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Mazda cars are fun to drive – that’s the first thing to know. You know the RX-8 and the MX-5 are going to be a giggle when you first look at them, but even the little “minivan” Mazda5 is fun to drive once you’re in it. The CX-7 and its bigger CX-9 sibling are Crossover SUVs - meaning that they’re built to drive more like a car than a traditional truck-based SUV.  Drives like a sport sedan
I’ve reviewed the Mazda5 and CX-9 before, but this was my first chance to take an extended drive in the CX-7 – and it included a trip to the Northwest Automotive Press Association’s off-road course near Seattle’s Pacific Raceways.
The CX-7 is an AWD crossover based on the same chassis platform that Mazda uses to build the Mazda6 sedan. But it’s taller, wider, and longer than a sedan, though not by much. The CX-7 gets the same turbocharged and direct-injected 2.3-liter 4-cylinder engine that graces the hot-rod MAZDASPEED3 and MAZDASPEED6 halo vehicles, so it’s a proven and peppy powerplant, offering 244 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque in the CX-7. We know that Mazda can coax nearly 300/300 out of this engine with the optional trunk kit in the MAZDASPEED3, so there’s some extra grunt there if you care to hit the aftermarket to find it. Personally, I’d love to see a MAZDASPEED CX-7, but Mazda is notoriously good at keeping their future plans a secret.
The CX-7 gets 16/22 mileage - not fantastic, but not bad for the class. The car also meets federal Tier 2 Bin 5 and California LEV-II emissions standards, so it’s reasonably green and a good choice for the environmentally conscious SUV buyer (Yes, they exist!) who isn’t ready for a Mazda Tribute/Ford Escape/Mercury Mariner Hybrid.  Functional and Capable
The CX-7 is always driven by a 6-speed automatic transmission. You have your choice of FWD or AWD, but I can’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t want the AWD. It’s worth the extra money in the wintertime, especially in the Pacific North-wet where I live. The AWD system is always on – there are no dials, buttons, or other things to fiddle with.
The CX-7 is capable off-road, but that’s not where it lives. On the NWAPA off-road course, it ate up the “unimproved road” segments, and did a great job on the muddy “Now you’re really lost” segments. I never worried that the CX-7 wouldn’t make it back to the paved road.  Fun to Drive
But the driving experience of the CX-7 isn’t about heavy-duty mud bogging or hill climbing - it’s about a comfortable and sure-footed ride through whatever weather old man winter cares to toss your way, and still giving you the kind of drive you expect from a Japanese sport sedan. The acceleration, handling and steering are crisp – there’s none of that wallowing in corners that you expect from an up-high SUV. Braking is similarly prompt and predictable.
Inside, the CX-7 is attractively styled. Mazda avoided getting on the wrong side of my pet peeve: fake woodgrain. The trim bits in the CX-7 are done in snappy-looking high gloss black. Heated leather seats and steering wheel with a hint of chrome here and there makes the interior seem more luxurious than the $34,375 sticker price of the Grand Touring edition would lead you to expect. For that price, you get leather, navigation, keyless entry, back-up camera, fancy 6-disc 9-speaker iPod-enabled stereo, Xenon HID headlights.  Nice Interior
You can get most of the CX-7’s good stuff (except for the groovy stereo, backup-cam, keyless entry and navigation) for the base price of $28,400, and that includes the AWD.
The CX-7 seats 4 adults and a kid quite comfortably, and while it doesn’t give you a third-row seat, it does use that space for a generous storage area back there. So the CX-7 is perfect for the young family or active couple. People who enjoy outdoor equipment-oriented activities (skiing, windsurfing, etc.) particularly should check out the CX-7 – it was built with you in mind.
The bottom line on the CX-7 is that it’s the Crossover SUV for the person who really wanted a sports car, but needs the extra space and utility that the SUV platform provides.
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