ENGAGE LOW RANGE
MAZDA’S FIRST EV IS GREAT TO DRIVE, BUT DOES IT GO FAR ENOUGH?
IT’S SAID that numbers never lie, but sometimes they can deliver a bit of a smokescreen that can cast a veil across reality.
And as dull as number can be – unless you’re an easily excited mathematician – they’re impossible to ignore when explaining the strengths and weaknesses of Mazda’s first production EV.
We’ll deal with the thorny issue of range and recharging in a moment; first, let’s take the electric MX30’s peak power and 0-100km/h acceleration times as examples. In isolation, the numbers look limp. The motor makes 107kW, which is actually 7kW down on the max output of the 2.0-litre petrol engine in the red G20e Astina I’ve been in for the last few months, while the quoted 0-100km/h time of 9.7sec sounds like a bit of a snooze fest.
Ah, but this is EV land, where raw numbers often don’t fully illuminate the on-road experience. In the urban environment for which the MX-30 is largely intended, I reckon it actually feels quick enough. Its peak torque of 270Nm is 70Nm up on the ICE car, even if it has an additional 200kg to shift. That max torque is on tap the moment you’re rolling, so throttle response absolutely smashes the ICE car. And because it’s all so hushed and seamless, you happily throw lots of throttle at it for performance that feels way feistier than that 0-100km/h time would suggest.
No, it doesn’t have that really aggressive, coiled-spring response to the throttle pedal of high-powered EVs, but there’s plenty of punch available if you’re willing to flex the right ankle enough. I actually love driving this car way more than I did the ICE version. The polished, singleratio drivetrain makes the petrol engine mated to the six-speed auto feel archaic by comparison.
The ‘sound design’ is interesting, too. To help mask the slight whine of the motor, and presumably to ape a more conventional driving experience, Mazda has given the MX-30 a subtle, distant engine sound that rises and falls in direct correlation to application of the throttle. Another reviewer reckoned
it sounded like a rotary, but not to my ears it doesn’t. Maybe partly because the overall powertrain operation is so silken, I’m hearing the ghosts of a BMW V12 lifted from a 7 Series; that distant, ultra-cultured thrum of a strong engine with perfect primary balance using its low-end muscle. Good thing I like it, because it can’t be switched off. But it’s very subtle, and quickly masked by the Bose sound system once the volume is turned up above conversational level.
Then there’s the battery re-gen, which is an intrinsic part of the EV driving experience. It’s also one that I’ve learned is incredibly subjective. Some people love the ‘one-pedal’ driving that strong re-gen provides, allowing them to largely avoid the brake simply by anticipating traffic and letting the motor do the slowing.
If you’re that type of EV driver, you may be disappointed by the MX-30’s calibration, because even in its strongest mode, it’s not quite enough to keep you off the brakes in stop-start traffic. The default is a mid-strength re-gen setting, with the paddles allowing either two right clicks to (first) loosen the braking effect then pretty much eliminate re-gen altogether, or two left clicks to progressively increase it. I reckon it’s a near-perfect spread of re-gen choices, and aside from the small but useful addition it makes to the car’s range in urban driving, it really does give you an added level of driver interaction with the car. On flat terrain, in light traffic, I go for two clicks up of the right paddle (minimal re-gen) to give the powertrain a loping, free-coasting feel that requires barely any throttle pressure to maintain the speed limit. If the road descends, or traffic thickens, I add re-gen via the left paddle to trim speed back.
But it’s the tiny range from the 35kWh battery that will be a dealbreaker for many buyers before they even look at the electric MX-30’s price. Initially the display was suggesting 189km from a full charge; now it’s factored in my driving style, typical range is 168km. Weekends away require some planning around recharging. Sydney to Melbourne? I’d say hire a car or find a car-swap buddy.
I’ve been recharging from a regular 240v powerpoint, which takes overnight (around 12 hours) to replenish the battery from 10 to 100 percent. A wallbox would cut this to around five and a half hours.
Which would also add a few grand to the hefty purchase price of $65K, so little wonder I’m yet to a see another MX-30 EV on the road. It’s a great car to drive, just not vast distances.