Mazda3 1.6 MZ-CD Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Mazda3 MZ-CD 1.6
Prices: £15,760-£17,655 INSURANCE GROUPS: 8 [est]
Emissions: 119g/km
Performance: 0-62mph 11.0s / Top Speed 112mph
Fuel Consumption: (urban) 48.7mpg, (extra urban) 74.3mpg (combined) 62.8mpg
Safety: ABS, DSC, six airbags, active head restraints, seatbelt pre-tensioners.
Dimensions: [5dr] length/width/height 4460/1755/1470mm

CD PLAYER

Our Rating: 7.7 / 10

Mazda is determined to make an impact with its latest Mazda3 hatch. How does it fare in entry-level diesel form? Steve Walker takes a look.

There are a lot of different family hatchbacks out there vying our attention and to get it, they need to stand out. The latest Mazda3 has been created to do that job and once it has customers on the hook, a big proportion of them will be channelled towards models with the entry-level 1.6 MZ-CD diesel engine. It’s a unit with a big role to play but can it deliver the goods?

Competence is one thing. Getting the recognition and success that should accompany it is another. This is a problem that has afflicted the Mazda3 family hatchback. It’s been good for a long time but it hasn’t always commanded the attention it deserved from the buying public. We can probably forgive UK car customers this oversight. After all, the family hatchback market is hardly devoid of talent. Having carefully considered the Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Vauxhall Astra, Peugeot 308, Renault Megane and Volkswagen Golf, most of us wouldn’t have the grey matter left to take the SEAT Leon, Hyundai i30, Citroën C4 and Mazda3 into account before grinding out a decision on which to buy. The plan with the latest Mazda3 is to stand out more prominently in this illustrious company. It sounds simple but it isn’t and pulling it off won’t be easy.

A 1.6-litre diesel engine isn’t the sort of powerplant that leaps to mind when Mazda trumpets its Zoom-Zoom philosophy and the keen driver focus of its products. It has 108bhp at its disposal enabling a 0-62mph sprint of 11s. It always pays to remember, however, that power is not the final determiner of fun behind the wheel, even if it does help. The engine is a solid diesel unit using common-rail injection technology and generating 240Nm of torque from 1,750rpm. It can be found wanting in certain situations like when there’s a big hill to be accelerated up but generally, it’s adequately powerful for the Mazda3. Wind the windows down and the diesel rumble is clearly audible but comprehensive sound deadening means that refinement is strong with the windows raised. The Mazda3 handles very well too, and proves easy to enjoy on the road.

Based on the same basic underpinnings as the Ford Focus, the Mazda3 had a head start in the handling stakes. Unlike the majority of its key family hatch rivals, it has independent suspension for all four wheels rather than just the front pair. This higher tech approach manifests itself in the form of a more supple, fluid feel on the road. The Mazda3 rides reasonably well, soaking up the worst of the bumps while letting you know what’s going on, but it might be on the firm side for some tastes. The steering is responsive and the car changes direction sweetly, keeping body lean on a tight leash.

Mazda is determined that its products will no longer pass under the radar of buyers and has fashioned an adventurous design direction to see to it. The lines are almost organic in the way they curve around the vehicle’s surfaces, while the narrowly contoured headlights and the black grin of the huge central air-intake produce a malevolent front end. Both this gaping central vent and the smaller ones either side which house the fog lights on up-spec models are crossed by black fins, adding to the feeling that you could be looking at some giant insect. Mazda has aimed to retain some of the aggression and sporting focus of the exterior inside where the instruments are housed in two heavily hooded binnacles and the dash is divided in to curved tiers that mirror the lines of the bodywork, the upper one displaying important information in the driver’s eye-line. The seats are supportive and the handbrake and gear lever are mounted high-up within easy reach though the satellite navigation screen on the dash’s top tier is rather small.

The layout of the minor controls in the Mazda3 is ok but it can take a while to get to grips with the various systems. The materials used in places aren’t up to the high standards set elsewhere in this sector but build quality seems extremely good throughout. From a practical perspective, the storage options in the cabin aren’t particularly generous,