I took the CX50 on a 2400 mile road trip. How did it do?

TheRedWagon said:

Over the past week, I took my CX50 Premium Plus in AWD out to Colorado from Nashville to see how she could brave the elements. Some results came back good, others not. I wanted to see how the CX50 did vs my Cruze Premier I took on the same trip last year. This is more of a review than anything.

1. The CX50 has a (mostly) satisfying ride. My trip took me on back roads and in the city, but mostly on the highway. While I can't say the ride is buttery smooth the same way it was with my Cruze (with non-existent ground clearance), it took corners better than I thought, and was mostly smooth on the highways. Unless the quality of the road is questionable, then the suspension will make you feel it. At some point on 70, it felt like a jittery dryer. But other times, I couldn't tell how fast I was going, it was smooth.

2. This car is not built for cold weather, That sort of became apparent, and quick, driving on 64 in Illinois. From the automatic folding mirrors not working correctly in anything below 15 degrees, to the defroster unable to keep frost from forming on the windshield with wipers going, to a overly sensitive tire pressure system that wouldn't stop nagging for 500 miles on a psi of 32, this car is definitely built for the southeast or the southwest where a snowflake is rare. Like the Nissan Rogue, certain safety systems are disabled under cold weather temporarily.

Maybe on the eventual refresh, Mazda can get the defroster to work on the entire windshield without the interior becoming unbearably hot. That wasn't an issue for the Cruze, which had a bigger windshield.

3. Let's mention the small cup holders. It's not a deal breaker, its an itty bitty nitpick that is more of a design flaw. I quickly came to the realization a fairly sized Big Gulp required the center console become a cup holder. The cup holders might suffice for a 16-ounce soda bottle or small to medium coffee, but being right up by the A/C controls The little things that don't matter when you buy a car, but matter when you need enough caffeine to get through 9 hours of driving. Safe to say, those XXL fountain drinks fit in my Cruze's holders just fine.

There's room for improvement in a lot of areas (mostly cabin and sensor designs), but its also the first generation so there are bugs to go around. A few nuisances I never had with my Chevy, Best of all, I got through Southern Illinois to Tennessee without one fuel up, barely at 1/4 a tank at 23.7 mugs.

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Wunsch said:

I wonder if there are any differences in Canadian-market cars. I'm noticing it's all Canadians commenting that their cars handle genuine cold just fine.

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Trickster said:

I am a bit shocked that the 50 has no block heater available from Mazda.

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Wunsch said:

The dealer says it's coming, but we're still waiting. That said, it's survived just fine parked outside all day at work on some pretty cold days (which to me means a high of -25°C or colder). Given how many manufacturers actually don't offer or recommend block heaters anymore, I'm sure it'll be fine (but we're still going to let them install it once it's available).

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Trickster said:

Same engines so….supply chain issue? Or defective product?
Just odd.

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Trickster said:

I haven’t seen any info on a special Canadian winter edition.
Perhaps it just operator error or expectations.🤣

I am a bit shocked that the 50 has no block heater available from Mazda.

I may be testing road side assistance this winter.🤔

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• Part #: 0000-88-CX50-BH

Engine Block Heater | Mazda CX-50 (2023)

Don’t get caught shivering and rubbing your hands together for warmth in the cold Canadian weather, as you attempt to turn your Mazda CX-50 on. When temperatures drop, the oil your engine use thickens, causing less oil flow to run the engine which causes more work and friction - wearing out your...

mazdashop.ca

Nzoka said:

My dealer mentioned the block heater will be available in a couple of weeks or so.
It is listed on mazdashop.ca with a part number:

• Part #: 0000-88-CX50-BH

Engine Block Heater | Mazda CX-50 (2023)

Don’t get caught shivering and rubbing your hands together for warmth in the cold Canadian weather, as you attempt to turn your Mazda CX-50 on. When temperatures drop, the oil your engine use thickens, causing less oil flow to run the engine which causes more work and friction - wearing out your...

mazdashop.ca

Thanks

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Tom315 said:

Hi, I’m sorry to here your CX isn’t preforming in cold weather. The day we purchased ours it was -34 degrees. The windshield stayed clear all the way home. We’ve only had it a few weeks but so far it is handling our cold Canadian winters just fine.

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Wunsch said:

I'm not sure I'd agree that these cars aren't made for cold. It's my wife's car, but she's seen no problems with it down below -30°C (-22°F). She sure has great fun whenever we get a significant amount of snow

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TheRedWagon said:

If you have a hack for the next winter, I'd be all ears to know what it is. Having to make the cabin unbearably warm to the point I'm sweating to maintain visibility is not pleasant, let alone for $40k on a vehicle. I doubt it was operator error since, as I noted in the OP, my Cruze went through similar climates without the same issue.

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eb1 said:

Have you tried running with the A/C button on? My old CX5 used to fog up until I read you should keep it on, tried it and the fogging was never an issue again. Now I always have it on in the CX-50 and have not had any problems this winter in Illinois with the auto temp at 72.

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ASH8 said:

In regard to windshield frosting up did you try your AC on, yes AC Compressor on as usually if you have the heaters on on then put AC on it should defrost window almost instantly.

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