Cars with Jan Coomans.
Mazda 3 review — good things in small packages

Most car manufacturers these days have long embraced engine downsizing and turbocharging but Mazda has not been keen to jump onto that particular bandwagon. They do very much care about reducing emissions and overall environmental impact, their “Skyactiv” engine branding is there to attest to that, but they’ve decided to go about it a different way. There is a fair point to be made to look at total emissions generated by a car and not just what comes out of its tailpipe. After all, even fully electric cars generate quite a bit of unwanted pollution not just during manufacturing but also due to the less than ideal methods by which electricity is generated in many places. The Skyactiv-G engines which power the Mazda 3 are naturally aspirated and larger in capacity than what you see in other cars of this segment, but they’re remarkably efficient all the same. Unfortunately, the even more impressive Skyactiv-X engines are so far not yet available in Russia.

For a car of modest weight and proportions like the Mazda 3, I think we can all agree that 150 horsepower is plenty and even 120 should be enough. But it’s worth pointing out that we’ve been a bit spoilt by the mid-range torque which turbocharged engines produce, and naturally aspirated ones cannot. In a sportscar with a huge naturally aspirated engine, this isn’t something you miss because there is still plenty of shove throughout the rev range. When we’re talking about small 4-cylinder engines, whose character isn’t particularly inspiring at the best of times, I have to say that one does miss the turbo at times. Every time you want to make a bit of swift progress merging onto the highway or overtaking a slow moving vehicle, you need to push the engine into high revs and the slight unpleasantness that comes with it. So from a driving perspective, even smaller engines with added turbochargers would probably have been more enjoyable on a daily basis. As long as you’re not forced to push them hard though, the Mazda engines are whisper quiet. To the point where I often couldn’t hear it running at all while sitting in a traffic jam.

The low-torque character of the engine has also had its effect on the programming of the automatic gearbox. You can’t use much of the throttle pedal without it downshifting to high revs in order to tap into the engine power that it thinks you’re asking for, but this makes it hard to get the golden middle of decent acceleration but not too much noise and fuel consumption. I’d probably prefer the lighter and more efficient 6-speed manual gearbox, which makes the car better all around, but then there would be the slight issue of almost nobody wanting to buy that “improved” car. A large portion of the Russian driving public either cannot or will not drive anything but an automatic gearbox so I can see why it makes commercial sense for Mazda to avoid the manual except when people are shopping for the cheapest possible car. Still, I’m pretty sure that it would suit these engines a lot better than the not quite cutting edge 6-speed automatic.

On the inside of the 3, there is a lot to like. I’m not sure that there is a higher quality interior anywhere at this price point and, in line with the rest of the Mazda design philosophy, it has been kept blissfully simple. Most functions that we used to use knobs and buttons for are still using knobs and buttons. Hurray! Even your grandmother would have an easy time with it. There is a nice infotainment screen, but it’s there primarily for the infotainment. You don’t need to go digging through digital menus to turn the heater up a little. None of the materials feel cheap, there are zero rattles and the seats are excellent too. It’s a nice place to sit in. Ride comfort is very good, considering that Mazda hasn’t wanted to sacrifice the handling entirely. Sure, it could be softer, but then it’d be less fun. As a trade-off, I think it works well. Even on the not altogether perfect roads we tend to have. Interior space is very good considering the exterior dimensions, and as long as you sit on one of the front seats it feels a lot bigger than it actually is.

One thing missing from this particular press car, which had the “active” trim package and not the better equipped “supreme”, was parking sensors. While I am well aware of the fact that I am old enough to have started my driving career before most cars had parking sensors, this was still an omission which I found difficult to understand. I reckon they should be standard on everything except perhaps the most basic model, especially since this car had some things as standard which I would happily have traded for more useful parking sensors. On the other hand, the price increase to go for the most well spec’d supreme version is small enough that most people should go for that one anyway. For the 2 litre Mazda 3, stepping up from Active to Supreme is a mere 60 thousand Rubles. Or a bit over 3% extra on the purchase price.

So what we have here is a particularly good-looking small car from a brand that is sticking to its particular principles and doing a very good job at it. It’s not perfect, but then nothing is at any price level and the Mazda 3 has a lot going for it. It has stuck to what matters for buyers who are looking for a lot of bang for their buck, and as such it will clearly continue to have the success that it has already been enjoying up until now.