We get to the hearty of the matter with the mid-range version of Mazda’s popular small SUV
- Price & Equipment
- Safety & Technology
- Powertrain & Performance
- Driving & Comfort
- Editor’s Opinion
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The 2023 Mazda CX-30 is one of Australia’s most popular small SUVs and the G20 Touring variant we’re testing here sits right in the heart of a comprehensive model range. Powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine mated with a six-speed auto, this front-wheel drive model has a sense of style allied with a carefully curated equipment list. You could spend more money for a CX-30 with a bigger engine, all-wheel drive and more gear, but do you really need to? Let’s find out.
Price & Equipment
How much does the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring cost?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring retails for $36,810 plus on-road costs, placing it in the pricing heart of the compact SUV’s extensive model line-up.
For that money you get a fashionably styled five-seat hatchback with a slightly raised ride height and some SUV-ish cladding, plus a 2.0-litre petrol engine, a six-speed auto and front-wheel drive.
The CX-30 sits in size between Mazda’s popular CX-3 and CX-5 SUVs.
You can spend an extra $1500 for a bigger 2.5-litre engine, while there is also all-wheel drive and even the SKYACTIV X spark-controlled compression-ignition engine further up the pricing range.
Looking the other way, only the entry model G20 Pure (from $30,210) is available with a six-speed manual transmission.
There are many competitors in this segment and the Japanese-built CX-30 stands out for being both popular and prestigious. Not all the big-sellers – such as the MG ZS and Mitsubishi ASX – can make the same claim.
Logical CX-30 rivals include the newly-launched Nissan QASHQAI, the freshly upgraded Kia Seltos and the new Toyota Corolla Cross.
Spread your perspective beyond the orthodox and some small Chinese electric vehicles threaten the G20 Touring’s price position, especially if rebates and concessions are taken into account.
The MG ZS EV, BYD Atto 3 and GWM Ora are in that group.
What equipment comes with the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring?
Picking the 2023 Mazda G20 Touring from lesser models in the line-up is a bit of a challenge. It’s all in the details.
This is the cheapest model in the range with front parking sensors. Told you it was pretty minor stuff.
Inside the G20 Touring is the first model in the range to include black leather seat trim and illuminated vanity mirrors.
Exterior gear shared with other CX-30s are handsome 18-inch silver-finish alloy wheels, halogen daytime running lamps, a rear spoiler and a manual tailgate that can be remotely opened or closed.
Inside, the equipment list includes dual-zone climate control, an electric park brake, push button start, 10-way power adjustment and memory for the driver’s seat, and leather wrapping for the steering wheel and gearshift knob. A space saver-spare tyre is standard.
The CX-30 comes with a competitive five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. But the drawback is a service plan with short 10,000km intervals (or 12 months) when many rivals have 15,000km service intervals.
That means you could be at the dealer twice in year when owners of other brands might only go once. Over 50,000km or five years, the capped-price service program totals $1732.
Safety & Technology
How safe is the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring comes with a five-star ANCAP safety rating based on now-superseded 2019 protocols.
It is also fitted with seven airbags including a driver’s knee airbag. It does not offer the centre-front airbag that many new models now come with.
Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with the ability to detect pedestrians and cyclists as well as vehicles is standard. The system also monitors for obstacles at the rear of the car.
Adaptive cruise control with a stop and go function for heavy traffic is standard, as is lane departure warning, lane keep assist and blind spot monitoring. However, driven hands-free on the freeway, the G20 Touring does have a tendency to wander in its lane.
Other safety features include sensor-based driver attention alert, LED headlights (but without an auto function to avoid dazzling oncoming traffic with high-beam), hill launch assist, traffic sign recognition and tyre pressure monitoring.
The G20 Touring misses out on a 360-degree camera. It makes do with a reversing camera and parking sensors.
The 360-degree camera can be optioned along with a camera-based driver monitoring, front cross traffic alert and a low-speed traffic support system as part of a Vision Technology Park. The slightly cheaper $36,660 CX-30 Evolve G20e mild-hybrid gets this system standard.
There are three child-seat top-tethers and two Isofix mounts in the rear seat.
What technology does the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring feature?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring goes against the current trend by not offering a touch function for the infotainment screen mounted on top of the dashboard.
Instead, the 8.8-inch screen is controlled by a rotary dial and buttons grouped in the centre console.
Mazda used to allow touch access to the screen when stationary, but that doesn’t apply to the CX-30.
This is Mazda’s way of trying to reduce the amount of distractions for the driver. In the same spirit, it has decluttered the instrument gauges and reduced the number of controls on the dash. A head-up display is also part of this package.
It’s a system first introduced with the current-generation Mazda3 small car, with which the CX-30 shares much of its underpinnings and architecture.
The CX-30 comes with standard cabled Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth smartphone streaming, embedded satellite-navigation and AM/FM/DAB+ radio played through an eight-speaker audio system.
There are two USB inputs but no wireless smartphone charging.
Powertrain & Performance
What powers the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring is powered by the familiar combination of SKYACTIV 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and six-speed auto that’s done stirling service in many Mazda models.
It’s no fireball, making 114kW of power at 6000rpm and 200Nm of torque at 4000rpm, but eschewing turbocharging does make it a simpler engine to maintain.
The mild-hybrid version in the Evolve G20e makes the same outputs, while the G25 2.5-litre engine offers 139kW at 6000rpm and 252Nm at 4000rpm.
How fuel-efficient is the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring?
The official fuel consumption rate for the 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring is a pretty decent 6.5L/100km on standard unleaded fuel.
That does climb in the real world because this engine has to rev hard to prod the CX-30 along. Our average on test ended up at 7.4L.100km.
That’s still pretty respectable, but nowhere near the powertrain efficiency you’ll find in a slew of Toyota hybrids. The Corolla Cross, for instance, will run at or below 5.0L/100km in the real world.
The CX-30 comes with an idle-stop system to help save fuel. But it was occasionally hesitant to refire and noticeably coarse. The integrated starter-generator in the G20e mild-hybrid does the job more smoothly.
Driving & Comfort
What is the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring like to drive?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring is a pleasant if slightly uninspiring drive.
The primary issue is the engine’s lack of response at low to middling engine revs. We’re being spoiled these days by turbocharged and electrified engines that fill in that torque hole.
Instead, the CX-30 G20 tackles a hill or a serious prod of the throttle with a lot of gear shuffling. The sport mode holds gears longer, which helps, and the driver can chime in via the shift lever or flappy paddles.
Significant engine revs are felt and heard without all that palpable effort being rewarded with much extra momentum.
This is the car’s weak link. You’re more likely to buy the G20 Touring if your test drive is on a downhill rather than uphill course.
The rest of the driving package is typically Mazda in its deportment. This is a car that feels well sorted without being hard-core.
It steers with a light and lively enthusiasm, tinged with electric-assist rubberiness. It rides on passive dampers with a terse edge that aid body control in exchange for only a small slice of ride comfort.
The brake pedal felt a bit hard and wooden, but that may have been something restricted to our test car.
Despite all the revving when the engine is stressed, the CX-30 shows little sign of the noise deadening issues that have afflicted past Mazdas.
There’s still some intrusions from things like coarse bitumen, but it is better muted and controlled these days. Even the engine, when it is not being pushed hard, contributes with a purring soundtrack.
This sleek body style isn’t the best for head-checks when in traffic but the overall size of the CX-30 and its driver aids help make this a car well suited to commuting chores.
What is the Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring like inside?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring is a car with two interior worlds.
Up front it’s sophisticated and simplified, elegant and restrained. It has a beautifully resolved dashboard and a sense of style with plenty of leather covering the hard bits.
But it’s not quite as distraction-free up here as Mazda would like to say it is. There are still dials to rotate and buttons to press and you still have to take your eyes away from the road to look at the screen.
But a period of adaptation might resolve much of that. I was still adapting after a week.
The driver is well looked after with a reach- and rake-adjustable steering column and a large and comfortable seat that can be lowered and raised through a wide height range.
Both front passengers are offered adequate stowage opportunities to store their stuff. Neat touches include a centre bin with a sliding lid.
But in a familiar Mazda way, rear-seat passengers are not as well looked after. There are no USB outlets, only one seatback storage pocket and small doorbins.
Leg and kneeroom for a 180cm tall person sitting behind a 180cm driver is tight, although headroom is good. Entry and exit is via small doors.
The best thing that can be said about the boot stowage is it is better than the CX-3’s. But at 317 litres it is nothing to get excited about.
The split/fold function at least enables you to carry a lot more luggage at the cost of rear passengers. You can just squeeze a full-size mountain bike in here with the front wheel still attached if the front seat is pushed forward as far as possible.
Editor’s Opinion
Should I buy a Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring?
The 2023 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring is a refined and stylish small SUV that would best suit a single person or a couple that need a commuter or second car.
It lacks the rear seat room, amenities and boot space to be a family car. The CX-5 will serve that role better if you want to stay in the Mazda SUV family.
Also, the drivetrain isn’t as polished as the rest of the package. That could be resolved by simply investing a bit more money and graduating to the G25 Touring.
But what we’d really love to see is a heart transplant in the engine bay for the variant in the CX-30’s pricing heartland. An affordable CX-30 hybrid that offers a bit more performance and a bit better fuel economy would make this package that much more appealing.
2022 Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring at a glance:
Price: $36,810 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 114kW/200Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 6.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 159g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2019)
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Keyword: Mazda CX-30 G20 Touring 2023 Review