Mazda CX-80

• Report 1: Meet our seven-seat Mazda CX-80
• Report 2: Physical controls galore!

Report 1: Meet our seven-seat Mazda CX-80

After a fast estate, we're swapping into a large seven-seat SUV in the shape of Mazda's flagship CX-80. Will it hit the mark?

Date: 31 October 2025 | Current mileage: 2014 miles | Claimed economy: 177mpg | Actual economy: 47.3mpg

After living with a Skoda Octavia vRS for six months (well, we're still living with it a it's now our 'own'), we've got something a little different to complement it. A large seven-seat SUV in the shape of Mazda's moderately new CX-80. 

We ran the five-seat CX-60 last year, on which the CX-80's based, but things are a little different, and not just because it has an extra row of seats. Whereas the CX-60 we had was powered by a 3.3-litre six-cylinder engine, our CX-80 is the plug-in hybrid option. This sees a naturally aspirated 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine hooked up to a 17.8kWh battery to deliver 327PS and a combined fuel consumption of 177mpg. The caveat here is that to achieve anywhere near that number, it'll need to be regularly charged. Luckily, I'm in the fortunate position and have a home charger installed - the first time running a PHEV that I've had this luxury, which should beat running a three-pin charging cable out from under the garage door. 

Compared to some plug-in hybrids that boast electric-only ranges that creep towards 70 miles, our CX-80 EV range is a little less impressive, with an official figure of 38 miles. It is a big car, so it was never going to be trouble the longest-range PHEVs, but will that be enough to make it anywhere near that MPG figure? Time will tell, but the 35g/km of CO2 means it's liable for benefit-in-kind tax of just 13%. Some PHEVs are lower still, though, attracting a rate of only 9%.

That's the engine covered off, but what about the rest of the car? Our Mazda CX-80 long-termer comes in top-of-the-range Takumi Plus trim that comes in at £56,830, rising to £57,480 with our Melting Copper paint (we've had it called anything from brown to bronze). That's a serious chunk of cash, but it's almost £20,000 than David's Volvo XC90 PHEV, which is trying to fulfil the same brief. 

As its the top spec car, our CX-80 comes with pretty much every feature and extra you can think of, from a panoramic roof to white Nappa leather trim. With some additional light-coloured wood inserts, tactile metal elements and a woven material running across the dashboard, it really does look the part and gives it a proper premium feel inside. 

But while there's lots to like about the interior design, I can't say that I'm that taken with the exterior styling. There are certainly some nice elements, but from some angles, it just looks oddly proportioned. Looking at it front on or at three-quarters, and it just seems a little too tall, making it look slightly squished (and it's certainly not a narrow car). I think it's because the side of the car is relatively flat, with no real humps or lumps to talk of, while the cabin area continues in this upward line, rather than angling inwards like a lot of cars.

On the flip side, though, it's massive inside, and while there's only four of us to cart around most of the time, the extra seats will certainly come in handy when it comes to ferrying the in-laws around or taking the girls and their friends to various places. It's going to be an interesting few months...

Report 2: Physical controls galore!

While many rivals are opting for larger screens, our CX-80 does things a bit differently...

Date: 21 November 2025 | Current mileage: 2871 miles | Claimed economy: 177mpg | Actual economy: 55.2mpg

Read pretty much any car review in recent years, and there's normally a good moan about the over-reliance on touchscreen controls to adjust almost every facet of the car. There are some exceptions, however – cars like the Kia EV3 and Skoda Kodiaq spring to mind, but even the Mazda 6e is guilty of this.

Our Mazda CX-80 is the polar opposite. Instead of a large central display that would embarrass your own TV, the CX-80 has a more modest 12.3-inch 'letterbox' display that's complemented by a comprehensive row of buttons and switches further down the centre of the dashboard. 

That's not all. While you can prod the touchscreen to your heart's content, the CX-80 comes with a handy rotary controller that's nestled between the front seats, allowing you to easily navigate around the menu, and it even works when using Apple CarPlay. This means you can avoid having to stretch over to the screen while driving - and in the process, inadvertently turn on the hazard warning lights. Something we've regularly done by mistake due to the positioning of the button just below the screen. 

While the infotainment might look, dare we say it, a little dated compared to buttonless rivals with huge glossy touchscreens, it's a breath of fresh air to use. 

A tap of the small blue or red levers changes the temperature easily, with the LCD display just above clearly showing the current temp, while the three-stage heated and cooled front seats are activated with a quick tap. The same goes for the heated steering wheel, while you can toggle quickly to the rear climate control setup and adjust without fuss. There's even a proper dial in the central console to change the volume of the stereo. Bliss.

Doesn't that narrow touchscreen feel restrictive? Not really - the quality and resolution are excellent, which means that things like the 360-degree 'bird's-eye view' camera are rendered with excellent clarity, while Apple CarPlay integrates nicely as well. You could argue that when using things like Google Maps, you get a lot of wasted information on either side of your route, as opposed to a portrait-orientated screen that provides more info of what's to come, but the Head Up Display on the CX-80 is great for turn-by-turn directions, meaning that you don't really need to glance over at the infotainment display.

The infotainment system might look like it's from something in the late 2010s, then, but it's also one of the most usable systems out there, making the Mazda CX-80 a doddle to use on a daily basis.