Mazda has been talking about bringing its 2.2-liter Skyactiv-D diesel engine to the U.S. market for the better part of a decade, and now we finally have a firm date and a confirmed model: 2017, in the new CX-5.
The 2017 CX-5 was unveiled at the L.A. auto show. Mechanical specifications are still scarce, with Mazda at first confirming only that the 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine?the mainstay powerplant in the current CX-5?would return and that the current, base 2.0-liter four-cylinder wouldn’t. We’ve also heard rumblings that a manual transmission will be available in the new model.
Now the company is saying that the 2.2-liter diesel will be offered here, starting in the second half of 2017. Again, Mazda is providing no specs, although in other markets the sequentially turbocharged Skyactiv-D makes as much as 173 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque at 2000 rpm. Whether it will be available with the six-speed stick or just the six-speed automatic also remains to be seen. No fuel-economy estimates are available as of yet, with Mazda saying only that the diesel-engine CX-5 would be “one of the most fuel-efficient vehicles in its class.”
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Given the poisoned environment for diesels in this country in the wake of the Volkswagen diesel-cheating scandal, Mazda must have a lot of confidence ...