Mazda unplugs CX-90 PHEV for Australia, for now

Mazda’s new three-row SUV, the premium-buyer-focused CX-90, will land in Australia without a plug-in hybrid option, with the brand instead opting for a pair of six-cylinder engines – one petrol and one diesel – instead of the Mazda CX-90 PHEV, at launch.

Unveiled in the USA overnight, the Mazda CX-90 PHEV’s flagship powertrain is a plug-in hybrid setup which pairs a 2.5-litre turbo-petrol engine with a big lithium-ion battery and an electric motor for a combined 240kW and 500Nm.

It’s the same powertrain as the one that appears in the Mazda CX-60 (in which the PHEV will come to our market), where the 17.8kWh battery produces an all-electric driving range of 76km when driven at 100km/h or less, and contributes to the claimed fuel use of 2.1L/100km.

But Australia has been unable to secure the flagship CX-90 PHEV, at least initially, saying that while the plug-in powertrain won’t appear in 2023, it could appear in 2024 for beyond.

“We will add that powertrain probably in 2024 or beyond. It won’t be at launch. We will start with the two powertrains,” says Mazda Australia CEO, Vinesh Bhindi.

The two powertrains at launch are inline six cylinder engines, one that drinks petrol and the other diesel, with both fitted 48v mild hybrid technology that Mazda calls M Hybrid Boost.

Pricing and full specification is yet to be confirmed, but you can expect the model to start at above the bookends set by the CX-60, which spans $60,000 for the entry-level petrol, to $75,000 for the top-spec diesel.

The flagship CX-60 PHEV tops out at $87,000, before on-road costs, for the top-spec model, suggesting a plug-in CX-90 – when it does arrive in Australia – could land north of $100k, for a similarly equipped model.

The CX-90 will launch in the second half of 2023.