Variety key to Mazda’s success
Mazda Australia says the extensive spread of price and specification on its refreshed CX-3 will help retain the model’s small-suv sales crown as it introduces more standard safety equipment, an upgraded interior and mechanical tweaks for its popular crossover.
While the changes will come with a cost – Neo and Maxx grades rise $500 and the top-spec Akari jumps $200 – Mazda is still offering a mix of petrol and diesel engines, manual and automatic transmissions, and front or all-wheel drive – resulting in a 14 variant line-up.
Mazda Australia managing director Vinesh Bhindi said the extensive variant range is crucial to the CX-3’S sales success and the emphasis would remain on private customers.
“It is a new segment, so it’s important we make sure customers have options, and they are coming into our showrooms thinking ‘well I want this’,” he saqid.
“To say ‘no you can’t have that’ is a difficult conversation and a let down to a certain extent. So we believe it’s the right thing to do.
“It will settle down at a level and we will all know what customers would like, are willing to buy and requesting, but we think it’s important to offer variety.
“Mazda leads the segment with very strong interest from private buyers, which is where our focus remains.”
An instant critical and commercial hit for Mazda when it was launched in March, 2015, the CX-3 has since sold 36,740 units in Australia, with 12 out of the past 26 months as the bestselling small SUV in the country.
However, since its release, the smallsuv segment has morphed, with the Hyundai ix35 moving up a segment in the form of the Tucson and Volkswagen following suit with its newgeneration Tiguan.
Toyota has also entered the competitive market with its C-HR, along with Jeep’s Renegade and the Fiat 500X, while Hyundai is waiting in the wings with its incoming Kona.
Although Mr Bhindi acknowledged there was more competition in the changing segment, he said Mazda would continue to chase sales potential no matter how small. Despite manual sales accounting for only 11 percent of overall sales, Mazda continues to offer a three-pedal CX-3, a contrast to its Honda HR-V rival which comes exclusively equipped with a continuously variable automatic transmission.
Similarly, all-wheel drive remains in the CX-3 range with only a 16 percent adoption rate, while the diesel powertrain continues in spite of the oil-burner accounting for only three percent of sales.
Of the overall CX-3 sales mix, Mr Bhindi revealed the most popular variant was the mid-spec Maxx, with the entry-level Neo only accounting for nine percent of sales.
“It is important to understand what price bands Australians are buying small SUVS in,” he said.
“Some of our competitors claim the small-suv buyer is spending more, in the upper price brackets toward medium SUV offerings.
“Our research tells us the vast majority of customers consider vehicles in the $20-$30,000 price point in this segment.
“The Mazda CX-3 has been a success because we have a variety of grades, engines and transmission types.
“We have something for everyone, whether it be price point or spec-driven customers who want a small SUV.”
Across its range, Mazda says it has made improvements to noise, vibration and harshness levels with changes including increased foam insulation in the B-pillar, thicker seals in the C and D-pillar, amplified weight in the floor mats and boosted density in the tunnel insulator.
The CX-3 also gains Mazda’s Gvectoring Control to help improve driving dynamics, as well as updates to suspension for improved steering response and ride comfort.
While the refreshed CX-3 looks identical to the outgoing model from the outside, Mazda has fitted a new steering wheel modelled after the CX9’S unit, as well as updated instrumentation, front seats with added lifter function and, where applicable, made the head-up display easier to read.
Standard equipment in the entry-level Neo includes power mirrors, a rear spoiler, cruise control, four-speaker sound system, 16-inch wheels, pushbutton start, hill start assist and rear parking sensors, while the Maxx gains leather-wrapped gear knob, steering wheel and handbrake lever, a 7.0-inch colour touchscreen infotainment system, digital radio, satellite navigation, six-speaker sound system and reversing camera.
Moving up to the stouring nets buyers daytime running lights, LED foglights, headlights and tail-lights, automatically folding and heated side mirrors, 18-inch alloy wheels, automatic wipers, head-up display and keyless entry. Top-spec Akari variants gain power-adjusted heated front seats.