Experienced by Adrian McQueen
Photography by Adrenaline Lifestyles
The 2025 Mazda CX-5 Carbon Edition set the tone as being the stylish vehicle to tote the family around in land of palm trees, sunny skies and art mural walls. The Mazda CX-5 is a compact-size crossover SUV manufactured since 2012. This two-row crossover is a commuters dream. It is great for a week of shopping, darting around the town and hauling family around. The CX-5 is Mazda’s first model to feature the “Kodo” design language.
Mazda provided us with a Polymetal Gray Metallic hue 2025 Mazda CX-5 Carbon edition. The CX-5 is eye-catching as soon as you see the long sloping hood that leads to the large Mazda symbol which is prominently placed on the sharply angled front grille. Mazda has beautifully designed the exterior with its’ steeply raked windshield and sweeping rear end. This two-row, 5 passenger SUV, sits on 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels with a black metallic finish. The exterior side-view mirrors fold in automatically when the doors are locked. The rear roof spoiler, roof mounted shark fin antenna and bright finish exhaust outlets added to sporty look to this compact-size crossover SUV. There are also LED Headlights, LED Daytime Running lights and LED Combination taillights.
Driving the Mazda CX-5 around town was a pleasure. Inside is an equally lovely cabin, dressed in black leather interior with red stitching and high-tech features like a 360-degree-view exterior camera system, SiriusXM Travel Link, a digital gauge display. The luxurious Signature trim comes with a new wood trim inside and exclusive exterior badging. The CX-5 Signature also has NAPPA leather surfaces, leather-stitched leather wrapping for the steering wheel and LED accents in the area around the gear shifter. The CX-5’s rear row does a 40/20/40 split-folding bench seat to create a larger cargo area when needed.
Technology is not lost in the CX-5. The dashboard features a 10.25-inch color display touchscreen. Mazda made a huge change and decided to move away from the knobs and give consumers the capability to control the system to be controlled via the touchscreen. The CX-5 comes equipped with Bluetooth, four usb ports and a wireless phone charger. The tunes were blaring from the ten speaker BOSE system as we grooved throughout the city. It was a pleasure to be able to choose from Sirius XM, Pandora, Stitcher, Aha, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto bring a whole new bounty of possibilities to the Mazda experience. Both allow drivers to connect their compatible smartphones to the MAZDA CONNECT infotainment system and access all the features on their phone right there on the touchscreen. You can make calls, send messages, set up navigation routes, browse music playlists and more all without having to touch your phone.
The throttle response was quick, while sport mode in the six-speed automatic transmission definitely adds some pep in your step while the normal mode set us up for a more relaxed commute. The G-Vectoring Control system reduces engine torque to help settle the front end so the SUV would take the turns smoothly. The suspension setup has been refined to offer a smoother and quieter ride. The 2.5L naturally aspirated 4-cylinder engine produces 187 horsepower and 185-186 lb-ft of torque. The CX-5 was surprisingly very good on gas averaging 26 mpg in the city, 30 mpg on the highway and 28 mpg combined.
The Mazda CX-5 performed excellent in crash tests from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also gave the CX-5 a five-star result. Key safety features in i-ACTIVESENSE package in the CX-5 include dual front air bags, front side-impact air bags, rear cross traffic alert, traffic sign recognition, advanced smart city brake support, front and rear parking sensor, 360 view monitor, Mazda radar cruise control, automated emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, lane keep assist, adaptive front headlights, lane departure warning, front obstacle warning, distance evaluation, braking assist and pedestrian detection.
The 2025 Mazda CX-5 Carbon Edition comes with a New Vehicle Limited warranty that covers 3 years or 36,000 miles, a Powertrain Limited warranty that covers 5 years or 60,000 miles, plus 3 years/36,000 miles of 24/7 Roadside Assistance. Key competitors to the Mazda CX-5 are the Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage and the Subaru Forester.
The 2025 Mazda CX-5 Carbon Edition is a great find, considering the size, safety and comfort of the vehicle. The model that we tested came in at $32,350.00. The CX-5 has been the worldwide best-selling model offered by the brand every year since 2014, with record sales in 2019 when 444,262 units were sold globally.
The entire family had a great time riding around town in the 2025 Mazda CX-5 Carbon Edition. The CX-5 is spacious, stylish, comfortable and definitely a fun vehicle in my book. Enjoy the photo gallery.
