Video: 2008 Mazda CX-9

And I want to show you some of the seating and cargo versatility of this vehicle today. As you can see, in the second row right here, I have decent space. And I'm six foot one. And the second row seats also can slide rearward if you want even more leg room. They also recline by a lever over here. And while that's nice to have, we actually prefer when the levers are down low, on the cushion, because then you don't have to reach around and try and grab it up here. Another nice feature the second row of the vehicle has is standard AC controls for the passengers. Mazda offers a pretty straightforward process on getting into the third row seat of the CX9. There's a handle on the side of the second row backrest. You just pull it. The whole seat moves and slides forward leaves you a little opening to step up and then get into the third row. I'm kind of pushing the limits of the third row seat in terms of size and space. Though it would be tolerable for adults for a short trip, it's really designed for kids and that's who would be most comfortable back here. In terms of cargo room, with all the seats up, the CX9 has 17.2 cubic feet of cargo room. Which isn't that bad. It's enough for a small bag like this one here. You can set it in here and, it fits okay. If you have anything bigger, though, it may not fit very well. Fortunately, the third row is pretty easy to fold down. You just lift up on this handle, and push it forward. It can fold down with one hand. And now you have 48.4 cubic feet. If you really have a lot of stuff to move, you can fold down the second row seats too, as shown. This half is already down. And to fold it, it's just a matter of lifting up on the lever that you used to also recline the seat up top. And leave the head restraints on. And now you have an almost flat load floor with the rest of the cargo area. While the CX9's numbers aren't the largest of the three row crossover crowd, in terms of space, you can see that they are pretty easy to fold the seats, and that is worth a lot too. (light music) <v Narrator>For additional information on this car, or any other, go to Cars.com and our blog Kicking Tires.