The dash is a prime example. Some parts look right, while others come across almost as a styling exercise in Design 101, and not much of it looks of a piece with the rest. For starters there's what Mazda calls the double-roof instrument panel. Translated, this constitutes, first, a ridge stretching across the top of the dash that's supposed to make the front seat passenger feel involved, included in the interior's dynamic. Below this floating lip is the second part, a more traditional dash construct comprising three elements, the instrument cluster, the center stack and the section holding the passenger airbag and housing the glove box. This lower part, the designers say, is intended to play to the driver, concentrating on the interfaces necessary for managing the car. All the pieces for this are there, so the job is doable, but the way everything is put together doesn't make it all that easy or appear that seamlessly integrated.

Beyond the quirky design, the instrument cluster is deeply hooded, stylishly compartmentalized and softly lit to the point it's not a quick and easy scan. The steering wheel, borrowed directly from the sporty MX-5 Miata with its much more confined cockpit, feels undersized in the more expansive interior of the CX-7.

Large buttons and knobs populate the stack of air conditioning and sound system controls in the center, but their arrangement and assigned functions are far from intuitive. The optional navigation system only adds complexity, as it incorporates many of those functions into one of the menus accessed only through the touch-screen LCD and, for example, allows switching preset radio stations by exchanging the map display for the audio display. And although the Sport shift slot is properly placed on the driver's side of the primary shift gate, gear selection feels backwards (to some of us), as you push up to shift down and pull down to shift up.

This isn't to say the dash/driver interface is dysfunctional, but only that it's not as good as Mazda has done. Where other car makers are trending toward simplicity and sleekness, the CX-7 has gone chunky and choppy. Overall, the cabin doesn't seem as friendly and as functional as its primary competition, the Honda CR-V and the Toyota RAV4.

When it comes to accommodations, the CX-7 splits the difference between the Honda and Toyota. In front seat headroom, though, it comes in about an inch short of both the 2006 CR-V and the RAV4. (A side note here: the 2006 RAV4 is new for this year, while the CR-V is in line for a major upgrade for 2007. While these comparisons will hold through 2007 for the RAV4, come fall 2006, there'll be different data for the 2007 CR-V.) The Mazda also trails in rear seat legroom, by almost two inches to the RAV4 and by three inches to the CR-V.

As for how those seats fit, the bottom cushions offer slightly more thigh support than, say, economy class airline seats, which is to say more would definitely be better. Substantial front-seat side bolsters are fitting for a vehicle with sporty aspirations.

The rear seats favor two passengers over three, an impression reinforced by the decently contoured seatback and the absence of a head restraint for the center seating position. The CX-7's competitiveness in rear seat headroom is no doubt facilitated by the shallowness of the rear seat bottom cushion and by the closeness of that cushion to the floor, the latter evidenced by the proximity of the rear seat passenger's knees to chin. The nicely padded, front seat center armrest sits about the same height as the front door armrests, promising comfortable postures for long drives.

Visibility is best out the front, as the kicked-up beltline and tapered cabin constrict rearward vision. Even with the driver's seat at its highest adjustment, however, the hood drops away so severely it's below the sight line of a six-footer. This compels cautious navigation of parking lots and spaces, at least initially by an unacclimated driver. The rearview video camera helps the driver spot objects behind the vehicle when backing up, including short metal posts, other cars and children on tricycles.

Storage is adequate. The front center console's lockable bin is deep enough for a laptop computer and includes a secondary power point for that purpose. The glove box holds more than gloves, but not much more and can't be locked. Fixed, hard-plastic, front door map pockets are shaped to hold a pop can or small water bottle, too. Rear seat passengers get no map pockets and a single magazine pouch, and that on the backside of the driver's seatback. Two cup holders fill the space in the front center console between the shift gate and the storage bin. The fold-down center armrest in the rear seat also provides two cup holders. Both the CR-V and RAV4 hold more cargo than the CX-7 with the rear seat either up or down. With it up, the CR-V can handle about three more foot-square boxes, the RAV4 about five more; down, both can hold more than 15 additional boxes. And one more distinction: The RAV4 can be ordered with a third-row seat, giving it room for seven passengers.