Officially, the CX-7 is good for 37.7mpg on the European combined cycle and has a CO2 rating of 199g/km. Urban driving is rated at 31mpg, so in the real-world you should achieve the high 20s, which would be a pretty good result for a car of this size.
As well as being limited on engine and gearbox options, there’s just a single, high spec level, so buying a CX-7 doesn’t involve too much decision making. At £27,580 it’s competitively priced against the Audi Q5 2.0 TDI or Land Rover Freelander TD4.
However, the 170bhp diesel Q5 is only £1500 more expensive, returns 45.6mpg and has a CO2 rating of just 163g/km. Better residuals for the Audi and lower running costs (in both fuel and road tax) make it a better ownership prospect. The same could be said for the Freelander, although it could be argued that both these cars are half a size smaller than the CX-7.
