Mazda will use its next-generation CX-5 to debut not only the brand’s new hybrid technology, but also its new Skyactiv-Z engine.
This is a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine designed to offer greater performance and fuel economy than past Mazda engines, while also meeting strict Euro 7 emissions regulations in Europe and both LEV4 and Tier 4 regulations in North America.
Mazda claims that to meet increasingly strict emissions regulations, the performance output of conventional engines would have to be dropped by around 30 per cent. However, its Skyactiv-Z engine achieves these lower emissions without any drops in output.
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For reference, the current CX-5 produces 140kW of power and 252Nm of torque when equipped with the 2.5-litre Skyactiv-G naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine.
Mazda also claims the new Skyactiv-Z engine offers greater thermal efficiency and an “overwhelmingly wider range”.
To further improve efficiency, Mazda will mate this engine with its new hybrid system, which it’s developing in-house.
The hybrid Skyactiv-Z powertrain will debut in the next-generation CX-5 in 2027, though the new SUV is expected to be revealed this year.
The Skyactiv-Z engine features compression ignition like the existing Skyactiv-X engine, but Mazda says it will “reach the ultimate combustion threshold” by “expanding the area of [spark-controlled compression ignition] and accumulating heat shielding technology”.
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Mazda’s Skyactiv-X engine
This isn’t a clean-sheet engine, with Mazda confirming it’ll use the existing 2.5-litre engine hardware. This allows for lower development costs.
Mazda says it wants to be a “frontrunner in the internal combustion engine even in the age of electrification”, citing the lack of “uniform progress” in the adoption of electric vehicles.
As the company confirmed last November, the Skyactiv-Z technology will also be applied to the inline six-cylinder engines used by Mazda’s Large Architecture-based SUVs, which comprise the CX-60, CX-70, CX-80 and CX-90.
This Skyactiv-Z technology will “also be used in the roadmap for the development of rotary engine emissions”.
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Current CX-5
Mazda says it’s aiming to streamline its engine lineup, reducing the number of engine units it offers by 50 per cent, so the Skyactiv-Z powertrain is expected to be used in more than just the next CX-5.
The company’s South African managing director confirmed in January the third-generation CX-5 will be revealed between July and September this year.
Spy photos show it’ll have a similar silhouette to the outgoing model, which entered production back in 2016 but rides on underpinnings dating back to 2012.
The CX-5 is a crucial vehicle for Mazda in Australia, where it has been the brand’s best-seller since 2019.
Last year the Mazda CX-5 was the eighth best-selling new vehicle in Australia, placing third in the high-volume mid-sized SUV segment which it once dominated, behind the Toyota RAV4 and Mitsubishi Outlander.
It has managed to maintain its strong sales volumes despite the absence of hybrid or plug-in hybrid powertrains; Mazda doesn’t even offer a mild-hybrid system on the CX-5 locally, though a 24V system is offered overseas.
Instead, it’s available with a choice of naturally aspirated 2.0-litre and 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engines, plus a turbocharged 2.5-litre petrol four. A 2.2-litre twin-turbo four-cylinder diesel was previously offered in Australia and remains on sale in Japan.
While Mazda does build a mid-sized hybrid SUV – the CX-50, featuring hybrid tech from Toyota – this is only offered in a handful of markets including China and the US.
MORE: Everything Mazda CX-5
