In the June 2008 issue of Car and Driver magazine, Mazda's CX-7 placed fourth out out of five CUVs in a comparison test.

The new Nissan Murano took first place by a large margin. After that 2nd through 5th were all clustered together within a total five point range. Second was the Hyundai Santa Fe, third was the Ford Edge, fourth the CX-7 and fifth the new Dodge Journey.

They did not like the turbocharged 4-cylinder in the CX-7 at all and thought the CX-7 was a love it or hate it type of CUV.

Personally, I'd rather see Mazda use the 3.5 V6 in the Edge over the turbo-4, which just isn't a good engine for a CUV.

 

I have only driven the cx-7 once as a loaner from the dealership. It was a fun drive.

My wife drives a CX-9 and I can't say enough good things about it.