Family-oriented yet sporty

I don't usually make comparisons when assessing a vehicle's strengths and weaknesses. Instead, I consider said model for what it truly is, even though it competes in a well-defined market segment. But in the case of Mazda's CX-9, I had almost no other choice: this new crossover shares a lot of visual similarities with its little brother, the CX-7.

While strikingly similar, the CX-7 and CX-9 offer totally different driving dynamics.

That being said, once you look beyond their names and styling, these two don't have much in common. Neither the architecture nor the powertrain is the same. Even the target customer is different. While the CX-7 is decidedly sportier, the CX-9 is more family-oriented. After all, the latter can accommodate seven passengers -- and quite comfortably so, especially with the sliding second-row bench that creates generous access to the third row -- while relying on an engine that's more flexible than powerful.

Despite its 275 horsepower, Mazda's new V6 always seems to hesitate before surging forward when you frantically hammer the throttle. Once up to speed, however, this mill proves to be a docile and fairly quiet performer, which is certainly an advantage over many similarly-sized crossovers.

I should also point out that the CX-9 benefits from the expertise gained by Mazda over the years, including the ultra-efficient platform and automatic transmission from the Mazda6.

Less spirited
As I mentioned, the V6 (which will only serve for the 2008 model year), is not as spirited as one could expect. Mated to a 6-speed Sport autobox (I only tried the manual mode for a few seconds, as will most CX-9 drivers), this engine sure delivers decent accelerations, but what will happen when the vehicle carries 6 or 7 passengers and tows a maximum load of 3,500 lbs?

Likewise, 275 horsepower sound impressive, but in reality, I found the powerplant a bit lazy, especially during take-off. With an empty cabin, the fastest time I ever got from 0 to 100 kph was 10.4 seconds. Fortunately, on-the-fly sprints are more convincing and I was quite fond of the V6's operation in city driving.

This mill is no slouch, but it's not one of the most athletic either.