Mazda Goes All Hollywood for Next-gen CX-9 Premiere

Aaron Cole
by Aaron Cole

Mazda announced Wednesday that it would unveil its next-generation CX-9 in Los Angeles later this month.

The three-row crossover made its debut in 2007 and hasn’t changed much since. Mazda’s seven-seater still sits atop the Ford CD3 platform used by previous generations of the Mazda6/Ford Fusion and Ford Edge. It also sports the same powertrain as the previous-generation Edge.

Mazda released a teaser image of the CX-9 on Monday that shows what the crossover would look like if the world had Photoshop filters turned on all the time.

Interestingly, there are hints from other concepts that may make their way into the CX-9. Mazda’s recently unveiled RX Vision rotary sports a similar grille as the CX-9, albeit much, much lower to the ground. There’s a hint of the Koeru D-pillar — OK, maybe it’s a whisper.

Mazda didn’t mention anything about the CX-9’s powertrain in its release. The company announced last week that it was indefinitely postponing plans to bring diesel to the States ( gee, I wonder why?) and we’re willing to bet that the CX-9 won’t be rotary powered. The current CX-9 is powered by a 3.7-liter V-6 borrowed from Ford.

The Los Angeles Auto Show begins Nov. 17 and The Truth About Cars will be there reporting live from the TTAC LA Bureau Desk during the show*.

* The TTAC LA Bureau Desk is actually the gutter outside the Staples Center.

Aaron Cole
Aaron Cole

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  • TMA1 TMA1 on Nov 04, 2015

    Without a V6 available, I wonder if Mazda is finally going to turbocharge a SkyActiv engine. That could bode well for future Mazdaspeed offerings.

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    • TMA1 TMA1 on Nov 05, 2015

      @Fordson That's what I've heard, but they've got to power this thing somehow. It's too big for Mazda's 2.5, and a Ford V6 goes against their corporate branding. Plus, I really want to see a new Mazdaspeed3 or 6.

  • Carlisimo Carlisimo on Nov 04, 2015

    "All Hollywood" would mean using blue and orange promotional images.

  • Kyree Kyree on Nov 05, 2015

    That's good, because the current Ford-CD3-based CX-9 is getting a little long in the tooth, even with its two facelifts.

  • Redav Redav on Nov 05, 2015

    There are already camo shots of the new CX-9, so it's no big secret what it will look like. The engine has repeatedly been rumored to be a turbo 4. It makes sense in some ways (the overall trend in reducing cylinder count, leveraging all the work they did for the SkyActiv engines) but not in others (they built an entire extra cell into their engine machining operation just to accommodate the V6, so if they drop the V6 they lose the investment, they talked about introducing more upscale cars with a 6 cylinder engine, there's plenty of room to upgrade/modernize the current V6). My guess is that they will go with a turbo-4 because they see more future potential for it. It will be quite different than their current engines as it will be designed from the ground up with turbo in mind. The engine will be used in multiple cars, including a new Speed3. I would also put it in the 6 as the upgrade engine, especially since the diesel is not on the horizon. The direct applicability in the Speed3 and 6 are advantages that a V6 simply doesn't have. The CX-9 won't get a diesel (despite the high torque & efficiency are perfect for a CX-9) in part because of their problems with the diesel and the CX-9 is a North America product where diesel just isn't that popular. I would like them to keep a V6 in their portfolio for use in a sports car (as an alternative to a rotary) and a future flagship luxury car. If they had those cars, then it would also make sense to use it in the CX-9. But they don't have those cars, which means it doesn't make sense in the CX-9, which means they shouldn't keep the V6, from a dollars & cents perspective. They can't indulge in every unique engine.

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