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When I first saw the specs of the new Mazda 3, I thought: welcome to the 21st century, Mazda.
In times when all brands develop downsized turbo engines, Mazda offers big, atmospheric machines only.
They call in 'rightsizing' instead of downsizing. But that's just words.
Last night, I spoke with some engineers from Mazda and I must say: they know how to sell it.
To make the engines more economical, they enhanced the compression ratio to 14:1, and that's a lot.
That makes the combustion more efficient. They claim as economical as downsized turbo engines.
That's in theory, but in practice even more economical.
Soon we'll test it in practice, but now we can only believe it.
But anyway, it's a pleasure to drive an old fashioned 2-liter in a car this size.
The power comes in smoothly, no waiting for the turbo to wake up.
It's almost retro. I love it.
I'm driving the 2-liter petrol with 120 HP.
There's an 1.6 as well, but that engine is hardly more economic.
Mazda was one of the first manufacturers to reduce the weight of new models.
This one is no exception, it feels more light weight.
The old 3 was a nice steering car, this new one is even better.
It's more sporty than a Golf, but not as sharp as a Focus, but close. Very nice.
The steering might be a bit light, but still very sharp.
The instruments are bend around the driver.
A bit boring though. Clean, but cheap looking plastics. Not bad, neither exiting.
In this version, the rev-meter is placed central. That's sporty.
And a head up display for more luxurious versions.
It's not projected in the windshield, but in a seperate display, like Peugeot.
I love this transmission. Very direct and precise.
This car will not win the Nobel prize for leg space in the rear.
They made the front seats very thin, but that could not solve this problem.
Head space is fine, though.
Anyway, I love this engine. But, how is the diesel?
Of course, they did fit a turbo on the diesel. A two stage version.
It's a fine, smooth engine as well. Rather silent.
I took the manual gearbox, but there's an automatic, too.
The new Mazda 3 comes to your local dealer October 26, first the hatchback petrol.
The diesel and saloon will follow later.
The complete test with specs and prices is published in AutoWeek magazine.
AutoWeek Verdict: + engines + equipment - leg space in rear - rear view