You mix the spirit of a Miata, the size of a CX-5, and sprinkle on some adventure, and you have yourself the 2023 Mazda CX-50. The Zircon Sand Metallic gives the CX-50 a look of beyond the pavement driving. The wider fenders and large wheel arches accommodate the 20” wheels but I would recommend a smaller wheel and bigger tire if you’ll be going into tougher terrain. The side profile reminds me of a roadster’s proportions with a long hood, centralized cabin, and a shortened rear. With design elements like the taillight, the CX-50 will make you look good while you’re conquering the wilderness.

Getting inside you can see that Mazda has continued its great interior of its current lineup. The black leather heated and vented seats have a big stitch detail to them. You can also see the stitching on the door cards and across the dashboard. The steering wheel is the usual 3-spoke Mazda wheel but I was disappointed to not see the brown colored stitching on the wheel. The infotainment is thankfully wireless for both Apple and Android users. This was equipped with the wireless charger which seemed to only work when I tossed my phone into it, but not when I placed it gently.

Under the hood, the 2.5L turbo inline 4-cylinder is delivering 227 horsepower and 310 lb.-ft. of torque. After the 6-speed automatic, that power is then divided amongst all the wheels. Mazda has seemed to make the 2.5L turbo sound like a boxer engine, and it was fun to make it rumble. The automatic transmission tuning seems to be on the conservative side when downshifting. Even in sport mode, there was sometimes closer to 2,000 RPMs before redline which probably could’ve been good for one gear lower. When you put it in manual mode and downshift into the better lower gear, the turbo definitely worked better at spooling up.

Overall, I think if I were thinking of getting a Mazda CX-5, I’d probably go for the more rugged looking CX-50.