The 2026 Mazda CX-90 Plug-in Hybrid swept both categories it entered in U.S. News & World Report’s inaugural Best Adventure Vehicles Awards, winning Best Midsize Plug-In Hybrid SUV for Road Trips and Best Midsize Plug-In Hybrid SUV for Camping.
The program, new for 2026, splits adventure use into four segments: off-road trucks, off-road SUVs, road-trip vehicles, and camping vehicles. Each category runs its own evaluation criteria. The off-road segments weight all-terrain tire availability, locking differentials, and approach and departure angles. Road-trip and camping categories prioritize fuel economy, interior space, versatility, and comfort, then layer in each vehicle’s overall U.S. News Best Cars ranking as a proxy for build quality and reliability.
John Vincent, U.S. News senior editor for vehicle testing, positioned the awards as a response to what the publication sees as growing consumer interest in vehicles that support extended trips and outdoor use rather than pure utility hauling. The CX-90 PHEV, in Vincent’s assessment, balanced efficiency and capability without forcing tradeoffs between the two.
That balance is the hybrid’s core pitch. The plug-in architecture gives the CX-90 electric-only range for local errands and highway fuel economy on longer runs. Three rows of seating and cargo space behind the third row answer the camping category’s interior-volume criteria. Mazda has positioned the CX-90 PHEV as the brand’s flagship three-row SUV, a segment where comfort and long-distance usability matter more than rock-crawling hardware.
The competitive landscape in these categories tilted toward GMC. The brand took four wins across road-trip and camping segments for the Acadia, Sierra EV, and Yukon XL. Mazda’s two wins put the CX-90 PHEV in selective company, particularly given that midsize plug-in hybrid SUVs remain a thin segment with limited model availability.
Beyond the U.S. News recognition, the CX-90 PHEV holds the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety TOP SAFETY PICK+ designation, the organization’s highest rating. That award requires good ratings in all six IIHS crashworthiness tests, good or acceptable headlight scores across all trim levels, and good or acceptable front crash prevention scores. The combination of adventure-vehicle recognition and top-tier safety ratings positions the CX-90 PHEV as Mazda’s answer to buyers who want family hauling, outdoor capability, and crash protection in a single package.
Mazda has spent the past two years rebuilding its SUV lineup around larger, more premium vehicles. The CX-90 sits at the top of that range. Awards like these confirm the market’s receptiveness to the shift, at least among buyers who prioritize long-distance comfort and fuel efficiency over the rugged-truck posture that dominates much of the three-row segment.
Source: Mazda. Images courtesy of Mazda.
