Mazda CX-3

Like the exterior, the cabin layout of the Mazda CX-3 has also remained more or less unchanged over the years of its existence. The minimalist design and the relatively basic layout of the instrument console with centrally placed tachometer look slightly dated now. However, the tight panel gaps and leather finish for the steering wheel and transmission lever as standard give the CX-3 a high-quality experience. The cabin comes with an all-black theme as standard, with the 2.0 High getting leatherette seats too. 

The steering wheel and surrounds for the round-themed AC vents on the dashboard feature a premium-looking satin silver finish. The 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system is placed as a free-standing unit at the top of the centre console, with the lower centre console having dials for the climate control functions. The centre transmission tunnel houses a wireless charging pad at the front, a transmission tunnel in the middle and a panel housing a drive mode controller and an electronic parking brake switch below it. 

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Premium-looking black upholstery for the cabin

Con: The dashboard layout looks slightly dated now

Features and Technology

Considering that the current version of the Mazda CX-3 has existed for a long time without many updates, the subcompact crossover suffers from a lack of modern comfort and convenience features. However, the CX-3 does come with a lot of essentials, with the standard ones including push start-stop button, steering-mounted audio and Bluetooth controls, electronic parking brake, tilt and telescopic adjustable steering wheel, a 12V front power outlet and driver seat height adjustment.

All three variants of the Mazda CX-3 also get more standard features like an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, Android Auto, wireless Apple CarPlay, voice commands, a 6-speaker audio system, two USB ports and a reverse camera. The additional features exclusive to the 2.0 High variant are a wireless charger, a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat with 2-position memory function, automatic climate control, a sunroof, and an auto-dimming inside rearview mirror.

Pros and cons:

Pro: Decently equipped 2.0 High variant

Con: No ventilated front seats and wireless Android Auto 

Boot Space and Storage

The overall boot space of the Mazda CX-3 is rated at 264 litres, which is indeed tight by modern standards of a subcompact crossover. However, the CX-3 is available with the convenience of 60:40 split folding rear seats, which, when folded, increase the boot space of the crossover to a massive 1174 litres.

Coming to the practicality of the cabin, the Mazda CX-3 covers the basics with a decently-sized glovebox, a front centre armrest with small storage space, bottle holders in all four doors and cup holders behind the centre transmission tunnel and the rear centre armrest. The size of the bottle holders in the door panels could have been larger, though. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Humongous boot space after folding down the rear seats

Con: Short on space in the boot compartment with the rear seats up

The base form of the Mazda CX-3 has remained unchanged for more than a decade now. While Mazda has made a couple of attempts to make it look fresh, they feel very minor and are not sufficient to hide the vehicle's age. 

Mazda has followed the “Kodo – Soul of Motion” design language for the CX-3, just like how it has done for the rest of its offerings. The result is evident in the smoothly flowing curves over the bonnet, side door panels and fenders. These curves are perhaps the only elements that try to hide the age of the CX-3. 

At the front, the bird’s-eye-shaped sweptback headlamp housings of the Mazda CX-3 have LED projector headlamps with signature illumination, along with auto on-off functions and daytime running LEDs. The front grille looks classy with the chrome garnish to its sides and lower edges, with the Mazda CX-3 having wedge-shaped LED fog lamps in its 2.0 High variant.

The Mazda CX-3 also comes standard with rain-sensing wipers and power-adjustable and auto-foldable outside rearview mirrors in all of its variants. While the 1.5 Core and 2.0 Core variants get 16-inch silver alloy wheels, the 2.0 High variant has a more premium-looking multi-spoke 18-inch alloy wheels. The window waistline here has a curved design that goes in sync with the flowing curves over the fenders and door panels. 

The rear profile of the Mazda CX-3 lacks the visual drama and aerodynamic appeal of the front and side profiles, with it having a simple and cleaner look. All the variants have trapezoidal LED combination tail lamps, shark fin antenna and roof-mounted spoiler with LED stop lamp as standard. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: The smoothly flowing curves and LED headlamps offered as standard

Cons: Rear looks too simple compared to the front and side profiles

Mazda claims fuel efficiency figures of 17.54 kmpl for the 1.5-litre Core and 15.87 kmpl for the 2.0 Core and 2.0 High variants. However, in ideal running conditions, the 1.5 Core delivers 14-15 kmpl, while the 2.0 Core and 2.0 High return 11-12 kmpl. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Good fuel efficiency of the 1.5-litre engine

Con: 2.0-litre engine variants could have been more efficient

With Macpherson struts at the front and torsion beam at the rear, the overall ride quality of the Mazda CX-3 feels well-settled, with the driving dynamics of it also feeling precise thanks to Mazda’s G-Vectoring control technology. The Core variants with their 16-inch wheels have marginally better ride quality, while the High variant with its 18-inch alloy setup has marginally sharper handling at higher speeds. It has a turning radius of 5.3 metres, which feels sufficient, but not segment-leading. 

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Very comfortable ride quality and handling balance

Con: Turning radius is slightly larger 

When the Mazda CX-3 was first launched in Malaysia, it debuted with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder naturally-aspirated petrol engine. The 2.0 Core and 2.0 High continue to be available with this engine, which claims a maximum power output of 154 bhp and a peak torque output of 206 Nm.

A new base-spec 1.5 High variant was introduced later on, which debuted the new 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, which claims 114 bhp of power output and 149 Nm of torque output. Both the engine options offer impressive refinement levels and nice bottom-end grunt, though the 1.5-litre petrol engine could have had a stronger top-end grunt. A 6-speed automatic transmission and front-wheel drive configuration are standard with both engine options. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Smooth and reliable powertrain options

Con: The 1.5-litre petrol engine could have had more power at higher RPMs

Mazda has left no stone unturned to make the CX-3 feel deficient in terms of safety features. The subcompact crossover has got plenty of standard safety features, the long list of which includes six airbags, ABS with EBD and brake assist, dynamic stability control, traction control, emergency stop signal, hill launch assist, auto hold function, reverse camera and reverse parking sensors. 

A lot of advanced driver assistance functions are also standard in all three variants of Mazda CX-3, including high beam control, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, lane departure warning and smart city brake support. The 2.0 High variant has a few more exclusive features, including a head-up display, front parking sensors, a 360-degree parking camera and driver attention alert. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Comprehensive standard safety features list, including ADAS features

Con: Nothing much actually

Competitor Comparison

The direct rivals of the Mazda CX-3 in the subcompact crossover category are the Toyota Yaris Cross, the Hyundai Kona, Honda HR-V, Nissan Kicks e-Power, MG HS, Citroen C3 Aircross and Peugeot 2008. There are a few Chinese SUVs that can also be an alternative to the Mazda CX-3, with some of them being even larger in comparison, including GAC GS3 Emzoom, Chery Omoda 5 and Jetour Dashing.

Conclusion and Final Verdict

The Mazda CX-3 has been existing in its current form for quite a long time, which explains the reason behind its slightly dated appeal inside-out. However, one cannot deny the classiness of this offering in the subcompact crossover SUV category. It feels solidly built, plush on the inside, and even with crucial new-age features missing, it still manages to have a lot of features as essentials in its entire variant lineup.