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While we were gathered here in rainy Chicago for the Auto Show, we received word that the 2010 refresh for the Mazda CX-7 has in fact debuted some 500 miles away in Toronto, Canada. This switcheroo had us searching the floor here in McCormick for a 2010 model lazing away in the corner of Mazda's stand, but instead we only found the 2009 model. After the press conference, we stopped to chat with James O'Sullivan, Mazda's North American president and CEO, and he confirmed the Canadian debut was in fact the global premier.

The big news coming out of the Canadian International Auto Show for 2010 is that the CX-7 is getting a new 2.5-liter normally-aspirated four-cylinder model (the same engine is employed in the 2010 Mazda6 and Mazda3). So-equipped, the CX-7 generates 161 horsepower (at 6000 rpm) and maximum torque of 161 pound-feet of torque (at 3500 rpm). The turbocharged, 244-horsepower 2.3-liter engine remains unchanged. Further details like fuel-economy, price, and trim specification for this model will be revealed "at a later date," and in fact there is no official confirmation that the normally-aspirated inline-four will come to America, although it would be hard to imagine Mazda not doing so.

Beyond powertrains, Mazda has refined the CX-7 inside-and-out, including a redesigned front end with a larger five-point grille and different front and rear fascias. Inside, new gauge faces have taken up residence, along with a 4.1-inch color TFT information display, an available blind-spot monitoring system, three-position seat memory for the driver's seat (and a power backrest for the passenger seat), and Bluetooth for both phones and audio.
Further refinements have also been exacted on the CX-7 with the goal of increasing stiffness, reduced NVH, and lowered wind noise, although Mazda is not yet disclosing how those improvements have been arrived at.

So... why the brush-off for the Windy City? After all, the CX-7 isn't built in Canada, right? In our talk with O'Sullivan, we learned that the reason is three-fold:

1. Mazda wanted to focus on the 20th anniversary of the Miata (which made its global debut in Chicago).
2. Canada is a particularly strong market for Mazda, where it maintains a 5% market share (the U.S. only recently cracked 2%).
3. Mazda models go on sale earlier in Canada than they do in the U.S. In the case of the 2010 Mazda3, cars are shipping to Canadian dealers this week – American showrooms won't see cars for a month or more. The same story figures to play out with the CX-7, meaning that an earlier public review was a necessity.

In any case, U.S. consumers will have to wait until the New York Auto Show in April for their first look at the 2010 CX-7.

[Source: Mazda]