This One 2026 Mazda CX-5 Feature Is the Best I’ve Experienced on Any Car, at Any Price
Tech isn’t the 2026 CX-5’s strong suit, but there’s one very big exception.
I did not see this coming. If you’ve followed our journey with our 2026 Mazda CX-5, what I’m about to say may come as a surprise: The 2026 CX-5’s 360-degree camera is the best I’ve experienced on any car (so far), at any price. It’s that good.
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We’ve been honest sharing how the 2026 Mazda CX-5’s ongoing tech issues have affected our ownership experience, yet here we are saying it does this one thing excellently.
How does that make any sense?
What Makes a Good 360 Camera
A few pitfalls stop many 360-degree camera systems from being as good as the 360 View Monitor in the 2026 CX-5. Some feature hard-to-find on-screen activation buttons, which can lead to users avoiding the tech altogether. Other systems try too hard to impress, changing camera views you may be relying on right as you enter a parking space.
For me, what prevents a good multicamera parking aid from becoming a great one is the lack of a view aimed toward the front wheels. This can be essential to seeing how close to the curb you are, or if you have an awkward parking spot, it makes it easy to park within inches of a fixed obstacle.
Nothing should ever replace solid spatial sense when pulling into a spot, but a good 360-degree camera is both premium and practical.
What the 2026 CX-5’s 360 Camera Does Right
On the 2026 Mazda CX-5, only the top trim (Premium Plus) gets the 360 View Monitor. Two buttons activate it: one on the steering wheel and another in the bottom left corner of the giant 15.6-inch touchscreen. We’d be fine with just one control, but having the on-screen button has helped when we’ve already started turning the steering wheel and the physical button isn’t easy to find in that moment.
Then the system turns on, and you’re presented with a bird’s eye view on the left with your choice of views on the right. What makes this work so well is that enormous screen. Yes, the same one that hosts an infotainment system that’s caused so much inconvenience is fantastic here.
What automakers don’t often talk about is the fact that there’s more to a display than just its size. Think proportions. The Mazda’s 15.6-inch unit isn’t just super long like the one in the CX-50; it’s also got some height to it. Put it all together, and you have a generous space to include whatever camera views you want.
There’s no compromise here. Also, if you’ve ever wondered, “Am I still in the red?” when parking on a city street, the Mazda makes it easier to answer that question without getting out.
The 2026 CX-5 also allows you to pre-select a favorite camera view that appears every time you activate the 360 cameras, which helps me safely get within inches of the off-centered obstacle near my parking space.
Mazda gets an old-school detail right, too. On our 2026 CX-5 Premium Plus (and the CX-50 we drove for a year), the side mirrors tilt down if you keep the left or right mirror control selected on the door panel.
