Anyone moved from a Mazda CX-5 to a Kodiaq (or vice versa)?

[zeddicus]

No, its not for me! However, my wife's Mazda CX-5 lease is coming to an end in a few months time and the shortlist (at the moment) is another Mazda CX-5 (GT Sport Nav 2.2 (184) diesel manual) or a Skoda Kodiaq (2.0tdi 150 L&K manual).

 

We love the CX-5, but its only failing is space. There's just so much more space in the back of a Kodiaq than the CX-5, bigger boot and the flexibility of an extra 2 seats now that the parents are getting a bit older! And all that for not too much more of a footprint - c14cm longer and 2cm wider.

 

The biggie for me will be the engine. Unfortunately, my wife is not keen at all on an auto gearbox. So, the 190bhp engine is off limits. We also want to get the top spec as we'll be spending a lot of time in the car so included extras like electric leather, panoramic sunroof, area view etc are well worth it.

 

We've been fans of PCH for some time now, and on a fully maintained PCH basis the L&K is around £15/month more expensive than the Mazda (£389/month vs £374/month on a 12+47 profile at 8k miles per annum).

 

However, I always check out Carwow for PCP deals before taking a PCH - just in case there's a silly offer on - and lo and behold there is a very good offer on the Kodiaq L&K.

 

The same model that's being quoted at £389/month can be had for £345/month on PCP over 48 months with a £4.5k deposit customer deposit (roughly the same as the initial payment on the PCH).

 

Being a Skoda PCP, it includes 2 free services, so the main difference between the PCP option and the fully maintained PCH option is roadside assistance (which I *think* you only get for 1 year when buying the car?), 2 more services (I'll probably add in the 2 year service pack after 2 years if we plan to keep the car for longer than the PCP period), and tyres (probably 1 set, but will probably get some winter tyres & wheels if needs be). Also, I can always extend the warranty for an extra year if I need to to cover the full 4 years.

 

So it looks like the L&K could end up even being cheaper than the CX-5 GT Sport Nav.

 

The Mazda has a few things you have to spend extra for on the Skoda - traffic sign recognition (maybe handy - £90), heated steering wheel (maybe handy (!) - £155), Adaptive cruise (possibly handy, but only on long trips so not too often - £305) and I would spec the Virtual Cockpit as I really like it!

 

But the Kodiaq comes with a full panoramic sunroof which is a definite plus as the Mazda only gets a standard one and the kids love looking out!

 

So, spec is roughly the same, price (monthly) is roughly the same, esp if we go PCP (Mazda PCP is quite a bit more expensive than equivalent PCH), Mazda has a more powerful engine and is definitely sportier to drive.

 

My question (eventually!) is, have others of you faced the same choice, and what were your pros and cons? Anyone moved from a CX-5 to a Kodiaq, and what're your experiences? Especially how does the 150bhp diesel pull compared to the 184bhp diesel in the Mazda? We will head out for test drives of both cars (busman's holiday in the Mazda as its the same engine and a very similar chassis!), but a manual diesel demonstrator is like hen's teeth! So any advice/experiences gratefully received!

[Yogi-Bear]

In all seriousness... why a diesel when you're only doing 8k miles a year?

 

And for the umpteenth time - SUVs are not sports cars. 150bhp in one is sufficient for a nice relaxed driving style, and powerful enough to pull it along when fully loaded. I came from an Octavia vRS diesel (180bhp) to the 150bhp petrol Kodiaq, and I wouldn't go back. But then I'd also go for the DSG box... this is my first and despite not being sure at first, I now love it and again wouldn't go back (in something like this - a little 2-seat sports car on the other had would have to be manual!).

 

Oh, and ACC is a must if you get a DSG, but pretty pointless if you don't.

[zeddicus]

4 minutes ago, WiggosSideburns said:

why a diesel when you're only doing 8k miles a year

Not by choice @WiggosSideburns but by lack of choice.

 

The L&K trim has everything we want/need, but the only manual gearbox option is the 150bhp diesel. I've love the 2.0tsi, but my wife will be driving the car 90% of the time and she wants a manual gearbox (I've tried over several years to convince her otherwise, especially in the last 4-5 years where its rare to pick up a well spec'd new SUV without a manual box, but to no avail).

 

8 minutes ago, WiggosSideburns said:

SUVs are not sports cars

 

Of course you're right. But if you're driving a car day in day out, mainly for ferrying kids about (so its got to be big enough for them), and high riding (so it has to be an SUV or MPV - my wife's got used to that and doesn't want to go back to a lower car), but you'd like to enjoy a bit more of a spirited drive (when the kids have been dropped to wherever they need to go ) then your choices are rather limited, and you WILL want a car that's a bit more fun to drive. Yes I know its all relative, and an SUV will never compare to, for example, the Golf GTi I've got on order, but some are more fun than others. That's why we went with the CX-5 4 years ago (having come from a CX-7 2.3t petrol before that) because it is more fun to drive on the rare opportunities you get than, say, a Kia Sorrento (which was out other option 4 years ago).

 

In every car class there are those that are more fun to drive than others. That's what my wife likes, so who am I to argue (especially when I agree with her!)

 

The question is how much of a difference is the fun factor in a Kodiaq to a CX-5, as if its not too far apart, we'd trade that loss for the extra space and practicality.

 

Its all about compromises...

[zeddicus]

14 minutes ago, WiggosSideburns said:

h, and ACC is a must if you get a DSG, but pretty pointless if you don't

Thanks - tbh didn't think it was really worth it at £1k, so good to know its not in a manual.

[Yogi-Bear]

39 minutes ago, zeddicus said:

tbh didn't think it was really worth it at £1k

 

You what now...? It's only* £305... but still pointless on a manual.

[zeddicus]

Ah sorry, saw ACC and read DCC  @WiggosSideburns

 

I thought the same, but I had a Golf GTD a few years back that had ACC as standard (was a manual). As someone who has NEVER used cruise before (didn't really like it!), I used it surprisingly a lot, esp when commuting along the M4 to Cardiff. Raised my indicated MPG by around 4-5 on a run. We do an annual trip over to France and I'm sure the ACC would come in handy given the long stretches there too, esp with quieter roads. However, you're probably right that its not worth it...

[TheRobinK]

With a manual, "normal" cruise control is worth it - ACC isn't.  At least, I didn't like it on a Golf I drove in the UK, the traffic speed was varying so much that I kept having to drop out of CC to intervene on the gears. With DSG it can be left to do its job - you let the car take care of managing the correct gear as the speed goes up and down without having to touch anything. 

[zeddicus]

19 minutes ago, TheRobinK said:

the traffic speed was varying so much that I kept having to drop out of CC to intervene on the gears.

Yeah, I'd agree with that. My long journey's when I used it were pretty much between 60-80mph on the motorway so could leave it in 6th. I just liked playing with the gadget and driving without using my feet - tapping the speed up and down and playing with the distance - I could get a decent games console for less than £305 to replicate the experience, I suppose 

[sidzej]

I had CX-5 1st gen from 2013 to 2015, then 2nd gen CX-5 from 2015 till today...and I ordered Kodiaq 2.0TSI L&K DSG 4x4 in Sept 2018 (already delivered to dealer 2 weeks ago). I will pick up the car only in 2-3 weeks time, so I can't really compare CX-5 and Kodiaq yet. I test drove Kodiaq (1.5TSI version), but it was a very short drive (a few miles only) - so not long enough to really get a good feel. 

 

I must say, I really like my CX-5 (exterieur, interieur, driving, practicality ...), but I decided to switch mainly due to very bad experience with Mazda customer service - 
I had a turbo failing in August 2018 - 1 week after the official end of the guarantee (3 years and 1 week, 65000km) and the way I was treated by Mazda France/CzechRepublic/Europe/Japan (yes I tried them all) put me off from ordering the new CX-5. I finally paid for the repair myself (3500euros) without any contribution from Mazda and just decided to go back to Skoda.

 

Before CX-5, I was a happy user of Octavia IIFL 1.8TSI DSG (5 years of use and good customer service). On top of it, kids are growing fast, we do a lot of trips, skiing, golfing etc...thus a bigger boot is a real asset. The only thing I regret now is the lack of nice colors, e.g. Velvet red in Skoda looks dull compared to Soul Red in Mazda - so I ended up with Lava blue

 

 

[gojoholo]

I'd be interested to know what the objection to automatic is. I know its a personal choice but I wonder if she had a bad experience with a different type of automatic? 

Maybe automatic plus flappy paddles would be a compromise?

[RicardoM]

14 hours ago, sidzej said:

The only thing I regret now is the lack of nice colors, e.g. Velvet red in Skoda looks dull compared to Soul Red in Mazda - so I ended up with Lava blue

The best red is blue.

[TonyTonic]

On 19/02/2019 at 17:19, WiggosSideburns said:

 

You what now...? It's only* £305... but still pointless on a manual.

It's not pointless on a manual.

Yes, you can't come to a stop in traffic easily like with DSG and yes, when you change gears you might need to re-engage (or maybe you even don't need to do this, my current car you just press the clutch change gear and the car continues at set speed), but if you're cruising in 6th in Europe, between 80-120MPH it works perfectly, especially with lane assist.

Edited 21 February, 2019 by TonyTonic

[Arkaig]

1 hour ago, TonyTonic said:

.... if you're cruising in 6th in Europe, between 80-120MPH it works perfectly, especially with lane assist.

 

Slightly OT, there are 2 versions of ACC, one operative up to 100mph (160kmh) which is the only version available on any Skoda UK-specified models including the vRS, the other version operative up to 131mph (210kmh) that is available to be specified at an additional £3-500 in most other European countries.

 

The Manual merely refers to "depending on equipment fitted" - no mention of 160kmh being the only option in UK.

 

   

[TonyTonic]

2 hours ago, TonyTonic said:

It's not pointless on a manual.

Yes, you can't come to a stop in traffic easily like with DSG and yes, when you change gears you might need to re-engage (or maybe you even don't need to do this, my current car you just press the clutch change gear and the car continues at set speed), but if you're cruising in 6th in Europe, between 80-120MPH it works perfectly, especially with lane assist.

Should have clarified further. ACC stays active even if you change gears in a manual transmission, so for example if going up an incline and the vehicle can't maintain the set speed it will be ok to shift down a gear or two and it will just continue as normal. The ACC will disengage if the clutch is pressed for longer than a few moments , i.e. longer than it takes to change gears.

Essentially, everything is the same as with the DSG except you have to change gear to to be in the appropriate rev range and it con't come to a complete halt and continue in traffic. But this is the case with DSG as well if you are stopped for longer than a few seconds it will also disengage.