In the new CX-5, Mazda has stuck with a six-speed transmission because it works well in this day and age of eight-speed automatic transmissions. The Mazda CX-5 you are looking at is brand new, which may come as a surprise to you. There’s nothing wrong with the design resembling the previous version. Between the six-speed automatic gearbox and the engine, nothing has changed. Because so many new cars already have eight or more gears, this one is a rare bird. Because an official from Mazda was available to talk to us before the car was shown off, we asked why the company was sticking with the old gearbox. “We didn’t want to change the recipe because the six-speed transmission works really well with our current Skyactiv-G engine,” said Stefan Meisterfeld, vice president of strategy development for Mazda North America. The steps are clear and logical. It feels great when you shift it, and people like you in the news, and our customers have said nice things about it. So, when we launched, we had no plans to change this. For a long time, the CX-5 has been a reliable car. While it isn’t a Miata, it’s evident that the same team behind the MX-5 is responsible for crafting this four-door, five-passenger family vehicle. Meisterfeld’s Skyactiv-G engine is an interesting part of the formula, or recipe, because it’s zippy feel comes from high compression (13:1) instead of a turbo. So, the torque goes down, and it’s better to use fewer gears so you don’t have to look for the powerband. The 2026 Mazda CX-5 actually delivers identical performance to the 2025 version, offering 187 horsepower and 185 lb-ft of torque. There isn’t much there, and the recipe worked well for the old model. We’ll need to find out how it drives now that the new CX-5 has gained a few extra pounds and grown by 4.5 inches in length. Meisterfeld is adamant that it will still work. “Our engineers are really passionate about our driving DNA and the fun-to-drive aspect, as I’m sure you know.” Changes are being made to the car to make it run as well as the modern CX-5, even though it is bigger. We can’t change the laws of physics, so the car will also be a little heavier. But our experts are doing everything they can to keep our driving DNA in it, and I’m sure you’ll be happy with it when you drive it. Mazda is the one carmaker that can make a slow car feel quick. For this reason, I want to be easy on them. There is no doubt that the six-speed automatic will work right. We will see if it stays on the new Skyactiv-Z hybrid CX-5 in 2027. It was asked if the six-speed’s compatibility with the system was a factor in its stay on board, but Meisterfeld refused to give any more information at this time.
