2023 Mazda2 GT new car review

This small hatchback from one of Australia’s favourite car brands has a winning combination that newer and much more fancied rivals will find hard to beat.

2023 Mazda2.

If you don’t need an SUV, a hatchback will deliver better value for money and a more rewarding drive.

The Mazda2, the brand’s cheapest car, is worth a look for young couples in urban environments.

The updated Mazda2 doesn’t overhaul a winning formula.

VALUE

The Mazda2 is the cheapest car in the Japanese maker’s range, but cheap is a relative term in the post-Covid new-car market. The entry level Pure model costs $26,471 in manual guise and roughly $2000 more for the auto. Our test car was the mechanically identical top-of-the-range GT model, which costs close to $32,000. The extra spend is worth it, though, as the GT has a lot more fruit for the loot. There’s an imitation carbon-fibre roof that looks pretty cool, as well as partial leather upholstery, standard satnav and climate control airconditioning. Other equipment missing from the base model includes rain-sensing wipers, dusk-sensing headlights with LED daylight running lights, a colour driver display, a 360-degree parking camera and keyless entry. The centre display is smallish and it’s not a touchscreen, which means it’s a little cumbersome to navigate on the fly. But the quality of the cabin is a cut above most rivals, with nice touches including a leather-wrapped steering wheel. Mazda has a five-year/unlimited km warranty and a five-year capped service plan is a little pricey at $2116.

The cabin does feel dated compared to rivals.

COMFORT

The Mazda2 isn’t going to swallow a tribe but it is a comfortable conveyance for a couple with small kids. The seats are well bolstered and there’s enough travel in the front seat for drivers of all sizes to get comfortable. Space in the back seats is more limited. Leg and knee room is a little tight, especially if those in the front have long legs, while fitting three-abreast in the back is only advisable for short trips. The rear load area is also pretty small. It’s fine for a couple’s weekend away, but will struggle to swallow large strollers or prams. If you want more storage space, consider the sedan version, which has a boot big enough to swallow a set of golf clubs. There are no individual aircon vents in the second row, but it’s a small car, so you could argue they’re not needed. The 2 tends to crash over ruder bumps and road joins and the tyres can get a little vocal on some surfaces, but overall it’s a comfortable little cruiser.

Mazda’s puts plenty of standard safety tech in the 2.

SAFETY

Mazda’s attitude to safety puts a lot of more expensive cars to shame. Standard safety across the range includes lane-keeping assistance, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert. Unlike many rivals, the little Mazda has auto emergency braking in forward and reverse, which means if you’re pulling out of a driveway into passing traffic, it will hit the brakes to avoid an accident. The GT model ups the ante with radar cruise control, which maintains a safe distance to the car in front on the freeway. There is a caveat on the safety front, though. The Mazda2 no longer has a crash test safety rating. This is an old car – it was launched in 2014 and crash-tested in 2015 – so the safety rating has expired. At the time it was awarded five stars, but crash protection has moved on significantly since then.

The platform is old but the 2 remains one of the best driving small hatchbacks on the market.

ON THE ROAD

See above. The Mazda2 platform has been around for quite some time and it’s fair to say it’s slipped in the pecking order as rivals have introduced new models. Having said that, it was a class leader when it first launched and it holds up pretty well today. The steering is light but accurate, with decent feedback, and it still performs well when pointed at a series of corners on the open road. It’s light and nimble, with good balance, and the suspension does a good job of keeping things in check when the road gets bumpy and the speed climbs. The 1.5-litre four-cylinder needs to be revved hard to produce meaningful thrust, though, and it can’t match the punchiness of the small turbos favoured by a number of rivals. On the plus side, the auto remains a smooth shifter. It’s economical, too, using a claimed 5L/100km.

VERDICT 3.5/5

The cabin feels a little dated and the engine is no firecracker, but the Mazda2 remains a quality offering that’s fun to drive.

ALTERNATIVES

Toyota Yaris SX, about $31,800 drive-away. Identically priced, more modern, better fuel consumption but misses out on leather and some important safety features.

Suzuki Swift GLX Turbo, about $31,800 drive-away. Same price, similar power but more torque from 1.0-litre turbo, nice to drive but feels cheaper in the cabin.

Volkswagen Polo 85TSI Life, about $34,300 drive-away. More expensive but has a more modern cabin and more powerful turbo engine. Misses out on some safety features.

MAZDA 2 G15 GT

PRICE About $31,800 drive-away

ENGINE 1.5-litre four-cylinder, 81kW/142Nm

WARRANTY/SERVICING Five years/unlimited km (if serviced with Mitsubishi) $1300 for five years

SAFETY Six airbags, auto emergency braking, lane-departure and blind-spot assist, rear cross-traffic alert

THIRST 5.0L/100km

SPARE Space saver

LUGGAGE 250 litres

Originally published as 2023 Mazda2 GT new car review