Impressions After A month with my 2019 GT - What's with the "Leather" Seats?

Impressions After A month with my 2019 GT - What's with the "Leather" Seats?

Coming from a 2010 Acura MDX... Driving Feel, Technology, Looks, and Value were the four main criteria that I used in my new vehicle selection.

Still extremely happy with...


- Driving feel (I usually purchase Luxury Sport Sedans or SUVs)

- Technology (Had some hiccups with Android Auto but overall very happy with it)

- Adaptive headlights (move side to side when you turn - only had self leveling on previous vehicles)

- Radar cruise control. I use cruise control whenever possible, just makes for a more relaxed driving experience and maximizes mileage - love the RADAR! (Wish a lot more of the idiots on the road used their cruise control but now the radar makes it less frustrating with drivers out there that can't drive a steady speed.)

- Interior noise. This has luxury segment level interior noise levels (and lower than my 2010 MDX but that was notorious for high road noise.)

- Overall value (compared to CR-V, Santa Fe, RAV-4, Escape, can't believe I got all this in for right about $30K - and I don't look like everyone and their Mom who's driving a CR-V around.)

A little disappointed or wishing...

- Better seats. Seats are the biggest disappointment. Mazda needs to take a seat out of a Volvo and just copy it. Seats could be a tad bigger with longer leg support and ability to tilt front edge up higher (or back down lower) - seems these were designed for not very big people (I'm 6' and average build and seat feels barely big enough for me.) Could use bigger bolsters, but I guess this is a mid-range SUV, not a sports car. Most of all, are these seats REALLY leather? The seat surface you sit on sure feels like vinyl to me but coming from Volvo and Acura I guess I became acustom to a higher quliaty leather but these sure don't even feel like a low quality leather! But they DO feel more "tough" than the softer leather so maybe a plus in the long run.

- Infotainment / Android Auto system can be a little finicky at times (but 90% of it is due to the Android App and nothing to do with the car.) The backup camera stopped displaying all the sudden and I found out how to "reboot" the system and that fixed it.

- Wish it had a panoramic sunroof, but considering all the other features, at $30K, I guess that's a little unrealistic to expect at that price point.

- Back seats a little cramped compared to a lot of the competition but I rarely have passengers for long hauls back there.

- 6-speed is pretty "old" by today's standards. 7 or 8-speed would be more "up to date." But again, not surprising at the price point.

- Car won't make significant more horsepower by putting premium gas in it (conservative ECU Programming by Mazda) - but I think I found a tuner that will remap the timing map on the ECU for $500 to get me about 20-25 more HP when using premium and improve fuel economy when I'm not a lead foot. (Additional HP is nice for freeway passing or trailering a motorcycle.) Will follow up with my experience on that later.
 
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Seats in our 2014 are lacking any support for long drive comfort, having all the same issues you mentioned. I was hoping Mazda would fix this in the redesign. The infotainment is not up to par as well. These are huge misses as we look to trade ours in this year. We have 82,000 miles and its feeling it*s age quicker than any other vehicle I have owned. Congrats on your new one as it is far superior to the previous generation dispite a few lingering short comings.
 
I really like the leather on my GT a lot but no doubt the leather in our Volvo feels more lux.
 
I really like the leather on my GT a lot but no doubt the leather in our Volvo feels more lux.

But doesn't the "leather" on the front of the seating surface feel like vinyl to you? I'm talking especially the front edge under your legs. It feels thick and plasticky with a cheap texture, not soft and smooth.

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Thick and tough, yes.
Plasticky and cheap, no.
Should hold up really well.
 
No it wrinkled on my Cx5 way too soon to be vinyl. And we don't have Nappa from the Signiture...
 
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Coming from a 2010 Acura MDX... Driving Feel, Technology, Looks, and Value were the four main criteria that I used in my new vehicle selection.

Still extremely happy with...


- Driving feel (I usually purchase Luxury Sport Sedans or SUVs)

- Technology (Had some hiccups with Android Auto but overall very happy with it)

- Adaptive headlights (move side to side when you turn - only had self leveling on previous vehicles)

- Radar cruise control. I use cruise control whenever possible, just makes for a more relaxed driving experience and maximizes mileage - love the RADAR! (Wish a lot more of the idiots on the road used their cruise control but now the radar makes it less frustrating with drivers out there that can't drive a steady speed.)

- Interior noise. This has luxury segment level interior noise levels (and lower than my 2010 MDX but that was notorious for high road noise.)

- Overall value (compared to CR-V, Santa Fe, RAV-4, Escape, can't believe I got all this in for right about $30K - and I don't look like everyone and their Mom who's driving a CR-V around.)

A little disappointed or wishing...

- Better seats. Seats are the biggest disappointment. Mazda needs to take a seat out of a Volvo and just copy it. Seats could be a tad bigger with longer leg support and ability to tilt front edge up higher (or back down lower) - seems these were designed for not very big people (I'm 6' and average build and seat feels barely big enough for me.) Could use bigger bolsters, but I guess this is a mid-range SUV, not a sports car. Most of all, are these seats REALLY leather? The seat surface you sit on sure feels like vinyl to me but coming from Volvo and Acura I guess I became acustom to a higher quliaty leather but these sure don't even feel like a low quality leather! But they DO feel more "tough" than the softer leather so maybe a plus in the long run.

- Infotainment / Android Auto system can be a little finicky at times (but 90% of it is due to the Android App and nothing to do with the car.) The backup camera stopped displaying all the sudden and I found out how to "reboot" the system and that fixed it.

- Wish it had a panoramic sunroof, but considering all the other features, at $30K, I guess that's a little unrealistic to expect at that price point.

- Back seats a little cramped compared to a lot of the competition but I rarely have passengers for long hauls back there.

- 6-speed is pretty "old" by today's standards. 7 or 8-speed would be more "up to date." But again, not surprising at the price point.

- Car won't make significant more horsepower by putting premium gas in it (conservative ECU Programming by Mazda) - but I think I found a tuner that will remap the timing map on the ECU for $500 to get me about 20-25 more HP when using premium and improve fuel economy when I'm not a lead foot. (Additional HP is nice for freeway passing or trailering a motorcycle.) Will follow up with my experience on that later.

DId you get it at 30k OTD?
 
@30k I think you did just fine, no? Tranny is also more than fine 6 speeds is sufficient- these 9/10 speeds? meh its one of the best autos out there at least in this price range for my $ if maybe short a cog or 2. I do like my firmer/sportier gen1 GT seats over current and think GT-R/Sig seats should def be beefed up, add some thigh extenders at least- btw if you're craving more power why did you cheap out and not get a turbo model? No RDX?
 
Its thin leather over cloth is my bet. My infiniti was, so was my Jeep. It's why its called "leather seating surfaces". Technicalities.
 
The take on tranny speeds is interesting. I think it*s falling a bit for a falsehood that more gears is always better. Mazda is very pragmatic and there*s likely a very agreeable reason for their 6-speed. Be wary of brands who advertise more speeds as something sporty or economical.
 
The take on tranny speeds is interesting. I think it*s falling a bit for a falsehood that more gears is always better. Mazda is very pragmatic and there*s likely a very agreeable reason for their 6-speed. Be wary of brands who advertise more speeds as something sporty or economical.

Except that the numbers back it up, especially with the new Ford/GM 10 speeds. Beastly!
 
But doesn't the "leather" on the front of the seating surface feel like vinyl to you? I'm talking especially the front edge under your legs. It feels thick and plasticky with a cheap texture, not soft and smooth.

lXZNodj.png

The Nappa leather is smooth and soft. I actually worry that it is too soft!
 
Impressions After A month with my 2019 GT - What's with the "Leather" Seats?

Coming from a 2010 Acura MDX... Driving Feel, Technology, Looks, and Value were the four main criteria that I used in my new vehicle selection.

Still extremely happy with...

A little disappointed or wishing...
Your impressions on 2019 CX-5 GT are very fair, and matches most of my opinions towards the 2019 even though I have a 2016 CX-5 GT. The only thing stops me getting a gen-2 CX-5 though is the cylinder deactivation otherwise Id have a 2018 CX-5 GT already!
 
Impressions After A month with my 2019 GT - What's with the "Leather" Seats?

But doesn't the "leather" on the front of the seating surface feel like vinyl to you? I'm talking especially the front edge under your legs. It feels thick and plasticky with a cheap texture, not soft and smooth.
Ivd compared, the leather seat on my 2016 CX-5 is worse than yours or 2018 CX-5s, looks and feels exactly like the vinyl seat on my previous 1974 Chevrolet Impala! It definitely doesnt look and feel like the leather to me and totally different from the leather seats in my 2000 BMW 528i and 2001.5 VW Passat.
 
Your impressions on 2019 CX-5 GT are very fair, and matches most of my opinions towards the 2019 even though I have a 2016 CX-5 GT. The only thing stops me getting a gen-2 CX-5 though is the cylinder deactivation otherwise Id have a 2018 CX-5 GT already!

At the speeds and conditions where I've read CD occurs, I've never felt it. Now if it's occurring at other times, then maybe that is the culprit (slight lurch at very slow stop-and-go speeds - which is corrected by using second gear fixed mode; plus I'm rarely driving in those conditions).
 
I actually like the "fake" leather and microfiber insert on my '18 touring seats; does not feel like vinyl to me.
 
I have cloth seats and they are perfectly comfortable and supportive for long trips. I can only imagine that the leather might be even more comfortable, but I don't like leather in winter cold or summer hot.

6-speed is "old"? Ok....who cares? Works great.
 
At the speeds and conditions where I've read CD occurs, I've never felt it. Now if it's occurring at other times, then maybe that is the culprit (slight lurch at very slow stop-and-go speeds - which is corrected by using second gear fixed mode; plus I'm rarely driving in those conditions).
Im not worried about lurching or vibration when cylinder deactivation is activated. Im worried about longevity of the engine as I usually keep my car forever. Based on history of cylinder deactivation, the record is against it.

Mazda says its cylinder deactivation is more effective at low speeds, and can only be activated between 25~50 mph to improve fuel economy. But Fuely shows there's no difference on gen-2 CX-5s between 2017 without CD and 2018 with CD. If CD can't help the gas mileage in the real world, why bother to add complicated cylinder deactivation system which also carries bad reputation on reliability?

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The take on tranny speeds is interesting. I think it*s falling a bit for a falsehood that more gears is always better. Mazda is very pragmatic and there*s likely a very agreeable reason for their 6-speed. Be wary of brands who advertise more speeds as something sporty or economical.
Except that the numbers back it up, especially with the new Ford/GM 10 speeds. Beastly!
I agree. More gears definitely is better, especially on fuel efficiency. CVT is the best transmission for efficiency, but many dont like the feel and reliability. Step transmission with more gears would resemble the efficiency of a CVT. Thats why more gears is better, and most car manufactures are going this direction if theyre opted with traditional step transmission. New Toyota RAV4 has an 8-speed and its MPG is greatly improved with more efficient high-compression Dynamic Force 2.5L.
 
Except that the numbers back it up, especially with the new Ford/GM 10 speeds. Beastly!

What numbers? They're more complicated, heavier, and have to shift more. Doesn't seem like a recipe for long-term reliability to me. "More is better" regarding gears is hardly a settled subject.
 
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