Mazda’s trump card

New CX-90 SUV is larger, more powerful and more frugal, writes Damien O’Carroll

Introducing a new SUV powered by the most powerful engine you have ever made may seem at odds with the world’s general move towards smaller electrified powertrains, but Mazda has a massive trump card to play in respect to the new CX-90 SUV — mainly that it is larger, more powerful and yet still significantly more frugal than the vehicle it is replacing.

The second new entrant to launch locally on Mazda’s new Large Product platform, the sevenseat CX-90 takes everything about the equally new five-seat CX-60 (featured in last months Driven Te Awamutu and makes it, well, bigger.

Landing in New Zealand as a single top-spec Takami model, the CX-90 is powered by the same 3.3-litre inline six-cylinder petrol engine with a 48-volt mild hybrid system as the CX-60, but powered up to produce a hefty 254kW and 500Nm, compared to 209kW/ 450Nm in the CX-60.

The CX-90 has a fuel consumption rating of 9.1L/100km and CO2 emissions of 210g/km, while the car it effectively replaces — the CX-9 seven-seater — slurped 10L/100km and belched 235g/km, while only producing 170kW and 420Nm.

But the CX-90 is also far more high-end than the CX-9.

You get a massive jump in quality and a serious amount of new equipment and tech, not to mention that slick inline six with its big bump in power and performance. Oh, and those sharp new looks.

The CX-90 does look quite a lot like the CX-60, but Mazda has beefed it up, particularly around the rear, with a squarer rear overhang combined with the raked windscreen and short front overhang.

On the inside the ; CX-60 but bigger; theme continues — although ‘wider’ is probably a more appropriate word — and the materials used inside the CX-90 are of a truly high quality, with a layout that is similar to the CX-60.

On the road the similarities continue, with the CX-90 being a comfortable, deceptively quick large SUV that can handle itself impressively well through corners.

The 3.3-litre straight six, 48-volt mild hybrid system and clever 8-speed ‘torque converter-less’ automatic transmission make a fantastic team, providing seamless grunt at any speed, making for effortless progress regardless of whether it is a winding back road or a motorway.