Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid 2021 Review

The 2021 Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid has arrived in Australia, priced from $33,990 plus on-road costs for the G20e Evolve, $36,490 plus ORCs for the mid-spec G20e Touring and $40,990 plus ORCs for the flagship G20e Astina tested here.  

Standard features for the entry-level MX-30 M Hybrid G20e Evolve include 18-inch alloy wheels, auto fold-in powered exterior mirrors, auto-on LED headlights, rain-sensing wipers, keyless starting, 8.8-inch infotainment display, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, eight-speaker audio with digital radio and Bluetooth, satellite navigation and dual-zone climate control.

The MX-30 G20e Touring adds keyless entry, auto-dimming driver-side mirror, 10-way electrically-adjustable driver’s seat with two-position memory function extending to mirror adjustment, and pure white ‘Maztex’ synthetic fabric seat upholstery.

And finally, the range-topping MX-30 G20e Astina adds heated exterior mirrors, a tilt/slide glass sunroof, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, brown Maztex seat upholstery, 360-degree camera monitoring, adaptive LED headlights, front parking sensors and a bright finish on its 18-inch alloys.

Options include Polymetal Grey metallic and Machine Grey metallic exterior paint for $495, and three multi-tone colour schemes with black roof and grey pillars. These three are Ceramic metallic for $995, Soul Red ($1490) and Polymetal Grey metallic (also $1490).

Safety features standard across the 2021 Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid range include 10 airbags, blind spot monitoring, driver attention alert, lane keeping assist, forward collision warning, auto high beam assist, active cruise control with Stop & Go function, rear parking sensors, reversing camera, rear cross traffic alert, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), traffic sign recognition and tyre pressure monitoring.

Additional safety features found in the flagship MX-30 G20e Astina are also available on the two lower-tier variants in a Vision Technology option pack for $1500. This pack includes 360-degree camera monitoring, cruising and traffic support, front cross traffic alert and front parking sensors.

ANCAP has tested the MX-30 for crash safety and awarded the car a five-star rating, based on the 2020 testing protocol.

Over the two days of driving for the local media launch, the only variant sampled was the flagship model, the 2021 Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid G20e Astina.

Unfortunately, the Mazda was being driven mostly on country roads and through small towns dotted along the way. It’s not where the mild-hybrid SUV will necessarily shine.

The MX-30 M Hybrid is a car for the suburbs and congested traffic scenarios. It’s certainly a car that won’t hand you abundant performance to overtake safely on a stretch of country highway.

The 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine struggles to deliver performance, particularly on hills, even with the electric motor supplementing power and torque. It does pull harder in Sport mode and at engine revs above 4000rpm, and will spin all the way up to redline (6500rpm).

But you do have to work it for performance when it’s needed.

When the engine is operating at higher revs and under load, it pumps out a pleasantly sporty but subdued note. Otherwise, the engine is quiet and unobtrusive.

For the first leg of the drive program the MX-30 posted a fuel economy figure of 8.1L/100km, improving on that for the return journey with a figure of 7.5L/100km. And that’s despite the MX-30 being driven at times in a way that isn’t consonant with conserving fuel.

Being a mild-hybrid vehicle, the MX-30 doesn’t offer you an EV driving mode, as Toyota hybrids do. That limits just how much fuel you can save in the real world, even with the car’s idle-stop system killing the engine at every red light.

As Mazda promises though, the idle-stop system does indeed kill the engine before the car has finished rolling to a halt and restarts the powerplant without fuss. It’s a user-friendly system that’s highly responsive to how heavy or light you press the pedal with your right foot.

And it’s smoother restarting than almost any other vehicle I can recall in recent times, including some cars from much-vaunted prestige brands.

The automatic transmission works smoothly in partnership with the mild-hybrid system. It’s a very intelligent unit that will hold gears when you would expect a less effective transmission to change up a gear – like flogging the Mazda up a long hill through winding bends.

As sophisticated as both the transmission and the idle-stop system may be, however, the MX-30’s powertrain would be better with the SKYACTIV-X engine found in ‘X20’ versions of the Mazda3 (also displacing 2.0 litres), rather than the SKYACTIV-G unit that’s used in more affordable versions of the 3.

The former is slightly more charismatic than the latter in the Mazda3, an extra 15kW and 24Nm couldn’t hurt performance, and it would reduce fuel consumption further.

Cost is a factor working against that, however, according to Mazda.

Contradiction time. As much as the 2021 Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid is a fitting choice for the suburbs, it’s also an enjoyable drive out on a section of winding country road.

Light but direct steering, nice handling and strong front-end grip all lead to unexpected driving satisfaction. Ease off into a corner and the nose tucks in to the apex, and on a section of loose gravel the MX-30 yawed very slightly at the rear before the car righted itself.

The brake pedal is firm under foot, and can be judiciously applied for soft-stopping, which is easier to effect in the Mazda than in some BMWs – probably because the idle-stop system kills the engine in the last two to three metres before the MX-30 comes to a complete stop.

BMWs are still grappling with that conflict of brakes and powertrain right up to the last moment.

Ride comfort and road noise are both commendable in the MX-30, especially given its flat handling and grip. Over one badly maintained level crossing, that would have tested the suspension of the Ford Ranger Raptor, the Mazda shrugged off the hit fairly well.

The driving position is very practical and commanding, as is the way with Mazdas generally, and the comfortable front seats wrap themselves around you, with bolstering that’s sufficiently supportive in corners and under brakes.

Thick B-pillars and small windows at the rear may pose a problem when turning left out of a slip lane, but the MX-30’s external mirrors and blind spot monitoring should keep driver and passengers safe in other circumstances (merging, for instance).

I found the rear seat compartment of the MX-30 to be surprisingly roomy for adults of average height, although those taller than about 180cm will find their head brushing the lining. And the roofline is a little low for easy entry.

The Astina flagship is fitted with a sunroof, but that doesn’t encroach on head space in the rear seat. Legroom is respectable too.

There are no adjustable rear vents, not even in the flagship MX-30.

The interior is easy on the eye; Mazda designers have gone for a minimalist look, once more, leaving passengers unfamiliar with the MX-30 to pick the Astina from the entry-level Evolve by the former’s leather upholstery and BOSE badging for the audio system.

While the cork applied around the floating centre console is a strange look, it pays tribute to Mazda’s century-old legacy of cork production. The material is applied to the obverse sides of two lids for the cup holders, which swing up out of the way to close off the open storage bin under the centre armrest when the cup holders need to be used.

Although the boot is usefully practical, its 311-litre volume is not in the same ballpark as many small hatches and SUVs with a similar footprint, but the 60/40-split folding rear seat lowers for added goods-carrying capacity.

With the seats folded, there’s just a slight step between the boot and the cabin, which may pose a minor problem loading larger goods.

There’s a space-saver spare tyre under the floor of the MX-30’s boot.

Few would assert that Mazda fails to understand its customers. The company has been consistently successful with the Mazda3, the MX-5, the CX-5 – all of its SUVs, in fact – and most recently the CX-30.

And although Mazda Australia doesn’t offer a ‘competitor set’ for it, the closest real threat to the 2021 Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid is its own stablemate, the CX-30 – a car that is essentially the same size, just as attractive, more affordable and can theoretically achieve with the same engine a fuel consumption figure of 6.5L/100km, versus 6.4L/100km for the mild-hybrid MX-30.

I find it hard, for that reason, to accept the MX-30 as a car that purchasers should go out and buy – until such time as the MX-30 is offered with an all-electric powertrain and/or a rotary range-extender perhaps. Then there might be a case for it.

Yet Mazda Australia expects the mild-hybrid MX-30 to be the volume-selling powertrain in the range, and the company asks buyers to look at this new SUV as something other than just a hybrid.

I’m not convinced by the argument, but I’m in no doubt 200 buyers a month will choose the MX-30 over the CX-30, just as Mazda predicts.

How much does the 2021 Mazda MX-30 M Hybrid G20e Astina cost?
Price: $40,990 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 114kW/200Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 6.4L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 150g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2020)