We have tested the 2024 Mazda CX-70 with my family. To create this car, Mazda removed the third-row seats from the CX-90 to provide a massive boot and five seats so let's get straight into seeing how this model stacks up as a BabyDrive…
Quick Links
- How much does the 2024 Mazda CX-70 cost and what are the options?
- How big is the boot of the Mazda CX-70?
- How good is the storage in the 2024 Mazda CX-70 for families?
- How many child seats will fit in the Mazda CX-70?
- How comfortable is the Mazda CX-70 for families?
- How safe is the 2024 Mazda CX-70 for families?
- What is the 2024 Mazda CX-70 like to drive?
- Compare the 2024 Mazda CX-70
Quick Overview
- ✓ Fits three child seats across the rear seat
- ✓ Massive boot space holds 20 shopping bags
- ✓ Built-in rear door window blinds
- ✓ Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- ✓ Central console box can be cooled using the aircon
- ✗ Engine is quite loud on diesel versions
- ✗ No ANCAP safety rating yet
- ✗ Firm ride may not suit all families
Key Specifications
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Price Range | $75,970 – $84,970 (plus on-roads) |
| Warranty | 5-year/unlimited km |
| Safety Rating | IIHS Top Safety Pick+ |
| Engine Options | 3.3L turbo petrol or diesel with mild hybrid |
| Power/Torque | 254kW/500Nm (petrol) or 187kW/550Nm (diesel) |
| Child Seat Capacity | 3 seats across rear bench |
How much does the 2024 Mazda CX-70 cost and what are the options?
| Model Grade | Petrol Price | Diesel Price |
|---|---|---|
| GT | $75,970 | $77,970 |
| Azami | $82,970 | $84,970 |
The 2024 Mazda CX-70 pricing starts at $75,970 (plus on-road costs) for the GT with the petrol engine. The range consists of two grades – GT and Azami – each available with either a petrol or diesel engine. The top-spec Azami can also be optioned with the SP Package ($3,500) which adds tan Nappa leather seats, suede dashboard panel, and two-tone steering wheel.
How big is the boot of the Mazda CX-70?
Storage in the 2024 Mazda CX-70's boot is extremely practical for family use! Although you can tell Mazda just took out the back seats by the remaining cup holders, air vents etc. The boot door opens really nice and easily and quite quietly with just the touch of a button, which is great when you've got sleeping babies!
The boot space in the CX-70 is massive for a five-seater! It will hold 20 shopping bags, which is excellent for families although strangely two less than a CX-90. This is more than the Ford Everest (18 bags with two rows), Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid (17 bags), Toyota Prado (16 bags), and matches the Toyota Kluger (20 bags with two rows). It's comparable to the Nissan Pathfinder and Hyundai Palisade which both hold 22 bags with two rows in use. Five-seater alternatives include the VW Touareg (15 bags) and Lexus RX (17 bags)
The Thule Sleek, future-proof, multi-configuration pram with a single seat…
…will fit in the boot of the Mazda CX-70 with 10 shopping bags.
The Thule Sleek, future-proof, multi-configuration pram with two sibling seats…
… will fit in the boot of the CX-70 with 10 shopping bags.
The Thule Sleek, future-proof, multi-configuration pram with a single seat and the bassinet…
…will fit in the boot of the CX-70 side by side with six shopping bags.
The boot space and its functionality are really important. I like to have a big boot space and little side wells or areas I can divide things into. So something I don't want to move around while I'm driving such as my daughter's lunch bag or her wet swimming gear can be sectioned off in a little well where it's not going to spill or get squashed by the rest of the things in the boot.
Hooks for securing shopping bags to are also favourites of mine, I like being able to secure the bag containing more fragile things like eggs so they don't move around on the journey.
I measure the boot space in freezer shopping bags, prams and dogs. Not because I think all there is to a mum's life is food shopping, prams and dogs. (Although it can feel like it sometimes!!) But because these are visually measurable items we can all associate with. For me, the car company boot measurement of litres is not an amount I can easily visualise and 400L in one car may differ in usability to that in another due to the configuration or shape of the space.
The Thule Urban Glide 3, ultimate All Terrain stroller with the back wheels on…
…fits easily in the boot with eight shopping bags.
The Thule Urban Glide 3, double ultimate All Terrain stroller with the back wheels on…
…fits easily in the boot with six shopping bags.
The Thule Spring, lightweight and one-handed folding stroller…
…fits in the boot of the CX-70 with 12 shopping bags.
The boot can also accommodate two 90-litre, a 70-litre, and two 40-litre Thule Chasm duffel bags.
A large dog will fit in the boot.
How good is the storage in the 2024 Mazda CX-70 for families?
The interior of the Mazda CX-70 is really lovely. It's got a really nice luxury feel (especially in the Azami), really nicely designed, nice quality finish to all the surfaces, and the steering wheel feels nice in your hands too.
In the front of the CX-70, there are two cup holders in the central console that will hold a reusable or a disposable coffee cup.
In front of them is a wireless phone charging pad, and there's a 12-volt socket there too.
The central console box has a dual opening lid.
The glove box is a good size that will hold an iPad with the manual.
The door bins will hold a water bottle, and an iPad fits in them easily too.
There is a glasses case in the ceiling, and both the front visors have lit vanity mirrors as well.
In the rear, there are two cup holders in a fold-down armrest in the central seat back. They will hold a reusable or disposable coffee cup.
There are map pockets on the back of both front seats that will hold and conceal an iPad.
The door bins are a really good size in the back, they will hold two water bottles and an iPad fits in them too.
How many child seats will fit in the 2024 Mazda CX-70?
When it comes to installing child seats in the back of the CX-70, there are ISOFix in the two outer rear seats. They are within plastic guides and are really nice and easy to connect to.
There are top tether anchorages on the back of all three rear seat backs, nice and easy to access and connect through the boot.
Now I could fit three child seats in the back of the CX-70, which is fantastic news! They fit really nice and comfortably across, forward or rear facing.
Now, when it comes to legroom, we could fit about a 175cm driver in the front of a rear-facing child seat, or a 186cm driver in front of forward-facing child seats. I was expecting a bit more legroom for the driver with rear-facing seats given how long this car is.
The rear doors are great in the CX-70 – not only do they open really wide for really easy access in and out of the back…
…they've also got built-in window blinds, which are fantastic for keeping your little ones shaded from the sun while you're driving along!
How comfortable is the 2024 Mazda CX-70 for families?
The top spec CX-70 Azami has heated and cooled front driver and passenger seats, and you've got a heated steering wheel too.
You can control the rear climate from buttons in the front as well (not the touch screen thankfully), and you can turn it on and off and lock it as well, which is really good for families with little fingers that like to fiddle!
There are air vents in the back of the central console box for second-row passengers.
For me at 162cm tall, the seats are pretty comfortable throughout the CX-70, but taller people I drove with complained about them a bit.
The media system in the CX-70 is on this lovely, big media screen in the centre of the dash. It does have wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is great so you can access your phone's navigation, music, podcast and messaging apps while you're driving really nice and easily.
The media screen can now be controlled as a touchscreen while driving, which is great because it used to only be touchscreen when you were stationary and not when you were driving (forcing you to use a dial in the central console), but parts of it actually still work now while you're driving as a touchscreen, which is great.
As well as the touch screen you can still navigate the system using the rotary dial down in the central console. After a few weeks of driving Mazdas I did get used to this but it's not that easy to operate Apple CarPlay with.
There's built-in sat nav as well, which is fantastic.
You can change your audio settings, which is great for families with noise sensitive kids.
You can go to vehicle settings and customise everything in there, which is really good.
When you put it into reverse, the camera image is lovely and big, fills the whole screen, it is really nice and clear, and makes parking and maneuvering really easy.
The windows open and close fairly quietly and wouldn't wake sleeping passengers.
With baby asleep you can get in and out without worrying the doors will be too noisy. The same for the windows their mechanism is not too noisy and I didn't notice them having a loud opening or closing sound.
With baby asleep you want to be able to get in and out without worrying the doors will be too noisy and wake Bub up!
How safe is the 2024 Mazda CX-70 for families?
The 2024 Mazda CX-70 doesn't have an ANCAP rating but in the United States it won the 2024 IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award, which is the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's highest safety rating.
The CX-70 earned the highest rating of Good in the three crash tests conducted, and the standard front-crash prevention system also earned a Good rating.
The CX-70 features lots of safety technologies as standard, including Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, Adaptive cruise control (ACC), Lane keep assist (LKA), Lane departure warning (LDW), Blind spot monitoring (BSM) with vehicle exit warning, Rear cross-traffic alert (RCTA), Forward collision warning (FCW), Front and rear parking sensors, and. 360 degree cameras
Some of these safety features are also features that drive me crazy as a mum! Like the lane departure and forward collision alert or the parking sensor beeping sound. I want all the safety technology AND to be able to mute the sound when Bub's asleep!
What is the 2024 Mazda CX-70 like to drive?
The Mazda CX-70 is a nice car to drive. The diesel version is surprisingly loud, though for what's trying to be a luxury car and the engine noise is quite roary inside and out, which is something to consider if you've got little ones that you want to get to sleep in the back. Although maybe it would lull them to sleep like white noise, you never know!
The ride is quite firm, but I actually quite like that about it as it feels solid on the motorway and around corners.
One thing I have noticed since being a mum is I hate it when I reach a destination or get home from being out and the kids have either done really well in the car or she is screaming her head off and I have done really well to keep it together for the entire journey (usually the latter!!) and it takes 10 minutes to park the car! It can be really stressful.
Visibility is quite good in the CX-70 and you can see a little over the top of the rear child seats.
One thing I find is that the side mirror on the driver's side is too close. I feel like it needs to be pushed further forward more toward the front of the car so I've got better visibility down that driver's side, but overall it's pretty good. And the cameras are good too.
The turning circle is surprisingly good for a car of this size. And with the cameras and that good visibility, parking and maneuvering is nice and easy.
Additional Information:
Mazda offers a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty on the CX-70.
Compare the 2024 Mazda CX-70:
If you're looking at the 2024 Mazda CX-70 as a luxury five-seat SUV, you may want to consider the Hyundai Santa Fe Hybrid (seven seats), Ford Everest (seven seats), or if you specifically want a five-seater, consider the VW Touareg, a Lexus RX or Audi Q5. The Mazda CX-90 is the seven-seat version of this car if you need the extra seating capacity.
BabyDrive Verdict on the 2024 Mazda CX-70
To sum up, the CX-70 does make a good family car. You've got an enormous boot that you can easily fit the Thule Urban Glide 3 twin pram in, and you've got room in there for shopping, for scooters, all sorts of things that the family car ends up cluttered with!
Three child seats fit really nicely in the back although legroom in front of rear facing seats is a limitation for tall families. The drive is quite firm and a little bit noisy (the petrol is far quieter than the diesel though), but it's really comfortable for a family, and the media system and cameras are great.
Key Pros:
- Massive boot space (20 shopping bags)
- Fits three child seats across comfortably
- Built-in rear door window blinds
- Central console cooling for snacks
- Premium interior with luxury appointments
- Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- Good visibility and cameras for parking
Key Cons:
- Engine noise is quite loud in the diesel
- No ANCAP safety rating yet (but a high rating in the USA version)
- Firm ride may not suit all families
- High price point
I wonder why CX-70 accomodates two less shopping bags (20) than CX-90 (22) with second row seats in use where both are basically same vehicles but different seat layouts?
Mystifying!