Mazda has used its impressive new 3 hatchback as the basis for a compact crossover
The Mazda CX-30 is yet more evidence that the third age of the crossover is in full swing.If you’re a car maker, it’s probably already too late to jump on the first age’s Nissan Qashqai-sized bandwagon, given that every industry player and his dog already has done so; and it’s getting too late, even, to launch a cheaper and more compact, Renault Captur-sized second-age one. With any luck, it’ll all be over soon.It’s the high-design, fashion-item crossovers that have become the growth area now: the likes of the Mini Countryman, Audi Q2, BMW X2, Lexus UX, Volkswagen T-Roc and Toyota C-HR, which sacrifice a little bit of their added practicality for extra visual appeal.Mazda is the latest to enter the sub-segment. The company’s sales pitch for the CX-30 claims that it offers the cabin space of the CX-5 in a footprint much closer to that of the CX-3, but exterior design appeal combined with a classy material finish inside is what the car is really all about.It will arrive in the UK later this year with a choice of two petrol engines. The more powerful is Mazda’s new part-time compression-ignition 2.0-litre Skyactiv-X motor, which we’ve tested previously in a prototype. Both petrols have 12-volt mild hybrid assistance, and there will be no diesel option – at least not for us Brits.
Source: Autocar
