Mazda CX-5 review

Three quarters of buyers will go petrol, and most who don’t will be fleet customers. Such is the way with the lower residual values (and hence higher leasing costs) of diesel now, which is a shame; the Skyactiv-D versions of the CX-5 are actually the nicest to drive.

The updated Mazda CX-5 range starts at a mite over £28,000, and that gets you SE-L trim with a healthy dose of standard equipment, so long as you can live with diddy 17in wheels (which’ll probably make it ride even better, to be fair). It’s front-wheel drive only, but comes with the option of 163bhp petrol and 148bhp diesel engines in both manual and automatic trim.

Another £1,000 secures Newground trim, with 19in wheels, a mildly more rugged aesthetic and those lime green accents, but most buyers will nudge over £30,000 and into the Sport. It brings electric leather seats, 360-degree parking cameras and a big Bose sound system while opening up every powertrain option save for the 2.5 petrol, making this the cheapest route to all-wheel drive if you’re so inclined.

Above that you’ve got the Sport Black, starting at a whisker under £33,000, followed by the GT Sport which is where the 2.5 becomes available, and which makes for the most expensive CX-5 (at £39k) if you go for the AWD diesel auto. Those trims mostly improve the car’s appearance and its interior trim, with brown Nappa leather and some fetching wood for the priciest models.

There’s a wealth of active safety equipment as standard across the range, helping the CX-5 achieve the full five-star rating with NCAP.