2011 Mazda 2 Review and Prices

by Chuck Giametta

2011 MAZDA 2 BUYING ADVICE

• The 2011 Mazda 2 is the best subcompact car for you if the feisty 2011 Ford Fiesta appeals to your automotive needs but not to your brand consciousness.

• The 2011 Mazda 2 is a fuel-sipping front-wheel-drive hatchback that’ll compete with such mighty mites as the Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris. It aims for class-leading driving pleasure – a quality ascribed to the version already on sale overseas. Part of the buzz comes from 2’s shared lineage: it’s essentially a Mazda version of the highly acclaimed 2011 Ford Fiesta on sale now in Europe and due in the U.S. in late spring 2010.

• Should you wait for the 2011 Mazda 2 or buy one of its 2010-model competitors? If your transportation situation allows you to wait for the 2011 Mazda 2, do so. The Mazda 2 and its Fiesta cousin could be game-changers in the mini-car market. Give yourself time to sample their attributes. And allow rivals time to respond by improving their own cars. Even if you don’t end up choosing a 2011 Mazda 2, you’ll be shopping in an atmosphere of keener competition, and that’s always a good time to be a buyer.  

2011 MAZDA 2 CHANGES  

• Styling: The Mazda 2 went on sale in Europe, Asia, and Britain during 2007 as a two- and four-door hatchback. America is slated to get only the four-door hatchback. The Mazda 2 is designed to seat five, but this is quite a small car. It’s a full size below the compact-class Mazda 3, and its body length is more than six inches shorter than that of the Honda Fit four-door hatchback, America’s subcompact sales leader. The Mazda 2’s relatively brief body length cuts down on cargo space, especially if the rear seatbacks aren’t folded. But a tall roof means laudable head clearance, and there’s generally good room for front passengers. Rear-seat leg room is at a premium because the Mazda 2’s wheelbase is just 98 inches. Wheelbase, the distance between front and rear axles, is key to a car’s leg room. The Mazda 2’s wheelbase is slightly shorter than that of the Fit and the Yaris four-door sedan. Visually, this new Mazda is kind of a rakish biscuit. In contrast to boxy novelty designs like the Kia Soul and Nissan Cube, the Mazda 2 is a little barrel with a bulb-like nose, radically swept-back windshield, and body-side creases that suggest a wedged shape. This is a small-car look common overseas but new to the U.S. The Mazda 2 that Americans get will wear Mazda’s new family face, defined by a big grille that recalls the Joker’s comic-book smile. The 2 is the product of a Mazda-Ford design collaboration that has produced several cars over the years, most recently the Mazda 3 and the redesigned Ford Focus compacts. The 2011 Ford Fiesta shares the Mazda 2’s basic body and chassis design, but has different styling touches and offers a four-door sedan in addition to a four-door hatchback.

• Mechanical: The 2011 Mazda 2 uses conventional small-car engineering carefully developed to furnish sharp handling and a compliant ride. Foreign critics say its ride quality is particularly impressive for a car that weighs less than 2,500 pounds. Indeed, the Mazda 2 is a success around the world, named Car of the Year in more than 20 countries and voted 2008 World Car of the Year by international automotive journalists. Mazda has yet to announce detailed specifications for the U.S. version. But the 2 will arrive with an independent front suspension and, like most minicars, a torsion beam rear suspension. Four-wheel disc brakes with antilock and antiskid systems are available on overseas versions. This safety technology is likely be offered here, though to control prices, perhaps not as standard equipment. Foreign Mazda 2 buyers choose from among five four-cylinder engines, including two turbodiesels. The American-market 2011 Mazda 2 is set to offer just one engine, a dual-overhead-cam 1.5-liter rated at some 103 horsepower. It’ll mate with a choice of manual and automatic transmissions, both with five speeds. Published European and British test drives generally laud the Mazda 2’s road manners but tend to say it could use more than 103 horsepower. The U.S. Fiesta weighs about the same as the 2, but is likely to use a 118-horsepower 1.6-liter four.

• Features: In many foreign markets, cars the size and power of the 2011 Mazda 2 fill the role of a family’s sole transportation. Such cars often offer a range of upscale amenities and performance features that would price them beyond the range of the target American buyer. In the U.S., the Mazda 2 will be an entry-level car and thus highly price-sensitive. But that doesn’t preclude a range of models, from bare-bones-basic to urban-hip sporty. Air conditioning, power windows, locks, and mirrors, and heated mirrors are among features likely to be optional or standard as you ascend the model lineup. USB iPod and Bluetooth phone interfaces are likely. A sunroof, leather upholstery, and a navigation system are strong possibilities, too. Front side airbags and head-protecting curtain side airbags for both seating rows will be standard. Overseas, the Mazda 2’s interior décor has been criticized as cheap in look and feel. This is in contrast with the posh accommodations for which the European Fiesta is known. Cabin materials may be a point on which Mazda can distinguish itself from Ford: while some industry observers speculate Ford may have to dial back on Fiesta’s appointments to meet U.S. price targets, Mazda sources say the U.S. Mazda 2 will be plusher than its overseas counterparts.  

2011 MAZDA 2 PRICES

• Mazda won’t announce pricing until shortly before the car goes on sale. But it’s unlikely to position the 2011 Mazda 2 as a premium subcompact car in the vein of the Mini Cooper, which has a base price range of roughly $19,000-$31,000. Neither is it likely to compete at the very bottom of the subcompact market, where sub-$11,000 stripper versions of the Hyundai Accent and Nissan Versa vie for title of least-expensive new car in America.

• The version of the Mazda 2 on sale in Britain is priced at the equivalent of about $16,700. In the U.S., the Mazda 3 compact starts around $15,700. The Mazda 2 needs to be priced significantly under the Mazda 3 to protect the economic turf of both cars. So a rough estimate would put the starting price of the Mazda 2 at around $14,500, with top models hitting maybe $18,500. (Price estimates in this review include the manufacturer’s destination fee; Mazda’s fee was $670 for 2010 models.)

2011 MAZDA 2 FUEL ECONOMY

• EPA estimates for 2011 models had not been released at the time of this review, but the 2011 Mazda 2 should be a fuel sipper. Expect ratings of perhaps 29/38 mpg (city/highway) with manual transmission, maybe 28/32 with automatic

2011 MAZDA 2 RELEASE DATE

• The 2011 Mazda 2 is to go on sale in autumn 2010.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE MAZDA 2

• The basic engineering of the Mazda 2 will be five model years old when the car launches in the U.S. That points it toward the end of its life cycle. If this Mazda/Ford platform is redesigned for, say, model-year 2013, it could mean the initial U.S. version would have a relatively short life.

• Mazda might decide to continue selling the older design in America to keep prices down. However, if the car is a hit here and if Americans develop an appetite for subcompact hatchbacks, Mazda could decide to position the 2 as a cutting-edge small car and bring over the next-generation model and its engineering advances without delay.     

2011 MAZDA 2 COMPETITION

• Honda Fit: The class of the subcompact class for passenger room, cargo space, and for sporty road manners. With just 118 horsepower, this four-door wagon is no muscle car, but fuel economy is a stingy 27/33 mpg with manual transmission, 28/35 with automatic transmission. Prices start around $15,600. Fit won’t be redesigned before model-year 2013 or so.

• Toyota Yaris: Chases the Fit for sales leadership in the subcompact class -- at least until the Fiesta arrives. Yaris comes in three body styles: two- and four-hatchbacks and a slightly longer four-door sedan. It’s solidly built and is the category champ for refinement. Base prices start just over $13,000 and fuel economy is near hybrid-like at 29/36 mpg with manual transmission, 29/35 with automatic. Yaris will next be redesigned for model-year 2012.

• Nissan Versa: Priced like a subcompact, sized like a compact, and hard to ignore for roominess, comfort, and value. Versa offers a dorky four-door sedan and a desirably funky four-door hatchback. The price-leader sedan starts just $10,700 or so, but you’ll want at least some amenities, and that means a sedan or hatch starting in the high-$13,000s. Fuel economy spans 24/31-27/33 mpg. Versa’s next redesign is likely for model-year 2012.