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Officially Official: Mazda3 five-door hatchback gets real

Mazda has officially taken the wraps off its five-door hatchback version of the redesigned Mazda3 at the Bologna Motor Show today. As you can see in the gallery of new high-res pics below, the Mazda3 five-door gets the same swoopy sheetmetal as its four-door brethren, including the super happy smiley front end face. What's new is an extended roofline that drops down at a steep angle to create a wagon-esque profile. With a D-pillar that kinks up at a swept back angle, the look is very similar to that of a Pontiac Vibe/Toyota Matrix that's been stepped on by a giant. The new cargo capacity will no doubt be appreciated by families who can put every extra cubic foot to good use, and if the current generation Mazda3 is any indication, this will also be the basis for the Mazdaspeed model.

At the moment, all the specs for the new Mazda3 five-door hatchback are for the European market, so don't expect its new 2.2L and carryover 1.6L turbo diesel engines to be available in the U.S. Europeans will also have a choice of 1.6L and 2.0L gas engines, though we expect the U.S.-spec model to offer the same 2.0L and new 2.5L four-cylinder engines as the sedan.

posted : 12/3/2008 @10:06:15 PM
Mazda3 hatch unveiled, will debut next week

The Mazda3 hatchback will be unveiled next week at the Bologna Motor Show, and Mazda has released five photos to help get everyone excited. The Euro backdrop means that the 5-door's engine lineup will include a 2.2L turbodiesel that's guaranteed to keep the EU carbon nannies placated. Up front, it wears the same moderately unnerving perma-smile as its sedan brother. Look for more info next week, and feel free to start mentally transforming it into the next Mazdaspeed3. We have.
posted : 11/28/2008 @4:57:33 PM
Spy Shots: Mazdaspeed 3 spotted at the 'Ring

With the new 2010 Mazda3 on its way, the next logical question for any gearhead worth his driving shoes is when we'll set our eyes on the next Mazdaspeed version. Well, we have our answer already if the latest batch of spy shots are to be believed. The current Mazdaspeed3, also known as the Mazda3 MPS in Europe and the Mazdaspeed Axela in the Japanese domestic market, is a veritable barn-stormer and Mazda's performance engineers will be eager to follow up with an even hotter version of the new model. This prototype, bearing all the hallmarks of the new 3 coupled with all manner of performance bolt-ons, was spotted lapping the vaunted Nürburgring Nordschleife wearing a bit of camo and a lot of speed. The shots reveal the presence of a big ol' hood scoop, oversized alloys, a full aero kit and dual exhaust. Of course, the next question is what engine will be crammed under that gaping bonnet vent, with some suggesting a revamped version of the current model's direct-inject 2.3-liter turbo four and others the Volvo-derived 2.5-liter five-cylinder turbo slated to crank out 300 hp in the new Euro-only Ford Focus RS. Tantalizing options, both, but we'll just have to wait and see what the Zoom-Zoom crew have in store for us.
posted : 10/22/2008 @11:03:30 PM
Spy Shots: 2010 Mazda3 interior snappedJudging from exterior shots of the 2010 Mazda3 that were released last week, Mazda is looking to be more than a bit player in the small car market. The styling of the new Mazda3 looks more expensive than the current model, and is perhaps a better example of the brand's new design language than the also recently redesigned Mazda6. We've been looking forward to seeing pics of the Mazda3 on the inside, and judging from this one spy shot we've seen so far, the Zoom Zoom designers didn't go cheap on the interior. The first thing that draws attention in the Mazda3 cabin is the Civic-esque two-tier dashboard. We're not huge fans of this style, but Mazda designers did a nice job of integrating the top deck with the lower level and center stack. Judging from the sole pic, some buttons on the center stack look to be a bit small, but main knobs for HVAC and volume are nice and big. The interior in this example is two-toned with what looks to be an aluminum-finished applique above the glove box, and more contrasting colors on the seats and doors. One thing that didn't change from the current generation Mazda3 is the red back-lighting on all the gauges, buttons, and knobs that we've come to expect from Mazda.
posted : 10/15/2008 @9:34:03 PM
VIDEO: Mazda releases unrevealing teaser vid of 2010 Mazda3

Mazda has already given us a sneak-peak at its long-awaited 2010 Mazda3, and while we like what we've seen so far, we want more. We know that team Zoom Zoom is adding a new 2.5L engine to replace the outgoing 2.3L engine, and that the full Monte will be shown at the LA Auto Show next month, but anything more would be great. We came across a short video clip of the Mazda3 in action, but it's 12 seconds long and shows the same three photos we've already seen with moving wheel animations. Needless to say, it's a little disappointing.
more ...
posted : 10/15/2008 @7:53:47 PM
2010 Mazda3 unveiled ahead of LA Auto Show

Mazda has confirmed the time and place for the unveiling of its all-new 2010 Mazda3: November 19th at the LA Auto Show. In anticipation of the car's public debut, the Japanese automaker released these three images of the remodeled 3 sedan that reveal the car's new design. While the new 3 retains a similar shape as the current model with a high beltline and rear decklid, the new car sports a much more expressive face with a "smile" grille positioned low up front that's flanked by vertical air intake/fog light combos. The front fenders, likewise, are more distinct from the elevated hood and roll nicely back into the car's forward canted character line. Out back are bigger taillights embedded in what appears to be a larger trunk above dual exhaust tips. The overall shape is a logical evolution of the current car that combines current Mazda design elements already found on the RX-8, Mazda6 and recently refreshed MX-5. Mazda also tells us that the 3 sedan will carry over its 2.0L four-cylinder, but be joined by a larger 2.5L engine to replace the current car's 2.3L. As for the Mazda3 five-door hatchback, we'll have to wait until some time after the LA Auto Show for that, though we're hoping the new Mazdaspeed3 is not far behind.
posted : 10/15/2008 @7:07:46 PM
tags : mazda3
Autocar drives 2010 Mazda3 prototype - "big improvement"

British mag Autocar just got through driving a 2010 Mazda3 prototype and the author seems to have come away impressed. The mag got the chance to sample the new 3 in gas and diesel variants while driving them around Iceland's coastline. They were very impressed with the new 2.2L diesel, but we'll likely just get the equally new and impressive 2.0L direct-injection gas engine here in the former colonies. They described that DI engine as "impressively smooth, refined and torquey" while routing its power through a "very slick" six-speed manual. Mazda has apparently also kept the spirit of Zoom-Zoom alive in the handling department, producing a car that is more "pointable... than is common in this class." Autocar went so far as to compare it to a Mk IV Golf V5. High praise indeed. We'll have to wait until later next month at the LA Auto Show to see how the U.S. version turns out, but for now we'll take Autocar's word on this being "a big improvement over the current car," which many of us already love.
posted : 10/15/2008 @6:56:57 PM
Rendered Speculation: 2010 Mazda3 smiles back

We have an idea of what the next Mazda3 will look like based on some trademark renderings that Mazda supplied the European Union Office of Harmonization for the Internal Market; basically what they amount to are patent drawings. Based on these very rough outlines, somebody named Pascal Boissé from Auto-Motive D&C has created a rendering that gives us a slightly better idea of what the new compact car will look like. The results are a bit mixed, with the fenders and greenhouse meeting our expectations, but that happy-go-lucky front end may be a bit off. Recent spy shots don't show the snout protruding out quite that far. We may see character lines along the door's bottom edge, leading up to the rear arches as the rendering clearly shows. What we know for sure is that Mazda has been getting more expressive with its styling, as the revised 6 and recent concepts prove. We'll see the Mazda3 in person at the upcoming LA Auto Show and here's hoping that it's a bit more refined than the rendering above.
posted : 10/3/2008 @7:41:10 PM
Spy Photos: Mazda3 sedan wearing skin-tight camoWhen is camo not really camo? When it's black and white tape stuck to the body of the 2010 Mazda3 sedan. The new 3 was recently caught in the U.S. and the new front end is essentially a reworked version of the Mazda6's, with a grinning, two-piece grille split by an angular bumper. Notice the bulges and fairings around the foglamps next to the lower grille, and the way the stretched headlights and flared fenders turn the hood outline into a wild polyhedral. The sculpted leather seats and roomy cabin look a treat as well. Assuming Mazda won't jack up the price or sink the driving dynamics, this could exceed the success of the current car. We'll bring you the full story from the LA Auto Show in just about sixty days.
posted : 9/24/2008 @10:31:35 PM
Spy Shots: 2010 Mazda3New spy shots of the refreshed Mazda3 have surfaced, lending credence to the future-Mazda images we've seen oozing out of places like an EU harmonization office, and a Japanese toymaker. It looks like the doors remain largely unchanged, with the nose and tail receiving the bulk of the work. The front end will pick up new headlamps that mimic what big-brother 6 now wears. The black-tape ruse is not effective at disguising a C-Pillar that remains kinked forward, but the taillights are successfully obscured with adhesive applique. It won't be long before we see all the tape pulled off the refreshed 3 as the car show season heats up.
posted : 9/2/2008 @1:37:01 PM
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