First impressions mixed for Mazda and Toyota's new mainstream SUV models

by Jim Bray
September 15, 2026

Two of Japan's nicest compact SUV's have been redesigned for the 2026 model year and while they're both compelling vehicles in many ways, in others they're afflicted with issues.

The two are the CX-5 from Mazda and Toyota's RAV4. I had a week with the Mazda but only a weekend with the Toyota, so this isn't quite an apples-to-apples comparison, but it's all the time I got so it's all I have.

I'm familiar with both vehicles in real life. My wife and I owned a 2013 RAV4 for several years and liked it a lot. Alas, it had a gremlin that made my wife eventually want to replace it – so last year we traded it for a 2022 CX-5, the previous generation to this new one. And we love it!

Let's talk about the Mazda first, because it has been my favourite compact SUV for years. I love Mazdas because, while they no longer use the "Zoom-Zoom" slogan, its vehicles tend to be more fun to drive than most direct competitors, and as far as luxury is concerned the company has in recent years punched above its weight, offering interiors that rival upmarket ones that cost more.

Another thing I loved about Mazda is that, contrary to most other carmakers with which I'm familiar, they've resisted dumping buttons and knobs in favour of increasingly complex and, in my never humble opinion, potentially dangerous screen-mounted controls that force you to take your eyes off the road to poke at virtual buttons as you bounce along the road.

Yeah, well that was then. Mazda has blinked, taking virtually all knobs and buttons from the centre stack (all, I believe, except for the front and rear window defoggers, probably the ones you'd use the least most of the year) and replacing them with a big LCD screen.

Almost as bad, to me, is that the new CX-5 no longer offers the turbocharged four-cylinder engine I've learned to love in our own CX-5. In fact, there's now only one engine choice, which is basically analogous to the previous generation's normally aspirated four banger. And if you've been spoiled by the turbo, you can feel the decrease in power right away.

That said, it's still a nice engine and a very compelling vehicle to drive, as long as you don't need to adjust anything that isn't tweakable via the steering wheel-mounted controls.

While Mazda may have seriously screwed up the interfaces, the interior now offers more room than before for rear seat passengers and in the hatch – but it still drives like a Mazda should, and that's a Very Good Thing.

But what a shame the company has been seduced by the dark side via its user interface.

Just about everything is now operated via that damn screen, which is a nice screen in reality, but tasked with too many things – heck, even if you want to adjust the HVAC fan speed you have to do it via the screen. And sometimes settings will be greyed out while you drive – undoubtedly a "safety feature" but in reality, another annoyance – especially if you have a front seat passenger who could do the tweaking while you drive.

At least the new one gives you a picture of the vehicle on the screen, showing you that its signal/brake lights are working!

That's surely more important than usability, right?

Fortunately, you get wireless CarPlay and Android Audio, which can make the screen emulate your cell phone. I've learned to love CarPlay because it can really simplify your interface (once you have the vehicle's settings the way you like them); I found myself yelling fewer obscenities at the Mazda when I was using the phone than when I had to rely on that damn standard equipment interface. Of course, that doesn't help if you want to do stuff like adjust the fan...

Still, there's lots to love here. It's comfortable and, if you don't need to tweak anything while you're driving, it's still quite compelling to drive. The 2.5 litre G-Vectoring four banger's 187 horses and 186 lb.-ft. of torque are more than adequate if you aren't pulling out to pass.

So, while I hate the new screen-based stuff, I can see why people would still love the CX-5.

Ah, but there are other issues I need to tell you about. For example, I had a near death experience with Mazda Canada's sample unit. Well, I didn't have the near-death experience, the CX-5 did.

I went out to drive it to the store and the damn thing bricked itself! When I went to it, I got an initial warning that the battery was low and that I should drive it to recharge it. So, I hopped in to fire it up – and it wouldn't.

So, I called up the Alberta Motor Association, of which we're members, and they came around to bail out the Mazda. A quick boost had it up and running, and the guy suggested I drive it to recharge. So, I sallied forth nervously, only to notice that seemingly all the electrical systems were freaking out, with flashing lights and the like, and the CX-5 claimed to be completely out of gas.

That was weird because I was sure had been half full the previous evening. So, I went to the closest gas station and put in $20 just to be safe. Somehow, that seemed to help: during the process everything appeared to have rebooted and the CX-5 was fine from then until I turned it over to the next guy.

It made me paranoid every time I fired it up after that, though! And I heard that one of the reviewers who followed me had the same problem. As, apparently, did Car and Driver magazine with their long term CX-5.

Yikes!

As my reader undoubtedly knows, I'm a Mazda fan and while I liked most of what they've done with the new CX-5, the interface, lack of a turbo option, and electrical issues would send me stampeding toward the CX-50 – though Mazda Canada's website no longer lists it as for sale.

Apparently, this is political. According to an unnamed source of mine (well, the source has a name, I′m just not authorized to use it), since the CX-50 is assembled in the United States, Mazda has decided not to import them here under the current tariff regimen.

Thanks, Elbows Up Crowd!

If I hear anything official from Mazda, I'll update this story.

Toyota gets a 'RAV' review?

On a happier note, there's a lot to like about the new Toyota RAV4, too, though of course it certainly isn't perfect, either. But it didn't blow up on me during my long weekend with it!

Since it was only a long weekend, I can only give some quick first impressions, but they're mostly positive.

The new RAV4 is offered only as a hybrid, though there are several trim levels. The one I got was the Woodland edition, which is about the middle.

The engine is a 2.5 litre four-cylinder with Dual Variable Valve Timing with Intelligence (VVT-i) and it's rated at a pretty healthy 236 horsepower. That's slightly more than my CX-5 turbo puts out, but it's saddled with a continuously variable transmission so whatever extra fun the extra oomph might allow is wasted. Too bad.

Still, I liked driving the RAV. It has a very nice suspension (independent, of course, with coil springs and stabilizer bars) and if you opt for sport mode it makes driving the thing quite a bit more interesting – especially compared to Eco mode. You can choose drive modes via buttons on the centre stack. Yes, buttons!

It also offers an EV mode.

Speaking of doors, I did notice that the RAV4's doors felt – or sounded, at least – a little cheap. Most vehicles' doors that I've tested recently close with a nice, solid "thunk", whereas the Toyota's seemed a tad anemic. It's probably nothing, especially given Toyota's reputation for quality, but I figured I should mention it.

I had issues with its screen, not surprisingly since it's a current car and they tend to drive me (more) nuts. There's too much stuff on it and it's used for too many things. And (I'm sure this is common with carmakers that are seduced by the Google side of the Force) it appears to be listening to you at all times.

It's undoubtedly so the Vehicular God can leap to attention when summoned, like a genie in its lamp. But a couple of times the RAV4 would "leap" to attention without being summoned, not really offering me options to do stuff or anything, but merely reacting to something someone in the vehicle said, whether relevant to the interface or not.

I don't like this. I don't want to seem paranoid and I definitely have nothing to hide, but I don't like this trend toward constant monitoring (it appears many cars these days even have cameras in them to watch the driver). Oh, sure, they market it as ease of use, but frankly, it's no one's business what people in the vehicle are saying – especially the damn car's!

On the upside, it has real buttons for adjusting the inside temperature, as well as the defoggers and the audio volume. Huzzah!

The seats are comfortable, there's a good set of controls on the steering wheel (so you can ignore the centre LCD as much as possible) and unlike many Toyotas I've driven in recent years, it doesn't inflict that front cross traffic alert system that, while handy sometimes, is more often just intrusive and annoying for drivers who are capable of using their eyes.

I missed driver's seat memory, though it's available on the higher trim levels and my wife missed power controls for the front passenger seat (the driver gets power, though, as do the passenger seats of higher trim levels).

One thing I really appreciated was the new exterior design. RAV4's haven't been real lookers for quite a while, but this new one sports an aggressive new exterior that's pretty cool.

We took a short country drive with four of us in the RAV and other than the CVT and other stuff I whine about, it was comfortable and roomy and a very pleasant place to be. 

It does have a silly storage bin on the centre console whose latch is placed where it's difficult for the driver to open easily, but that's pretty nit picky.

I'd like to spend some more time with the new RAV. It seems like a nice upgrade from previous generations, including the one we bought.

So, if you're looking to replace your compact SUV and all this technological and monitoring crap doesn't bother you either one of these vehicles could be a good choice.

Mazda CX-5′s pricing ranges from $38,843 to just shy of 50 grand. RAV4′s start at $41,375 and range up to about $55,875 for the top line model.

Copyright 2026 Jim Bray
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