cx-9

SUV crossover 2011 GMC Acadia Denali production begins today

The much-anticipated 2011 Acadia Denali began production today at the Lansing Delta Township Assembly Plant in Lansing, Mich.

The $43,220, crossover SUV sports a Denali chrome honeycomb grille and monochromatic exterior. The new lineup includes two new exterior colors: cyber gray metallic and gray green metallic.

The Acadia will ride on 20-inch two-tone chrome-clad wheels and will feature high-intensity discharge headlamps, chrome interior accents, head-up display, heated and cooled driver and passenger seats, eight-way power driver seat, six standard air bags, and OnStar 9.0.

A preferred package is available on SL models, which includes Bluetooth, body-color moldings, leather-wrapped … Read more

Review: 2008 Mazda CX-9 Grand Touring

After spending time with the top-of-the-line 2008 Mazda CX-9 Grand Touring, we found much that we liked; however, we also found almost every positive thing we had to say about the SUV came with a caveat.

Inside, the CX-9's leather seats and ambient lighting give the appearance of luxury, but the materials feel cheap compared with a true luxury vehicle. The spec sheet touts an impressive amount of cabin tech, but the components don't work well together, creating a confusing experience. Overall, we formed a positive impression of the CX-9, but the vehicle lacks the final bit of … Read more

Mazda mirror tries to end blind spots

Mazda says it's come up with a car technology that's the closest thing to having eyes in the back of your head. The "Back Up Camera with Auto-Dimming Mirror Display" promises to do precisely what the prosaic name indicates: Its rear-view mirror has an LCD screen that appears only when the car is in reverse, otherwise concealed by a special coating (called "transflective," whatever that means).

The idea is to eliminate blind spots with a built-in camera that sends a live feed to the 2.4-inch screen embedded in the mirror, which will be … Read more

Zoom-zooming in the Mazda CX-9

We were let loose today in the hills outside of Los Angeles behind the wheel of Mazda's new CX-9 midsize crossover SUV. The CX-9, which is the biggest vehicle ever to come out of Mazda's Hiroshima plant, follows Mazda's CX-7 into the crowded crossover market, and is designed to appeal to that growing segment of customers in need of seven seats (how did we ever manage with just five?). Unlike many other seven-seaters we've seen, the CX-9's third row of seats will be standard on all models, and will not be removable.

If the CX-9 … Read more