The Mazda2 diesel auto – is it 1 of a kind?

We have seen many smaller diesel hatchbacks come and go, as manufacturers place onto the showroom the great idea of combining the torque and economy of a diesel engine with the all-round friendliness and affordability of a hatch. 

But then some of these cars are taken off the market due to slow sales.  Part of this phenomenon is that diesel engines are almost always priced higher than their petrol equivalents.  Launching a diesel hatch into a budget-restricted segment means the potential buyers turn away.

Another part of the slow sales problem is the manual-only gearboxes – just look at the majority sales percentage of compact executive sedans and SUVs that are bought with diesel engines and automatic gears fitted.  Because they work together well.  When you have a manual diesel, especially in a smaller car, the torque band of the turbo diesel engine makes it sometimes difficult to drive smoothly, by either getting stuck in low-rev turbo lag followed by a sudden coming-alive of the turbo acceleration, only to quickly run out of revs again – letting the car do the gearchanges takes care of these frustrations… perhaps the manual-only insistence of compact diesel hatchbacks is what has put buyers off.

So has the newly-formed Mazda SA, having finally split from Ford SA, come up with a solution?  Has it taken note of the abovementioned sales success in other car segments?  It seems so: filtering all new cars for diesel and automatic (which is the combo you should prefer to buy) the cheapest car, by far, is the Mazda2 1.5DE Hazumi auto.  At R 259 900 it is the only diesel auto car under the R 300 000 mark!  That is remarkable.  In fact, as at May 2015, the next cheapest diesel auto is the Volkswagen Jetta 1.6TDI Comfortline auto, at R 323 700.  The rest are over R350k.  Mazda has filled a gap in the market.  Well done.

The new Mazda2 was launched into the local market in February 2015, with a simple-to-grasp model line-up of 1.5 petrol or this 1.5DE diesel, tested.  Prices range from R 188 000 for the Mazda2 1.5 Active (petrol manual) through Dynamic and Individual (both manual or auto) and tops out at this new “Hazumi” spec.

The first Mazda2 was appreciated for its light-footed fun-to-drive character.  It felt lightweight and nimble.  Has the new car been able to retain this desired ability?  Thankfully, yes.  The Mazda2 has not grown much in size, keeping the dimensions compact and friendly.  Now add in the liveliness of a willing turbo diesel engine and the comfort of a quick-shifting smooth 6-speed automatic (yes, 6 gears is unusual in this sector) and it is a joy to drive.  The engine is refined and very economical, and combined with the automatic, makes it one of the most pleasant city cars too.  Mazda claims 4.4 l/100km for combined driving, which seems entirely achievable, and gives a range of 1000km per tank.  On paper the numbers read 0-100 in what seems like a slow 10.1 seconds, but in reality the get-up&go is sparkly.

The other part of the market positioning problem is that manufacturers bring in the diesel hatchbacks only as top-spec models, exacerbating the cost of the already more-expensive diesel engine and added cost of more equipment (perhaps to partially disguise the extra cost of the diesel engine?) which counts against the car standing a chance to perform well.  Now if Mazda SA could bring in a Dynamic-spec with this drivetrain, they’d have a sure-thing winner.

The exterior of the Mazda2 you can judge for yourself – it has an easy-on-the-eye sculpted shape, which looks modern and distinctive, and as fresh as a fresh apple.  The paint colour of the test car, if you want to order it in this warm pink metallic, is named Smoky Rose.

Get inside and the simplicity is what is appreciated – just a few controls on the dashboard, with the rest taken care of by the touch-screen and a very executive-car controller with menu buttons, placed within easy reach, horizontally next to the driver’s seat.  It is easy to operate, and one can choose to use either the controller or the touch-screen for same functions, which is unusual, but also allows for different users, or user types and moods.  One irritation is that, every time you start the car, the screen defaults to the Communications menu, irrespective of where you left it when you stopped.  Also not seeing the point of having a Navigation menu option, only to find local cars do not have satnav (which has to be linked) so you have a huge compass on the screen.

Smart finishes make this a pleasant place to drive in – leather steering wheel, carbon-effect finishes on the steering wheel spokes, and even soft-touch leather padding across the dashboard and down the centre console, with red stitching, complimented nicely by a thick red line down the centre of the seats, trimmed in leather.  The Hazumi also has automatic climate control. 

The airbags are limited to 2 front – side or at least curtain airbags really ought to be included here.  Thankfully the Hazumi spec included stability control (which other spec levels don’t).

Mazda2 competes with a list of other modern compact hatches, like Opel Corsa, Honda Jazz, Peugeot 208, Volkswagen Polo, Ford Fiesta, Kia Rio, Hyundai i20, Toyota Yaris etc., but is unique in offering a diesel auto.

The Mazda2 diesel auto – is it 1 of a kind?  Yes, it is – the only diesel automatic car under R300k new.  Do we have a winner?  It is a price winner, and the liveliness and efficiency make it a winner.