Sharp and eager NEW MAZDA 3 QUIETLY HANDSOME
Mazda’s slick new 3 sedan may not be as sexy as the hatch, but it matches it where it counts, writes Damien O’Carroll.
You could be forgiven for thinking that the humble small sedan could be in danger of becoming a victim of the SUV craze, but they still sell. Admittedly in relatively small numbers, but enough for Mazda to have a crack at the segment with the latest Mazda3.
But why would anyone buy the sedan over the hatch?
Personal preference is really the only reason. Kiwis generally prefer hatches, but the small sedan has an equally small but fiercely loyal fanbase. It is, however, a deeply conservative fanbase, hence the 3 sedan’s far more restrained look. So conservative, in fact, that it is occasionally easy to mistake the new one for the previous car – something you won’t do with the hatch and its brilliantly in-yer-face C-pillar.
But that is how they like it in small sedan-land and, thankfully, the 3 GTX (a new model designation that replaces the SP25) sedan matches the hatch in the most important areas – handling and ride quality.
Just like the hatch, the Mazda3 sedan is a superbly refined and capable small car that rides like a bigger car while remaining as delightfully lithe and chuckable as a small car should be.
On a winding road the GTX feels sharp and eager – with direct and responsive steering – and displays a remarkable level of composure and confidence-inspiring tenacity through corners, refusing to be unsettled by even the most blatant mid-corner irregularities common on Kiwi roads.
The 2.5-litre engine matches the eagerness of the chassis by being both torquey across its mid-range and very happy to rev, making for something that can effortlessly make fast, comfortable and enjoyable progress across your average New Zealand rural road.
Do people who buy small sedans care about how brilliant it is on a winding road though?
Probably not, but that is where the impressive comfort comes in – because they will almost certainly care about that.
That unflustered nature is an integral ingredient of the GTX’s comfort mix as well, and while the suspension does have a tendency to transmit some noise into the cabin, as well as get oddly brittle across rougher surfaces, the overall impression is one of a firm ride that doesn’t unduly jostle the occupants and displays remarkable composure and maturity for a small car.
Complementing the ride are the simply superb seats – sculpted and supportive, the front seats in the Mazda3 are easily the best in the segment and even better than a lot of far more expensive cars, even though they might not look it thanks to the sedan’s almost blatant determination to be slightly more boring than the hatch.
Yeah. That interior does look rather monochromatic. Is it any good though?
It is all a bit dark and unexcitingly black inside the GTX, but the build quality and high level of standard equipment present are impressive for the money asked. Speaking of money – yes, the GTX is slightly more expensive than the opposition, but even the entry-level Mazda3 is well-equipped for that money, with the GTX adding even more, handily balancing out the difference and then some.
The interior is impressively high quality and beautifully put together, with a sensible layout – although there are a few ergonomic gripes, such as the power and source buttons for the audio system being on the end of the rocker switches for volume and track selection, making it stupidly easy to either turn the audio off or change the source when you simply want to adjust the volume or skip tracks. But nothing actually important.
A great seating position and a wonderfully tactile, subtly sculpted steering wheel are a testament to Mazda’s focus on the driver’s experience too.
So does this have Mazda’s allsinging and dancing new superfrugal petrol engine then?
Ah, no. That’s the SkyActiv-X engine that will debut in the CX-30 small SUV and is due to arrive in the Mazda3 next year.
The 3’s 2.5-litre engine is a revised version of the old car’s SkyActiv-G engine and while no major changes have accompanied its move into the new car, it remains a strong and willing engine, with a pleasingly solid mid-range that the slick sixspeed auto makes the most of.
It also remains slightly thirsty in around town use, and while it drops down nicely with the occasional open road expedition, it isn’t exactly the most economical option in the segment.
But then, the payoff in performance is worth it.
Any other cars I should consider?
While there are still plenty of options in the small hatch segment, the small sedan is somewhat more limited.
The Kia Cerato tops out at the mid-range EX model, which is not as well equipped as the GTX, but is also around $5000 cheaper, while the Hyundai Elantra is around the same price as the Mazda in top-spec Elite guise, but the Mazda still packs more for the money.
The Honda Civic RS Sensing runs the GTX closest for equipment, offering a high level of tech – as well as leather upholstery – for $39,990, and while it also arguably runs it close for comfort and handling too, it is ultimately restrained in the latter by its continuously variable transmission.
Ford, Holden and Mitsubishi have all abandoned the small sedan segment, but Toyota still offers the last-generation Corolla sedan (a new one will no doubt be coming), although paying $39,490 for the automotive equivalent of a long, resigned sigh seems slightly silly when you could have the GTX for $1300 more.