The official distributor of Mazda vehicles in Malaysia, Bermaz Motor has introduced the new Mazda CX-30 for the 2023 model year. 

After roughly three years of being sold as a fully imported (CBU) compact SUV, it is now locally-assembled (CKD), joining the Mazda CX-5 and CX-8.

Four variants are available. CX-30 2.0G Standard, CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium.

Prices (on-the-road, without insurance) start from MYR 128,109, MYR 136,109, MYR 146,109, and MYR 156,109, respectively. 

Each purchase comes with a five-year/100,000 KM manufacturer’s warranty, and a five-year/100,000 KM free maintenance program.

Seven exterior colours are available. Soul Red Crystal, Machine Gray, Snowflake White Pearl, Platinum Quartz, Deep Crystal Blue, Polymetal Gray and Jet Black. 

Weighing in at 1,436 KG, the new CX-30 stands at 1,795 MM long, 1,795 MM wide, 1,540 MM tall, and with a wheelbase spanning 2,655 MM.

It exudes a stocky yet sleek and sporty exterior, with a front bumper adorned by elements and contours that are very elegant.

Featuring Mazda’s slim and spanned-out chrome wing trim, it cradles the commanding matte-black grille and headlights in a striking pointed fashion.

Minimalistic, the rear end’s overall design features smooth rounded curves with a laid-back sporty appeal, complementing the front.

It’s paired with a sleek roof edge spoiler, and a lower bumper black cladding that matches the surrounding body (front lip, side skirts, fenders).

It gets a set of angularly sharp and slim headlamps, of which design gives the front a more focused and athletic look.

All variants get full LED units with auto On/Off and levelling functions. The CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium variants, add on Signature illumination. 

The CX-30 2.0G Standard comes with bulb type Daytime Running Lights (DRL), while the CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium get LED.

Wrapped-around, the tail lamps feature a design that matches the front head lamps with its angularly slim and sharp style.

LED combination units for all variants. The CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium variants, add on Signature illumination. 

The side mirrors are power-adjustable and -folded with turn indicators. The CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium variants, add on blind spot indicators.

Variant CX-30 2.0G Standard gets a set of 16-Inch alloys wrapped in 215/65 R16 tyres, while CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium get 18-Inch alloys in 215/55 R18 tyres.

The new CX-30 has a dashboard design that is simple, practical and premium-looking, with high levels of craftsmanship and build quality. 

It is covered in a dual-toned shade of soft- and hard-touch panels with silver trims as a detailing finish. 

Button accessibilities for the systems and the overall layout are well put, as it is driver oriented and non-cluttered with easy reachability.

Fitted is a 7-Inch TFT-LCD Multi-Information Display (MID) instrument cluster that comes with an Active Driving Display heads-up unit (colour windshield-projection).

Inside the five-seater, variant CX-30 2.0G Standard is fitted with all-black fabric upholstered seats, featuring eight-way (driver) and six-way (passenger) manual adjustments, and 60:40 split-fold rear seats.

Meanwhile, variants CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+ and CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium, upgrade to leather upholstery, a 10-way power adjustment (driver), and two-position memory function (driver).

It offers plenty of head, shoulder and legroom thus front and rear occupants get ample space. The space is sufficient and borderline generous, considering it to be a compact SUV.

The steering wheel comes in all-black leather, a three-spoke design and is aided by Electronic Power Assisted Steering (EPAS).

It gets multi-switches (Hands-free, Audio, Bluetooth), paddle shifters (CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+, CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium), and tilt and telescopic functions. 

It has numerous storage areas including medium sized door pockets, compartmentalised storages and a cavern storage in the centre console, and a decent-sized glove box.

There are four cup holders, two located in the front centre console and two in the rear centre armrest. As for bottle holders, it gets four, one in each side door pocket. 

Installed is one 12-V power socket in the front centre console, and two USB ports with one located in the front centre console and one in the centre console cavern storage.

Accessing its powered-tailgate (CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+, CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium) opens up to 430-Litres of boot space. 

At the same time, it is able to fit up to two medium suitcases and two pet carriers, and even has a little more space to spare, thanks to the 60:40 split-fold rear seats.

The new CX-30 (CX-30 2.0G High+, CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium) comes with the Mazda i-ACTIVSENSE suite of Advanced Driver Assistant System (ADAS), which includes Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFS), Adaptive LED Headlights (ALH), High Beam Control (HBC), Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM), Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA), Front Cross Traffic Alert (FCTA), Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS), Lane-Keep Assist System (LAS), Smart Brake Support (SBS) with Front and Rear, Driver Attention Alert (DAA) with Driver Monitoring, Mazda Radar Cruise Control (MRCC) with Stop/Go and Cruising And Traffic Support (CTS). 

Passive safety includes Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist (BA), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), Traction Control System (TCS), Emergency Stop Signal (ESS), Hill Launch Assist (HLA), and Electronic Parking Brake (EPB) with Auto Hold function. Others comprise of seven airbags (front, front sides, curtain, driver knee), seat belts (anchors, reminders, pre-tensioners), four parking sensors (front, rear - CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+, CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium), reverse parking camera with guidelines (CX-30 2.0G Standard, CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+), 360-degree view monitor (CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium), ISOFIX with anchor points and top tethers, and engine-immobiliser with anti-theft system.

Two drive modes available – Normal and Sport.

It features an 8.8-Inch Mazda Connect digital touchscreen infotainment system that supports multi-function commander control, voice recognition, Bluetooth, AUX, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and navigation. 

The Mazda G-Vectoring Control Plus (GVC Plus) technology helps improve steering response, in turn, making the driving more proficient and intuitive. 

Paired with the Mazda i-ACTIVSENSE suite of ADAS, cruising through the city or speeding through the highway will be a more relaxing experience.

Installed with an eight-speaker setup.

Harbouring in the new CX-30 is Mazda’s SkyActiv-G 2.0-Litre, naturally-aspirated, four-cylinder 16-valve, DOHC with VVT petrol engine, producing 162 HP at 6,000 RPM and 213 NM of torque at 4,000 RPM. 

Fitted is a SkyActiv-Drive six-speed automatic with manual shift mode transmission.

Power is sent to the front wheels (2WD).

It can go from zero to 100 KM/H in 10.6 seconds and hit a top speed of 195 KM/H. 

The fuel tank capacity is 51-Litres, and it is capable of delivering a combined fuel consumption figure of 6.5-Litres for every 100 KM/H.

Rear air vents are located at the centre, behind the front occupant’s arm rest (CX-30 2.0G High, CX-30 2.0G High+, CX-30 2.0G High+ Premium).

It is spacious, comfortable, and the ride quality is good with a handling that is more refined and sturdier. 

Overall, with the new reinforced chassis, and the suspension setup (MacPherson struts - front, Torsion beam - rear), the driving is very solid and responsive.

Sound insulation is adequate, as the cabin is able to suppress wind, road and tyre noises well, and make them barely noticeable.