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Long-term report: Is the Mazda 2 Hybrid a car with a false identity?

Jon Reay has been checking out one of Mazda’s most compact models.

Say hello to our latest long term test car: the Mazda 2 Hybrid. And no, we’ve not used a photo of a Toyota by mistake – this really is a Mazda. Or at least, that’s what it says on the boot lid.

The more observant of you might’ve noticed that this particular car is a bit of an imposter. Yes, the 2 Hybrid might claim to be straight out of Hiroshima – Mazda’s home city in Japan, if you were wondering – but it does share rather a lot of parts with the Toyota Yaris. Which is to say, almost all of them.

To Mazda’s credit, they have changed a few bits and pieces to differentiate the two cars. The design of the grille – shaped to resemble cars like the 3, CX-5 and so on – was dreamed up in Mazda’s European design studio in Frankfurt. As was the bit of body coloured plastic between the rear lights, which replaces the Yaris’s gloss black alternative.

The Mazda2 is one of the smallest cars in the brand’s range

Our car is a near-top spec Homura model, which happens to get some black alloy wheels that are also unique to the Mazda – and we must say, they look rather smart. Beyond that though, there’s very little to set the 2 Hybrid apart from its Toyota twin.

Collaborations like this are nothing new in the automotive world, of course. Designing and building cars is an expensive business, and so it’s often more financially viable to pool your knowledge with another company.

Hybrid power helps the 2 to deliver excellent efficiency

In the case of this car, Mazda found themselves in need of a small hybrid car to slot into its showrooms – not something they’ve ever tried making before. Rather than spending billions to reinvent the wheel, they turned to a company that knows a thing or two about hybrid cars: Toyota.

So here you have it: the Mazda 2 Hybrid, designed largely by Toyota, built by Toyota at its factory in France, but sold to you by your friendly Mazda dealer.

Which does rather beg the question, why would you choose this over a near-identical Yaris? That’s something we’re hoping to answer in the next few months as we put the 2 Hybrid through its paces.

There’s a ‘self-charging’ hybrid setup underneath

I’m pleased to say that things are off to a very good start. If you’re going to base your supermini on another existing one, you could certainly do a lot worse than a Yaris. It’s a car that’s really now got into its stride, not only in terms of how its clever hybrid drivetrain works, but also as a package.

The 2 Hybrid inherits a lot of positives then: it looks good, it’s got a well-designed and spacious interior, and on paper at least it’s incredibly fuel efficient. On top of that, if Toyota’s past efforts are anything to go by, it should be incredibly reliable too.

Does it actually feel like a Mazda, though? Not really, but then why would it – not a single part on the 2 Hybrid is shared with any other Mazda.

The 2 gets some new accents at the rear

That said, while it doesn’t technically share a bloodline to the likes of the MX-5, this does seem to be a car that handles quite neatly. It’s even pretty quick for a car of this type: the electric motor of its hybrid system giving some much needed zing as you accelerate away from a standstill.

Time will tell on what the 2 Hybrid is like to live with, but first impressions are certainly positive. I think our car, painted in ‘Glass Blue’, looks spot on – and I think I prefer the design of the Mazda front end to Toyota’s original look.

The real question will be: which one is the better buy? I’d like to be able to say that it doesn’t really matter – because whichever you pick, you’re still getting fundamentally the same product. But things aren’t quite as simple as that, as I’m sure we’ll come to explain over the coming weeks and months. Was the 2 Hybrid the right choice? I suppose we’ll find out soon enough…

Facts at a glance

  • Model: Mazda 2 Hybrid Homura
  • Price: £27,290
  • Engine: 1.5-litre petrol hybrid
  • Power: 114bhp
  • Torque: 120Nm
  • 0-60mph: 9.7 seconds
  • Top speed: 109mph
  • Fuel economy: 67.3mpg (WLTP combined)
  • Emissions: 97g/km
  • Mileage: 1,300

 

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Long-term report: Piling on the miles in our diesel Mazda CX-60

This month, the CX-60 has been munching up the motorway miles, but is a diesel engine the right choice? Jon Reay finds out.

I’m sure I say this every time, but it’s been a busy month for the CX-60. We’ve not quite managed all four corners of the UK, but it doesn’t seem far off. Various bits of East Anglia, the North West and the North East have all been plumbed into the Mazda’s sat nav in the last few weeks, and unsurprisingly it’s taken things in its stride.

One of my favourite things about our CX-60 is its ability to simply shrug off long journeys, be them motorway or B-road based. It’s simply a joy to hop into the drivers seat and point the exceptionally long bonnet down the nearest dual carriageway – and that’s not something I could say about the CX-5 it replaced.

The CX-60 in Manchester serving its duties as a camera car. (PA)

A trip to Manchester saw the Mazda performing duties as a camera car, both hauling videographers and their gear around the city, and even proving itself suitable for some car-to-car filming around the city centre, a la Top Gear. If any budding filmmakers are reading this, I can confirm the CX-60’s boot is perfectly sized for holding a cameraperson.

Then it was off to the opposite coastline for a visit to Sunderland, there for a visit of a – ahem – rival car maker’s UK car plant. So as not to offend the poor Mazda, I opted to leave it hidden in the hotel car park.

Norfolk was ticked off the CX-60’s i-Spy geography book this month, with something of a (long) day trip to Norwich and its surrounding coastline on the cards. This is simply what happens when you have a long-legged car like our Mazda: 260 mile round trips suddenly seem like a perfectly reasonable thing to do for a coffee and a mooch round some shops.

Things did come slightly unstuck on the undulating, up-and-down road surfaces around the Norfolk Broads though. I’ve mentioned before – a lot – my gripes with the CX-60’s bouncy suspension, but it officially met its worst enemy here. Anything that’s not reasonably flat is this car’s absolute undoing, and on this sort of tarmac it’s just comically rubbish.

The Mazda’s first service at Rockingham Cars in Corby. (PA)

With the Mazda’s 1st birthday arriving, it was also time for its first service – which happily for me meant a trip to the excellent Rockingham Cars in Corby. We’ve crossed path before for tyre-related maladies and recalls, and they’ve always been incredibly friendly and helpful.

Slightly more painful was the estimate: around £350 for a first year service. Sounds a bit chunky, but compared to what a BMW or Mercedes dealer would charge for a similarly-sized diesel SUV, it’s not actually too bad. And I suppose a 3.3-litre car does take a lot of oil, after all.

Servicing costs were not too bad. (PA)

That sorted, a stay in Kent for a few days gave some welcome respite from motorway journeys – although not necessarily to the CX-60’s benefit. We’re often being told that diesel-engined cars aren’t suitable for short journeys, but truthfully it’s not an issue I’ve ever come across in our Mazda. It’s frequently taken back and forth to the shops without any particular complaints, though I admit, living in my particular bit of Midlands means even visits to Tesco involve a dual carriageway of some description.

A dashboard message to remind you that you haven’t driven far or long enough to clear the diesel particulate filter. (PA)

After two or three days pottering around a small seaside town with its 30mph speed limits though, our car quickly made its displeasure known. ‘Fast Idle Engine Cleaning. Idle Returns to Normal When Cleaning Is Complete’, flashed a message on the driver display when we flicked on the car one morning. Translation? You’ve not driven long enough for the diesel particulate filter to clean itself out, and now look what you’ve done.

This is not a situation unique to Mazda – effectively all diesel cars are similarly equipped for emissions purposes. Most simply tell you to ‘keep driving’ to fix the problem, but Mazda’s solution is to simply make the car rev itself a bit higher when it’s sat in park. It’s a neat solution, but how long this would actually take to ‘clean’ the particulate filter I couldn’t say – I gave up after a few minutes and pointed the car at a dual carriageway instead.

What this does demonstrate though, is that picking a diesel-engined CX-60 is probably not the best choice if you’re simply using it for the school run. You probably didn’t need me to tell you that of course, but in nearly a year of long journeys with the car, the issue simply hadn’t occurred to me.

We’d recommend the diesel over the plug-in hybrid. (PA)

That is the first, and only situation in which I’d recommend the plug-in hybrid version over the diesel though. Our car’s 3.3-litre straight-six simply fits the character of the car so well, and is something of a dying breed these days. Go on – you won’t regret it. Just… start visiting a supermarket in the next town instead.

Facts at a glance

  • Model: Mazda CX-60 Homura
  • Price: £50,705
  • Engine: 3.3-litre diesel
  • Power: 250bhp
  • Torque: 550Nm
  • 0-60mph: 7.4 seconds
  • Top speed: 136mph
  • Fuel economy: 54.3mpg (WLTP combined)
  • Emissions: 138g/km
  • Mileage: 15,200

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Driven: 2018 Ford Focus

What is it?

Twenty years after the first Focus was launched, Ford’s mid-sized hatch might not be the sales chart-topper it once was – now usurped by its smaller sibling, the Fiesta – but there’s no underestimating how important it still is to the brand and to buyers in the UK.

What’s new?

As you’d expect, Ford isn’t messing around here. This fourth-generation car is entirely new, is filled with even more technology than before, and promises to be even better to drive thanks to a stiffer chassis and some clever suspension bits and pieces.

There’s also an array of new or heavily improved engines available, including new 1.5-litre petrols with fuel-sipping cylinder deactivation tech.

Also new is the eight-speed automatic gearbox, complete here with a Jaguar-style rotary dial for selecting park, reverse and drive. Replacing the previous PowerShift dual-clutch set-ups, this is a proper automatic – and a good one at that.

What’s under the bonnet?

The Focus gets four engines – two petrols, two diesels – in various states of tune. A 1.0-litre EcoBoost borrowed from the old car is the cheapest, although we’d advise against the entry-level 83bhp version in a car of this size.

Next up is a new 1.5-litre petrol with either 148bhp or 179bhp, the latter only available with a manual gearbox.

Finally, on the diesel front there’s the choice of a new 1.5 – either with 94bhp or 123bhp – and a new 2.0-litre with 148bhp.

We drove the 148bhp 1.5 petrol and it felt just about right: torquey all the way through the rev range, with just enough power to have some fun. It’s refined too – virtually silent most of the time, only generating that typical three-cylinder thrum with heavy use of the throttle.

Information about gradient, cornering speed and driving style is fed to the gearbox’s computer, which does a surprisingly good job of working out when to shift down or up on its own, meaning you’re rarely left waiting for the right gear to materialise.

The Focus’s manual options – two six-speed ’boxes – have been tweaked for improved shift quality and efficiency too.

What’s it like to drive?

Aside from its bold design, it was driving dynamics where the original 1998 Focus really stood out from the crowd – so does the fourth generation carry on the tradition?

In a word, yes. It’s still great fun to drive, and arguably more enjoyable behind the wheel than the car it replaces.

Even in comparatively unsporty Vignale trim, it steers with an accuracy and fluidity that many of its rivals still haven’t quite matched, and has a ride that manages to soak up road imperfections while still remaining composed around the twisty stuff.

ST-Line models meanwhile get a firmer, 10mm-lower suspension that helps the Focus handle even more neatly. Whether that pay-off is worth it back in pothole-addled Britain as opposed to the super-smooth roads of Nice that we tested it on, however, remains to be seen.

Additionally, 1.0-litre models don’t get the Focus’s trademark fully independent rear suspension set-up, but since their twist-beam set-up is good enough for the new Fiesta ST, we don’t anticipate too many complaints.

There’s now the option of adaptive dampers too, although we’re not convinced they’re worth the extra cash at this point. A drive on some questionable UK road surfaces might change our minds, however.

How does it look?

ST-Line trim remains the best-looking model to our eyes, although the chunky Active spec cars – not yet released – also give the Focus a nice rough-and-tough crossover look that’s sure to be a hit with the crossover crowd.

What’s it like inside?

The driving position is spot on, dials are all clear and easy to read, and most trim levels come with plenty of seat adjustability (for the driver at least).

Front and rear visibility is on a par with rivals’, and the Focus is easy enough to park without the use of any electronic aids. That said, parking sensors are included on Titanium trim and above, while Ford’s newly improved Active Park Assist system is even easier to use than before: provided your Focus has the eight-speed automatic, it’ll now accelerate and brake as well as steer itself into a space.

Its wheelbase has been increased to allow for extra rear legroom, and the dashboard is now less deep and sculpted in such a way that the interior feels airier and more spacious. Rear passengers get plenty of legroom even in hatchback models, although taller passengers could feel the squeeze on headroom – particularly when the panoramic sunroof option is fitted.

What’s the spec like?

If comfort is your top priority, pick the Vignale trim level. Its soft leather seats are adjustable every which way, while double-glazed windows and active noise cancellation mean road (and particularly engine) noise is eerily absent most of the time.

However, if practicality is a priority, the estate version has you covered. With the rear seats in place it’ll now take loads that are 43mm higher and 25mm longer than before, while folding them flat – now at the pull of a switch – gives a load capacity of 1,650 litres. That’s not quite as spacious as the cavernous Skoda Octavia estate, but it does beat the similarly sized Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer by 20 litres or so

Verdict

Surprise surprise, the new Focus is – from the driver’s seat at least – probably the best car in its segment once again. There are rivals with posher interiors, cheaper price tags or longer warranties, but as an overall package the Focus is still the one to beat.

Facts at a glance

Model as tested: Ford Focus 1.5-litre 150ps Vignale Automatic
Price: £27,300
Engine: 1.5 EcoBoost
Power (bhp): 148
Torque (Nm): 240
Max speed (mph): 129
0-60mph (seconds): 8.9
MPG: 46.3 (combined, on 18-inch wheels)
Emissions (g/km): 138 (on 18-inch wheels)
Rivals (3): VW Golf, Vauxhall Astra, Mercedes A-Class

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Video title: Driven: 2018 Ford Focus

Video desc: This fourth-generation car is entirely new, is filled with even more technology than before, and promises to be even better to drive thanks to a stiffer chassis and some clever suspension bits and pieces.

Video copyright: Blackball Media

Video url: http://msnvideo.blackballmedia.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Ford-unveils-new-Focus-models.mp4

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The six most ridiculous features of the new Rolls-Royce Phantom

For more than a century, Rolls-Royce has stood at the pinnacle of automotive luxury, and the newly-revealed eighth generation Phantom certainly continues this reputation.

There’s the usual combination of exceptional hand-built machinery and British eccentricity, but here are six features on the Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII that really caught our attention.

1. The engine


Rolls-Royce has always been known for creating phenomenal engines, including the Merlin unit that was fitted to the greatest aeroplane of all time – the Supermarine Spitfire.

The Phantom follows this long-held tradition of exquisite powertrains – now using a brand new 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12. This extraordinary engine has a power output of 563bhp, and can even produce as much as 900Nm of torque at a mere 1,700rpm. This means that the car can achieve 0-60mph in a brisk 5.3 seconds.

2. The gearbox


Continuing on the theme of driving mechanics, the new Phantom has some more technological wizardry at its disposal.

The ZF eight-speed gearbox benefits from satellite-aided transmission, which makes its gear selection based on geographic location and the owner’s driving style.

3. The architecture


The Phantom VIII’s rather boxy body hides a very advanced aluminium spaceframe structure, making the car 30 per cent more rigid than its predecessor.

Rolls-Royce describes the result of the added lightness and stiffness as a “magic carpet ride”, saying that it brings a “whole new level” of comfort.

4. The dashboard


Rolls-Royce has named the new Phantom’s dashboard “The Gallery”. The reason? Customers can commission a personalised piece of artwork to be placed behind a large glass pane just above the glove box, on display for the driver and passengers to see.

The idea came from Giles Taylor, Rolls-Royce’s director of design. He explained that the Gallery turns something purely functional into a piece of art. Perhaps the most insane option on offer here is a gold-plated rendering of your DNA.

5. The headlights


If you’re sick of excessively bright lights blinding you on night-time journeys, we’ve got some bad news, because Rolls-Royce is most definitely taking part in the ongoing headlight arms race between premium manufacturers.

As if night vision technology wasn’t enough, the Phantom VIII has a new laserlight system that allows the driver to see a staggering 600 metres down the road in front of them.

6. The cameras


Although reversing cameras and dashcams are often found built in to basic hatchbacks nowadays, the new Phantom changes up a few gears (quite literally in fact).

A stereo camera system has been built into the windscreen. This monitors the road ahead and adjusts the suspension accordingly at speeds of up to 62mph. An additional four-camera setup gives a panoramic view and helicopter view of the car.

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