Mazda CX-60 Revealed as a New Plug-In-Hybrid SUV

This is the most powerful Mazda road car ever produced, and it’s the all-new Mazda CX-60 PHEV, a five-seat full-size plug-in hybrid SUV.

Beneath the admittedly handsome flanks sits a 2.5-litre four-cylinder ‘Skyactiv-G’ petrol engine mated to a 100kW electric motor and 17.8kWh battery. There’s an eight-speed automatic gearbox without a torque converter, and for a vehicle that weighs a couple of tonnes, the pace is very decent indeed.

Mazda reckons 0-62 km/h acceleration in 5.8 seconds and a (limited) top speed of 124 km/h thanks to a system output of 322 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque. This CX-60 PHEV is equipped with the company’s “i-Activ” system AWD (mechanically, it is a front-engine with rear-wheel drive). On the other side of the scale is the fuel consumption of 188 mpg (why would not it be?) and CO2 emissions of 33 g/km.

In electric-only mode, Mazda reckons a range of 39 miles at speeds of up to 62 mph before the petrol engine kicks in and a few miles more if you are in town (42 miles).

Other powertrains will follow: two inline six-cylinder, a 3.0-litre naturally aspirated ‘e-Skyactiv-X’ petrol engine and a 3.3-litre diesel six-cylinder that is said to weigh as much as a four-stroke engine. Both get 48V mild-hybrid assistance for better efficiency, and both are also available with rear-wheel drive. That’s right, an inline-six SUV with rear-wheel drive.

‘Mi-Drive’ lets you choose between Normal, Sport, Off-Road, Towing and EV modes. All three CX-60s are based on Mazda’s ‘multi-solution Scalable Architecture’, which will underpin other large Mazdas in the future. We are assured that it incorporates a double-wishbone front axle and a multi-link rear axle in a body with “excellent” rigidity.

Further allusions to the CX-60’s road-holding and driver preference come in the form of ‘Kinetic Posture Control’, designed to stabilise the CX-60 when cornering and braking the inside rear wheel. In addition, the battery is housed between the front and rear axles, which ensures good stability.

It certainly looks stable, does not it? Mazdas have long been well-proportioned, well-thought-out designs, and this big new CX-60 is no different. The front-engined, rear-wheel-drive architecture gives it an appropriate stance, underpinned with the latest version of the company’s long-standing ‘Kodo’ design language. The CX-60’s almost flat flanks have an air of quiet grace but certainly nothing offensive.

The interior is pretty tidy too. As with all Mazdas, there’s driver orientation, a mix of materials (leather, wood, chrome), a touchscreen on the dashboard, a 570-litre boot (which grows to 1,726 litres with the seats folded) and a range of trim levels, from the entry-level ‘Exclusive’ to ‘Homura’ to the top-of-the-range ‘Takumi’. Prices for the Takumi start at $63,050.66

[metaslider id=”19085″]

• ​World Champions Yann Ehrlacher and Yvan Muller Complete Lynk & Co Cyan Racing WTCR Line-up
• Volvo Cars Introduces New Single-Motor C40 Recharge Variant
• California DMV Disengagement Stats Are In: Here Is IDTechEx’s Top Three Takeaways
• The Best Cost-Effective Ways to Fix Up Your Car
• Volvo Cars Tests New Wireless Charging Technology

Think Your Friends Would Be Interested? Share This Story!