Subaru Crosstrek or Mazda CX-5

[Anonymous]

If you have either the Subaru Crosstrek or Mazda CX-5, can you tell me your pros and cons? I test drove the Honda HR-V and CR-V and the Toyota CH-R and Rav4 and wasn't that wow'ed.

[Anonymous]

I have a crosstrek and really like it. I had considered Mazda but ruled it out because I don't like the cabin/technology consoles. Subaru feels more low tech in a good way for me. My husband who is used to German cars initially felt the crosstrek was underpowered but once he got used to it doesn't notice it anymore. I think the CX5 has more horsepower.
I think Subarus hold their value better than Mazda if that is important to you, though that's probably all marketing. Mazda ranks as more reliable from what I remember

[Anonymous]

You might want to research subaru transmission recalls.

[Anonymous]

I leased a CX-5 from 2014-2017 and I LOVED IT. One of my favorite cars. My husband talked me into trading in for a Ford Escape which I hate with a passion and will be going back to a CX-5 in a year.

[Anonymous]

Mazda is more fun to drive and better gas mileage. But it kind of depends on how long you keep cars - I really liked the CX-5 for handling when we were shopping, but at the end of the day I know zero people with 10 year old Mazdas, and countless people with 10 year old Toyotas, and we're a keep-it-till-the-wheels-fall-off family. So we went with the RAV4, even though the handling wasn't as zippy.

I do know people with old Subarus but the MPG was a deal breaker for me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mazda is more fun to drive and better gas mileage. But it kind of depends on how long you keep cars - I really liked the CX-5 for handling when we were shopping, but at the end of the day I know zero people with 10 year old Mazdas, and countless people with 10 year old Toyotas, and we're a keep-it-till-the-wheels-fall-off family. So we went with the RAV4, even though the handling wasn't as zippy.

I do know people with old Subarus but the MPG was a deal breaker for me.

I bought used Mazda, drove it 11 years and sold it to a friend who loves the car just as much as I did. Hate my new Honda.

[Anonymous]

I have a Crosstrek. I really like it. I have to drive into PA through Frederick every week and I've driven through pretty bad storms with no problems.

Downsides: not a lot of pickup. Takes a while to heat up and in the summer takes a while to cool down. There's no really comfortable place to rest my left foot. It is also longer than it seems, so parallel parking is a little limited (and that might just be my own bias because I had a small sedan before the Crosstrek).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mazda is more fun to drive and better gas mileage. But it kind of depends on how long you keep cars - I really liked the CX-5 for handling when we were shopping, but at the end of the day I know zero people with 10 year old Mazdas, and countless people with 10 year old Toyotas, and we're a keep-it-till-the-wheels-fall-off family. So we went with the RAV4, even though the handling wasn't as zippy.

I do know people with old Subarus but the MPG was a deal breaker for me.

I bought used Mazda, drove it 11 years and sold it to a friend who loves the car just as much as I did. Hate my new Honda.

I'm sure they exist, but I don't know any. And in the 6 months we were deciding what to buy, I decided to keep an eye out on the road to see if I could spot any older model Mazdas. Saw one oldish Miata and that's it. That may be a function of them not being as popular as Hondas and Toyotas, but I went with what I had proof of - Toyotas last forever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you have either the Subaru Crosstrek or Mazda CX-5, can you tell me your pros and cons? I test drove the Honda HR-V and CR-V and the Toyota CH-R and Rav4 and wasn't that wow'ed.

Purchased a new 2015 CX-5 for my wife and she loves it. Looked at the Outback and Forester at the time, but my wife liked the Mazda better, and imo, it was a better value. We've had ZERO issues with the Mazda, but then again, it only has 30k miles in 5 years. One more comment, the CX-5 is more in line with the Outback/Forester as far as size/price goes. Why are you looking at the Crosstrek vs. CX-5?

[Anonymous]

DH has a 2019 CX5. He considered a Rav4 but did not like the way it drove - he read online about similar complaints from owners. He briefly consider a CRV but read about an ongoing issue with oil mixing with gas. He did not consider a Subaru because we owned a 2014 Forester and although we did not have any transmission issues (got rid of it early to avoid possible issues) we did not want to give Subaru any more money.

DH is very happy with the CX5. I'm not a huge fan of driving it, though.

[Anonymous]

Avoid the Crosstrek. Is wayyyyyyyyyy underpowered, and they are having huge failure rates on the transmissions. And when I say underpowered, I mean it needs like 100 MORE horsepower than the 148 it claims. It's a heavy car despite its small size (it's actually heavier than a Corvette or Jeep Wrangler) and it needs a lot more power, or a gigantic turbo, or pair of smaller turbos. Either way, it needs 250-290hp to feel "right", not less than 150.

[Anonymous]

I have a Crosstrek and love it. I get better gas mileage or as good as my husband's Honda Civic. Don't feel like its underpowered or have had transmission issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mazda is more fun to drive and better gas mileage. But it kind of depends on how long you keep cars - I really liked the CX-5 for handling when we were shopping, but at the end of the day I know zero people with 10 year old Mazdas, and countless people with 10 year old Toyotas, and we're a keep-it-till-the-wheels-fall-off family. So we went with the RAV4, even though the handling wasn't as zippy.

I do know people with old Subarus but the MPG was a deal breaker for me.

I bought used Mazda, drove it 11 years and sold it to a friend who loves the car just as much as I did. Hate my new Honda.

I'm sure they exist, but I don't know any. And in the 6 months we were deciding what to buy, I decided to keep an eye out on the road to see if I could spot any older model Mazdas. Saw one oldish Miata and that's it. That may be a function of them not being as popular as Hondas and Toyotas, but I went with what I had proof of - Toyotas last forever.

All the little Mazda3s are from 2005 and up. They have the same body they had when they came out. ex-bf back in Europe had a Mazda 626 made in 1984 and we cruising in it in 1995-96. Love Mazda but needed a smaller car that CX-5 but bigger one than CX-3. Got Honda HRV and I hate it. I'm stuck with it because selling and buying another one would be expensive. Just got en e-mails about Mazda CX-30. Maybe I should've gotten that one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a Crosstrek and love it. I get better gas mileage or as good as my husband's Honda Civic. Don't feel like its underpowered or have had transmission issues.

If you don’t think the Crosstrek is woefully underpowered, then I can say with absolute certainty that you have no perspective on what a car with a proper amount of horsepower should feel like. The Crosstrek is one of the most underpowered vehicles I’ve ever driven, and I’ve been driving since the late 80’s. The only things I’ve ever owned that were more sluggish were a Datsun 510 and a Ford Escort.

Now, I will say this about the Crosstrek - it handles absolutely superbly, even with the electric “power” steering, which doesn’t give enough feedback, but still manages to not feel completely numb. But the car feels solid and planted in corners. You can push it far harder into corners than you’d think would be possible, given the car's considerable weight of more than 3300 lbs.