Mazda CX-30 review

The CX-30 is the smallest crossover with an engine Mazda will sell you – the electric-only MX-30 is the more city friendly option, especially with its tiny battery. The CX-30, meanwhile, is basically a taller Mazda 3 hatchback, with some plastic wheelarch cladding attached to its flanks.

A hatch-based crossover? Lot of competition...

At 4.4m long and 1.5m tall, the CX-30 is around 70mm shorter and 100mm taller than the hatchback on which it’s based. Shorter because Mazda thinks this makes it easier to manoeuvre around town, which is where all of these things will live, and taller because, well, it's a crossover.

If the CX-5 competes with the Nissan Qashqai, VW Tiguan, Kuga and so on, then the CX-30’s rivals are cars like the Volkswagen T-Roc, Skoda Karoq, Volvo XC40, Hyundai Kona and the Toyota C-HR. It's a densely packed part of the new car market, so you've got to work hard to stand out.

Is Mazda on to a winner?

The CX-30 hits the sweet spot for modern car buyers, and it’s ranked up alongside the CX-5 SUV and 3 hatchback as the firm’s top sellers. As it’s based on the 3, the CX-30 uses the same mild hybrid engines (including the extremely clever ‘spark controlled compression ignition’ petrol that uses techniques from diesel motors to increase efficiency) and gearboxes, and has a very similar interior.

On the road the hatchback origins are immediately tangible, and the CX-30 benefits from being lower than most of its rivals. It handles sharply and rides well, with a great gear change (as it should be from the same stable as the MX-5 convertible). 

The CX-30 is good looking in the metal (the electric MX-30 by contrast looks like it's been worn smooth in the sea before someone found it) with just the right level of pseudo-4x4 plastic cladding and styling creases, though it can be a little anonymous. Easy to lose it in a car park, though fortunately the key fob has a very impressive range on it.

It's not as roomy as it should be inside the car, mind, feeling a little cramped in the back. The sunroof on the car we ran really helped lift the cabin.

What are the engines like?

You get two petrol options with the CX-30 – both of them 2.0-litre units, the entry e-Skyactiv G motor with 120bhp and the more powerful variable ignition e-Skyactiv X number with 183bhp. The latter comes with 2WD or AWD options, and 0–62mph times vary from 10.6secs on the entry petrol with a manual gearbox to 8.3secs on the more powerful Skyactiv-X. Going for an auto box or the AWD setup saps around half a second from the acceleration times.

Fuel economy varies from around 43mpg up to around 50mpg depending on which combo you go for – we had a good drive over a few days in the 2WD e-Skyactiv X manual rated at 49.6mpg and got in the low 40s over mixed roads. 

The CX-30 is a decent car – it handles well, looks smart and has a decent interior. But as is always the case with crossovers, the conventional car on which it’s based – in this case the Mazda 3 hatchback – is the more sensible buy. It handles better, is more economical, just as practical, faster, and of course is cheaper. You've got to really want the extra ride height, and in doing so you'll compromise versatility when it comes to carrying passengers. Odd.

But since when has any of that logic stopped people from flocking to crossovers? Either way, as long as you avoid the automatic transmission and don’t often need to carry tall adults in the back, the CX-30 is a worthwhile alternative to anything else you might be considering. The engines are extremely interesting to car nerds too, and extremely competent and efficient for those that don’t care too much. It's another strong Mazda from a company that, quietly, doesn't make a single ugly, poorly finished or bad to drive car.