New CX-5 GT owner in Denver, CO USA
 

I traded in my 2017 Honda CR-V touring for a 2017 Mazda CX-5 GT. There are trade offs on either vehicle but I love my CX-5 much more than the CR-V. I wish I had more opportunities to customize some settings like Navigation settings allowing more road names to show, allowing me to reorganize my audio "favorites", allowing a shortcut to be able to skip tracks/radio stations, etc. I think they could also easily add Apple's Siri eyesfree which Ford did on my 2014 Flex without any issues. They rolled out that upgrade with a simple software update and it allowed you to use the car's voice recognition to use Siri, which was very handy for replying to texts, calling numbers, etc. Much more reliable than the car based voice recognition.

All in all, though, I have bought too many new cars over the years, but this is definitely up there with one of my favorites. Hope to keep it that way.

Welcome to Mazda ownership and the forum. I would bet there is a good story behind the trade in of a 2017 for another 2017.

The Mazda infotainment system can be hacked into to use Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as other Apps. I haven't tried it and I haven't let my Computer Science Major son try it yet either so I don't know much about the process, outcome or risks. Based on your comments, it is worth investigating.

If you enjoy driving, the Mazda should be a more enjoyable car for you than the Honda.

If everything goes according to plan, Mazda will be releasing an official retrofit this Fall (2018) so that our infotainment systems will be Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatible. Waiting anxiously on that.

I wish my story was more interesting. I have a bad habit of losing interest in cars too soon. I ended up going with the Honda CR-V based strictly on facts and $$. The Honda dealer offered more trade in value and lower purchase price and the Mazda dealers were not willing to negotiate as much. The Honda had better fuel economy and that was definitely something I was looking at, as I was coming from a large, thirsty SUV prior to that purchase.

Unfortunately, I never had quite the feeling in the Honda that I did in the Mazda, and if I didn't have so many issues with the infotainment system in the Honda, I may have stayed, but that finally pushed me over to searching for a Mazda CX-5. I am pleased to say that I am super happy with my choice to switch to the Mazda and I totally enjoy driving it.

I have my fingers crossed for that feature. I'm not sure I'd pay for an upgrade to have CarPlay, as I wasn't super thrilled with it in my Honda. I would really like to at least have Siri Eyes Free with the option to have CarPlay.

I do have Apple CarPlay / Android Auto in my 2016 VW Golf and like it a lot. So I will definitely upgrade when the option comes.