Mazda2 [MERGED]

[caloyski5]

Also, a little more worryingly...in a subcompact car shootout done by the Japanese show "Best Motoring" in early 2009, the 2/Demio was the only one that failed the emergency lane change + brake test, performed by race driver/show host Takayuki Kinoshita. I'm certainly hoping that was a one-off.

is this the same where keichi was test driving it singing "matsuda o-demi-o" biglang pumitik yung likod. i kinda know how he felt. the rear really feels fidgety and loose at very spirited driving.

[eggman]

mga magkano sir aabutin yun 1.3l with M/T?

Di ko pala ang pricing nyan..

[Type 100]

is this the same where keichi was test driving it singing "matsuda o-demi-o" biglang pumitik yung likod. i kinda know how he felt. the rear really feels fidgety and loose at very spirited driving.

Not exactly, I think that was a different episode

Anyway I think your experience backs up Kinoshita's emergency lane-change test result. BM's test is done by launching the car to about 100 km/h, then hard braking, then swerving to the right, then coming to a full stop - all through a makeshift course made up of safety cones. So clearly the weight transfer is heavily to the front throughout the whole maneuver - the rear tires are unladen.

The way the 2/Demio's rear unsettled and wiggled throughout the lane-change test, it ended up jinking back slightly to the left - and murdering two safety cones as a result. Every other car there - two VW Golf Mk6s, a BMW 1-series, a GE Jazz, a Mini Cooper, a Nissan Tiida/Versa, a new-shape Alfa 147 and a few other compacts/subcompacts - emerged from the same test without the drama the 2/Demio did.

Maybe the stock rear suspension is set too stiff? Conventional wisdom would state that softening the back end will make for a friendlier-handling car in bad conditions. Autocar UK's road test of the 2 back in 2007 also exposed its wet-weather handling deficiencies - also attributable to an overly stiff rear end.

If this could be fixed...I'd recommend the 2/Demio myself.

[daimengrui]

Nice website for the Mazda 2 found in the USA site

http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/MAZDA2.action

[gren]

double post

[gren]

was able to test drive both the 2 and the cx-7, some observations:

2
+ feels light and perky without being nervous
+ that growl!
+ looks good
- needs new shoes, but warranty will be voided for affected area
- sound system is quite inadequate (and i'm not a ICE guy), hard to upgrade and bye bye to your electrical system warranty
-/+ small
+ comfortable
+ not too noisy (ambient noise is reduced)
+ ergonomic -- didn't care for the lower dash placement of the automatic shifter but it works out quite well
+ on wheel controls
- auto, though it didn't bother me as much as i'd fear; its still pretty responsive but i prefer MT for the involvement. i hope we can confirm that they'd have a 1.5 MT version ( I heard a sedan and 1.3 versions coming out, but not 1.5MT)

cx-7
+ well, its definitely bigger
-/+ responsive but not as responsive as the 2, pretty responsive compared to other vehicles i've driven in its class (2.0 forester, old escape)
+ looker
+ fun controls steering wheel mounted controls work well
+ very, very, very quiet, especially coming from diesel powered vehicles
- what rear visibility
+/- trim is so so, quite expensive but having all the extras (4wd, moonroof, bigger powerplant) will probably price it near 2M or beyond
+ you can barely feel the bumps (from humps and road imperfections)

i had more fun test-driving the 2 than the cx-7; of course, they're 2 very different vehicles but i think mazda has a couple of winners here.

lets just hope people don't buy too many para hindi kasing dami ng jazz and crv, probably not though, this being toyo-nda land.

some additional notes:
- having test driven the suzuki swift -- the swift felt more like a big car in a small package whereas the 2 feels like a small car (in terms of agility and all around responsiveness)

[niky]

Not exactly, I think that was a different episode

Anyway I think your experience backs up Kinoshita's emergency lane-change test result. BM's test is done by launching the car to about 100 km/h, then hard braking, then swerving to the right, then coming to a full stop - all through a makeshift course made up of safety cones. So clearly the weight transfer is heavily to the front throughout the whole maneuver - the rear tires are unladen.

The way the 2/Demio's rear unsettled and wiggled throughout the lane-change test, it ended up jinking back slightly to the left - and murdering two safety cones as a result. Every other car there - two VW Golf Mk6s, a BMW 1-series, a GE Jazz, a Mini Cooper, a Nissan Tiida/Versa, a new-shape Alfa 147 and a few other compacts/subcompacts - emerged from the same test without the drama the 2/Demio did.

Maybe the stock rear suspension is set too stiff? Conventional wisdom would state that softening the back end will make for a friendlier-handling car in bad conditions. Autocar UK's road test of the 2 back in 2007 also exposed its wet-weather handling deficiencies - also attributable to an overly stiff rear end.

If this could be fixed...I'd recommend the 2/Demio myself.

This was an issue with the first-generation GD bodies (before the Mid model change), as the rear end was a bit wayward (especially on the City sedan). It was soft and would roll.. then the anti-roll bar would bind and it would slide, suddenly. The facelifted version had a softer anti-roll bar, so it was more predictable in cornering. Of course... this is all according to Honda... I never felt the 1st gen GD bodies to be snappish... but I never pushed one to within an inch of its life. The facelifted GD Jazz and City drive nigh-on perfectly... resistant to snap-oversteer, and very progressive (at least the Jazz is) when they oversteer.

Even worse is the Corolla. It's soft and takes a set well, but if you do a quick lane change, it can fishtail or even spin out.

I'll find out for myself if this is a big issue this week. Starting my test of the Mazda2 today.

[Type 100]

This was an issue with the first-generation GD bodies (before the Mid model change), as the rear end was a bit wayward (especially on the City sedan). It was soft and would roll.. then the anti-roll bar would bind and it would slide, suddenly. The facelifted version had a softer anti-roll bar, so it was more predictable in cornering. Of course... this is all according to Honda... I never felt the 1st gen GD bodies to be snappish... but I never pushed one to within an inch of its life. The facelifted GD Jazz and City drive nigh-on perfectly... resistant to snap-oversteer, and very progressive (at least the Jazz is) when they oversteer.

Even worse is the Corolla. It's soft and takes a set well, but if you do a quick lane change, it can fishtail or even spin out.

I'll find out for myself if this is a big issue this week. Starting my test of the Mazda2 today.

Ooh nice! I'll look forward to your feedback on the 2. Maybe you could bug Mazda about any news on a 1.5L M/T version?

Regarding the GD Jazz/City rear-end twitch under cornering, I can feel it on rare occasions on smooth surfaces such as steel expansion joints and the polished concrete of building parking lots. But on asphalt or a racetrack it's perfectly stable - I'd tend to lose front-end grip first way before the rear threatens to let go.

[niky]

Ooh nice! I'll look forward to your feedback on the 2. Maybe you could bug Mazda about any news on a 1.5L M/T version?

Regarding the GD Jazz/City rear-end twitch under cornering, I can feel it on rare occasions on smooth surfaces such as steel expansion joints and the polished concrete of building parking lots. But on asphalt or a racetrack it's perfectly stable - I'd tend to lose front-end grip first way before the rear threatens to let go.

Yours is prefacelift? I forgot! The complaints were more for the City... the heavier rear end causes more problems. The Jazz itself is pretty good at the limit.

The racetrack is okay because Subic doesn't have many bumps that can upset the rear end (unless you really bang it off the curbs... which you shouldn't on a car with as little suspension travel as the Jazz). The second-gen GD 1.5 I've driven lets go at the rear if you provoke it, but it took a little Scandinavian flick to do so last time I tried it.

We'll see. I'll be dropping the car off on Thursday. It's still quite new, so I don't think I'll be getting very much in terms of solid economy and performance data, but the driving experience, so far, is top-notch. Not quite as stable as the longer-wheelbase new Jazz, but quite similar to the older one. And the feel is much more solid in terms of interior build, noise insulation and ride.

Only complaint? It's not even nearly as big as the old Jazz. A bit smaller than the Yaris, too, though it seems to have much more trunk space than the Toyota and is nowhere near as small as the Swift.

Full review in a week.

[ianini12]

mga sirs, i am actually choosing between the city 1.5 and the mazda 2.. gusto ko ng puti kasi parehong ok eh... mas gusto ko sana yung M2 kaso parang may pumipigil sa akin thinking long term. Haven't had any mazda in the past and i have asked people who owns a mazda and wala naman daw sila problema in terms of maintenance. pero andun pa rin yung doubt..I used to drive an old city and we 2 other honda cars and kuntento ako sa after market ng honda. ano bang ok na diskarte at basis na pwede pag pilian..? kung porma mas gusto ko ung m2 and pati sa feel ng drive kasi pareho ko na test drive, pero di ko sigurado ang after market kaysa sa honda... kung baga Happiness 80% sa city pero long term ang ok or 100% happiness sa M2 pero di ko lam kung ok sa long term. patulong naman for enlightenment...! salamats!