Mazda3 Diesel: Australia's First Japanese Diesel Small Car Motoring Channel Staff - 16/August/2007 | 
Mazda3 Diesel: MZR CD
Driven by a 2.0-litre turbo diesel engine, the
Mazda3 Diesel's fuel consumption is 6.0L/100km
Mazda has tuned the suspension to be a
little stiffer than the standard Mazda3, to
match the engine's increased torque output
The new Mazda3 name is on the front door
|
Melbourne, Australia —
The Europeans started it, and now the Asian car makers are joining the
fray. We are talking about diesel-powered small cars: Mazda has just
introduced the Mazda3 Diesel. The Australian pricing is as follows:  Mazda3 Diesel sedan: $30,500
Mazda3 Diesel hatch: $30,500
Though
the Mazda3 trails the Toyota Corolla in outright sales, Mazda claims
that this is only due to fleet sales of the Toyota small car, saying
the Mazda3 is the "Private buyers’ favourite small car". It
expects the new model to buoy interest in diesel small cars, and
considering that it boasts a best-in-class 360Nm of torque, it has
every chance of achieving improved sales too. The all-important fuel consumption figures for the 2.0-litre MZR-CD diesel engine are impressive: 6.0L/100km on the combined city/highway cycle. Mazda claims the new vehicle can travel 916km on a tank of fuel in varying traffic conditions, while a cruising range of more than
1010km is possible when driving exclusively on the highway, where it sips 5.4L/100km. As
well it's impressive fuel economy, the Mazda3 Diesel is also
effortlessly powerful. Developing 360Nm of torque @ 2000rpm and 105kW
of power @ 3500rpm, you hardly need to the rev the engine to get strong
response. Mazda has released preliminary figures that suggest the new
Mazda3 Diesel can accelerate from zero to 100km/h in 9.5 seconds. Rivals such as the Ford Focus TDCi
start at $27,990, but Mazda is confident it's new model will find
favour with new car buyers. Mazda Australia's managing
director Doug Dickson explained that the Mazda6 Diesel
has paved the way further diesel models: "The sales success of the
Mazda6 Diesel convinced us that a Mazda3 Diesel would find a ready
market here. Our
own research confirmed this. "Mazda's target customers, the so called
high involvement buyers – Australians interested in the driving
experience – said they are attracted to diesel for the technology as
well as the potential fuel gains. And recent Roy Morgan data
shows that 60 per cent of our target customers would consider
purchasing a diesel powered car in the next year. But only 47 per cent
of them would consider a hybrid," revealed Mr Dickson. At
present, Mazda has no plans to introduce a hybrid model, but the
Japanese company has been working on hydrogen-powered engines in recent
times, including an RX-8 that uses a dual-fuel hydrogen-petrol rotary
engine. "The Mazda brand and our
vehicles have strong appeal with high involvement buyers, therefore
research such as the Roy Morgan data further validates our decision to
broaden the availability of this engine technology by offering it in
our most popular model, the Mazda3," added Mr Dickson. Standard
features for the $30,500 Mazda3 Diesel include 16-inch alloy
wheels, a sports body kit, and the same 6-speed manual gearbox from the
Mazda3 MPS and Mazda6 MPS flagship models. MZR-CD badges on both front doors identify the vehicle as a fuel efficient diesel-powered car. Dynamic
stability control and traction control are standard, as are six
airbags, ABS, EBD, and larger brakes than the 2.0-litre petrol Mazda3,
which have been fitted to deal with the diesel cars improved
performance. Standard comfort features include air-conditioning, 6-disc CD changer, wheel mounted audio and cruise
controls, power windows and mirrors,
cruise control and an iPod compatible stereo input
jack. Facts & Figures: Mazda
Australia wants to sell 130 Mazda3 Diesel models every month, and is
predicting the sedan split to mirror the petrol variants, taking
about 70
per cent of the sales. To the end of June Mazda had
sold a record 17,776 Mazda3's making it the second best seller in
Australia's largest market segment (small cars). And with 15,517 of
those classified as private sales by VFACTS Mazda3 is the private sales
leader in this all-important market segment. Mazda
continues to lead the importers outselling its closest full-line import
rival by 6936 sales (or a significant 21.6 per cent). Overall Mazda is
fourth in the market place, outselling local manufacturer Mitsubishi. Related articles:
- All-new Mazda6 (2008)
- Mazda2 (2008)
- Mazda6 MPS (Road Test)
- Mazda6 Sport (Road Test)
- Mazda MX-5 Roadster Coupe (Road Test)
- Mazda6 Diesel (2007)
- Mazda Ryuga (concept)
- Mazda Nagare (concept)
- Mazda CX-9 (2008) |
