2012 Mazda 2 -Poised To Handle The Main Task At Hand – Driving

April 2, 2012 by Vinod Khanchandani
Filed under Car Reviews, Mazda

Good

Affordable price; sporty handling; simple to operate controls; cheerful styling.

Bad

Cramped back seats; smaller cargo area unlike rivals; outdated automatic transmission; sparsely appointed interior.

Introduction

2012 Mazda 2 is a stylish and fun new addition to the company’s lineup and brings a fresh rival to the burgeoning subcompact market in North America. It offers a fun drive in an economical hatchback, however comes up short when compared to more practical competition. With a rocking power to weight ratio and razor-sharp handling, the Mazda 2 is a subcompact vehicle, which delivers big time fun-to-drive. Add up the standard features such as remote keyless entry and ABS brakes and you will see: This is a Mazda through and through. There is a lot to gain by losing a little excess weight – reduced emissions, increased fun and enhanced performance. However, as any Mazda engineer will tell you, dropping 100kg can only happen gram by gram, and to do that needs a wealth of knowledge and an obsession for details to create a lighter vehicle without compromising its crash performance or structural rigidity. For achieving this, the engineers of the company designed and engineered a “Gram Strategy,” a process which involved meticulously reengineering and analyzing every possible component of Mazda 2 one by one to be at least one gram lighter, and creating a frame using “Triple H” construction and lighter yet stronger high tensile steel. The result: a meaner and leaner Mazda 2.

The Mazda 2 is basically a subcompact vehicle developed and designed by Mazda and launched in the year 1996. It is now in its 3rd generation, sold internationally also as Mazda 2 and originally marketed under various nameplates including Mazda Metro, Ford Festiva Mini Wagon and Mazda 121. The 3rd generation Mazda 2 earned 2008 World Car of the Year title. When it came to facelift the Revue, the company came up with a tall hatchback, minivan-esque package. Launched in a time full of negative press coverage, the 2 became a surprise hit for Mazda in Japan, and also prefigures the present crop of B-segment minivans including the Fiat Idea, the Renault Modus and Opel Meriva.

The Mazda 2 was redesigned on DY platform in the year 2002 and its name continued in Japan. Since debut, it has been well received by the market pushing its Japanese domestic sale to as high as 7th position. The badge-designed Ford version, the Ford Fusion is no longer made as the company started importing Ford Fiesta on the Global Ford B3 platform that’s based on the company’s DY platform. The vehicle is designed and engineered for Europe at a Ford facility situated in Valencia, Spain. All 2 models come with EBD and ABS, while the stability control is optional. A pioneering feature available in Japan is e-4WD, a hybrid car type system that uses an electric generator for powering the rear wheels of this front wheel drive vehicle when required. In 2, this system is used only as a traction aid, not for increased fuel economy like other vehicles.

Don’t let its subcompact size fool you. The 2012 Mazda offers five-passenger seating capacity and up to 27.8 cubic feet of cargo room with its 60/40 split folding rear seatbacks down. The deep cargo floor and standard six-way adjustable driver’s seat allow for even more custom storage solutions. Multiple cup holders, cell phone/iPod holder and other hidden storage areas help for creating a custom-fit experience. Wide taillights and headlights, and available halogen foglights, give it an athletic appearance while increasing airflow over the Mazda2’s back and around its sides. The convenient fifth door and sporty silhouette conceal a surprising amount of cargo space, while the sculpted exterior cuts down on wind resistance while catching light for an alluring look from any angle. The available race-inspired rear roofline spoiler reduces turbulence, offering further proof that Mazda2 is one subcompact with the soul of a sportscar.

The 2012 Mazda 2 is the latest in a line of insightful, hugely fun-to-drive and stylish small cars from the company, which will bring an all new level of refinement to the class, like the Mazda 3 did for compact C-Car market. It is a vehicle, which only the engineers at Mazda could have created. It was developed and designed from scratch to be a pure Mazda, providing the sort of driving experience that could only come from the company that developed the timeless Mazda MX-5 two-seat roadster. It brings a combination of dynamic performance and athletic design to the subcompact segment that simply doesn’t exist at this time.

In pursuit of a richly expressive exterior design and a solid form, Mazda established an exterior design theme of “coordinated movement”. In line with this theme, the design team fused the visual movements produced by the silhouette of 2012 Mazda 2, its body lines, and the way in which patterns of light played on the body to create dynamic, multifaceted expressions not usually seen on B-car. These expressions exude a powerful energy, which makes Mazda 2 look as though it is moving while standing still. Key exterior design elements include: a deeply sculpted form in which the body is drawn inward aft and fore of A-pillars; unique character lines which extend from front fender arches to body shoulders and a sporty wedge shape which conveys a strong sense of forward motion.

The 2012 Mazda 2 is closely related to the inspiring Ford Fiesta, and as with the Fiesta, its driving dynamics are one of its main strengths. It boasts a fun-to-drive nature, with its light weight, diminutive size, quick steering and nimble handling. It is also quite a cheerful little car with cute styling. Sadly, the Mazda also comes with its share of drawbacks such as it doesn’t provide much in the way of cargo space, a Honda Fit can carry about twice as much gear. Its rear seats are cramped and its fuel economy is nothing to brag about; its limited features list might also be a concern. Take a drive in 2012 2 and it will no doubt charm you with its spunky, back to basics personality. With the ever-increasing quality of subcompacts, consumers would be wise to check out the aforementioned Fiesta, Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio and the new Chevrolet Sonic.

Variants, Body Types and Features

The 2012 Mazda 2 is a hatchback offered in two trims – Touring and Sport. Standard on Sport include air conditioning, 15-inch steel wheels, a tilt steering wheel, a four-speaker sound system with an auxiliary input jack and a CD player and full power accessories.

Opting for the Touring trim will get you foglights, 15-inch alloy wheels, chrome exhaust tips, a rear roof spoiler, a trip computer, a leather wrapped steering wheel with audio controls, upgraded cloth seats with red piping, two additional speakers for the audio system and cruise control. Factory options for either trim level include a center console with an armrest and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. Unlike some competitors, upscale factory features such as Bluetooth (it’s a dealer accessory here), an integrated navigation system and heated seats aren’t available.

What’s Beneath the Hood of 2012 Mazda 2?

Motivation for the 2012 Mazda 2 comes from an inline four-cylinder 1.5 liter engine, which is good for pulsating 100 horsepower with 98 pound feet of torque. The engine is mated to five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. In performance testing, it accelerated from 0 to 60 miles per hour in the time range of 10.3 seconds and offered the fuel economy of 35 mpg highway, 29 mpg city and 32 mpg in combined driving.

Safety & Reliability

The 2012 Mazda 2 comes with standard safety features, which include front seat side airbags, antilock brakes (discs in front/drums in rear), stability and traction control and side curtain airbags. In brake testing, the 2 came to a stop in 129 feet from 60 mph miles per hour. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gave Mazda 2 its top rating of “Good” in roof strength and frontal offset tests.

Special Features and Cockpit Design

The interior of 2012 Mazda 2 gets the job done, but not much more. Room to live large, the 2 seats you plus four. The overall design is without flourish, but there is an unexpected honesty about the interior, thanks to simple controls. Hard plastics are plentiful, but that is to be expected. The front seats offer enough room for taller adults and are relatively comfortable, though the lack of telescoping steering wheel is a notable omission.

Driving Impressions

The 100-horsepower output from the 2012 Mazda 2’s 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine is weak by today’s norms, even for an economy vehicle. There is a common misconception that strength comes from weight, a misconception that engineers at Mazda have rigorously challenged time and time again. Built with high tensile steel and Triple H body construction, the strong and lightweight Mazda2 provides an ultimate in safety engineering. Reinforced passenger and driver compartments offer protection on all sides, while the standard collapsible steering column absorbs energy in the event of a heavy frontal impact. The foldaway brake assembly reduces the risk of serious injuries to the ankle and leg. Specialized adhesives between panels and additional spot-welds help enhance body strength where it counts and impact absorption where needed. Bottom line: A light ride can be a safe one, and the Mazda2 is proof of that.

Tags: 2012 Mazda 2 specs, Mazda 2 2012, Mazda 2 engine