New SUVs spark premium push for Mazda

MAZDA Australia is positioning itself as even more of a premium player in the mainstream car market with high-tech, more expensive and more luxurious new SUV models on the cards for the coming years.

The brand has already confirmed the arrival of a couple of its new six-cylinder luxury-focused CX-60 medium SUV and CX-90 large SUV, both of which are due here in the coming months.

But the brand is also expected to add a CX-70 and CX-80 to fill the gap between these book-ends of its new-generation range, all of which will be built on the company’s new rear-biased architecture with six-cylinder mild-hybrid powertrains plus the likelihood of plug-in hybrid versions.

The CX-80 is thought to be a closely related seven-seat version of the CX-60 much like the current CX-8 and CX-5, while the CX-70 will be a five-seat sporty counterpart to the more family-oriented three-row CX-90 similar in relationship as Audi’s Q8 and Q7.

Neither has yet been revealed, but the company has made it clear they are not far from being presented to the market and GoAuto can confirm that the CX-70 model was jointly developed alongside the CX-90.

Mazda CX-90 program manager Mitsuru Wakiie did not go as far as to confirm the work on those two being completely linked, but when asked if it would be correct to assume they had been developed alongside each other, he replied: “Your assumption might not be so wrong, that’s all I can say.”

Mazda Australia managing director Vinesh Bhindi said that the decision had not been made public about whether it was right for that kind of high-end model mix to be sold here.

“We will also make, at some point, decisions on whether CX-70 and CX-90 is right and appropriate for our market,” he said.

As to what each of the models will mean for Australia, the brand has not yet stated any firm plans to import one, or both, of the new models but Mazda Australia marketing director Alastair Doak said the brand is forging new paths with two of the models that have only recently been revealed.

“We’re already in a unique position as a major market to take both CX-60 and CX-90,” said Mr Doak.

“We haven’t confirmed it (CX-70 and CX-80) yet but obviously, we’re interested, and we’re working towards it … The proposition is, ‘can we make it work?’.”

It is expected that, as with the CX-60 and CX-90 models, the two versions that sit between will also be sold with a choice of six-cylinder turbo-diesel and turbo-petrol powertrains. The already-detailed versions have eight-speed automatic transmissions as standard, as well as 48-volt mild-hybrid tech that can allow some partial electric-only driving under light loads.

Each model to date has been announced with all-wheel drive as standard, while the larger petrol CX-90 sees a power bump over the CX-60, to the tune of 13kW and 50Nm (to 254kW/500Nm).

Diesel versions of CX-60 and CX-90 appear to run the same 187kW/550Nm tune and the latter will eventually inherit the former’s plug-in hybrid system for the Australian market.

The Mazda CX-60 range is set to arrive in the coming months in Australia, while the CX-90 large SUV is due here in the second half of 2023.