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Mazda CX-9 Luggage Test | How much fits behind the third row?

We recently tested the luggage-carrying capability of one of the most spacious three-row crossovers, the Hyundai Palisade, and now it's time for one of the smallest. The Mazda CX-9 may look terrific and drive even better, but that zest comes at the expense of cargo capacity, as we're about to see. The big culprit is that rakish liftgate, which not only robs the CX-9 of luggage space, but third-row headroom as well. It's pretty dungeon-like back there despite competitive legroom, and there aren't any air vents or USB ports, either. But this is about cargo capacity, so let's see how much luggage will fit inside. According to the specs, the CX-9 has 38.2 cubic-feet with the third-row lowered. That's far less than the Palisade's 45.8 and Honda Pilot's 46.8. It's actually even less than the five-passenger Honda Passport (50.5).  The test car came with a $100 cargo mat, which is velcroed to the seats and folds OK with it, but the carpet also takes up some extra space ... and the CX-9 needs as much as it can get.  To raise the seats, lean inside and pull up/back on those two handles. There is 14.4 cubic-feet of space behind the raised third row. On paper, that is indeed one of the smaller amounts in the segment, but in practice, it seems even smaller.  You can free up space by removing the rigid floor panel. If you need to carry multiple pieces of luggage, it's almost a necessity.  OK, so I have two midsize roller suitcases, both of which would need to be checked. Then there's two larger carry-on roll-aboards and one smaller one. As a bonus, there's my wife's quasi-fancy weekend bag. It was a struggle to fit three of them aboard, and Tetrised together two formations. The first uses all three carry-on bags with the cargo floor removed. And no, the fancy bag won't fit atop the blue one because it'll run into the liftgate window. A smaller tote would definitely fit, however.  This is how I could fit one of the bigger check-in bags. The liftgate just barely closed. Again, you could fit a small tote atop the blue bag, plus some other items in the lower outboard regions.  OK, so how could you fit everything aboard? Lowering half of the 50/50-split third row is a must, obviously. Both big check-in bags then stack atop each other, and then stack the other four atop each other with the cargo floor in place.

2021 Mazda CX-30 to add turbocharged power, just like the Mazda3 Turbo

Mazda is giving us all of the turbos, and we’re not going to complain. CarsDirect reports that the 2021 Mazda CX-30 will feature a turbocharged variant called the CX-30 2.5 Turbo. We have great confidence that this intel obtained via “an early order guide” is legit. The CX-30 is essentially a lifted and crossover-ized Mazda3, and Mazda announced the Turbo variant of that car a short time ago. Just like the Mazda3, CarsDirect reports this one will be equipped with MazdaÂ’s 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine. ItÂ’ll make 250 horsepower and 320 pound-feet of torque when run on 93 octane. Use regular gas, and those numbers tick down to 227 horsepower and 310 pound-feet. The CX-30 is currently only available with the naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder that makes 186 horsepower and 186 pound-feet of torque. The similarities between the CX-30 and Mazda3 continue. YouÂ’ll only be able to get the CX-30 Turbo with all-wheel drive. ItÂ’ll come with larger tailpipes, turbo badging and be available in a top-of-the-line Premium Plus trim, too. That trim adds a number of features that are exclusive in the Mazda3 Turbo, so we expect the same for the CX-30. ItÂ’ll also cost a good chunk of change more than the base CX-30. Prices will reportedly start at $31,000 for the CX-30 Turbo, and go all the way up to $35,000 in the highest trim level. These prices are obviously encroaching on CX-5 territory, but the cheapest CX-5 with the same turbo engine is $36,235. Just like the Mazda3 Turbo, we can guarantee the CX-30 Turbo wonÂ’t be available with a manual transmission. That means MazdaÂ’s six-speed automatic will be doing the shifting. CarsDirect claims that Mazda intends to start producing the CX-30 Turbo in November this year, so the wait to buy wonÂ’t be terribly long. Related Video:

2014 Mazda6 Skyactiv-D Wagon

This was sort of a quirky surprise drive opportunity. I've been over here in Italy for a while now, and Mazda Italia contacted me seemingly out of the blue to drive test some version of the Mazda6 with a diesel engine. Supremo. The Mazda6 is a sexy everyday beast and I have been digging their SkyActiv-D engines for a while now. Very spirited units.
My contact phones me the day of, and says he can come by with the car, and then we'll head off to some sort of special spot for dynamics testing and technical conversation. Nice deal, say I.
My guy Ernesto pulls up outside of the house and - lo and behold - it's a dang Mazda6 station wagon with the very most recent 2.2-liter SkyActiv-D motor good for 148 horsepower and healthy 280 pound-feet of torque. The wee four-banger with 14.0:1 compression ratio hauls this 3,260-pound wagon around with the best of them. A decent 0-to-60-mph time of 8.7 seconds, too.