I'm a huge fan of the Ford Fiesta, and as soon as I set my eyes on this 2011 Mazda 2 Touring, I knew we'd become friends.
The sleek, flowing body lines that shape the Mazda 2's body into a stylish figure make it an inviting car to approach. It looks fun just sitting still.
Luckily for me, the fun didn't stop there. Even though power didn't come in droves, this little guy was a joy to drive. It's extremely easy to maneuver and well-mannered, making it ideal for commuting and everyday errands. And luckily for Mazda, a lot of people are looking for just that these days.
Looking inside, I found a prominent emphasis on the circle--not only the typical shape of the dash gauges and controls, but the vents, speakers, radio display and shifter housing all featured the basic shape. It made for a consistent and hip look. Another contributor to the Mazda 2's hip status was the patterned fabric on the seats, gaining style without spending a lot of dough.
And it had an armrest! A small one that was an additional option, but nonetheless it was an armrest! I'd easily fork over the extra $140 for my elbow's sake.
One thing I wasn't a fan of in the Mazda 2 was the itsy-bitsy size of the gas gauge. It couldn't have been longer than an inch and was comprised of eight blocks that represented a full tank. I personally like to see exactly how much gasoline I've got, not guess if I'm closer to a half or 3/8 of a tank. This breakdown of the gauge into eighths was just a bit too beefy for me.
Small complaint aside, I don't think I'll be the only one becoming friends with the Mazda 2.
INTERACTIVE ASSOCIATE EDITOR JAKE LINGEMAN:
The Mazda 2 took me to Ann Arbor and back this weekend without a hiccup. It has enough get-up-and-go from its 1.5-liter to not be annoying, and it returned just shy of 30 mpg combined for a whole tank of fuel.
I did learn something a bit interesting about the fuel gauge. I ran it down pretty low. Low enough that the last fuel bar disappeared and the "E" was flashing. I had only driven 250 miles or so, so I figured I must have a bit left. I ended up getting gas at 266.6 miles. I thought I had to be close to empty. I filled up and put less than nine gallons in, which means the tank had 2.3 more gallons of gas, give or take. I could have driven another 60 miles!
It was scalding hot all weekend, so I had the air conditioning going full blast. The best thing about a small car is that it gets cold quick and stays that way. The rotating vents can aim in any direction.
I had no problems with the seats or seating position; it was a comfortable cruise. The car does get thrown around by bumps, especially when the suspension's loaded around a turn. I also found that it seems to track with the grooves in the pavement. On the concrete part of the highway the rain grooves run parallel, and when they zig and zag, the car seems to as well, but I'd like a second opinion on that.
As for the rest of the interior, the Mazda is fairly well equipped. The steering-wheel controls for cruise and volume work well, and like every vehicle should these days, the 2 has an auxiliary audio input. And Mazda threw in a halfway decent radio to back it up.
Both the Ford Fiesta and the Mazda 2 are cool-looking new small cars, and they both get great mileage. I think the dual-clutch PowerShift transmission in the Fiesta is more fun than this automatic, but I would take either with a manual transmission. Like so many car choices today, it really comes down to taste.
COPY EDITOR CYNTHIA L. OROSCO-WRIGHT:
This Mazda 2 was fun to scoot around in during my overnight. This isn't a speed machine by any means but the four-cylinder provides enough oomph when you need it. I had no problems getting up to expressway speed or in passing. The 2 does get jostled about by the crumbling roads, but on better stretches the drive is smooth.
I like the look of the sheetmetal, and the color accentuated the nice lines. Inside, the cabin is basic but nice and things are well laid out. The driving position is good and I had a fair amount of room around me. Not so for the hubby, who tops six feet and noted many times that he felt cramped.
Overall, this is quite a nice little car.
ART DIRECTOR CHERYL L. BLAHNIK:
I got into the 2011 Mazda 2 Touring knowing that it wasn't going to be rocket but an eco-friendly small car, and I wasn't disappointed. I came away with a good feeling toward this car. With that said, I would have liked more horsepower. But for city driving and getting in and out of small spots, it's perfect.
Even the interior felt roomier than expected. For a car in this price range, Mazda did a great job with decent-looking plastics and stylish seats with an appealing textured pattern and red piping trim.
On the road, power is adequate but the engine is on the buzzy side. But 100 hp isn't much and, as I said, I would welcome more power but I could live with this on a daily basis without any problems.
MOTORSPORTS EDITOR MAC MORRISON:
I've now had two brief drives in Mazda 2s and I'm impressed yet irritated. I'm impressed by the fun-to-drive handling response and irritated that a car this small and light--and with one of the world's least powerful gasoline-burning production engines--does not return better mileage.
I think this is the best handling B-segment car I've had the privilege of driving, and surely some of the complaints about what to me sounds a lot like bump steer are a result of a relatively sporty suspension tune not agreeing with some of our area's least impressive road surfaces. Perhaps I need some longer stints in this car, but right now I don't think I'd make any drastic changes to the setup other than installing some larger antiroll bars to reduce the significant amount of mid-corner lean.
Other than that, the 2 responds quick to driver commands and I was even happy with the steering, something that is historically far from a given in cars in this class. I also like the sharp interior styling cues, even though I find the exterior design says "economy car" more than, say, a Fiesta's does.
Speaking of the Fiesta, the Ford demonstrates quite well my problems with the 2. I'm not going to use my space allotted here to perform a nine-car, class-crossing mileage/feature comparison analysis, so let's just take the Mazda's brother from another mother as a baseline to illustrate my core complaint.
Mazda 2 Touring: Base price of $17,230, 1.5-liter four-cylinder making 100 hp and 98-lb-ft of torque. Weighs 2,359 pounds and is EPA rated at 27 mpg city/33 mpg highway.
Ford Fiesta SES: $17,795 base price, 1.6-liter I4, 120 hp and 112 lb-ft. Weighs 2,575 pounds and is EPA rated at 30/40 mpg.
OK, so you must spend an extra $1,000 to get the dual-clutch "automatic" on the Fiesta, but generally speaking, the two cars are matched pretty even in terms of price. In this class, the Mazda's somewhat sportier driving characteristics just aren't enough to offset what I think is a better overall Fiesta design, more power--and despite outweighing the 2 by more than 200 pounds, the Fiesta still has a better power-to-weight ratio--more torque and better fuel mileage.
The AutoWeek staff has driven the Fiesta on plenty of occasions, and everyone continues to yearn for a stronger drivetrain in the Ford, so don't think I'm endorsing it as a super-performing hot-hatch subcompact. It's far from it. But that says a lot about the engine Mazda offers right now in the 2. It simply does not get the job done in either performance or economy, and that's a wildly obese elephant in the showroom.
If I'm going to accept a compromise in terms of power and torque, shouldn't that compromise come with an upside of some sort? Say, outstanding efficiency? Instead, I feel forced into compromise here simply because Mazda only offers me this underwhelming 1.5-liter--an engine it has never before sold in the United States, and I certainly see why. Where's the compromise's payoff in this case? There isn't one.
Just a few years ago, a carmaker could have gotten away easily with offering such an otherwise outstanding "B" car equipped with a rudimentary appliance of a drivetrain, because the entire class was suspect in a lot of ways. But there are too many good options now--and Chevrolet's Sonic will be another one soon--to half-ass it under the hood.
This car needs more power and torque while also returning much better fuel economy before it's my pick at the head of this greatly improved class.
NEWS EDITOR GREG MIGLIORE:
This 2011 Mazda 2 Touring tries but I feel falls short in value. For the price, there are other suitable options in this range, and the consumer has more choices for size and features. The Hyundai Elantra stickers for nearly the same, and offers 48 more hp and tons more room.
And, better fuel economy!
I thought the point of driving a small car was to save money and fuel. Why would I pay the same price for a smaller car with less power that only gets 27/33 mpg ratings? The Elantra gets 29/40 mpg. The base Chevrolet Cruze gets 26/36 mpg. And here's the kicker--the Ford Focus--just a step up from the Mazda 2's cousin, the Fiesta, gets as good if not better fuel economy in most of its variants, for a similar price. The manual Focus does 26/36 mpg, and the automatic is 28/38 mpg.
Forgive me, but I don't see why you pay almost the same amount of money to get a lesser car that is barely even on fuel economy. Plus, the interiors of those other competitors are better, and it's arguable that the styling is slicker, too.
Numbers aside, the tight chassis and lightweight feel of the Mazda 2 makes for a zippy drive, and it can be easily tossed into corners or even flung around parking lot. I had one passenger ask me not to drive "flippy" as she was feeling a little sick at the time. For a small car, ride is reasonable, and I didn't find it abusive on when traversing my normal routes. The four-speed automatic is respectable and works well with this 1.5-liter mill that can be surprisingly able and adept. I built a huge head of steam on a service drive and lit out onto the expressway, merging smoothly into the late rush-hour traffic. Much to my surprise, this task was easily accomplished.
The body is curvy and cute, though some of the plastics expressly say entry-level car. The interior carries some of the Mazda DNA, and the seats are sporty in red and black.
Overall, this is a fitting car for the times, but I feel technology has passed it by. Small and good gas mileage has been eclipsed by average-size and stellar fuel economy.
2011 Mazda 2 Touring
Base Price: $17,230
As-Tested Price: $17,480
Drivetrain: 1.5-liter I4; FWD, four-speed automatic
Output: 100 hp @ 6,000 rpm, 98 lb-ft @ 4,000 rpm
Curb Weight: 2,359 lb
Fuel Economy (EPA/AW): 29/28.4 mpg
Options: Armrest ($140); rear bumper guard ($80)
