Mazda2 sedan 2010 Review
A sedan joins the 2010 range but does that mean the Mazda2 has grown up?Mazda2 sedan
Gold Coast, Queensland
>> Roomy cabin, big boot (for small car)
>> Thai build quality is good
Not so much
>> Engine noise and tyre roar louder than peers
>> Awkward rear end 'bubble butt' styling
>> Skinny space saver spare wheel and tyre
Overall rating: 3.0/5.0
Engine and Drivetrain: 3.0/5.0
Price, Value, Practicality: 4.0/5.0
Safety: 4.0/5.0
Behind the wheel: 3.0/5.0
X-factor: 2.0/5.0
About our ratings
The Mazda2 has grown a big bump in its rear end to create the company's first tiny-tot sedan in more than a decade. The new sedan, which is said to appeal to older drivers rather than the younger buyers that drive the hatch, joins the revised Mazda2 line-up which now comes from Thailand instead of Japan.
Favourable exchange rates as well as a Free Trade Agreement between Thailand and Australia mean Mazda has been able to sharpen the pencil across the Mazda2 range. All models get more standard equipment and a slightly leaner price, but the three-door Mazda2 has been sacrificed to make way for the sedan.
Stability control is now standard across the Mazda2 range. And curtain airbags are now standard on all Mazda2 models except the base model hatch -- on which they are now only a $400 option (previously an $1100 option bundled with stability control).
The Mazda2 sedan, the model we are focusing on in this launch review, is only available in one model grade -- the Maxx -- and comes standard with six airbags, stability control and alloy wheels.
With the arrival of the sedan and the updated Mazda2 model range in May 2010, the Mazda2 now comes from an all-new factory in Thailand that was completed last year. It's the same factory that will soon build Australia-bound Ford Fiestas, the Mazda2's twin under the skin.
Standard equipment includes six airbags, stability control and alloy wheels. But as with most cars in this class, licence-saving cruise control is not available.
With the new Mazda2 range, the company has been able to add more equipment while cutting prices because the Mazda2 is not subject to an import tariff thanks to a Free Trade Agreement between Australia and Thailand. As with most imported cars, the Mazda2 previously attracted a 5 per cent import tariff. A strong Australian dollar has also helped Mazda's cause.
Mazda Australia has deliberately been aggressive with the pricing of the updated Mazda2 hatch, and the sedan is also competitively priced. Only the Korean rivals -- the Holden Barina and Kia Rio sedans -- undercut it by a significant margin.
But compared with the quality contenders (Honda City and Toyota Yaris sedans), the Mazda2 sedan is a couple of hundred dollars dearer than a Yaris sedan -- but the Yaris loses its price advantage once the side and curtain airbags are added (a $750 option on the Toyota).
The Mazda2 sedan is a few hundred dollars cheaper than the Honda City sedan -- and the Honda doesn't yet have stability control.
Oh, and Mazda doesn't charge for metallic paint. The other sedan rivals do: Toyota ($300) Honda ($395), Holden ($400), Kia ($400).
MECHANICAL
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The power and torque outputs remain unchanged (76kW/135Nm) compared with the hatch, but Mazda says its engineers have done some tweaking to give the engine a little more urge from slightly lower revs.
Transmissions choices are the same as the hatch, too: five-speed manual, four-speed auto.
Because the weight of the hatch and sedan are so similar (the sedan is between 14 and 16kg heavier than the equivalent hatch) there has been no measurable effect on fuel consumption. Indeed, the economy rating for the sedan is the same as the hatch: 6.4L/100km (manual), 6.8L/100km (automatic).
PACKAGING
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The rear-three-quarter view when parking isn't brilliant in either model (thanks to the tapered rear window line and small glass area) but convex wide view mirrors help you gather your bearings.
The Mazda2 sedan has among the biggest boots in its class (with a capacity of 450 litres only the Honda City and Toyota Yaris sedans have bigger cargo holds). And, it's worth noting, the boots of these vehicles aren't much smaller than a Holden Commodore's.
But the Mazda gets a small blot on its otherwise impressive report card. The Yaris and City sedans have managed to house a full size spare wheel and tyre even though they have more room to boot. But under the Mazda2's boot floor is a skinny space saver spare.
As with all the cars in the small sedan class, the back seat split-folds (the same can't be said for the Holden Commodore, incidentally, which underlines what an asset such a feature is in such a small car) so you can poke long loads from the boot through to the cabin.
Side and curtain airbags are a $750 option on the Toyota Yaris sedan (although for that, you also get a driver's knee airbag). And while side and curtain airbags are standard on the Honda City sedan, stability control is currently not available at any price.
The Holden Barina sedan has four airbags standard -- but even something as basic as anti-lock brakes are a $1200 option, and stability control is not available.
On the Kia Rio sedan, two airbags and anti-lock brakes are standard. Side and curtain airbags are a $990 option. Stability control is not available until all-new model mid-2011.
The only (minor) blot on the Mazda2's report card on the safety front is the fact that curtain airbags aren't standard on its most popular model, the Neo five-door hatch. The option price of $400 is the cheapest in its class, and reasonable when you consider this is the price most rivals charge for metallic paint (Mazda throws the sparkles in for free).
COMPETITORS
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For starters, stability control is not even an option on the two cheapies (Holden even charges for anti-lock brakes) and curtain airbags add almost $1000 to the Kia. Both brands also bill customers another $400 for metallic paint. So, perhaps they're not so cheap after all once you add everything into the so-called bargain.
The real rivals to the Mazda2 sedan are the relatively new and sharp-looking Honda City sedan (also Thailand-made) and the gracefully aging Toyota Yaris sedan.
But when you compare price and equipment (that is, add $750 for the extra airbags on the Yaris to match the Mazda's standard side and curtain airbags), the Mazda2 comes out cheaper than both the Yaris and the City -- despite the Mazda having more equipment.
Rarely has a decision been so clear-cut, but this one's a no-brainer. Then again, when you're last in it's easy to be best dressed.
ON THE ROAD
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It steers more precisely than many cars in this class and generally hugs the road well, although in the wet it still demands attention.
The Mazda2 has previously been criticised for below average wet-weather grip so the company switched to bigger tyres. Tropical rain during our test drive emphasised the importance of this. If these are the good tyres, I'd hate to have driven on the bad ones.
And compared to other cars in its class, there's still a fair amount of road noise coming from the little Mazda. Some of it is tyre roar, and some of it is a lack of sound deadening (one of Mazda's secrets to such lightweight cars is by ditching heavy noise suppression material).
However, these may be issues of more concern to motoring journalists who tend to notice such things. Buyers might care less.
If you want a smart-looking, economical and easy to drive small sedan while beetling around the suburbs, the Mazda2 would be a fine choice. But just be warned: if you do a lot of open road driving, plan on raising your voice on coarse-chip surfaces so your passengers can hear you.
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