2007 Mazda CX-7

Our eyes were discreetly rolling from the start of the presentation. As if the slogan "The SUV you never saw coming" weren't trite enough, the presenters started throwing around verbiage like "the first midsize, low-priced sports-car/utility-vehicle crossover." Well, the first one introduced on a Wednesday morning in March anyway. Our ears glazed over. We've heard it all before and usually have been disappointed; besides, isn't this vehicle a kissing cousin of the Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX? How racy can it be?

Mazda's suggested test route started with a long freeway slog, during which the steering demonstrated a diligent sense of straight-ahead. The MacPherson-strut front and multilink rear suspension smothered freeway chop with a suppleness that served to reinforce doubts about the chassis's alleged athleticism. The chaperone riding shotgun fired up the nine-speaker Bose Centerpoint surround-sound system, and it sounded darned near good enough to warrant the $1585 package price, even without the moonroof. Groping for other nice things to say to our copilot, the high-grade interior trim seemed commendable, as did the two-tone color scheme. Visibility and cockpit spaciousness--despite the steeply raked 66-degree windshield that helps achieve a remarkable 0.34 drag coefficient--also seemed praiseworthy.

Soon our route left the super-slab and headed for the hills, where the proud passenger would surely be disappointed by news that his sports-car crossover is just an SUV. But the little trucklet scooted around corners flatly with no tire-squeal and with linear and communicative steering. Hmph. Even the four-wheel vented disc brakes delivered smooth, strong stops via a firm pedal. Perhaps we should've paid attention during the presentation.

Turns out that practically no parts are shared between the CX-7 and its FoMoCo cousins. Those that are include the Mazda6-based front-crash structure and a few front-suspension bushings and brackets. The Ford/Lincoln chassis carries the Mazda6 architecture aft, while the Mazda uses Mazda3 and 5 bits, including its control-blade-style trailing-arm and lateral-link rear suspension, beefed up for heavier duty. Even the electronic all-wheel-drive system ($1700) is unique and shared with the Mazdaspeed6. A wet clutch on the rear (open) differential directs up to 50 percent of the torque to the rear axle on demand. Mazda's choice of a 2.3-liter, 244-horse four-cylinder turbo also distinguishes the CX-7 from the Fords, which share a 250-horse, 3.5-liter V-6. Based on the Mazdaspeed6's 274-horse engine, the CX-7's turbo features a smaller inlet. This accelerates the exhaust flow to increase low- and midrange boost at some expense to high-speed performance. Torque is limited to protect Mazda's six-speed automatic (which has a slightly wider ratio spread and 10-percent-shorter gearing in first and sixth than Ford's AWD six-speed).

The Turbo four is well-matched to its manually shiftable tranny. Closely spaced gears keep the turbo on the boil (99 percent of peak torque is available from 2000 to 5000 rpm). Firm shifts accentuate the CX-7's sporty flair, but some part-throttle downshifts felt overly abrupt, possibly because the turbo boost spools up a split second after the shift, resulting in an unwelcome jerk. That's the only evidence of boost lag.