The new generation of the Mazda CX-9 made its debut at the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show today. The mid-sized crossover adds a brand new turbocharged engine, featuring Mazda’s signature Kodo design language, an updated cabin and all the necessary driver assistance features.

The exterior design is in line with the rest of the Mazda family, especially in the front and rear ends.
The new CX-9 is now 1.2in (30mm) shorter than before, at 199.4in (5,065mm), but rides on a 2.2in (55mm) longer wheelbase. This means shorter front and rear overhangs, contributing to its more dynamic stance, along with the new wheels, 18- to 20-inch in size.

Thanks to a lower weight,  down 190 lbs (90 kg) in FWD and 287 lbs (130 kg) in AWD form, engineers were able to increase window thickness and rethink the active noise-cancellation technologies, which led to a 12 percent reduced interior noise at 62 mph (100 km/h) from the previous model.

The cabin has enough room for seven in three rows of seats, and access to the third row is said to be “so easy that even a child could do it”. Some of the features found inside include the LED accent lighting, four USB ports,  a Bose sound system, the Mazda CONNECT infotainment system working together with a 7- or 8-inch touchscreen display for functions like Bluetooth, navigation, phone, Pandora or Aha by Harman music streaming, among others. The driver gets a 4.6-inch full-color TFT screen in the gauges, along with a full-color head-up display projected onto the lower part of the windshield.

While the previous-gen used a 3.7-liter V6, this was dropped in favor of a brand new 2.5-liter force-fed four-cylinder that benefits from the Dynamic Pressure Turbo, the “world’s first turbocharger with the ability to vary the degree of exhaust pulsation depending on engine speed”.

What Mazda is trying to tell us here is that the system works similar to one placing his / her thumb on a garden hose, creating a strong amount of pressure through a smaller outlet, and it routes engine exhaust to the turbocharger’s turbine through small ports at low rpm. Instant boost is created, up to 1.2 bar (17.4 psi) of pressure and, when the engine is revved higher, secondary valves open, allowing larger amounts of exhaust gas to past through the turbocharger.

Maximizing the efficiency is a 4-3-1 exhaust, which joins the middle two cylinders (2 and 3) into a single port, while the outer cylinders (1 and 4) each have their own ports. The exhaust manifold encourages exhaust scavenging and uses a set of valves that route exhaust gases to the turbo through some small-diameter ports, speeding the air flow.

With 93-octane fuel, the powertrain produces 250 HP (254 PS) at 5,000 rpm and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of torque at 2,000 rpm. The figure drops to just 227 HP (230 PS) on regular 87-octane. The only transmission available is a six-speed automatic. When traveling at 55 mph (88 km/h), a driver needs just 18 HP to maintain speed on flat roads, according to Mazda, in a front-wheel drive model, meaning a 4 HP improvement over the previous generation.

Mazda adds a series of active safety features on the new CX-9, which include the Advanced Blind Spot Monitoring, Mazda Radar Cruise Control, operating at speeds between 19 mph (30 km/h) and 90 mph (145 km/h), Lane-Keep Assist, Lane Departure Warning, High Beam Control, Smart City Brake Support, Distance Recognition Support System, Forward Obstruction Warning and Smart Brake Support, operating at speeds above 9 mph (15 mph).

The 2017 Mazda CX-9 will be offered in the following colors named Machine Grey (pictured below), Soul Red, Snowflake White Pearl, Sonic Silver, Deep Crystal Blue, Jet Black and Titanium Flash. However, these may not be available in all markets, as the company says.

The new generation of the CX-9 will go on sale next spring.

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