At the April press launch of the all-new Mazda3, Mazda New Zealand managing director Andrew Clearwater said that there couldn’t be a better time for the arrival of this new model.

“The current Mazda3 has been a fantastic car for us in a segment that Mazda first made a name for itself with the 323. This car was introduced into this market 32 years ago,” says Mr. Clearwater.

“In 1977 it would have been hard to imagine that Mazda’s small car of the future would be powered by 2.0 litre and 2.5 litre engines – but then we have seen an upsizing of cars in all segments and a redefinition of what we term a small car.” 

“With the introduction of this new generation Mazda3, our passenger range has been fully renewed or updated over the past 18 months. I can say with a high degree of confidence that Mazda has never been in such a competitive position.”

The launch of the new Mazda3 follows the release of the second generation Mazda2 and Mazda6.  The previous Mazda3 sold more than 2 million vehicles in over 100 countries since its launch in 2003 and has won more than 90 global motoring awards.

The new car was developed by a global team of designers and modellers in Japan, the United States and Europe.  In total the team completed 304 hours of wind tunnel testing over 34 days at Mazda’s Miyoshi Proving Ground. 

The new Mazda3 was tested in more than 20 locations in 11 countries and included conditions ranging from very dry climates to hot, humid ones, as well as driving in extremely cold weather.  Temperatures ranged from minus 25 degrees to over 50 degrees.  Durability testing was carried out at Miyoshi Proving Ground as well as on European roads. 

Mazda3 prototypes were driven a total of 175,000km, the equivalent of four laps around the world, in roughly 30,000 hours of testing.

On the press launch drive programme we discovered that the car has emerged with a sporty ride but one that doesn’t make passengers feel uncomfortable, the electro-hydraulic power steering has a responsive feel, and the amount of road noise transmitted to the cabin is admirably muted for a small car.  

The new face of the Mazda3 has a five-point grille which is a design theme shared with the second generation Mazda2 and Mazda6, and the body has class-leading aerodynamics with drag coefficient (Cd) of only 0.31 (sedan) and 0.33 (hatchback). 

Mazda designers have ensured that the interior of the Mazda3 matches the style of the exterior.  It has been completely redesigned from the previous model with a focus on driver comfort and ease of use.

A driver can use the cars on board systems through the Human Machine Interface (HMI) without taking their eyes off the road.  A new top-mounted display is introduced that is positioned 100mm higher, just to the left of the steering wheel.  The new dash-mounted Multi-Information Display (MID) showing trip computer, audio system information, settings and maintenance reminders details (equipped to all models except the GLX), has a selector switch on the steering wheel for ease of operation.  Audio functions and cruise control settings are also controlled from the steering wheel (except GLX).

Other cabin features include air conditioning (dual climate controlled on SP25), power windows, mirrors, tilt and telescopic steering wheel, AUX jack for MP3 players, a 6-speaker CD player (GLX and GSX) and 10-speaker Bose audio system for SP25 and SP25 Limited models.  Safety features include Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), Traction Control System (TCS), Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD), Emergency Brake-Assist (EBA), driver and passenger front airbags, front side airbags and front and rear curtain airbags.

The new Mazda3 sedan is 90mm longer than the previous model while the hatchback is 45mm longer and both models are 5mm taller which means improved space for occupants.  New seats on all models are designed for more comfort on longer trips. Mazda says that the new car has plenty of small-item storage in the cabin and one of the segment’s better road views from the driver’s seat.

The new Mazda3 offers a new 2.5L engine with 122kW and 227Nm and an optimised 2.0L plant with 108kW and 182Nm as well as improvements to steering and suspension set-up.  Mazda says that the car has improved fuel economy thanks to the aerodynamics and a reduction in weight.  Mazda also says that the weight reduction doesn’t compromise body rigidity; and that in fact enhanced rigidity means better handling, occupant safety and transfer of road noise. We’ll verify this in our August road report when we have the opportunity to test the car for a longer period.

Available in sedan and 5-door hatch body styles with a choice of four specification levels, two transmissions and eight colours, the all-new Mazda3 became available for sale from May 1.  Every new Mazda3 will come with mazdacare genuine servicing for the first three years or 100,000km (whichever occurs first).