Comments by "Stephen Hendricks" (@stephenhendricks103) on "" video.

  1. Undeniably attractive both inside and out. So why has it consistently been by far the worst selling mainstream 3 row crossover in the North America since it was introduced. (To be fair, so far in 2021 the CX-9 has lost that distinction to the Subaru Ascent by a whisker. Now the CX-9 is only the second worst selling vehicle out of 16 or so rivals.) For an answer look first at the CX-9's 199" length. It's longer than all competitors except the Dodge Durango, Chevy Traverse, and the recently introduced Grand Cherokee L. But what about its interior space. Overall passenger space is less than a KIA Sorento, a vehicle that's almost a foot (10") shorter. And it has less overall cargo space than any other midsize SUV. Less total cargo space than a Honda CR-V (71.2 cubic ft vs 75.8 cf) ! How is this possible? The answer is the extreme version of Mazda's "Koda" design language with an extremely long distance from the front bumper to the A pillar (about a foot great distance than competitors) that entails sacrificing interior space. It's a design that sports car designers have used for nearly a century to suggest potency and performance and is obviously attractive. (Freud can explain why.) But in a vehicle where the "U" in SUV supposedly stands for "Utility," it's a major competitive weakness. Other Mazdas that employ the Koda design language suffer from the same issue but none so severely as the CX-9. Some Mazda fans claim the massive engine compartment is ideal for a rumored forthcoming inline 6. (Hell, it's sufficient for an inline 12 cylinder engine.) But as the smallest independent mass market automaker on the planet, Mazda is forced to make do with a single engine/drivetrain for almost all of their models. And Mazda isn't exactly known for delivering their rumored new engines and technology on anything resembling a promised schedule (if at all). The long-in-the-tooth four cylinder turbo engine mated to a similarly aging 6 speed transmission may be adequate to the mission of the CX-9 but it is hardly a strong selling point, especially compared to rivals with more modern engines and transmissions and hybrid options.
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