-mountain-bike-boot-standing-up.jpg
Click to expand...

I know what you mean about looking at those pics and things not making sense. I think that the increased ride height on crossovers/SUV's and the fact that they try to make the floor fold flat ends up eating up too much cargo space.

Another alternative is the dreaded minivan. I have a friend to bought a Dodge Caravan, removed the rear two rows of seats and loves the versatility that he has. He can easily carry three, maybe 4 bikes on a fork mount. He has enough money to buy whatever vehicle he wants, and he is satisfied with his $18k new Caravan.
 
Iwantfood4321 said:
Hi Vancouver. I registered just to comment on this post as I am also looking for a mountain bike carrying vehicle so I can bring my bike to work and ride immediately afterwards. I don't think you're going to be able to stand a large bike upright in the back but it would be worthwhile to test. I measured the vertical height at the midpoint of the second row with the seats folded down to be only 26". Now that is at the protrusion of the ceiling for the moonroof. If you put a fork mount at the rear, the max height of your tire and seat might be far enough rearward so that it does not hit the moonroof hump, but even then we're only talking about 28-29" of interior height. I have Trek Fuel EX 19.5 with a 125 mm dropper seatpost and I measured that I would need 34" of vertical clearance to stand the bike upright with the front wheel removed. The good thing about the cargo area in the cx9 is that you can easily remove the cargo platform behind the third row of seats allowing you to drop the front fork about 3 inches lower, but your rear wheel will still be on the back of the second row of seats. In the end, I think that if I had a 170 mm dropper post and put a fork mount at the back of the cargo area in the lowered compartment, it probably would still be too tall, but it would be worth a test.
Click to expand...

I measured my bike today and seems like my measurements are similar to yours - bike is about 5 feet long with the back wheel on (front wheel off) but I would need about 34 inches of height where the seat is and slightly less where the fork is. Even with both the back and front wheel off it seems like it would be a tight fit (if it would even fit at all) - I would still need about 31 inches of height where the fork is.

I really do want to actually try to fit it in - looking at my bike with all the wheels removed it looks quite small to be so its hard to imagine it not fitting in the CX-9. It just seems weird to me.

Let me know if you end up trying to fit yours in. Are there any other vehicles that you are looking at?
 
Vancouver_MTB said:
I measured my bike today and seems like my measurements are similar to yours - bike is about 5 feet long with the back wheel on (front wheel off) but I would need about 34 inches of height where the seat is and slightly less where the fork is. Even with both the back and front wheel off it seems like it would be a tight fit (if it would even fit at all) - I would still need about 31 inches of height where the fork is.

I really do want to actually try to fit it in - looking at my bike with all the wheels removed it looks quite small to be so its hard to imagine it not fitting in the CX-9. It just seems weird to me.

Let me know if you end up trying to fit yours in. Are there any other vehicles that you are looking at?
Click to expand...

Why not look at other SUVs or Crossovers with higher cargo height/opening such as Subaru forester or maybe a Nissan pathfinder? Minivans also do the trick however doesn't handle as well as the CX9 though...
 
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