  2014 Mazda3. Click image to enlarge |
Preview by Jonathan Yarkony, photos by Jonathan Yarkony and courtesy Mazda
New York, NY – Mazda is so excited about its new compact 2014 Mazda3, they had their own New York Auto Show for it. With no convenient auto show available before its fall 2013 launch (with North America first!), Mazda planned a dedicated reveal to introduce the new Kodo sheet metal, Skyactiv engineering and refined interior of the 2014 Mazda3. Mazda is quick to acknowledge that this is their most important model, available globally and accounting for over 30 percent of US sales. It is particularly strong in the Canadian market, where it is the source of 50 percent of Mazda sales here, and has dabbled in past years with the bestselling Civic as a sales leader in the compact segment. So why not give it a show where it can be the uncontested centre of attention?
Design-wise, it is cutting edge, taking the sharp creases and katana–inspired chrome highlights we first saw on the Shinari and Takeri concepts, then the production CX-5 and Mazda6. On the Mazda3, the detailing remains exciting and intricate, especially those headlights and character lines, but personally I find that the narrower and taller body don’t quite play out as well as the wide, low Mazda6. Nonetheless, this look is sophisticated and aggressive enough (almost angry, even) to suit current trends. Feel free to judge for yourselves from these pictures and chime in with your own thoughts on its styling in our forum.
   2014 Mazda3. Click image to enlarge |
Inside, the Mazda3 takes its own path, differing from the CX-5 and ‘6 with a dash-top infotainment screen a la Mercedes CLA/B-Class. Between the knob and the screen, the centre stack features a modern, high-tech design with climate controls that can be automated on upper trims.
In full dress, the Mazda3 features an iDrive-like knob-scroll-wheel controller for the infotainment system, which offers navigation, full audio compatibility through USB/auxiliary input. Mazda is calling this infotainment system their Human Machine Interface (HMI), and I expect you’ll be seeing a lot of marketing material to such effect. Basically, Mazda divides the information up into multiple screens, including the gauges, the screen on the dash as well as a head-up display.
The ‘3 will also offer a wide range of connectivity features so that your car will be best friends with your smartphone. The car can then play your music playlists or the Aha radio app, possibly on the optional Bose audio system. It will also read emails and messages for certain devices, and even read out latest tweets and Facebook updates. Because we need Facebook updates while we’re driving.
For decorative effect, there is also a slash of satin-finish silver plastic between the soft-touch black plastic of the upper dash and hard plastic of the lower dash and surrounding areas, a bit of piano-black gloss plastic around the shifter gate and the odd carbon-fibre-patterned plastic thrown in for good measure. The switchgear is all as sturdy and well finished as that of the Mazda6, so it is well ahead of the curve for this segment. The steering wheel on the pre-production sample we saw was leather and stitched for a sporty effect. The gauges, too were modern, with a central tach and two wings with ancillary information.
   2014 Mazda3. Click image to enlarge |
However, there’s also a new screen behind the steering wheel – for the head-up display! Oh wait, it’s called Active (not Activ?) Driving Display that projects vehicle speed, navigation info and other important driving information on a clear panel vertically mounted behind the instrument cluster hood.
Let’s talk size. Dimensionally, both the sedan and hatch have grown in wheelbase and width while shrinking in length and height, but with the intent to preserve passenger space through better packaging efficiency. For example, the front seat backs have been hollowed out for better knee room, and the seats lowered to preserve headroom. Still, it’s no Lincoln Town Car back there, and rear legroom (down 10 mm to 909 mm) now trails the Civic and Corolla even if, on paper, it is better than the Elantra GT that I found very accommodating in the rear seat. Sitting in the back seat, I found it tight, even for this segment (but still slightly better than the Focus, which at 843 mm of legroom can feel downright claustrophobic.).
  2014 Mazda3. Click image to enlarge |
Globally, the Mazda3 will be available with everything from a 1.5L four-cylinder gas engine to a 2.2L diesel, all of them Skyactiv. However, Canadians will see only the 2.0L and 2.5L Skyactiv-G four-cylinder gasoline power plants, but that is a great start. I’m sure Mazda will be keeping an eye on Cruze diesel sales to see if it is worth it to enter that market.
And file this in your crazy speculation files: Mazdaspeed3 with the diesel 2.2L Skyactiv-D powerplant. Crazy, right? But wait, in the Mazda6 it is expected to produce 173 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque (who wouldn’t want to have 300+ lb-ft of torque in a sport compact?), and Mazda has begun racing the Mazda6 Skyactiv-D to almost instant success, winning its class at Rolex Grand-Am GX race at Road Atlanta. It won’t even be the first diesel hot hatch destined for North America as Volkswagen is set to bring their diesel-powered sporty GTD in 2015. But enough about diesel-powered sport compacts, let’s talk about the models coming this fall.
The 155-hp, 148 lb-ft 2.0L should already be familiar to Canadians as it is the powertrain currently on offer in the Mazda3 GS-Sky trim. What was once an upgrade is now the base engine, and the 2.5L top-spec gains almost 20 hp and lb-ft in addition to expected fuel consumption savings. Not only that, the new Skyactiv 2.5 torque output at low- to mid-range speeds is increased by up to 15 percent over the MZR 2.5 engine, and the weight is reduced by 10 percent. At 184 hp and 185 lb-ft of torque, it is ample power for a car that should weigh no more than its 1,387 kg predecessor (in GT manual trim). It sure seems fine in the larger, heavier CX-5 and Mazda6, so this might be quite the little warm hatch for modest driving enthusiasts.
    2014 Mazda3. Click image to enlarge |
However, one of the Skyactiv engines and both transmissions (six-speed manual and automatic) were already on offer, but this Mazda3 generation is the full Skyactiv deal, from powertrain through to chassis, platform and aerodynamics. The Mazda3 will feature the braking-bonus i-ELOOP system that captures brake waste energy and stores it in a capacitor, decreasing the load on the gas engine for certain electrical tasks.
The body loses weight and increases rigidity by about 30 percent over the previous model, aided by a dual brace structure that keeps body twist in check when cornering. While Mazda has yet to provide final specs on our North American models, company reps ballpark the weight savings at about 90 kg compared to equivalent models. On the aerodynamics front, Mazda adopts the active grille shutter and wind-tunnel design to achieve a drag coefficient of 0.275 for the hatchback and 0.255 for the sedan, figures that would make it best in class.
While these improvements are sure to benefit fuel efficiency, we have yet to find out by exactly how much. Official fuel estimates will arrive soon, we are told.
The 2014 Mazda3 also seeks to address cabin noise levels without cheating on their diet, Mazda citing a new lightweight material with a high level of noise absorption strategically placed to suck up road and engine noise.
Of course, what’s a new model launch without active safety features, even in this compact class? Greg Wilson previously covered the i-Activesense suite of safety technologies in the Mazda6 in great detail, so I won’t delve too deep into them here. However, Mazda claims that the ‘3 is the first vehicle in its class to feature all the following together: High Beam Control, Blind Spot Monitoring System, Lane Departure Warning, Forward Obstruction Warning, Smart City Brake, and Mazda Radar Cruise Control (late availability). No doubt these will be part of only the highest trims with tech package as on the Mazda6, but nonetheless, impressive that they will all be available on a compact.
No word yet on pricing, fuel efficiency or trims, but the car will be built in Hiroshima, Japan, with possible added capacity coming from a plant under construction in Mexico at a later date. Information and images of the sedan are expected to follow shortly as well.
Competitors:
Chevrolet Cruze
Dodge Dart
Ford Focus
Honda Civic
Hyundai Elantra
Kia Forte
Nissan Sentra
Subaru Impreza
Toyota Corolla
Volkswagen Golf/Jetta
