Improved seating comfort is the result of front cushions extended by 0.8-inches for enhanced thigh support. Seatbacks are reshaped for more lumbar support and extended by 1.4-inches for added shoulder support. Optional sport-seat upper bolsters are canted inward more aggressively for added restraint during hard cornering. A segment-first eight-way driver's seat with memory has been added to the optional features list. Dual-zone automatic temperature control, heated seats, and a BOSE ® Centerpoint audio system are other new features also not offered by other sport compact competitors. The five-channel surround sound system engineered cooperatively with BOSE® experts includes digital amplifier, noise cancellation technology, and an array of ten premium speakers.
Top versions of the MAZDA3 have a small-diameter leather-wrapped steering wheel and soft-touch surfaces finished with French-stitched seams. Seating areas are available in black or dune colors in both cloth and leather. All MAZDA3 interiors feature a black instrument panel with pewter-painted accents and black carpeting. All models feature a 60-40 split-folding rear seat as standard to stretch the utility of the cargo compartment.
The MAZDA3's new Multi-Information Display (MID) is patterned after the compact aftermarket navigational devices that provide guidance at an affordable price. Controls located on the steering wheel select the information to be displayed on the 4.1-inch LCD color screen. In addition to maps and turn-by-turn guidance, the screen conveys MP-3 and i-Pod program information, trip data including fuel economy, plus various maintenance and alert messages. A monochromatic readout MID is also available without the navigational functions.
Advanced keyless entry allows a MAZDA3 driver to unlock the doors and start the engine with the key fob carried in a pocket or purse. A discrete door handle button and a start button on the dash are used in lieu of a key.
The addition of Bluetooth® capability in the new MAZDA3 provides wireless mobile phone and audio player connections and hands-free operation. Instrument panel and steering wheel switches can be used to sort through music selections.
Active and Passive Safety Systems
Steering and braking accuracy and feedback that leads to avoiding collisions is one of the best ways to avoid calamity and injury. Towards that end, the MAZDA3 excels in agility, maneuverability, and ease of control at the limits of braking and cornering adhesion. Powerful disc brakes, ABS and electro-hydraulic power steering are standard equipment. Dynamic Stability Control and Traction Control are standard on most models.
The MAZDA3s is the first compact on the market with an Adaptive Front-lighting System (AFS) containing self-leveling bi-xenon (high and low beam) headlamps. Standard equipment in the top Grand Touring trim level, the inner beam of this system steers up to 15 degrees into the turn to expand the illumination pattern.
To minimize the likelihood of injury when a collision cannot be avoided, the MAZDA3 uses a technology called Triple-H unibody design. Efficient H-shaped reinforcements in the floor, roof, and sides of the body structure resist intrusion and support crush zones at both ends of the vehicle. Six airbags and active head restraints are also standard MAZDA3 equipment. Side-curtain air bags, which help protect all outboard occupants, are a new fast-inflating design with 40-percent larger coverage area.
Powertrains that Stir the Soul, without Wounding the Wallett
Mazda's MZR engine family is widely regarded as one of the world's most advanced forms of fuel-efficient, high-energy propulsion. As before there are two distinct MZR four-cylinder engines available in the MAZDA3, both of which offer outstanding performance and efficiency.
MAZDA3i models are fitted with the MZR 2.0-liter engine, providing 148 hp at 6500 rpm and 135 lb-ft of torque at 4500 rpm. It features compact and light aluminum block and head construction with two chain-driven overhead camshafts operating four valves per cylinder for complete combustion, maximum efficiency, and minimal exhaust emissions. (PZEV versions of this engine, sold in California and select other states, produces 144 hp @ 6500 rpm and 132 lb-ft of torque at 4500 rpm.) Variable intake valve timing provides robust low-rpm performance with strong high rpm pull, all the way to the 6500 rpm redline. A light-weight nylon-reinforced intake manifold offers dual-mode flexibility with runner lengths ideally suited to both low- and high-rpm operation. A new front-mounted air pickup system feeds the 2.0-liter engine cooler air for combustion.
Two transmissions are offered in the MAZDA3i: a smooth-shifting manual box or a sophisticated, electronically controlled automatic with a manual-shift mode. Both are fitted with five forward speeds. Engine calibration changes and aerodynamic improvements yield a gain of one mpg in both city and highway driving with the manual transmission (25 city, 33 highway). The wider ratio spread provided by the new 5-speed automatic enhances both acceleration and mileage. On EPA test cycles, the MAZDA3i automatic achieves 24 mpg in city driving-a one mpg improvement-and 33 on the highway-an impressive 3 mpg (10 percent) gain.
MAZDA3s customers benefit from a healthier injection of Zoom-Zoom attributable to a move from 2.3 to 2.5-liters of displacement. This new engine is similar in most details to that found in the all-new 2009 MAZDA6i.
Changes from the previous 2.3L unit include a fatter bore and a longer stroke packed into a cylinder block with unchanged external dimensions by using cylinder-bore liners made of a steel-molybdenum alloy offering strength and stiffness increases of 30-percent. A forged-steel crankshaft provides the necessary stamina. Twin balance shafts located in the oil sump cancel second-order noise and vibration, allowing this engine to sing to its 6200 rpm redline.
The deep-skirt block is engineered for extra stiffness and main-bearing caps are integral with a ladder-type lower-block reinforcement.
To minimize the noise and vibration typically found on larger displacement four-cylinder engines, the damper at the forward end of the crankshaft is equipped with two tuned masses. At the output end, a new flexible flywheel also curbs NVH.
Fuel is delivered to the intake ports by an electronically controlled sequential injection system. Ignition coils are modular units positioned directly above the spark plugs. Shim-less bucket tappets require no maintenance. Light-weight pistons are coated with a special anti-friction compound and fitted with low-tension rings for improved gas mileage. Sintered powder-metal connecting rods and lighter full-floating wrist pins minimize the reciprocating weight. As a result, this engine hums as contentedly at 6000 rpm as it does at 2000 rpm.
Like the MZR 2.0-liter, the new 2.5-liter power plant features variable intake valve timing and a two-mode composite intake manifold. A 4-into-1 exhaust manifold improves cylinder scavenging and reduces the time necessary for the catalytic converter to warm to full operating temperature. Dual tailpipes and specially tuned mufflers provide a pleasant exhaust note without a hint of mid-range boom or high-rpm thrash.
Providing 167 hp at 6000 rpm and 168 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm, the MZR 2.5-liter engine is available with a six-speed manual transmission or a five-speed electronically controlled automatic with manual shift control - again, borrowed from the larger, up-market MAZDA6. (The PZEV version of this engine sold in California and other states produces 165 hp @ 6000 rpm and 167 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm). Despite an increase in power and displacement, fuel efficiency ratings show no loss over the 2009 2.3-liter models, with EPA figures of 21 city and 29 highway with a manual transmission and 22 city and 29 highway with the new automatic.
A uniquely Mazda Active Adaptive Shift protocol provides the new 5-speed automatic transmission with the performance and response that MAZDA3 customers expect. Part-throttle downshifts are delivered in sync with the nudge of the accelerator during passing. When the car is braked aggressively in anticipation of cornering, the transmission also downshifts to add engine braking and to prepare for an expedient exit from the bend. A wider overall ratio spread assists acceleration from rest while also providing quieter and more efficient highway cruising.
Comprehensively Improved Body, Chassis
By refining the strengths of the previous unibody, steering, brakes, and suspension systems - instead of starting over with radically different designs - Mazda engineers delivered major improvements in ride and handling performance while also reducing several pounds from the unibody and chassis weight.
As before, MAZDA3 rides on a 103.9-inch wheelbase. Wheel track dimensions are also unchanged. A three-inch increase in length yields a lower drag coefficient, and additional fuel capacity with the 2.5-liter engine.
Unibody bending stiffness has been increased a significant seven percent by a major gain in the use of high-tensile-strength steel panels, by adding gussets in heavily loaded areas (such as at suspension mounting points), and by strategic increases in metal gauge (thickness).
In addition, a technique called weld bonding first used in the new MAZDA6 has also been applied to the MAZDA3's unibody construction. At key locations - such as in the door aperture areas - the combination of structural adhesive and spot welds greatly enhances the unibody's flex resistance. A stiffer structure also provides a quieter ride, improved suspension response to steering and cornering loads, and more stable cruising and braking performance. The savings in weight attributable to the new unibody construction methods is a significant 24 pounds.
Changes to the rubber-isolated front, and the rigidly mounted rear, subframes also enhance rigidity while saving weight. A new instrument panel support structure using two instead of the previous one steel reinforcement tubes saves 4.4 pounds while providing more solid support for the steering column. Adding ribs to the inner door panels and increasing the size of the roof reinforcement bar yield major reductions in NVH.
To improve steering precision and feel, a third mounting point has been added near the center of the electrohydraulic-assisted rack-and-pinion steering gear. The diameter of the rack has been increased from 1.57- to 1.61-inches for improved stiffness and to facilitate more precise calibration of the speed-dependent power assistance.
Because the previous car was so effective, suspension changes are modest. The span between front and rear anti-roll bar support points has been widened by nearly an inch to increase the effectiveness of the bars without raising their weight. Minor changes to the steering geometry and the layout of the multi-link rear suspension diminish understeer during turn-in and oversteer while exiting a bend. Front struts and the rear monotube dampers are recalibrated for this new generation to take advantage of the more robust unibody structure and tire specification changes.
Power-assisted four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, electronic brake force distribution and brake assist are standard MAZDA3 equipment. Rotor sizes are 10.9-inches in front and 10.4-inches in back in the MAZDA3i and 11.8-inches in front and 11.0-inches in back in MAZDA3s models. The vacuum brake booster has been recalibrated to provide a more reassuring response to light pedal efforts without disturbing the direct and highly linear feel available during more aggressive braking. Dynamic Stability Control and Traction Control are now standard on the majority of MAZDA3 models.
As before, all-season radial tires are standard MAZDA3 equipment, though the base size is now 205/55HR-16 on 6.5-inch wheels. The more powerful MAZDA3s models roll on 17-inch wheels and V-rated tires. Changes in tire compound and construction yielded lower rolling resistance.
Environmental Stewardship
Proof that small changes can yield substantial results lies in the combination of lower drag with an extra gear in the MAZDA3i equipped with a 2.0-liter engine and automatic transmission. The rise in highway fuel economy is three-mpg or 10-percent.
In line with European directives regarding disposal at the end of a vehicle's life, Mazda is well on its way to eliminating the use of lead, mercury, cadmium, and hexavalent chromium. Except for parts exempt from requirements, the new MAZDA3 contains none of the above materials.
Another Mazda innovation is the use of the world's first single-nano-particle technology, which significantly reduces the amount of precious metals used in catalytic converters. By inventing a method of controlling precious metal particles less than five nanometers in diameter (one nanometer is a billionth of a meter) as well as a proprietary catalyst material structure, Mazda created the world's first catalyst that features single, nano-sized precious metal particles embedded in fixed positions. With the single-nano catalyst, the underfloor catalytic converter in the new MAZDA3 certified to comply with U.S. Federal emissions standards requires only 0.15g/L of precious metals, approximately 70 percent less than the 0.55g/L in the previous model. It is also highly durable and effective in purifying vehicle exhaust gases.
New from front to back, from top to bottom, with heavily restyled bodies and updated or all-new powertrains, and a comprehensively revised interior, the 2010 MAZDA3 4-door and 5-door models are ready to protect their ground in the popular and ever-growing sport compact category. The new car offers a level of content, style, dynamics and sophistication simply not seen elsewhere in the segment.
Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., Mazda North American Operations oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico through nearly 900 dealers. Operations in Canada are managed by Mazda Canada, Inc., located in Ontario; in Mexico by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City; and in Puerto Rico by Mazda de Puerto Rico in San Juan.