By Otsile Kadiege

Mazda recently unveiled an all-new model to their ever-growing line-up of SUVs. The new CX-60 is the Japanese automaker’s flagship SUV which bears Mazda’s evolved design philosophy, an upmarket cabin with unique materials, a host of new technologies and advanced driver assistance systems. The new CX-60 is powered by 6-cylinder petrol and diesel engines, as well as a plug-in hybrid electric powerplant.

Reworked ‘Kodo-Soul of Motion’

For the new CX-60, Mazda evolved their design philosophy to help instantly reflect the enhancement of the Kodo design. Conceived under the ‘Noble Toughness’ design concept, the new CX-60 looks bold, stylish and modern. Up front the CX-60 boasts a prominent grille with vertical slats and thick chrome surrounds. It’s flanked by newly designed LED headlights with L-shaped lighting signature.

The side profile of the new CX-60 is clean and uncluttered. It features a front wing emblem with lettering that denotes the powerplant. The new CX-60 is only available with a choice of 18- or 20-inch wheels. Like its front-end, the rear also features L-shaped LED tail lights and faux quad tailpipes, depending on grade. Speaking of grades, the new CX-60’s entry-level grade starts with the Prime-line followed by Exclusive-line, Takumi and the top-spec Homura.

In terms of dimensions, the new CX-60 is 4,745 mm long, 1,890 mm wide, 1,680 mm high and has a 2,870 mm wheelbase. It’s available in a choice of eight body colours like Jet Black, Platinum Quartz and Soul Red Crystal to name a few.

Upmarket cabin

Inside, the new CX-60 is premium, modern, spacious and practical thanks to maple wood, nappa leather seats and quality woven textiles. The driver’s cockpit area features three main instrument displays: a full TFT-LCD instrument cluster, a large Head-up Display and a 12.3-inch touchscreen displaying the Mazda Connect infotainment that’s compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The CX-60 offers 1,504 mm of ample shoulder room up front and 1,441 mm in the rear.  A large panoramic sunroof should make the cabin feel roomier. Mazda also worked on making the interior of CX-60 quieter by utilising both sound insulation and absorption technology. Luggage capacity is 570 litres and can be increased to 1,148 litres by folding the 40:20:40 split rear seats.

Powertrains

The Mazda CX-60 powertrain line-up features three new engines: Mazda’s first PHEV – a 2.5 litre, 4-cylinder e-Skyactiv G petrol engine with 48V technology, a 3.3 litre straight-six e-Skyactiv D diesel unit and a 3.0 litre e-Skyactiv X petrol engine.

The PHEV’s 2.5 litre engine is paired to an electric motor and delivers a total system output of 241 kW / 500 Nm and sprints from 0-100 km/h in 5.8 seconds thanks to Mazda’s i-Activ AWD system. Top speed is limited at 200km/h. Its lithium-ion battery capacity is rated at 17.8 kWh and offers 63 km of pure electric driving range when driven under 100 km/h.

Power and torque figures of the rear wheel driven 6-cylinder engines are yet to be confirmed but they won’t be more powerful than the PHEV as Mazda said the latter is their most powerful road car ever produced. All three powertrains are paired to an 8-speed automatic transmission.

Safety

The new CX-60 is equipped with Mazda’s comprehensive range of advanced i-Activsense driver assistance systems in a bid to achieve a Euro NCAP safety rating of 5 stars. Several new technologies debut in the Mazda CX-60. These include 360-degree camera, Hill Descent Control, intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control, Traffic Sign Recognition and Blindspot Monitoring.

Other i-Activsense systems include 4W ABS with EBD and brake assist, DSC, TCS, ESS, Mazda Radar Cruise Control, Hill Launch Assist, Advanced Smart City Brake Assist with pedestrian and cyclist detection and intersection function, Rear Emergency Brake Assist with pedestrian detection, Lane Keeping Assist with steering assist, Traffic Sign Recognition, as well as Drowsiness Detection.

Mazda South Africa is yet to confirm local availability and pricing.