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The redesigned 2026 Mazda CX-5 trades comfort and control for a lower price. Consumer Reports found six drawbacks worth knowing before buying one
The Mazda CX-5 has long stood out among compact SUVs for its sportier handling and near-luxury interior feel. A full redesign for 2026 brings a new touchscreen-heavy interior and a switch to a single available powertrain, changes that test drives reveal come with real tradeoffs.
Consumer Reports drove and evaluated the redesigned 2026 CX-5 and identified six reasons shoppers might want to pause before buying one, so anyone cross-shopping compact SUVs knows what to expect.
The previous-generation CX-5 used physical buttons and knobs for most functions, while the redesigned 2026 model moves nearly every control onto the touchscreen. Consumer Reports testers said the volume knob disappeared entirely, replaced by an onscreen slider, though the steering wheel still offers thumb-operated volume buttons. CR found climate adjustments now require navigating a menu structure, since changing the fan speed or turning on seat and steering wheel heaters takes several steps and a wait for the system to initialize. Testers also said the steering wheel's former physical buttons were replaced with flat multifunction pads that are harder to use without looking down, though the gear selector, turn signals, headlights, wipers and mirror controls remain conventional switches.
