REVIEW | Sure, it serves a category whose popularity is waning. But on aesthetics alone, the model makes a rather convincing argument for the existence of this body format.
In any month of the year a varied assortment of wheeled machines run their way through our test basement. A humble Japanese hatchback playing in the C-segment seems like an unlikely candidate for wistful stares and enthusiastic conversation from passers-by. But then, describing the new Mazda3 as merely humble would probably be doing it a disservice.
Our white long-term Volkswagen Golf looked decidedly flat when parked next to the beauty from Hiroshima, in its glossy black paint job. An observation to be expected, maybe: the contender from Wolfsburg has always been subtle and evolutionary in its make-up. But there are many good reasons for its long-standing sales success – as well as its esteem as the segment benchmark.
Only good things could be said about the red leather upholstery and how it contrasted with that exterior colour. The top-tier 2.0-litre Astina we drove features every conceivable amenity as standard, including a head-up display that works even when you don polarised shades! A small nuisance in comparison to the biggest fly in the ointment: that engine. On paper, 121kW and 213Nm sounds quite reasonable. And sure, tootling around town, performance is fair. Then try and overtake with urgency on the freeway and see what happens.The four-cylinder petrol makes quite a din, without a commensurate increase in thrust. A six-speed automatic is on duty here. An old-fashioned manual might have been more fruitful in extracting the most from this mill.
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