Mazda Aus unperturbed by CX-5 hybrid no-show

When it arrives in Australia next year, Mazda’s new-generation CX-5 will be missing one crucial ingredient: a hybrid powertrain. Even as hybrid market share continues to swell and buyer appetite for conventional combustion engines dips, the brand isn’t concerned that it will need to wait until 2027 to add a petrol-electric powertrain to one of its mainstay models.

Mazda Australia says it won’t be pushed by the Australian government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) to try and rush a hybrid version of the new-generation CX-5 to market.

Instead, the company says it will continue to be led by consumer habits.

“To comply with NVES, you can do two things: you can meet the target or pay the fine,” Mazda Australia managing director Vinesh Bhindi said.

“So from our point of view, NVES is not driving the decision solely. What we need to offer is what the consumers are willing to purchase – that’s the way we look at it.”

The new CX-5 is set to launch in the second half of 2026 with just one powertrain: a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol outputting 132kW/242Nm (10kW/10Nm less than the current model).

A six-speed automatic and all-wheel drive will be standard in Australia; there’ll be no entry-level front-drive models from launch, nor cheaper and smaller 2.0-litre engine.

While a hybrid has been confirmed to eventually join the range, we know next to nothing about it save for the fact it will trail the petrol powertrain by at least a year.

That puts Mazda behind the eight-ball considering every one of its key rivals already have hybrid powertrains on offer, key among these being the Toyota RAV4 which is already a hybrid-only – the new-generation due next year will double down with plug-in power a well.

That said, Mazda has acknowledged having a hybrid will be important for the CX-5 portfolio.

Asked whether Australia’s vehicle emissions scheme would restrict choice for buyers, Bhindi offered a pragmatic view.

“At some point, a battery-electric vehicle will be the only one which will be [NVES] fine-neutral. Everything else will have the cost of a fine,” he said.

“How do you manoeuvre through that? If that means it’s going to cost a bit more, then that’s a choice the customer makes.”

As for whether the delay on a CX-5 hybrid will hurt Mazda in Australia, hybrid market share in the SUV segment is strengthening, with hybrid SUV sales up by 17.8 per cent year-to-date, and plug-in hybrids recording a massive 45.1 per cent sales growth over the same period.

Diesel and electric SUVs are also faring well so far in 2025, but it’s pure petrol power that’s seen a decline – though only a modest -2.7 per cent.

However, while percentage changes indicate whether the chart goes up or down, the number of actual sales tell us what the current state of play is, and in that regard, petrols are still the king of the SUV segment with more than 281,000 sales so far in 2025.

That number is greater than all other fuel types combined, and arguably the reason why Mazda Australia isn’t going to be sweating while it waits for its hybrid CX-5 to show up.

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