One of the most demanding agility tests a car can face is the “moose test.” It’s an emergency obstacle test made famous in Scandanavian countries in which a car needs to quickly change to one lane and change back, as if avoiding a large object like a moose. With Mazda’s reputation for sporty vehicles, you’d expect its new CX-5 to ace the test, but when a Spanish automotive outlet tested it, it didn’t perform amazingly.
Its Time Was Sluggish And It Leaned A Fair Bit
The Spanish outlet that tested the CX-5 was km77, and while not from Northern Europe, the outlet has been conducting moose tests for quite a few years. As you can see in the embedded video, the CX-5 exhibited quite a bit of body roll during the test, and its best time wasn’t particularly impressive.
The tester managed to complete the course in 26.3 seconds, the same amount of time as the comparatively enormous Land Rover Range Rover plug-in hybrid. It was also a tenth of a second behind the more comparably sized Mini Countryman and Renault Scenic. Also, the fastest approach speed the tester could manage was 44 mph. In a prior test, the larger, rear-drive-based CX-60 (the smaller cousin to the American CX-70 and CX-90), was able to enter the test at 47.8 mph. At least the test wasn’t all bad news, though. The outlet found that the car was predictable and consistent, making it controllable, if not quick or especially fun.
The Test Doesn’t Tell The Whole Story Of The CX-5
We’ve also been behind the wheel of the CX-5, and, to an extent, it’s not entirely surprising to see this newest CX-5 lean through a handling test. Our experience seemed to indicate a more softly tuned suspension that has simultaneously made it roll a bit more and feel a little less responsive than previous generations. The trade-off, though, is that this generation also feels more comfortable on rougher roads than before. We also still found it to be composed and its steering to be sharp, which kept it engaging and enjoyable on twisty roads, despite losing a bit of agility. In fact, our biggest complaint was a lack of power, which could be rectified with a future turbocharged engine or even a hybrid.
2026 Mazda CX-5Ian Wright/CarBuzz/Valnet
Aside from the driving experience, we’re also still enamored with the styling of the CX-5, and find the interior to feel high-quality and premium. It also performs well in crash tests, and it’s quite affordable. We do have some gripes with the new touchscreen-focused infotainment system, but we still find the CX-5 to be a good option in the compact SUV market.
2026 Mazda CX-5Mazda
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
The Mazda CX-5 has long been the brand’s top seller, so it’s an extremely important model for the brand. This year, it’s down by a fair bit, and is actually slightly behind the similarly-sized (and named) CX-50. It’s not completely clear whether the sales are down because of some availability issues with the new model changeover, or if buyers aren’t liking it quite as much. If it’s the latter, it could be that buyers are a little disappointed in the car losing some of its sporting edge, or it could be for other reasons, such as the majorly different interior controls. If the handling is the root, that could likely be fixed with retuned suspension in a model year update without too much trouble, though infotainment changes can be much more complicated. Either way, Mazda probably doesn’t need to panic, yet, but also needs to be watching things closely.
Source: km77 / YouTube
