A Japanese car photographed under a blossom tree, could there be anything more quintessential? This is the Mazda CX-60 D50E Azami, the top-of-the-line diesel powered version of the all-new CX-60 range. Previously, I have driven the plug-in hybrid version of the CX-60 just after it was first released in Australia.
Under the bonnet of this attractive five-seat SUV is a 3.3 litre turbo in-line 6-cylinder common rail, electronic direct injection diesel engine with a 48V mild hybrid boost. The engine produces a maximum of 187kW of power and 550Nm of torque and is paired with an 8-speed automatic and all-wheel drive. This powertrain did clunk on one occasion while I was driving and the gearbox did get a bit lost in translation at times.
The official combined fuel consumption is 4.9L/100km and for my week I used 7.2L/100km of diesel. Speaking of filling up, the fuel filler on the CX-60 diesel has a poor design and if I inserted the fuel hose in a normal manner it would immediately click off. So to fill the tank I had to hold the hose just within the filler and carefully depress the hose lever so as not to cause fuel to spill out, which was very annoying.
There is three drive modes Sport, Normal, and Off-road and I spent the week in Normal mode. It appeared also that there was augmented sound pumped through the speakers as the engine sounded like a V8 on the inside, but a diesel on the outside still. The D50E has a 2,000kg braked towing capacity and a 750kg unbraked with maximum tow-ball download of 150kg.
This CX-60 Azami also has the SP Package that adds 20-inch black metallic alloy wheels, dark coloured side signature, gloss black honeycomb grille, gloss black exterior mirrors, and LED headlamps with dark signature. On the interior you also get Tan Nappa leather seat trim, Suede finish dashboard panel, and two-tone steering wheel. The dual use of materials on the seats is very nice to touch, but there’s no hint of any lovely leather aroma. I liked that there was no gloss black plastic anywhere in the cabin, but once again a knocked my knee on the silly design of the outer air vents on the dash that protrude out.
There’s plenty of luxury on offer in the CX-60 Azami with both front seats being heated and cooled and having power adjustment for recline, forward/back, seat height front and rear, 2-way lumbar support and the driver’s seat also has two memory positions. The steering wheel column also has powered adjustment and the steering wheel heated, and the only element which diminished this high-end feel were the flimsy plastic steering-wheel paddle shifters.
Of course, keyless entry on the front doors with keyless start is fitted meaning the key fob can remain in your handbag at all times. This CX-60 also comes with a Premium Bose audio system with 12 speakers, 12.3-inch multi-information driver’s display that has a nice animation on start-up and changes its look with the different drive modes, head-up display, attractive floor mats, and a panoramic sunroof.
The technology in the CX-60 D50E did not perform up to standard though as it took multiple attempts to connect my phone via Bluetooth and the 12.3-inch infotainment display uses the rotary controller to navigate it or you have to enable the touchscreen functionality under the phone connectivity settings. Once connected though the wireless Android Auto worked well and the voice control worked well for making phone calls, changing the radio station and setting a destination on the sat nav.
From a practicality standpoint, the wireless charging at the front of the centre console is a little narrow in size, with one 12V socket near it. There are two USB-C ports in the shallow storage cubby under the split-release arm rest. The two cup holders in the centre console have grippy sides, but no removable mat at their base, and the drink bottle storage in front door cubbies are a good size.
The rear seats have adequate head and leg room for me, but taller individuals would find them tight, and my knees did feel like they were sitting up high and I had no support under my thighs. For younger passengers the CX-60 has two ISOfix/three rear tether child seat restraint points, but installing three car seats would be difficult.
The centre seat folds down as an arm rest with two cup holders in the front of it and there are good-size drink bottle storage cubbies in the rear doors. Rear seat passengers get heated outer seats are and two central air vents with individual direction control and one central air speed controller. Below the vents there are two USB-C ports and one AC 220V/150W 3-pin plug with carpet mat on the floors, but not over the transmission tunnel.
The CX-60 has a gesture open/close boot, or you can open/close it from the button under the tailgate or in the cabin or by using the annoyingly small buttons on the key fob. I really like how the cargo cover is connected to the tailgate and goes up with the tailgate and is therefore out of your way. The boot would fit the weekly shop or a pram and a small shop and has four substantial tie down points, one light, one 12V socket and no hooks. There’s a temporary use spare tyre under the boot floor, whereas P50e CX-60 variants only come with a tyre repair kit.
If more space is required the rear seats have a 40:20:40 split fold mechanism with the release in the boot space and it even individually releases the centre seat, which usually has to be done with a secondary process in most vehicles that have a centre fold down seat. Or you can use the latch on the rear seat shoulder to fold them down.
All CX-60 variants have a 5-star ANCAP (2022) safety rating with an Adult Occupant Protection score of 91% (34.82 out of 38) and a Child Occupant Protection score of 93% (46.00 out of 49). Dual frontal, side chest-protecting and side head-protecting (curtain) airbags, as well as a driver knee airbag, are standard. A centre airbag which provides added protection to front seat occupants in side impact crashes is also standard.
The overall ANCAP Safety Assist score is 77% and ANCAP tests of the autonomous emergency braking (AEB) (Car-to-Car) system showed GOOD performance, including AEB Junction Assist where the test vehicle can autonomously brake to avoid crashes when turning across the path of an oncoming vehicle. ANCAP testing of the lane keep assist function showed GOOD performance, however the vehicle does not react in some of the more critical emergency lane keeping (ELK) scenarios, and therefore the ELK performance was assessed as MARGINAL.
All CX-60 also come standard with a long list of driver safety aids and many of these bong a lot at you to get your attention and are shown directly into the head-up display as well. These safety features include Blind Spot Monitoring, Emergency Brake Assist, Forward Obstruction Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert (Front Cross Traffic Alert is part of the Vision technology pack on the GT, but standard on the Azami), Lane-keep Assist System, and Smart Brake Support Front with pedestrian and cycle detection and rear detection. For convenience you also get auto lights, high beam control and auto wipers and I like that there is a small light on the stalks to indicate when you have engaged the ‘auto’ setting. The 360-degree view camera with see-through view and the front and rear parking sensors come as standard.
All new Mazda vehicles are backed by a five-year, unlimited kilometre warranty plus five year’s Mazda Premium Roadside Assistance. The diesel powered CX-60’s service intervals are every 12 months or 10,000kms, whichever comes first and the cost for the first five basic services on the CX-60 D50E Azami AWD is $3,299 based on information from the Mazda Australia website.
The Mazda CX-60 D50E Azami SP AWD is priced from $77,750 plus on-road costs and as tested with optional Rhodium White paint ($995) this CX-60 is $78,745 plus on-roads. You can Build you Mazda CX-60 online or visit your preferred Mazda dealer for more information.
| Pros | Cons |
| Nice use of materials on the interior | Poor fuel filler design |
| Small light to indicate lights/wipers in auto | Phone took multiple attempts to connect to Bluetooth |
| Has a temporary use spare tyre | Small buttons on the side of the key fob |
Photographs by Driven Women Magazine.