Sub-compacts like the Fiat 500, MINI and Honda Fit prove that sporty doesn’t need 300-hp and 19-inch wheels.
Now you can add the 2011 Mazda MAZDA2, originally launched overseas in 2007, as another “small package/big fun” commuter car. Selected as the "World Car of the Year" (WCOTY) at the 2008 New York International Auto Show, more than 400,000 of them have been sold worldwide since 2007 to everyone but us – until now.
Let’s see what we have been missing in what the world calls a B-segment car.
· Mazda miniature – Mazda calls it "Zoom-Zoom Concentrated.” And at a hair over 155 inches, or just shy of 13 feet in length, the 5-door MAZDA5 Sport is a truly compact car with minimal front and short rear overhang. But it has some character to its little shape, starting with the best iteration of the smiley-face that Mazda uses on its product right now. Almond-shaped headlights angle up from a very slim grill with winged company emblem dead center, over a wide-mouth honeycomb mesh mouth with curved-up black bumper bar. Silver-rimmed foglights accent the faux side vents, while gentle design lines that flank the grill add some tension to the hood as they flow into the windshield pillars. Gentle flattened fender flares frame smallish-looking Yokohama P185/55R15-inch radial rubber on simple 8-spoke alloy wheels. As befits a Euro-car, there are fender marker lights on an upward arcing side design line that bisects the body-colored door handles before tapping the taillights, while another design line adds some tension to the flanks above the lower sill. In back, mere inches seem to separate the rear wheel well from black-accented bumper with single polished steel tailpipe, while the roofline’s gentle slope ends in an upper spoiler over large back window. A nice design element is the driver’s side window, which starts below the base of the windshield and adds some aggression and airiness to the side window shape. While still rare stateside, it did get a few looks, the longest from a driver in a MAZDA3, and looked pretty sporty in a well-applied True Red, with solid fit and finish.
· MAZDA2 live in – Don’t expect an RX-8 in here – it’s a cleanly-designed hard black plastic dashboard with just a few silver accents. But the texture of the plastics, and their feel, is pretty good, as is the way the switchgear operates. The dash upper looks like grained buff-finish padded vinyl with a small cowl over a simple gauge package with central 120-mph speedometer, with 8,000-rpm tach on the left and an amber-lit trip computer with LCD bar graph gas gauge. There’s no temperature gauge, just a blue thermometer icon that goes off when the engine warms up. A tilt-adjustable three-spoke wheel with thick leather-wrapped rim had stereo and trip computer controls on the silvery left spoke, and cruise control on the right – no Bluetooth button here. The only dash button to the left is the traction/stability control. To the right of the steering wheel is a squared-off bulge with a gloss black accent strip across its middle, hosting a CD player over the decent 6-speaker AM-FM stereo with big central LCD display, its MP3 audio player input and a 12-volt outlet down lower at the head of the slim center console. A simple three-dial a/c system offered up heat quickly one cold morning, while we liked the high central shifter position, not unlike some other imports. The black cloth bucket seats get textured inserts with red piping, and were comfortable and mostly supportive, if a bit soft after a while. The center console has three cup holders, two up front and one in back for the rear seat passengers, while there are water bottle holders in the small door map pockets. The door panels are hard plastic except for a lightly padded insert. Back seat room was adequate for two adults, the front seat backs slim with flexible backsides where I could slide my knees. The rear cargo area was deep and usable under a hard security cover, but short front to rear under the hatch. There’s a button to unlock it, and it’s tall enough when up to clear my head. The rear seats split 60/40 and fold fairly flat to carry extra cargo. There’s even a rear wiper. The only bummers – the rear seat head restraints do stick up a bit into rearward vision, and there’s no map light. It’s inexpensive, but didn’t feel too cheap.
· Mazda motoring – There’s no Miata under that hood – it’s a 1.5-liter four-cylinder, 100-hp inline four hooked to a 4-speed automatic or our precise 5-speed manual. That’s not a lot of ponies these days, and it has to work to get to 60-mph or pass. But the free-revving engine and manual gearbox let our li’l red 2 get to 60-mph in a decent 9.4 seconds with a livable exhaust snarl and decent mid-range passing power. That’s compared to 10 seconds for the Ford Fiesta SES we tested recently, which shares the MAZDA2’s platform, but is about 5 inches longer and has 20 more horsepower. Fuel mileage, according to our 8,000-mile-old 2’s trip meter, averaged about 34-mpg on regular in mostly highway driving, a tad more than the Fiesta. Mazda’s mantra for the 2 was “Keep it light,” so they tell me the use of high tensile strength steel in the body structure saved 23 kilograms, while more kilos were saved via redesigns of the wiring harness, hood latch and hinges and lighter door speaker magnets. The electric power steering, which had a precise feel and feedback, was added to lighten the car and improve fuel efficiency. Polyester felt was added to the roof panels to dampen noise and vibration. Our car was fun to drive, its longish wheelbase and MacPherson strut front/torsion-beam rear giving it a firm yet comfortable ride on almost any surface. Rebound over bumps was well damped, only some expansion joints coming back a bit firm. The MAZDA2 also loved to be used in a curve, controllable understeer showing up and modulated via throttle and standard traction/stability control. We had some fun in unoccupied traffic circles near us, the car holding on well – it just goes in, around and out with no drama on the smallish 15-inch rubber. The electric steering was precise and direct in feel, while the 14-inch front discs/8-inch rear drums had good pedal feel and decent stopping power with no evident fade after some hard use. There was a bit of wind noise at 70-mph from the mirrors, but almost no tire noise, and brisk crosswinds didn’t upset it too much. It had some “Zoom-Zoom.” For comparison, a MINI Cooper has 118-hp, gets to 60-mph in about 9 seconds, and is a lot of fun to drive – like a go-cart. A Honda Fit (161.6 inches) has more interior room and a 117-hp four that got us to 60-mph in 10 seconds with its 5-speed automatic, and was fun and capable to drive. Others in the class weren’t as fun - a 122-hp Nissan Versa hit 60 mph in 9.5 seconds; a Chevy Aveo (due to be replaced soon) in 12; the 128-hp Scion xD in 9.5.
· Mazda money – There are two trim levels. There is the $13,980 entry-level Sport with 15-inch steel wheels, wheel covers, power mirrors, air conditioning, power windows and door locks, AM-FM-CD-MP3 stereo with four speakers, audio auxiliary jack, tilt steering wheel, remote keyless entry system, rear window wiper/washer and 60/40 split fold-down rear seats. Our MAZDA2 Touring added upgraded cloth seat fabric with red piping, 15-inch alloy wheels, fog lights, rear roof spoiler, chrome exhaust tip, leather-wrapped steering wheel-mounted audio and cruise controls, trip computer and a six-speaker AM-FM-CD-MP3 stereo system. It was probably the least expensive 4-door I’ve tested in years, at $15,435 base and $16,185 as tested with destination fee. I just wish the decent stereo system had a USB port. For comparison, the last Fit we tested was about $18,580 with a few more goodies, and a base MINI Cooper is about $18,000. For safety, the MAZDA2 gets standard ABS, stability and traction control, dual front air bags, front seat side air bags, side air curtains, and Mazda’s first North American use of a brake override system that prioritizes the brake pedal over the gas if both are engaged simultaneously.
· Bottom line – Inexpensive, fun, very usable and good looking – that sums up the MAZDA2. I’d enjoy one 2, and love it more with a touch more power.
Vehicle type – sub-compact 5-passenger hatchback sedan
Base price - $15,435 ($16,185 as tested)
Engine type - DOHC, 16-valve in-line four
Displacement – 1.5 liter
Horsepower (net) – 100 @ 6,000 rpm
Torque (lb-ft) – 98 @ 4,000 rpm
Transmission – 5-speed manual
Wheelbase – 98 inches
Overall length – 155.5 inches
Overall width – 66.7 inches
Height – 58.8 inches
Front headroom – 39.1 inches
Front legroom – 42 inches
Rear headroom – 37 inches
Rear legroom – 33 inches
Cargo capacity – 13 cu.ft./27.8 w/rear seat folded
Curb weight – 2,306 lbs.
Fuel capacity - 11.3 gallons
Mileage rating – 29-mpg city/35-mpg highway
Last word – Eager to play and nicely tossable, it’s practical too
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