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I have narrowed down the desired options for a new car purchase to either the Mazda CX 5 AWD 2.2 L diesel Auto OR the Ford Kuga AWD 2.5 L petrol Auto

Assuming both can be purchased at the identical capital cost, (say $ 48,000) and I ran 15-20,000 kms per year with a view to keeping the vehicle for 5-6 years;

Which is the better bet from an annual running cost / all up costs aspect ?

Cost-wise, these two would be very similar to operate. What is unknown is what the real world depreciation on these two will be in 5 years time as they're both new models. However, in our experience diesel SUV's hold up much better than petrol ones. Also, there will be less visits to the gas station with a diesel, although there are other costs to operate.
On balance though, the CX-5 has been the stand-out new vehicle for us this year and it's the one we'd go for.