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By
EWAN KENNEDY
27 August 2007
Mazda is currently the only Japanese marque in Australia to
be pushing diesel engines in its passenger car range. It has just
announced that Mazda3 is to be offered with the option of this
fuel-saving, low-emission engine.
The engine is the same turbo-diesel unit as used in the Mazda6.
It has good power at 105 kW, and exceptional torque that peaks at
360 Nm. So high is the torque that the engineers have felt it
necessary to use the gearbox and some of the body strengthening
components from the high-performance Mazda3 MPS. ESP (Electronic
Stability Program) is also part of the package, probably a wise
move considering the availability of all those Newton metres at
the front wheels.
The diesel is sold only with this six-speed manual, the company
reasoning that drivers who want to achieve the lowest possible
fuel consumption are willing to put some extra effort into doing
so. Having said that, it’s likely Mazda has an automatic
transmission under development for those who demand extra
convenience.
Tested to Australian standards, the turbo-diesel Mazda MZR-CD
uses just 6.0 litres per hundred kilometres in a mixture of city
and highway driving. This drops to 5.4 litres per hundred in pure
country running, making the magic number of 1000 km from a tank a
real possibility.
Mazda3 MZR-CD is sold in sedan and station wagon format and has
the same specification levels as the petrol Maxx Sport model. Thus
it is fitted with air conditioning, an iPod compatible six-CD
audio system, power windows and door mirrors and cruise control.
This new Mazda turbo-diesel is priced at $30,500 for the sedan,
an increase of $4000 over the petrol car, something that has to be
taken into consideration when you do your fuel-saving
calculations.
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Marque Publishing Company
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