Mazda3 2019 Review - International

There’s no doubt Australians have embraced the Mazda3 small car. Nearly 10 per cent of the six million Mazda3s sold globally since the first generation launched in 2003 have found a home Down Under.

Now generation four is on the way. Revealed at the Los Angeles show in late 2018, we’ve just driven it in the same city, ahead of an Aussie roll-out that begins mid-year.

And while it’s always dangerous to make definitive declarations when you’re driving a new car on unfamiliar roads on foreign soil, initial impressions of the all-new 2019 Mazda 3 are good.

Good enough, in fact, for us to impatiently look forward to mid-year and to driving the localized version on local roads up against quality competition like the Ford Focus, Toyota Corolla and Volkswagen Golf.

In Los Angeles. We got to sample both body variants of the new 2019 Mazda 3 – namely the stylish hatchback and the more conventional sedan. The drives were short – an hour in each on a drive route that started in Hollywood, wound its way out into the nearby hills and then back again.

It packed in plenty of variety; city traffic, freeway cut and thrust, suburban roads and then some winding, undulating cracked and scarred pavement that was a good test of the Mazda 3’s dynamics and drivetrain.

The hatchback was a 2.0-litre petrol four-cylinder fitted with Mazda’s new mild hybrid system and a six-speed manual transmission, European suspension tune and 18-inch summer tyres. The sedan was powered by a 2.5-litre naturally-aspirated petrol engine mated to a six-speed automatic, US suspension tune and winter tyres.

Neither hatchback nor sedan was 100 per cent indicative of what’s come to Australia. The 2.0-litre was detuned and we won’t get the M-Hybrid system. Australia gets a unique chassis tune too, although we were assured the Euro set-up was a good guide.

Lots of other detail, like what models we may get (ie: Neo, Maxx, Maxx Sport, Astina, SP25, GT, etc) and what they’re going to cost wasn’t revealed in LA. Instead, Mazda Australia is planning to release a significant amount of local detail on February 19.

We can tell you the local line-up will include sedan and hatchback, 2.0 and 2.5-litre Skyactiv-G petrol engines and manual and automatic transmissions. The cars will be loaded with gear and pricing across a comprehensive range of models seems certain to go up. You can read more about all that here.

Under the Mazda 3’s bonnet the 2.0 will make an unchanged 114kW/200Nm and the 2.5 139kW/252Nm (plus 2kW and 2Nm). Mazda says drivability has been improved, while transmissions have also been updated.

So far there are no local fuel consumption claims. In the USA the 2.5/auto sedan claim is 7.8L/100km, whereas the Australian claim for the old 3 is 6.0L/100km… I think the Yanks are closer to the truth on that one.

Incidentally, the petrol hybrid’s claim is 6.3L/100km and it was showing at 8.3/L100km on the trip computer when we finished

The much ballyhooed Skyactiv-X spark-controlled compression ignition engine won’t be making it to Australia until late 2019 and even then will only be fitted to models at the top of the range. We didn’t get to sample it in LA.

We have driven a prototype version of the new 3 fitted with the Skyactiv-X engines.

In summary, the new Mazda 3 is based on a new architecture and a longer wheelbase but is no bigger inside.

It also shows off a new generation of Mazda’s Kodo design language – the hatch is sexy and raunchy and the sedan is more refined. The hatch is actually 10mm shorter than its predecessor with the sedan 80mm longer. The four-door is about 200mm longer than the hatchback and they only share their bonnet and windscreen, emphasising just how much Mazda has intentionally decoupled the two cars.

The interior is all-new as well, with a lot of emphasis on simplifying the controls. Intriguingly, Mazda’s abandoned touch capability for the media screen, citing it as a driver distraction.

There’s also been a priority placed on reducing cabin noise, long a Mazda weakness. You can also expect a suite of new-to-Mazda driver assist safety systems. Diesel and all-wheel drive are available, but don’t hold your breath in Australia.

‘Mazda Premium’ was a term that got used a lot in LA – both the show and the launch drive – and that references the brand’s push to become a desirable mainstream brand. In other words, how it’s already seen in Australia, where it is far more popular than just about anywhere else in the world.

The cars we drove in LA certainly backed that up; they look great and were appropriately premium inside. Quite how that translates to a base-grade Neo manual we’ll wait to see!

Mazda spent a lot of time at the launch of the 2019 Mazda 3 explaining how this new hatchback and sedan introduce its human-centric vehicle development philosophy. Essentially, that means it’s focusing on making its cars nicer to drive and ride in, rather than benchmarking opposition car makers and trying to outdo them, a process it calls “machine-centric”.

Mazda tried hard to explain it. One of the workshops spent a lot of time on the mechanics of the pelvis and S-curve of the spine and the new seats created to support them better. We also got to sit on a small spring-loaded saddle while being chauffeured around a carpark slowly in old and new Mazda 3s in an attempt to show us how the new car treated humans more comfortably.

The human-centric thing is a lot more holistic than the ride, delving into noise dampening, prompting a completely new audio design and much more. Hippy drivel? Maybe. We’ve delved into it in a bit more detail here.

One practical example of human-centric development is that Mazda has abandoned independent rear suspension and swapped back to a torsion beam.

The MacPherson strut front suspension has also been simplified in search of improved ride and handling.

Again, if you want to delve in a bit more, we’ve dug into the rationale here.

The current Mazda3 is a hardly a dud and, frankly, two hours in two cars that don’t specifically reflect what’s coming to Australia, make it impossible to declare definitively how much progress Mazda has made.

But progress there is. I am convinced Mazda has built on the excellent dynamic qualities of the current 3 while also making it vastly quieter.

Tyre noise? What tyre noise?

Engine noise? What engine noise?

Suspension noise? Well, you get the audio picture. The 3 may have just gone from an NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) also-ran to a segment leader. Come the winter, our coarse blue-chip roads will tell the story definitively.

Around town, this new-found cabin calm was a boon in both hatch and sedan. At 75mph (120km/h) and 2200rpm on the freeway, it was much more mini-limo than entry-level econo-box.

Up in the hills, using Mazda’s own new electric-assist steering rack, the hatch pointed with sure linearity and reassuring weight. The sedan wasn’t quite as decisive. No doubt the squidgier tyres (and US suspension tune) were having an effect, but it may also have a little more weight over the nose (no kerb weights were supplied to us).

With only about 90kW in Euro-tune, the 2.0-litre engine was having a hard time getting out of its own way in a straight-line. No threat to the integrity of the front-wheel drive chassis here!

At least there was a boost in torque to 213Nm to help get going. Speaking of which, the smoothness of the stop-start system courtesy of the mild hybrid’s belt-driven integrated starter generator was startlingly good.

The manual transmission was also clean shifting and accurate, although I managed to stink up the clutch a couple of times grappling with clogged traffic and hills (sorry Mazda).

The 2.5-auto combination was much stronger and easier drivetrain to use. Flick to the sport mode and the auto was that bit more aggressive. This is the only parameter change Mazda offers as it disdains gimmicks like steering weight adjustment. Good on ’em.

At one stage a Honda Civic Type R flashed past and it triggered the obvious question; just how good would the 3 be with the new 2.5-litre turbo-petrol engine? What about adding all-wheel drive as well? Combined with the hatch’s great looks, there’s a potentially awesome driver’s car just begging to be built. Something that would offer substantially more performance than an SP25? Yes, please..

Speaking of sports tuning, in both cars it was noticeable the sharp-edge so typical of Mazda’s ride had been ironed out. There was still the ability to quickly contain an input but do it without it being quite so obvious. It felt a step forward.

Mazda says this is all indicative of its human-centric suspension retune. It seems reverting to a torsion beam hasn’t had a detrimental effect. More on that mid-year.

Attempts to simplify and premium-ify (yes, I know – not a word!) the interior of the new 2019 Mazda 3 have been successful. At least based on the cars we inspected in LA, although let’s see what a local Neo or even Maxx version looks like before getting too carried away.

But the broad sweeps of the dashboard and the clean layout of the heating and ventilation controls contribute to a calm atmosphere.

The three-dial instrument panel is simple. There’s no VW-esque active panel with multiple view choices, just the facts. Mazda argues it avoids distraction. Technophiles will be disappointed.

The buttons on the steering wheel are the fussiest bit of design because they are small and hard to read.

The 8.8-inch media screen sits high and out of reach on top of the dashboard, controlled via an evolution of generation three’s ‘commander’ dial. With no touch function, the push and turn dial now does the lot – with the support of a couple of buttons.

Mazda has tried to make the process easier to understand with handy explainers for different functions on-screen. But how Apple Carplay and Android Auto behave without a touch screen will be interesting.

The centre console has been redesigned by moving the two cupholders forward (to the base of the centre stack), releasing room for a large bin. Its lid ratchets back to make access easier. There are two USBs providing a substantial 2amp charge.

The new front seats are simply sensational – providing plenty of support for the pelvis and spine, of course! The steering column has an extended reach and there’s a large left footrest. The driver is definitely looked after.

Rear-seat passengers not so much. It feels cramped for leg-space back there for adults, especially in the hatch where you also have to duck to avoid clonking your head on the way in and out. The small windows also make it feel pretty claustrophobic. And those chunky C-pillars also don’t help driver head-checks in either car, as potential issues do lurk in those blind spots.

There are no rear air-conditioning vents in Australian-spec cars, which we know will put some potential buyers off. Mazda Australia didn’t tick that box because it says most 3 buyers are singles or couples.

The boot is basic as well, with few recesses or hooks. Hatch volume has gone done from 308 litres to 295 litres based on the figures we’ve been issued. If they’re accurate, Mazda’s emulated Toyota and made a longer wheelbase car with a smaller boot. That sucks.

The sedan has a 444 litre boot, which is up from 408 litres in generation three 3. In Australia all Mazda3s get a space saver spare tyre under the floor.

Yep, driving time was limited, the cars we drove weren’t truly indicative of what we will get locally and the information about the Australian model line-up and pricing was not forthcoming … But for all that it’s easy to be enthusiastic about the new Mazda3.

The old car was hardly a dud, yet the new one does seem to be an improvement in a number of substantial ways.

Issues that spring to mind predominantly focus on the back seat. Mazda rarely makes this a priority and that doesn’t seem to have changed, even with the much-vaunted new human-centric approach.

We’re also a but unsure about the drivetrains because there’s been such limited changes (Skyactiv-X aside). We’ll understand better how they stack up come mid-year.

There’s still plenty of pieces of the puzzle to be fitted together here but the new 2019 Mazda 3 is definitely promising and in many ways seriously impressive.

It’s easy to believe Aussies will continue their love affair with the 3 when the new generation arrives.

How much does the 2019 Mazda3 cost?
Price: $23,000-$38,000 estimated (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0 and 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 114kW/200Nm and 139kW/252Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual or automatic
Fuel: N/A
CO2: N/A
Safety Rating: N/A