Mazda3 2.0L Astina 5Dr MT - Video Review
Watch our expert video as we review the Mazda3 2.0L Astina 5Dr MT
Mazda’s not so recent split from Ford has left it to venture off on its own path locally. As a result, the marketing team have been working overtime to get the brand out there and seen again. Billboards are dotted all along the highway and our TV screen are once again seeing the winged badge flashed in commercials.
It’s not the marketing that is drawing attention back to the brand, it’s the actual cars. The new KODO-Design styling elements are grabbing the public’s attention and making them sit up and take notice of the brand once again – a good thing, in anyone’s books.
The Mazda3 is a firm advocate of this movement and it’s not only the exterior, with its curvaceous lines and creases that has been drawing this attention, it’s been the car as a whole. The lights are sharp and pinched in all the right places with fog lamps situated low down in the front bumper. The open, gaping grill give the impression of a happy grin, if one were to personify the front end.
I personally prefer the look of the hatch over that of the sedan but that’s not to say that the sedan is any less attractive, it just lacks that edge that makes the Mazda3 hatch an exciting car to look at. The 2.0 Astina model rides on 18-inch wheels which fill the arches nicely and attributes to the entertaining road manners.
The interiors of the latest range of Mazda offerings are exemplary. If one can ignore the use of imitation carbon effect trim in places, the fit and feel befits that of a car in a much higher price bracket. Expanses of leather and raised stitching add an air of luxury while controls fall easily to hand.
The Mazda3 is devoid of an analogue speedometer but places a digital readout not only off to the side of the centrally mounted tachometer, but in a futuristic head up display that flips out from the binnacle when the car is started. This places the information closer to the driver’s line of sight and provides very little in the way of distraction.
While the Skyactive technology incorporated in the motor, gearbox and chassis is intended to improve the driving dynamics, safety and efficiency of the model, it’s the gearbox that stunts the motor’s progress. The 2.0-litre inline 4-cylinder produces 121kW and 210Nm but the somewhat lethargic shifts from the 6-speed automatic gearbox rob the Astina of some of its sportiness. The motor pulls well in the midrange but it is not robot-to-robot dicer, not with the automatic gearbox. Despite this the drive is engaging on several levels and traffic situations are dealt with ease and comfort.
The 3 includes a 7-inch dash-mounted touchscreen which looks a little out of place, akin to the units found on some Mercedes Benz models, but the addition of a centrally mounted control for the MZD unit makes using the infotainment system a pleasure. Connectivity includes Bluetooth, USB, SD card and Auxiliary inputs and the output is fantastic thanks to the Bose audio system.
The Mazda3 2.0 Astina Auto comes with a recommended retail price of R326 300 and is bundled with a 3-year / unlimited Km warranty and a 3-year / unlimited Km service plan with roadside assistance.
