The dimensions of the second-generation CX-5 silently confirm its relationship with its predecessor.
The new car is within 5mm of the old one on overall length – you’ll often see a bigger difference than that on a facelifted car as a result of a mere bumper styling alteration – and is identical on overall width and wheelbase.
Where it does differ is on overall height, the new car standing 30mm shorter than its antecedent – and quite possibly benefiting visually from the aesthetic advantages that a lower roofline confers.
Mazda’s new look for the car adds slimmer headlights and a larger helping of chrome trim and certainly creates a smarter, more serious and more upmarket-looking car.
Revisions to the CX-5’s body-in-white may have added 15 percent to the car’s torsional rigidity by the inclusion of 3 percent more ultra-high-tensile steel, but they haven’t made it significantly lighter.
Mazda’s claim, however, is that 50 percent of the components that make up the car’s monocoque (by number) are new. The joins between the front suspension and the body have been reinforced, as have the body sills and the A-pillars.
