I was excited to see that the 2022 Mazda CX-5 would be in my driveway for a week. I’ve driven it’s smaller CX-3 and larger CX-9 variants and hoping this would bring the best of both. To start, the bright Soul Red Crystal Metallic color was attention grabbing. It is definitely a color that’ll attract the attention of your local authority. The gloss black trim and wheels are the perfect color combination to frame the design lines of the CX-5.

You get in and the black with red stitched interior is typical of Mazda’s high end interior materials. I would’ve personally gone for the red leather option which looked great in the Mazda 3 hatchback from a previous review. The seats were still comfortable with the heated and venting option. The steering wheel felt sporty with well placed buttons on them. The gauge cluster felt like it needs a redesign to include a better layout and better options like a boost gauge.

The added turbo to the 2.5L is exactly what Mazda needed to do to its engine. The non-turbo 2.5L is a really great power plant and felt perfect in the smaller 3 and CX-3. The added weight of the CX-5 needed the boost in power and the AWD system helps transfer the power to the ground. The chassis in the CX-5 was surprisingly good and felt more like a sports car than a SUV. The feedback you felt was incredible and some true sports cars I’ve driven, haven't offered the great feeling that the CX-5 did.

Overall I felt the the 2022 Mazda CX-5 was the perfect fit for my needs. It was more comfortable than the smaller CX-3, but sportier than the larger CX-9. Now if we can only get Mazda to offer a touchscreen option on the CX-3, it would be in my driveway in a heartbeat.