Sayonara Kizashi!

[KuroNekko]

Well, the time has come. I am no longer a Kizashi owner. I officially sold my 2011 Kizashi Sport GTS to my nephew yesterday. I'm glad it went to a young driver so eager to learn and own a manual transmission vehicle in this era, especially the super rare and obscure Kizashi.

I bought the Kizashi in the summer of 2012 so I had it for almost 13 years. It's the longest I've personally owned any car largely due to the many merits of the Kizashi. However, as I have previously wrote about, my needs have changed for a vehicle and with the impending effects of the tariffs, I decided it was time for a new car. I bought my replacement vehicle about three weeks ago but hadn't had the time for a proper post until now.

These are some of the last photos I took of the Kizashi in my ownership. It really held up quite nicely over the years. It's been a very reliable vehicle that has never left me stranded or gave me a headache. I enjoyed many journeys in this car including a solo cross-country drive from Maryland to California. I part with it having many fond memories over the 130,000 miles I personally put on it.

As for the replacement, it's a very different kind of vehicle but one that I believe suits me best now. I wrote about it in other posts before I purchased it but seeing it in person and test driving it sealed the deal. I now have a Mazda CX-50 Hybrid.
Photos below are from a camping trip last weekend during its maiden adventure. The first of many to come.

As for the forum, I will continue to be a moderator and contribute as much as I can. While I will no longer join most of you in the ranks as a fellow Kizashi owner, I still intend to engage in discussions here and help out where I can. I will say I joined this forum weeks after I bought my Kizashi in 2012 during a rather difficult time in my life. The Kizashi and this community really helped me find joy and engagement thus has been rather special to me. For that, I thank you all.
With that, my chapter with the Kizashi comes to an end.

[SAEED_KIZZY]

Good for your nephew KuroNekko. I am sure he won't need to go to the mechanic for the next 10 years or more .
As for the Maza CX-5, a cool-looking car, congratulations.

[KlutzNinja]

I remember in my Kizashi goodbye thread, you said seeing the photos of my (totaled) Kizashi reminded you of yours, and now I’m getting that same feeling looking at your pictures lol.

Anyway, congrats on the new car and welcome (back) to the Mazda fam. I’m glad the CX-50 Hybrid ended up being what you had hoped for, and I hope you have a good ownership experience. Now that you have a car from an automaker that’s still in the US, how much of the maintenance do you plan to do yourself? And is your dealer at least somewhat nearby (for the sake of recall work)? I did my first oil change myself, but the DIY place I used closed down, so last year I had to go to a local dealer. It wasn’t bad, but they suggested some maintenance for later that, upon further research, was not really necessary. Kind of reminded me how much I don’t like the dealership service center experience.

I’m also glad your Kizashi is sticking around, sort of. I hate the feeling of growing attached to something like a car and then seeing it off for the last time, not knowing who will get it and how it will be treated.
I’d love to know your takes on your Mazda far, good and bad. And it looks like yours is in blue? Or is it the dark grey? Part of me wished Mazda kept the Deep Crystal Blue Mica they’ve had for years, but the CX-50’s blue is a nice balance between DCBM and the lighter Eternal Blue my brother’s CX-5 has. I’m not too familiar with the CX-50 trims but I’m guessing you got the cloth seats you wanted? How are those compared to the Kizashi’s?

[KuroNekko]

Sorry for the late reply. I was in Japan for the last two weeks.

I bought the CX-50 Hybrid from a local dealership in OC. They included a complimentary year of service so I plan to have it serviced via them for the first year (also for any possible software updates) before taking care of maintenance myself. As a hybrid, it should require less maintenance than a conventional ICE and given it has the 4th gen Toyota Hybrid System of the RAV4 Hybrid, I hope to enjoy the merits of the system's solid reputation.

What's also neat is that the dealer I bought the vehicle from also has an online parts store with discounted prices. The Mazda of Orange Parts Dept actually runs www.mazda-parts-online.com thus I'm looking forward to discounted prices for parts in the future while avoiding shipping costs because I can pick up in person. It's just one of the perks many Kizashi owners like myself didn't enjoy for most of our ownership given the orphan status of Suzukis in the US and Canada.

As for the color, it's the CX-50's bespoke Ingot Blue Metallic. It and the black are the only two base colors while all others cost more. Given this is the first brand new car I ever bought, I've never before considered paying more for a certain color. While I like black, I didn't want three black cars in a row so opted out of that color. I wanted the Polymetal Gray but the one I wanted was sold minutes before my appointment with the salesperson at the dealer. I ended up reserving a blue one that was on route to the dealership and must say I like the color a lot despite it being a base color that I rarely see among CX-50s on the road. It's my first blue vehicle so I'm liking the new color for me.

The CX-50 Hybrid comes in three trims in the USDM. The base is Preferred. The middle trim is Premium and the top is Premium Plus. it's a bit different in offering from the NA and Turbo CX-50s that go lower and higher in trim levels, respectively. I was keen on having non-leather seats so I got the Preferred trim as the others have leather seats. About the only feature I really wanted from the upper trims that I could not have was the 12-speaker Bose system. That being said, I test drove a Premium with the Bose and must say I was more impressed with the Kizashi's RF system's sound. It's really the one thing I miss most about the Kizashi right now in all honesty as the RF system was vastly superior to my CX-50's stock sound system. That being said, the sound system can be modified if I desire.

I've had the Mazda for over a month but given I was overseas for the last two weeks, I've not driven it that much recently. I've put about 900 miles on it thus far including the camping trip I mentioned earlier. To my delight, the vehicle is getting better MPGs than the car's estimate on the display and closer to EPA figures. My last tank averaged 38.7 MPG in manual calculations, beating the 35 MPG estimate of the display. EPA average for the car is 38 MPG combined.

I'll report more on the Mazda over time but I can say I'm quite happy with it thus far. It does have certain aspects that people complain about regarding Toyota's hybrids like the strange brake feel and the drone under hard acceleration but I can't say it really bothers me too much. These issues don't really present themselves in normal casual driving but more so in demanding, aggressive driving. I'm also pleased with the handling of the CX-50 though it's not as precise and organic like the Kizashi. However, I had realistic expectations for a hybrid CUV and never expected to it compare directly to an ICE vehicle, a sedan, or other vehicles with different kinds of powertrains and chassis. I was really comparing the CX-50 Hybrid among its competition and those I knew were on the way like the Subaru Forester Hybrid and Honda CR-V Hybrid Trailsport. However, characteristics and timing favored the CX-50 Hybrid thus it was the choice I went with and I'm quite satisfied.

[BatNasko]

Congratulations and many accident-free kilometers with Mazda. Kizashi is a great car. I also own it for two years and so far I am very happy. I bought it with a cracked cylinder head and even though I am from Europe (Bulgaria), Old Tech helped me a lot from my first day on the forum by sending me a healthy cylinder head, for which I am very grateful. I am also selling my Kizashi, but I will most likely stay with it for a long time, due to low demand. Now I am waiting for delivery of the two front KYB shock absorbers, which I think I got at a good deal - 225 euros, purchased from Europe.
Good luck!

[KlutzNinja]

Sorry for the late reply. I was in Japan for the last two weeks.

I bought the CX-50 Hybrid from a local dealership in OC. They included a complimentary year of service so I plan to have it serviced via them for the first year (also for any possible software updates) before taking care of maintenance myself. As a hybrid, it should require less maintenance than a conventional ICE and given it has the 4th gen Toyota Hybrid System of the RAV4 Hybrid, I hope to enjoy the merits of the system's solid reputation.

What's also neat is that the dealer I bought the vehicle from also has an online parts store with discounted prices. The Mazda of Orange Parts Dept actually runs www.mazda-parts-online.com thus I'm looking forward to discounted prices for parts in the future while avoiding shipping costs because I can pick up in person. It's just one of the perks many Kizashi owners like myself didn't enjoy for most of our ownership given the orphan status of Suzukis in the US and Canada.

As for the color, it's the CX-50's bespoke Ingot Blue Metallic. It and the black are the only two base colors while all others cost more. Given this is the first brand new car I ever bought, I've never before considered paying more for a certain color. While I like black, I didn't want three black cars in a row so opted out of that color. I wanted the Polymetal Gray but the one I wanted was sold minutes before my appointment with the salesperson at the dealer. I ended up reserving a blue one that was on route to the dealership and must say I like the color a lot despite it being a base color that I rarely see among CX-50s on the road. It's my first blue vehicle so I'm liking the new color for me.

The CX-50 Hybrid comes in three trims in the USDM. The base is Preferred. The middle trim is Premium and the top is Premium Plus. it's a bit different in offering from the NA and Turbo CX-50s that go lower and higher in trim levels, respectively. I was keen on having non-leather seats so I got the Preferred trim as the others have leather seats. About the only feature I really wanted from the upper trims that I could not have was the 12-speaker Bose system. That being said, I test drove a Premium with the Bose and must say I was more impressed with the Kizashi's RF system's sound. It's really the one thing I miss most about the Kizashi right now in all honesty as the RF system was vastly superior to my CX-50's stock sound system. That being said, the sound system can be modified if I desire.

I've had the Mazda for over a month but given I was overseas for the last two weeks, I've not driven it that much recently. I've put about 900 miles on it thus far including the camping trip I mentioned earlier. To my delight, the vehicle is getting better MPGs than the car's estimate on the display and closer to EPA figures. My last tank averaged 38.7 MPG in manual calculations, beating the 35 MPG estimate of the display. EPA average for the car is 38 MPG combined.

I'll report more on the Mazda over time but I can say I'm quite happy with it thus far. It does have certain aspects that people complain about regarding Toyota's hybrids like the strange brake feel and the drone under hard acceleration but I can't say it really bothers me too much. These issues don't really present themselves in normal casual driving but more so in demanding, aggressive driving. I'm also pleased with the handling of the CX-50 though it's not as precise and organic like the Kizashi. However, I had realistic expectations for a hybrid CUV and never expected to it compare directly to an ICE vehicle, a sedan, or other vehicles with different kinds of powertrains and chassis. I was really comparing the CX-50 Hybrid among its competition and those I knew were on the way like the Subaru Forester Hybrid and Honda CR-V Hybrid Trailsport. However, characteristics and timing favored the CX-50 Hybrid thus it was the choice I went with and I'm quite satisfied.

I’m glad you’re happy with the Mazda, and also that you got it when you did (before all the pricing shenanigans started). The CR-V Trailsport ended up being closer to the CX-50 Meridian than the Passport Trailsport in terms of what you get (i.e. no skid plates), so I’m glad you didn’t wait for that specs reveal. The hybrid CX-50’s handling is said to be a bit off from the ICE versions, at least according to Savagegeese, who had a long-term CX-50 turbo when they reviewed the hybrid. That said, I’d still take it over everything else in its class (although I’d be open to test driving everything for fairness).

I’m no audiophile, but in my experience, my Mazda’s Bose system is pretty comparable to the Kizashi’s RF. To my ears, it is a bit “cleaner,” at least when using the Bose Centerpoint feature. Without the special Bose features, I’d say it’s maybe a bit below the RF in quality. The 4th gen 3 is said to have an even better sound system due to better speaker placement. The main knock on my sound system is the lack of sound deadening in the doors causing vibrations during bass-heavy moments, and I don’t even have my bass setting maxed out lol. The RF was pretty solid for a mainstream market car, though. I’m sort of curious how the Kizashi’s standard sound system fared. Seemed like the RF came on a lot of models.

I think you left for Japan right around the time my brother got back from there. He seems to go every year now.

I’m looking forward to your Mazda updates.

[KuroNekko]

I’m glad you’re happy with the Mazda, and also that you got it when you did (before all the pricing shenanigans started). The CR-V Trailsport ended up being closer to the CX-50 Meridian than the Passport Trailsport in terms of what you get (i.e. no skid plates), so I’m glad you didn’t wait for that specs reveal. The hybrid CX-50’s handling is said to be a bit off from the ICE versions, at least according to Savagegeese, who had a long-term CX-50 turbo when they reviewed the hybrid. That said, I’d still take it over everything else in its class (although I’d be open to test driving everything for fairness).

I’m no audiophile, but in my experience, my Mazda’s Bose system is pretty comparable to the Kizashi’s RF. To my ears, it is a bit “cleaner,” at least when using the Bose Centerpoint feature. Without the special Bose features, I’d say it’s maybe a bit below the RF in quality. The 4th gen 3 is said to have an even better sound system due to better speaker placement. The main knock on my sound system is the lack of sound deadening in the doors causing vibrations during bass-heavy moments, and I don’t even have my bass setting maxed out lol. The RF was pretty solid for a mainstream market car, though. I’m sort of curious how the Kizashi’s standard sound system fared. Seemed like the RF came on a lot of models.

I think you left for Japan right around the time my brother got back from there. He seems to go every year now.

I’m looking forward to your Mazda updates.

Yeah, I have no regrets with getting the CX-50 Hybrid over the competition I was considering. Overall, it was timing that really sealed the deal for the CX-50 Hybrid over the Forester Hybrid and CR-V Hybrid Trailsport given neither were on sale before Trump's tariffs were to be enacted. The Trailsport is not even in production yet and the Forester Hybrid seems to just start production thus only pro reviewers seem to be driving them recently.

As for the Trailsport, yes, it's apparently mostly a cosmetic package with AT tires and not much like the Passport Trailsport in offroad seriousness. No lift, no skid plates, and apparently only upgrades in AWD programming instead of hardware, which apparently overheats when pushed because it's a clutch pack. I agree it's a lot like the CX-50 Meridian in packaging in that it really doesn't elevate the offroad performance beyond the standard vehicle other than with tires. It's more show than go. I have a feeling a base Forester Hybrid will outperform even the CR-V Hybrid Trailsport offroad. This leads me to discuss the Forester Hybrid:

Hands down, this is the best "offroad" hybrid CUV in class due to Subaru's excellent AWD system that the hybrid retains. However, that's also the detriment when it comes to a hybrid system's efficiency. It gets a solid 4 MPG less than the Toyota and Mazda hybrids that use an on-demand e-AWD system in the form of a rear electric motor. In fact, the Forester Hybrid only gets 2 MPG better than the ICE version for Hwy rating, which is rather pathetic for a hybrid. As a hybrid, it seems to make some compromises in efficiency for the sake of retaining Subaru's qualities of Permanent AWD and higher ground clearance at 8.7 or so inches. This certainly elevates offroad and all-weather performance but at the cost of fuel efficiency. I have a feeling that Forester Hybrid owners, much like many CR-V Hybrid owners, might see lower fuel economy than expected due to these factors. I think the trade-off must be carefully considered and for me, I preferred everyday efficiency over offroad prowess when it comes to a hybrid.

I also couldn't stomach the styling of the new Forester. Subaru seems to not give a shit about styling anymore and the proof is with the Forester and the god-awful new Outback. No thanks.
Lastly, I'm a bit wary about Subaru's boxer engine in the hybrid running an Atkinson cycle while mated to Toyota's e-CVT, motors, and battery. The Mazda takes the entire Toyota system, which is a proven system in its fourth generation. The upcoming next-gen RAV4 Hybrid will have the 5th gen Toyota Hybrid System thus it's likely why Toyota let Mazda use the current system in the CX-50 Hybrid. Going back to the Subaru, I'm a bit concerned about how the boxer engine will pan out running relatively new technology for Subaru when the rest of the hybrid components come from Toyota. Also, as a prior owner of two Subarus, I don't really favor their boxer engine design for long term ownership. It's harder to work on and more expensive to repair.

My concerns about the Forester Hybrid's engine is also related to why I wasn't going to wait for the next-gen Mazda CX-5, which is rumored to have a bespoke Mazda-designed hybrid system. Not only will it not arrive until 2026 as a MY 2027, I'm a bit wary about Mazda's first own attempt at a conventional hybrid while mated to a new tech engine. Their current PHEV system has some issues with the larger models and Mazda is claiming the new CX-5s will have a brand new SkyActiv-Z engine. Basically, a new hybrid system mated to a new ICE. I'm just a bit wary given the history of their Skyactiv D, X, MX-30, and their current PHEVs either missing the mark and/or not being critically acclaimed. In my mind, the CX-50 Hybrid was the one new hybrid in which you had a solid expectation of efficiency and reliability because under the Mazda skin, it was a venerable 4th gen RAV4 Hybrid. It also didn't hurt that the RAV4 Hybrid's system made up to 219 HP, considerably more than the Honda and Subaru that are a bit over and under 200 HP, respectively. In essence, the Toyota system makes more power, thus is faster in acceleration, yet returns considerably better real-world fuel efficiency than rivals. I guess this is what a 25-year tenure with hybrids gets Toyota... and the Mazda CX-50 Hybrid.

I have read and watched reviews that compare the CX-50 Hybrid's handling to that of the non-hybrid CX-50s. Most say there is a handling difference but it's rather minor. It's no surprise given the weight and some chassis differences between the Hybrid and non-Hybrids. What I appreciate is that Mazda was able to retain much of the CX-50's sharp handling for the Hybrid and it's acclaimed to be the best among the direct hybrid competition. No surprises there. I do appreciate the handling characteristics of the CX-50 Hybrid and got to test it out on the Angeles Crest Highway when I went camping. I was pleased with the handling and thought the hybrid system did well in providing enough power going uphill while maximizing regen going downhill. I'm sure the rivals like the Forester and CR-V have a more comfortable and supple ride but my priorities are with handling and a bit more punch when needed while maximizing overall efficiency. Overall, the CX-50 Hybrid's character appealed to me the most and the timeline of the tariffs quickened my final choice. I'm sure the Forester Hybrid and CR-V Hybrid Trailsport have their merits and likely will be great cars but the CX-50 Hybrid seems to be ideal for me. I waited a couple years for it, having read of Mazda's plans for it when the NA and Turbo CX-50s debuted. I'm glad I waited and got the Hybrid in optimal timing in different ways. It's made transitioning from the beloved Kizashi a better experience.