First Drive Review
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The segment may have a new king.
Since its 2003 debut, the Mazda 3 has always left us grinning. We even kept grinning after Mazda’s designers pasted an actual smile on the face of the second-generation model. That stylistic misstep turned out to be one of our biggest gripes with the old 3; others were essentially limited to a smallish rear seat and so-so fuel economy when equipped with the 2.5-liter engine. Still, a 3 with the 2.5 finished a strong second behind the current Ford Focus and ahead of a Volkswagen Jetta, a Chevrolet Cruze, and a Hyundai Elantra in a 2011 comparison test.
No Bones About These Bones
And now the Mazda 3 has been thoroughly redone for 2014, and the result just might stand a chance at unseating the 10Best-winning Ford Focus, a comparison-test darling, as king of the segment. Previously, this would have constituted a sibling rivalry, as the 3 shared a platform with the first-generation Focus. But with Ford and Mazda’s divorce finalized, the Japanese company whipped up its own lightweight Skyactiv architecture and slid it under the new Mazda 3. (The Skyactiv name is also applied to the platforms that support the CX-5 and new 6, but the 3’s structure, while being conceptually similar, is unique.)
According to Mazda, the new structure boasts a 30-percent improvement in torsional rigidity and curb weight is down by about 60 and 100 pounds depending on trim level. We haven’t weighed the new 3 on our scales, but Mazda’s numbers are generally within a few pounds of ours, so figure on a weight range of 2800–3050 pounds. Other pertinent numbers: The wheelbase is stretched by 2.4 inches, overall length is down by just over half an inch in the sedan version and by 1.8 inches on the five-door, width is up by 1.6 inches, and height is down by 0.6 inch. Rear-seat space is now class-competitive and comfortable for six-footers.
But dimensional differences will be the last thing on your mind when you lay eyes on the new 3. Mazda has combined elements of the 6 sedan and the CX-5 SUV to create a very handsome and elegant compact. Notable cues are a relatively long nose and upright windshield. The proportions are closer to those of a rear-drive car than of the cab-forward designs worn by the Hyundai Elantra and Honda Civic. Even the sedan looks fantastic, which is something that cannot be said of most compacts, including the Ford Focus. That new body is also quite aerodynamic according to Mazda, but the major boost in fuel economy comes from the 2.0-liter and 2.5-liter four-cylinder engines.
Skyactiv’s the Limit
Mazda fans might recognize the 2.0-liter Skyactiv engine, the powerplant in all 3i models. In the previous 3, the Skyactiv 2.0-liter was fitted with a fairly conventional exhaust manifold designed to fit in the old architecture’s smaller engine compartment. But the 2.0-liter was designed to have a bulkier, larger exhaust manifold, which now fits in the new car. Why should you care? Because it delivers more mid-range torque. At the 4000-rpm torque peak, the ’14’s engine is only up 2 lb-ft over last year, but it delivers 148 lb-ft at 3000 rpm, as much as the old version did at its 4100-rpm peak. Coupled with the six-speed automatic, the 2.0-liter is expected to return EPA numbers of 30 mpg city and 41 highway in the sedan and 30/40 in the hatchback. Manual versions achieve the same highway numbers, but lose one mpg in the city cycle.
Acceleration isn’t exactly strong in the base 3i, but the 155-hp engine has enough muscle to pull itself to freeway speeds without eliciting any worry from the driver. Engine noise is kept distant and the note doesn’t really change as the revs increase. There’s no waiting for the power to arrive, but rather a smooth, steady stream of pull.
Performance junkies will likely gravitate toward the more powerful 184-hp 2.5-liter Skyactiv engine of the 3s. Opting for the 2.5-liter brings quicker acceleration without much of a fuel-economy penalty. What the larger engine will cost is still up in the air; the upcharge to fit a (non-Skyactiv) 2.5 in the outgoing model was $1550.
Specifications
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan or 5-door wagon
ESTIMATED BASE PRICE: $18,000
ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 16-valve 2.0-liter inline-4, 155 hp, 150 lb-ft; DOHC 16-valve 2.5-liter inline-4, 184 hp, 185 lb-ft
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual, 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 106.3 in
Length: 175.6180.3 in
Width: 70.7 in Height: 57.3 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 28003050 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST):
Zero to 60 mph: 7.28.2 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 15.516.6 sec
Top speed: 130 mph
FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 2830/3741 mpg
Continued…