Totally agree that the CX-5
Totally agree that the CX-5 is the best of the non-luxury crossovers, and I own a 2018 bought new, so just not some random opinion. The turbo was not an option that year as it came in 2019, so I have the 2.5NA, and do wish on some days that it had just a little more power, and less NVH at the upper revs. Still the power is plentiful if you mash the accelerator, and there is a special switch under the accelerator that gets activated to tell the engine max power. The tranny is also down some gears, but the 6 sp at least is not a CVT, and it is very responsive, but still an 8 spd is on my wish list which Mazda is working on. The infotainment is another miss, as the 2018 does not have Android Auto/Apple Car Play, and while it could be upgraded, the $400 fee was excessive to me, as Toyota charges about $99 for the same (realize that Mazda also swaps out hardware, but still this is an extra car payment and not worth it to me. The black, glossy plastic in the interior is another miss, as it looks good when you first get the car, and either dirty or scratched thereafter- Mazda should switch to textured plastics. The auto emergency braking for the front is way to sensitive and misfired more than once, but since going to the lowest sensitivity setting, it seems to have fixed the issue. I also wish that there were more interior color choices than black on the lower trims buy hey, just an opinion as I prefer gray that does not show every speck of dirt. Finally, there should be a digital readout of the speed, and some indication of when the AWD is working and which wheels the power is going.
However, given all the other choices for a compact CUV, I would buy one again, nitpicks aside. It handles far better than you would expect (the torque vectoring helps this), and the steering is great, with good feedback. The rest of the interior is more luxury grade, and has none of the plastic, fake wood that I detest. The controls are quite ergonomic. Even without the turbo, the engine is quite responsive, and the fuel economy is good, augmented by the cylinder deactivation that is quite seamless, and avoids the use of start-stop that is so annoying. I also like the excellent safety rating, and low insurance costs. Some criticize the cargo area, and while smaller than some competitors, it has been more than adequate for my needs. The reliability has been another strong point. If I had to purchase again tomorrow, the Mazda would be on my short list of vehicles, although I would strongly consider the turbo this time around.