Rolec

Driver appeal shows Mazda MX-30 is ready to punch above its weight

Andrew Walker

The MX-30 is Mazda’s first all-electric production vehicle and Company Car and Van had the opportunity to sample it in the wet and windy Yorkshire Dales recently. The good news is that for an electric car, it drives and handles particularly well.

Currently, there are two schools of thought with electric cars. It’s basically, smaller battery, lower range, more fun to drive vs larger battery, higher range, not so much fun to drive, and the MX-30 falls into the former. However, though it is powered by a relatively small 35.5kWh battery, it still has a claimed range of 124 miles.

The MX-30 is offered in three specifications. SE-L Lux costs £28,545 before the Government’s plug-in car grant. It comes with 18”alloys, LED lights, an 8.8” touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Next up is Sport Lux, costing £30,545. This adds privacy glass, heated seats and keyless entry. The range topper is the GT Sport Tech which costs £32,845. This features a Bose stereo, power/ tilt sunroof and a 360-degree parking camera.

The Mazda family has long been a CC&V favourite, with top-class interior and some clever touches, and the MX-30 doesn’t disappoint in this regard. From the floating central binnacle, to the separate 7” climate control touchscreen, all is cleverly designed and beautifully finished. The use of environmentally- friendly materials, such as cork, vegan leather and recycled plastic bottles, is also tastefully done.

The MX-30 may be an SUV in looks, but it doesn’t offer proper rear doors. Mazda has instead repeated the freestyle ‘suicide doors’, first seen in the 2002 RX-8, which feature a built-in B pillar.

Mazda MX-30 buyers will receive a free wall box home charger, while the car is equipped with both a Type 2 mode 2 charge cable for 3-pin plug charging and a Type 2 mode 3 charge cable for AC charging. Additionally, the DC socket allows for rapid charging up to 50Kw. In this charge mode a charging time of 30 to 40 minutes can deliver up to 80 per cent battery charge. Using a standard 7.4kWh home charger will see the MX-30 fully charged in around five hours.

Thanks to its smaller battery, which only weighs 310kg, the MX-30 is an awful lot more fun to drive than most electric cars. There’s also no discernible one-pedal driving style to save battery range through brake regeneration, the MX-30 feels more rapid and much lighter on its feet than the competition.

On a selection of country lanes the MX-30 feels nothing but well poised and handled the tight turns and corners with aplomb. There’s a total of 143bhp and 271Nms on offer, so 62mph is reached in 9.7 seconds, with a top speed of 87mph.

In electric and plug-in cars, the addition of a heavy battery underneath the floor really alters handling. Not so with the MX-30. The smaller, lighter battery is barely noticeable and unlike most EVs, it also manages the trick of running well over poor road services.

As a city electric car the MX-30 is hard to fault. It’s almost as quirky as the Honda-e and drives as well as the MINI electric, its two main competitors. However, the inclusion of the rear suicide doors means that it doesn’t offer the most practical solution for rear passengers.

From a driver’s perspective, it’s brilliant, one of the best electrics we’ve driven. Quality wise, it is more than a match for the premium German and Swedish brands, without their premium asking price. And it offers 1 per cent BIK.

“The smaller, lighter battery is barely noticeable and unlike most EVs, it also manages the trick of running well over poor road services”

CC&V VERDICT

If you can live with the range, the MX-30 is one of the best electric cars we’ve driven, with build quality to match.

CC&V RATING:

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