Compare the2023 Mazda CX-9VS 2023 Land Rover Discovery Sport

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Mazda CX-9 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Discovery Sport doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The CX-9 Carbon Edition/Grand Touring/Signature has standard Rear Smart City Brake Support that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The CX-9 Grand Touring/Signature has a standard 360° View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Discovery Sport only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the CX-9 and the Discovery Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available driver alert monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the CX-9 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Discovery Sport has not been tested, yet.

Mazda’s powertrain warranty covers the CX-9 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Land Rover covers the Discovery Sport. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Discovery Sport ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 3 times as many Mazda dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the CX-9’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the CX-9’s reliability 27 points higher than the Discovery Sport.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Mazda vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. With 13 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Mazda higher than Land Rover.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Mazda vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Mazda above average in long-term dependability. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Land Rover is rated below average.

The CX-9’s 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 4 more horsepower (250 vs. 246) and 51 lbs.-ft. more torque (320 vs. 269) than the Discovery Sport’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the CX-9 gets better fuel mileage than the Discovery Sport (20 city/26 hwy vs. 19 city/23 hwy).

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Mazda CX-9 uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The Discovery Sport requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The CX-9 has 1.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Discovery Sport (19.5 vs. 17.7 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

For better traction, the CX-9 has larger tires than the Discovery Sport (255/60R18 vs. 235/60R18). The CX-9 Touring’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Discovery Sport (255/60R18 vs. 245/45R21).

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the CX-9’s wheelbase is 7.4 inches longer than on the Discovery Sport (115.3 inches vs. 107.9 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the CX-9 is 1.1 inches wider in the front and .8 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Discovery Sport.

The CX-9 Signature handles at .85 G’s, while the Discovery Sport S pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The CX-9 Signature executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Discovery Sport S (26.7 seconds @ .65 average G’s vs. 27.4 seconds @ .64 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the CX-9 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Discovery Sport (8.8 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the CX-9 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The CX-9 has 1.9 inches more front legroom, .6 inches more front shoulder room, 1.3 inches more rear legroom, 2.2 inches more rear shoulder room, 1 inch more third row headroom, 4.1 inches more third row legroom and 6 inches more third row shoulder room than the Discovery Sport.

The CX-9’s cargo area provides more volume than the Discovery Sport.

The CX-9’s cargo area is larger than the Discovery Sport’s in almost every dimension:

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the CX-9 Carbon Edition/Grand Touring/Signature’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the CX-9 Carbon Edition/Grand Touring/Signature has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer cornering lights.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the CX-9 has standard extendable sun visors. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the CX-9 to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the CX-9 Touring Plus/Carbon Edition/Grand Touring/Signature keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Discovery Sport doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Mazda CX-9 will be $4083 to $9379 less than for the Land Rover Discovery Sport.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Mazda CX-9, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Mazda CX-9 outsold the Land Rover Discovery Sport by over five to one during 2022.