Mazda MX-30, the electric coupe SUV that wasn't there

It will be on sale by the end of 2020, with an autonomy of around 200 km and prices of 34,900 euros

The time has come for Mazda to unveil the first electric car. He does it at the Tokyo salon, where the MX-30 (on sale in the second half of 2020), a refined 4.40 meter long crossover that gives a nod to coupes, as the thin front headlights denote, the arched roof and the small, very inclined rear window. The Mazda MX-30 has a body with clean and smooth surfaces, with wide bands of anti-scratch plastic to enrich (and protect) the wheel arches.

However, the most distinctive element of the car is the rear doors that open against the wind: they are called Freestyle doors and facilitate access on board, thanks to the generous opening angle, which reaches the 80th (the front ones open, in a traditional way, up to 82 °). The opening upwind is a clear tribute to the RX-8 sports car. The front seats are equipped with a mechanism that folds the back and slides them forward at the touch of a button, in order to make boarding easier for those who have to sit on the sofa.

A small living room

Mazda has reserved the same attention within the MX-30, which appears very nice and full of original solutions. On all the cabinet of the change: is raised, to bring the selector close to the driver's hand, and mounted on a console that gives the idea of ​​being suspended. Small objects can be placed at the base and behind it.

The cabinet is connected to the dashboard through a thin surface, occupied by a 7 "touch screen that integrates the controls for the" climate "and other on-board services. A second screen of 7 ", mounted in the upper part of the console, is managed through the wheel in the tunnel and allows to control the multimedia system. The Japanese house has used warm colors and some waste materials, including the cork of the original can holder under the gearshift console. The rear seats, on the other hand, resemble a sofa.

Thanks to electronics you drive better

The MX-30 should prove to be a crossover enjoyable and quick to drive, according to the anticipations of the house, which increased the rigidity of the frame and revised the G-Vectoring Control (GVC) system, which improves the insertion of the car in curves by charging more weight on the front axle thanks to small load transfers between the two axles of the wheels: its evolution is called e-GVC Plus and it should work even more effectively, because the system does not use brakes but imperceptibly "cuts" the power of the electric motor.

Mazda has also implemented the Motor Pedal, a system that makes driving smoother by helping the driver not to squeeze the throttle too much when driving in a relaxed or low speed traffic. The crossover takes up the e-TPV prototype technique (lower our first contact) and has an electric motor from 143 CV, powered by batteries with a capacity of 35.5 kWh: this results in a range of approximately 200 kilometers, measured according to the WLTP cycle.

The "right" battery

The capacity of the batteries seems reduced for a long and bulky car like the MX-30 – just think of the Honda city car and 35 kWh batteries – but the Japanese company has calculated that an electric car with a 95 kWh battery emits, in the entire cycle of life, more CO2 than a diesel. Hence the choice to rely on batteries of "smaller" size, which guarantees low weight and smaller dimensions (especially in the thickness) for an optimal integration of the accumulator in the body.

For those who want more autonomy will be available (but only since 2021) the Wankel rotary engine, which acts as range extender and does not transfer motion to the wheels, but recharge batteries when their charge level drops below a set level.

Photogallery: Mazda MX-30