2025 Mazda CX-70: Everything Confirmed So Far

Summary

• The 2025 Mazda CX-70 will share powertrains with the larger CX-90, making it a strong contender in the mid-size SUV range.
• The CX-70 will be built on a shortened version of the CX-90’s platform, allowing for improved handling and balance.
• Despite its smaller size, the CX-70 will offer a luxurious interior with premium materials, making it a potential competitor in the luxury/performance SUV market.

• The 2025 Mazda CX-70 is designed to fill the size gap between the CX-5/CX-50 models and the larger CX-90 model.
• The ’25 CX-70 will share the same powertrains as the CX-90, allowing the new Mazda SUV to be ultra-competitive in the mid-size SUV range.
• The ’25 CX-70 will be built on a shortened version of the CX-90’s platform, allowing for the same longitudinal engine layout. This allows for the rear-biased all-wheel-drive system to improve the overall handling and balance of the new Mazda SUV.

Aside from the humble minivan, few vehicle classes can match the practicality and versatility of the SUV. In the 21st century, crossovers and SUVs have seen extraordinary growth, with manufacturers from across the globe. Certain brands have been at the forefront of the SUV scene for some time now, with those same brands expected to carry us into the future with the seemingly endless stream of models. Japanese manufacturer, Mazda is one of these brands, offering multiple different-sized SUVs to appeal to the largest market possible.

Currently, the three largest Mazda SUVs are: the mid-size CX-90 being the biggest, with the CX-5 and the CX-50 being the compact offerings. The main difference between the latter two models is the CX-5 is better suited to urban living and the CX-50 is designed for outdoor adventures. For the 2025 model year, Mazda will soon introduce a new two-row model dubbed the CX-70 and here’s everything we know so far about the upcoming mid-size SUV.

In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from the manufacturer’s website and other authoritative sources, including MotorTrend and Car and Driver.

The 2025 Mazda CX-70 Will Share Powertrains With The CX-90

Despite the CX-70’s intention of bridging the size gap between the CX-50 and the CX-90, the upcoming CX-70 will share more similarities with the CX-90. As the buildup to the CX-70 continues, the discussion of what engine options the new Mazda would be available with was one of the biggest talking points about the upcoming SUV. Recently, speculation about the CX-70 sharing the same engine options as the larger SUV was confirmed in a recent filing with the California Air Resources Board.

The filing indicates that the ’25 Mazda CX-70 will be offered with two versions of a 3.3-liter engine, with both of them putting to use what we expect to be the same mild hybrid systems that introduced so many benefits to the CX-70. As well as the hybrid-assisted engine options, CARB’s filings also state that a 2.5-liter plug-in hybrid will also be offered, ticking the final box for sharing the current CX-90’s powertrains.

Differences Between The Engine Options

While the exact details of the Mazda CX-70’s power output are yet to be clarified, we can look at the performance capabilities of the different CX-90 engine options to get a solid idea of what to expect from the CX-70. Due to the smaller size of the CX-70, the possibility of the power output being slightly less than that of the CX-90 is very likely.

The base-level CX-90 ‘Turbo Select’ trim comes with a 3.3-liter turbocharged inline-six, which provides a total of 280 horsepower. As you get to the more expensive trims, starting with the ‘Turbo S’, these models come with a more powerful 3.3-liter turbocharged inline-six, this time producing up to 340 horsepower. For a larger three-row model, this sort of power makes for a super versatile SUV, which is sure to carry over to the CX-70, even if Mazda decides to slightly tone down its size and overall power output.

The 2024 Mazda CX-90 Performance Specifications

(Data was gathered from Mazda and MotorTrend)

The CX-90’s engines also provide tremendous amounts of torque in relation to the horsepower, with the low-output 3.3-liter inline-six producing 332 pound-feet of torque. Moving up to the high-output 3.3-liter, the torque is beefed up to 360 pound-feet, which gave the larger ’24 CX-90 a 0–60 miles per hour time of 6.5 seconds in Motor Trend’s test. With the CX-70 being lighter, these numbers could most likely be better.

As for the PHEV CX-90, its 2.5-liter engine paired with 68 kWh can generate up to 323 horsepower, which is an equally impressive number. Regarding the torque, the PHEV version has the same output as the high-output 3.3-liter inline-six. The range of the CX-90 when running on electric power only is 26 miles.

The CX-70 Will Be Built On The Same Platform As The CX-90

The ’25 CX-70 will be built on a shortened version of Mazda’s large vehicle architecture platform that underpins the larger CX-90. The new Mazda SUV will expectedly weigh less than the CX-90, which introduces some exciting prospects for the CX-70. As it will feature the same engines as its big brother, the lesser weight opens the door for increased acceleration and handling capabilities, making up for any potential detuning of the engines if that’s the route Mazda decides to take.

By featuring an iteration of the CX-90’s platform, the same engines, and a longitudinal layout, the overall exterior design of the car is expected to be the same, with smooth, flowing lines allowing for a much more appealing design style than a boring, boxy SUV without any character.

Rear-Biased All-Wheel-Drive With An 8-speed Automatic

Alongside the engines, the Mazda CX-70 could also likely have other mechanical similarities to the CX-90, as well as the Mazda CX-60 SUV which isn’t available in the U.S. market (the wider CX-70 will fill the gap instead). Regarding the driveline, the CX-70 will feature a rear-biased all-wheel-drive system, which is allowed by the longitudinal engine layout. This helps in improving the weight distribution to the front axle and its overall handling capabilities.

Typically, SUVs will use a transverse engine layout with front-wheel-drive, as it frees up more cabin space and is generally a much simpler configuration. Performance and handling isn’t always at the forefront of SUVs, which makes the transverse layout so attractive to manufacturers. However, performance is hindered by the front-wheel-drive driveline that comes with these models, making the prospect of the CX-70’s rear-biased layout all too exciting.

The tighter cornering provided by the majority of the weight of the drivetrain being focused in the center of the car allows for improved handling in urban environments. Regarding the transmission in the ’25 Mazda CX-70, the same eight-speed transmission that comes standard in both the CX-60 and CX-90 will also feature in the new North American-specific CX-70.

A Smaller, Yet More Luxurious Interior For The CX-70

Due to the shortened platform for the CX-70, the SUV will be a two-row vehicle instead of the three rows you find in the CX-90. Despite being shorter in length, the CX-70 will have a similar cargo capacity to that of the CX-90.

The ’25 Mazda CX-70 will continue the trend of the modern, refined interior style found in its current SUV fleet, including materials such as Nappa leather finished off with wooden trims and textiles throughout. But it’s rumored that the CX-70 could be even more luxurious as the brand looks forward to the future, taking Mazda to new territory that has been dominated by German Automakers like Mercedes and BMW for quite some time. The CX-60 is proof of Mazda’s aim to move upmarket, with premium-quality materials and intuitive tech, streamlining your experience as the driver.

The Potential To Outshine More Expensive Performance SUVs

Due to essentially taking all the aspects from the larger CX-90 and the very similar CX-60, the ’25 CX-70 is shaping up to have the ideal ingredients to become a real competitor in the luxury/performance SUV spaces. By taking the same engines used in the CX-90 and placing them in a smaller SUV, the CX-70’s power output could pose a serious threat to the likes of Lexus, BMW, and even Mercedes. Even with the base-level 3.3-liter engine that’ll be available for the CX-70, the 280 horses under the wheels will allow it to keep up with the said manufacturer’s current flagship SUVs.