Mazda CX-60: jump up

Mazda CX-60
jump up

Mazda attacks and at the very top. The Japanese car manufacturer no longer wants to frolic in the volume segments and wants to move up into the high-yield premium league. Even if it is unlikely that Audi, BMW or Mercedes will be put under serious pressure in the first step, the situation is different for brands in the second row such as Alfa Romeo, Volvo / Polestar or Cadillac. A squad of new crossovers, which will start in Europe in the middle of the year with the CX-60, should make the jump to the top possible. For this reason, the Japanese developed a new platform for larger vehicles with rear-wheel drive and the corresponding all-wheel drive option. This new platform does not rely on electric drives, but on combustion engines with four and especially six cylinders, which can be hybridized if desired.

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The first model on the new platform with rear-wheel / all-wheel drive and longitudinal engines will be the Mazda CX-60, which will later be followed by the seven-seat CX-80. In the US and some other non-European markets, the Japanese are introducing the new Mazda CX-70 and Mazda CX-90 models based on the same platform, which are slightly larger and wider than the European variants. While the Mazda CX-60 will have two rows of seats with five seats from mid-2022, the larger Mazda CX-80 will offer up to seven seats in three rows from 2023. The two SUVs are the first vehicles with the new plug-in hybrid drive as an in-line four-cylinder supported by an electric motor. In addition to this drive, the newly developed six-cylinder in-line cylinders are also finding their way into the new models – as petrol and diesel engines. Somewhat surprisingly, only in the USA will there be a turbocharged version of the new in-line six-cylinder petrol engine in addition to the plug-in hybrid drive. In Europe there is the order: four-cylinder PHEV, six-cylinder diesel and only then a six-cylinder petrol engine – again without charging. Instead, the current models have an SPCCI drive that combines the advantages of petrol and diesel in one engine.

The European starting engine of the 4.75 meter long Mazda CX-60 e-Skyactiv PHEV is a 2.5-liter four-cylinder, which is supported by a 100 kW / 136 hp electric motor instead of a turbocharger. That means a total output of 241 kW / 327 hp and 500 Nm maximum torque. This makes the mid-size crossover the most powerful production Mazda ever built. The four-wheel drive accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in 5.8 seconds, but only reaches a governed top speed of 200 km/h. The electric motor is powered by a 17.8 kWh battery pack, which is said to achieve an electric range of at least 63 kilometers. The standard consumption is 1.5 kWh / 100 kilometers.

Two more engine variants will follow in the Mazda CX-60 in 2023. On the one hand, there is a completely newly developed 3.3-liter common-rail diesel, which should deliver 250 and around 300 hp in two power levels, and a three-liter in-line six-cylinder petrol engine, which is also said to deliver over 250 hp. Both combustion engines are supported by a 48-volt electrical system with a boost function. All three engine variants are coupled to an eight-speed automatic transmission that has a multi-plate clutch instead of the hydraulic torque converter.

In addition to animated displays, an elegant interior and a rotary pushbutton on the wide center tunnel, the Mazda CX-60 not only offers a good amount of space inside, a large panoramic roof and a variable cargo space that can be expanded from 570 to 1,726 liters, but also a completely new equipment detail. When the driver takes a seat in the CX-60 for the first time, the Japanese SUV automatically adjusts to the ideal driving position behind the wheel, depending on the size and position of the eyes and head.

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