[Times car review] Jeremy Clarkson: “The Mazda CX-80 — a car with no redeeming features” 🚙

Posted by FlipStig1@reddit | thegrandtour | View on Reddit | 56 comments

Mazda dropped off the CX-80 AWD Takumi Plus model at Clarkson’s house for him to review. Needless to say, he was mostly unimpressed:

“What you get in exchange for nearly £60,000 is a seven-seater that would make an ideal getaway car, because there’s no one in the world who’d be able to tell the police what it was. Not even the man who designed it, I should imagine, because plainly he rattled it off in a coffee break and had forgotten all about it by lunchtime. To behold, then, it is very boring. To drive it is not boring. It is terrible.”

(Note that these are solely Clarkson’s views and watch out for the strong paywall.)

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Can you please post other parts of the review if not the whole thing. I bought a CX80 and love it, but this guy is getting me worried along with other Australian reviewers complaining about the ride quality, while some go on to praise it.

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

https://archive.md/LmkfN

I have the petrol model. Theyre awesome. Ride quality is fine. Wish we had the Turbo S here tho.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Wait.... Are you in australia?! I'm asking cos we are one of the only markets to get the petrol cx-80

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

Yes Aus. I got one of the first deliveries last year. GT. Love it x10.

It's the only seven seater that fits in my ridiculously narrow inner city carspace. The more expensive apartments have wider spaces so there's some v nice cars nearby. It sits next to a Macan and an Aston Martin and doesn't look completely out of place the way my cx5 did.

Just wish it had a tiny bit more oomph 0 to 60 kph. The other thing I will do is get a space saver tyre when available from Roadhero.

Clarkson drives supercars for a living and hates SUVs, althoguh he loves the new BMW X5 M. Surprise of the century that he doesn't like a Japanese ' imitation' RWD bias and a longitudinal inline 6 that doesn't drive as well as an X5 M.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

You’re right. Clarkson is a bit of a pessimist. I have the Azami without the SP pack(made the car lose a seat meaning that even one extra passenger would have to crawl to the back rather than just hopping in the middle for a bit). My biggest dilemma when buying this car was if the silver wheels would suit the car, but as soon as I looked at it, it was stunning - better than the picture show it. If this wasn’t the case I would’ve gotten the GT as well. Also are you in Melbourne? What colour did you get?

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Have you flicked the car in sport mode. I thought 0-60kph was heavenly in the car, given its size ofc.

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

Am in Sydney. Got the park grey, looks awesome with the black wheels.

Don't get me wrong, it's quick for a mazda suv. But there's sooo much more power left on the table. 3.3L is a huge engine. Sport mode is fun.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Yeah for sure. Hard to manoeuvre that wheelbase in Sydney traffic I assume

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

It's not tooo bad once you get used to it. There's a few streets where I live that you couldn't really utilise. Reverse Parking is a lot harder than the cx5 as it's nearly 5m long.

I haven't been to Melb in a while but I don't rememebr the drivers being as aggressive as Sydney. But I do remember they slam on the brakes on an orange light! No camera warning

Would love to turn up the psi but might blow the warranty.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

On a side note, do you think the mild hybrid battery failures everyone is talking about with the CX90s will affect the cx80? It kind of worries me since I just got the car and I’m hearing things about the cx90.

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

Hadn't heard anything. I know the PHEVs were failing. Do you have an article or anything?

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

I don’t have a specific article for it since they were just discussions from Reddit, but this article talks a bit about it: https://www.carscoops.com/2024/11/mazda-issues-three-cx-90-recalls-on-the-same-day/

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

I wouldn't be worried by any of that in that article.all easily fixed.. I'll have a look around reddit and see what else is being said

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Yeah, thank you so much for the reassurance. Things like these make me paranoid lol.

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

Understandable. A few people are saying the 48v mild hybrid battery has failed. It's under warranty but you may have to wait for part.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

My worry is more about problems after warranty. I plan to keep this car for a while.

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

If it's going to fail early it would be before 5 years.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Alright. So not too much to worry about, right?

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

Yes that's right. A 48v battery like that should last 8-10 years or 150K km. If its going to fail early, it will be before 5 years.

In ten years time the part should in theory be cheaper. There would be aftermarket ones so not forced to pay 100% premium for mazda brand.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Oh that makes sense. Thank you very much.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

It’ll probably just be labour costs for the battery installation then

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Melbourne is basically Sydney scaled down a notch. Doesn’t putting psi make ride stiffer? Also, is it good to keep the car at high PSI always?

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

PSI as in the turbo pressure, not the tyre pressure :) the engine can output heaps more power

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Ohh sry. I’m a bit clueless on these things lol

[-]

HerbalGerbil3@reddit

Basically the engine has the potential to put out a lot more power. The turbo pressure just needs to be increased. It's almost akin to a flick of a switch but it can void your warranty if you go messing around.

[-]

Jensway@reddit

I'm in AUS too, picking up my diesel CX80 on Monday.

The ride during my tests was honestly heavenly, not too tight or firm at all - I was a bit puzzled about how much the reviewers talked about it.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Congratulations! R u in Sydney asw? Also, out of curiosity what made you pick the diesel over petrol and PHEV. I chose the petrol cos I found the petrol to be a bit more eager to move around and because I heard petrol engines were a bit easier to maintain, but idk if that’s true. Diesel is a great option for fuel economy, but you gotta drive drive drive… and enjoy ofc.

[-]

Jensway@reddit

I was going to get the phev for the tax benefit but as soon as I drove the diesel I fell in love with it, it has SO much grunt.

You made a great choice on the petrol!

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

Yeah, the diesel has so much low down torque that it’s crazy. I really admire the fuel economy on the diesel, but for me personally the pros out weighed the cons for the petrol.

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

What r your opinions on the hybrid battery failures being associated with the CX90 in the r/CX90 sub (most of which are US owners)? Do you think they will affect our CX80s? I am a bit scared to be honest 😣

[-]

hatlad43@reddit

I respect Mazda engineering & build quality, but it's just another blob with Mazda face innit. The line up of the CX is pretty confusing, CX-3, CX-30, CX-4, CX-5, CX-50, etc. As if Mazda wants to inject the smallest gaps in the world of the blob market.

I do like the 3, 6, and of course the MX-5. They suit the Mazda design language.

[-]

breastfedtil12@reddit

Reddit is crazy for Mazda's. I have always thought that they were junk. They drive like shit, they feel like an appliance and Mazda's current powertrains are awful.

[-]

knowledgeable_diablo@reddit

Not just reddit, but also Australia. One of Mazda’s best markets globally where they are able to control their entire logistics chain.

[-]

drangryrahvin@reddit

I had a 6 wagon, and it was awesome, if a tad underpowered. They had been teasing a turbo inline 6 awd model, but then they scrapped the 6 altogether. Sad face.

[-]

Friar_Rube@reddit

When I first saw one of these from the back on the highway, I thought "Good god, which new BMW is that?"

[-]

midnight-viper@reddit

lol. The rear is so BMW-esque. And the fading effect indicators are also very BMW-inspired

[-]

deiner7@reddit

Have a cx-5 and a cx-50. Love them both. Think they look just fine. When the cx-90 was release i was horrified. It looked like mazda had decided to make Lincolns. They are god awful to look at the 70, 80 and 90. How can a car company that gets the mx-5 so right look at these with eyeballs and decide that was acceptable to produce. You would have to be ashamed blind as an autodriving tesla, to not see how bad the new cx line looks (70,80,90).

[-]

ellsego@reddit

It’s crazy because the previous gen CX-90 I thought looked really good, the new one is abhorrent… I’ve had a couple as rentals and the dimensions inside feel so off… like you’re sitting low but there’s a huge bubble over your head, it’s a very odd design especially coming after the last generation.

[-]

TheNittanyLionKing@reddit

Mazda has a pretty good reputation, but I have no interest in their cars because their modern models look so generic. Like any of the CX models looks like the generic SUVs in an open world video game because they didn't want to pay the licensing fees to use the real cars. If I had a nickel for every Dodge Caliber in an early 2010's video game that isn't actually a Dodge Caliber due to copyright laws. I'd be a rich man.

[-]

ironiccapslock@reddit

You think the CX50 looks generic?

[-]

XtremePhotoDesign@reddit

You’re talking about SUVs as if they are worth talking about, so you’re obviously not a car person.

MX-5 is more fun to drive than anything under $100K.

[-]

Electronic_Water_138@reddit

You’re talking about SUVs as if they are worth talking about, so you’re obviously not a car person.

Absolutely fucking ridiculous statement that literally isn’t true

MX-5 is more fun to drive than anything under $100K.

Another ridiculous statement that isn’t true at all so obviously you know nothing about cars

[-]

cannedrex2406@reddit

Ngl but in no way would I call a Mazda3 in soul red generic in any shape or form. It's literally a curvy and edgy car at the same time.

[-]

Substantial__Unit@reddit

We've owned a few CX5 and quite enjoy it for a daily commuter and getting the kids around. But when I look at Mazda now all I see are CX5 clones, or CX9 clones. I can't understand the lineup. You get a CX5 with slightly lower roof, you get a CX5 with a slightly longer wheelbase. It seems to me to be just the same car with very minor differences.

[-]

Last-Performance-435@reddit

The only thing Mazda make that I want here in Aus is the inline 6 CX-50. That would be the perfect 'all things to all men' car but it doesn't come in correct hand drive. It's yank only. It would be my ideal alternative to an Outback which I'm not going to buy because of the CVT ahot-matic slushbox that feels like it's losing 50bhp every time you ask it to do anything.

Mazda have all the components for exactly what most markets want in most segments but refuse to put them together.

Give us an inline 6 Mazda 6 sedan and wagon with rear wheel drive. I'll preorder one instantly.

[-]

ironiccapslock@reddit

CX50 is only 2.5 4 cylinders, in turbo and non-turbo variants.

It's a great car.

[-]

TeslaPittsburgh@reddit

Couple years ago we bought a used 2016 CX5 for (eventually) our daughter. We compared about a half dozen other good candidates for "first adult starting out car" and FWIW, the CX5 was hands down unquestionably the most personality infused crossover/light SUV in the bunch. I mean, night and day difference. Comparatively it's like a happy puppy just told we're going "walkies" (think Miata on lifted shoes) and the build quality/controls punch WAY above its price.

That's irrelevant to the CX80, of course, other than to say Mazda USED TO KNOW how to make a great crossover.

[-]

RRH872@reddit

I always find Mazda to be lovely cars to drive, well finished, and offer a lot of value for ur money, especially against its German rivals when you get into the spec. However, they got boring to drive. removed their racing pedigree decades ago along with all the other Asian manufacturers. Great family car but lacking any fun once uve dropped them off.

[-]

the_whole_arsenal@reddit

I rent a lot of cars. In 2024 I rented cars 48 times for 72 days. The only car type I refuse to get again is a Mazda SUV.

[-]

MagnumMagnets@reddit

I find that incredibly hard to believe, they’re far from the worst and I also spend a lot of time in cars due to work travel. Buicks, chevys, Toyotas and Nissans are by far my least favorite while the Mazdas Hondas and BMWs have been my favorites among the suvs.

[-]

CiaphasCain8849@reddit

It really does look like Generic car #55 to be honest.