World Car Blog
Mazda CX-30 Yearlong Review Verdict: Master of None
We started our 15 months with our long-term Mazda CX-30 Premium AWD wondering if the handsome new subcompact SUV could convince us Mazda is truly on the march upmarket to become a luxury automaker. Now 19,163 miles later and with our CX-30 departing the MotorTrend garage, we feel safe saying although Mazda has made serious strides in some areas, the overall CX-30 experience left us cold—a new feeling for us, considering how much we loved our old CX-5, CX-9, 3, and 6 long-term cars.
The CX-30 has had an admittedly weird stay in our long-term fleet, with more than half of a year overlapping with safer-at-home orders. But despite sticking close to home base in Los Angeles for the first six months or so of its loan, our CX-30 got some meaningful road trip time in, including long stretches up to northern Oregon and shorter stints to San Francisco and out to the Mojave Desert in support of our Of The Year programs. Over that time, we got to know the CX-30 quite well. We really appreciated our CX-30's premium styling. Although the swooshy waveform on its flanks is controversial among staff (some think the reflections make it look like the SUV was sideswiped), the CX-30 has a distinctive and unmistakably Mazda look. The interior styling won high praise, too, outdoing segment rivals such as the Buick Encore GX and Lexus UX in design and material choice. We were also charmed by our long-termer's engaging steering feel, which is usually something of an afterthought in the subcompact SUV segment.
But despite the bright spots, the CX-30 wore on us over the months. Its styling promises luxury, but the drive experience doesn't deliver. We grew tired of apologizing to passengers for the buzz-prone powertrain, the transmission's sloppy shifts, and inconsistent stops due to a mushy brake pedal. The standard 186-hp, 186-lb-ft 2.5-liter I-4 also felt a bit underpowered when loaded with four people—an impression that the hunt-happy six-speed automatic didn't help. Mazda now offers a 250-hp turbocharged I-4 on the CX-30, but it's still saddled with the increasingly dated six-speed auto.
The CX-30's cabin also wasn't as nice a place to spend time as it first appeared to be; passengers frequently complained that the tight cabin was claustrophobic, due to the stylish high beltline. (The driver's seat is thankfully height-adjustable.) We've also found Mazda's infotainment system difficult to use while driving, requiring far too much time looking at screens and twiddling a knob than is safe to do while on the road
Although our CX-30 has been mechanically trouble-free over its time with us, its cabin is showing signs of early wear and tear. The white leather seats have started to stain from sliding across them in jeans, and the bolsters have been marred from rubbing up against the SUV's B-pillar. We were also disappointed to see the CX-30's faux carbon-fiber plastic trim quickly became an ugly rainbow of scratches, especially in high touchpoint areas around the shifter and cupholders. We had identical issues with our 2020 Mazda 3 long-termer.
Mazda's failure to improve materials quality is disappointing. However, we continue to be pleased with the dealer experience. For a mainstream automaker on the march upmarket, Mazda's dealership fell squarely on the luxury side of the spectrum, impressing us with the swiftness of its service and the attention to detail. Granted, we didn't spend much time at the dealership during our loan. Our two visits to the dealer were for routine service (an oil and filter change, tire rotation, and inspection) and recall work (one for a Bose audio system glitch, the other to improve the spotty adaptive cruise control).
We spent about $375.00 maintaining our Mazda (we say "about," because a careless former employee neglected to file the paper work for our CX-30's second service). That's significantly more than we spent on our long-term 2020 Kia Soul ($198.19 for two services) and 2018 Subaru Crosstrek ($281.85 for three services). It's also about $100 more than what we spent maintaining the 2020 Mazda 3. All of these vehicles covered about 20,000 miles.
The EPA rates the CX-30 AWD at 25/32/27 mpg city/highway/combined, and in our time with it, which heavily skewed toward urban driving, we netted 25.8 mpg. Unsurprisingly, that's worse than our Mazda 3 hatchback (28.8 mpg), but it's about dead even with our old Crosstrek, which achieved 25.9 mpg in our hands.
Overall, Mazda has made notable strides with both design and the dealership experience. But if we're looking at it as a luxury SUV, its lack of polish and drivetrain refinement seriously detract from the ownership experience. At the same time, the compromises resulting from Mazda's move upmarket make the CX-30 less enjoyable to drive day to day. As a result, this is probably the least engaging Mazda we've experienced in a decade; improvements in design and dealerships don't outweigh that.
Ultimately, the CX-30 is less a jack-of-all-trades vehicle than a master of none. We won't miss this Mazda, but there's always the next one.
The successor to the Opel Insignia in the form of a large crossover
The Buick Regal is no longer available in the United States, but this model is still present in other parts of the world. The year before last, in 2020, it was refreshed for the Chinese market, and the European version under the Opel Insignia label was also restyled. This means that it will remain on sale for at least another three years, but when it retires, the popular Insignia will be replaced by a completely new vehicle.
The new generation of Opel flagships will not arrive before 2024, but we already know some details. According to the latest reports, the Insignia will be transformed into a car that will be something between an SUV and a minivan in terms of body configuration, write Vrele Gume.
The Citroen C5 went through a similar metamorphosis, and the same is expected in the case of the Ford Mondeo. So Opel's move makes sense. The new Insignia promises to provide more space inside the cabin, as well as a larger trunk, with of course a higher seating position. The newcomer could be based on the eVMP architecture, which it will share with future successors to the Peugeot 3008 and 5008. If this assumption proves correct, it would mean that the new Insignia will get a purely electric version with different battery options and a range between 402 and 645 kilometers. In terms of power, it should be in the range of 135 to 335 horses.
As this is a thoroughly revised version of the EMP2 platform, this new architecture will also allow Opel to offer its customers internal combustion engines. However, we do not expect a purely traditional drivetrain, but in combination with electric motors within the "plug-in" hybrid system. The current family of turbo petrol and turbodiesel engines will be replaced by new slightly hybrid units, developed in cooperation with the Belgian engineering firm Punch Powertrain.
Given that Opel is no longer under GM's roof, one should not expect the new Insignia to share anything with the successor to the Buick Regal.
End for Smart EQ ForFour
While we wait for the new models, Smart is reducing its already modest offer.
The media reports that Smart will stop production of the electric model EQ ForFour, while Smart EQ ForTwo will remain in production.
As a reminder, the Smart EQ ForFour is a smaller four-door electric car with a 60 kW / 82 hp electric motor, 17.6 kWh lithium-ion batteries and a modest 125 km range.
As for the future of Smart, in September last year at the Munich Motor Show we could see Smart Concept # 1, the announcement of their future SUV model that according to earlier announcements can be expected in 2023 (premiere probably in late 2022) .
The Smart SUV will be based on the platform of the Chinese company Geely (with which Mercedes had previously reached an agreement on the future of the Smart brand), with the announcement that it will be designed with the help of Mercedes.
This model will mark a change in the brand's design language and positioning in line with its "growing premium and high-tech aspirations". More precisely, it announces a new brand identity - more beautiful, sportier and, of course, more "cool" than before. "
Apart from China (where it will be produced), Smart SUVs will also be sold in Europe.
The new Opel Insignia on the wings of the Peugeot 508
Opel continues its market offensive on the PSA concept, which has gained new momentum in the Stellantis Group. The new Opel Astra is just getting hot, and the announcement of the third generation of the middle-class sedan - the Opel Insignia - is coming from Rüsselsheim.
Well, the first-generation Opel Insignia replaced the not-so-successful third-generation Opel Vectra in 2008, and when it won the European Car of the Year 2009 title, we thought: in Rüsselsheim, they finally discovered the Passat-class formula for success.
However, the solid and beautifully shaped Opel sedan, 483 cm long, along with the virtues, also showed flaws, primarily in the rear, and it was too heavy and not dynamic enough. Most of the mistakes were corrected by the still current Opel Insignia model of the second generation from 2017, which competes more seriously with the leader from Wolfsburg. Now it's time for the third generation model, which is based on the technological concept of the successful new Peugeot 508 model.
The Opel Insignia C, in the sedan and station wagon versions of the Sports Tourer, is based on the EMP2 joint platform and the base engine will be a proven turbocharged petrol with direct 1.6 injection. In the mild hybrid version with 177 hp and as a plug-in hybrid with electric motor support at the rear, for 4 × 4 drive and 225 and 360 hp as well as up to a range of only 70 km. The base mild hybrid 3-cylinder turbo petrol version 1.2 with 131 hp is also considered.
The presentation is expected at the end of 2022, and the first deliveries at the beginning of 2023.
Formula 1 News
Ferrari: Leclerc and Sains have the same status
Ferrari has announced that in the 2022 season, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sains will have equal status in the team, reports Sport Club.
In the competition of constructors, Ferrari finished in third place in 2021, behind Mercedes and Red Bull, but they all hope that 2022 will be better and more successful. That is why the preparations for the new season started earlier.
The head of the team, Matia Binoto, clearly said that the driving duo, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sains, will start the season completely equal in status, and that only the achieved results will eventually turn in favor of one or the other if necessary.
"As I often say, as far as drivers are concerned, it is the track that decides. The priority is always the team and there is no story, if they are in a position to fight for an important place in the championship, the results will make the decision themselves. Sometimes it’s not just about the potential and talent of the driver. Some unforeseen things can happen to everyone, burdens, collisions… I certainly don't think we need that, to have driver number one or two. "We will simply talk about it when and if necessary," Binoto said.
Who has the most penalty points in F1?
Last Formula 1 season was filled with exciting situations, and the organization had its hands full when it comes to penalty points shared by the FIA. They are obtained for causing a collision, ignoring yellow flags or e.g. poor positioning in the starting grid.
If the driver gets 12 penalty points, he will be punished by a ban on participating in one race. However, so far no one has managed to reach level 12 and thus seriously jeopardize their season. Points are cleared after 12 months, so drivers who make continuous mistakes, but not to a large extent, are not affected by this system of penalties.
Take a look at the list - from the most undisciplined, to those who fully complied with FIA rules.
8 - Juki Cunoda;
7 - Max Ferstappen, Sergio Perez;
6 - Sebastian Vettel, Nikita Mazepin, Nicolas Latifi;
5 - Valteri Botas, Lando Noris, Lens Strol;
3 - Antonio Giovinci, Pierre Gasley;
2 - Luis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen;
1 - Esteban Okon, George Russell;
0 - Daniel Ricardo, Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sains, Mick Schumacher.
Gunther Werks Porsche 993 Speedster
The American company Gunther Werks will delight 25 well-to-do customers, as it will soon deliver their outstanding restomod creation inspired by the extremely rare Porsche 911 Speedster from the 993 Series, which was made in only two copies.
What the famous company Singer makes by hand on the basis of the Porsche 911 from the 964 Series, Gunther Werks does on the basis of the next generation "Elfer" which hides behind the number 993 and will be remembered as the last generation Porsche 911 whose legendary boxer engines were air-cooled.
The treat from GW is inspired by the original 993 Speedster model, which Porsche once made in only two copies (one for Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the other for comedian Jerry Seinfeld) and thus made it one of its most desirable models.
For 25 well-to-do customers who didn't get a chance to drive home the original 993 Speedster Gunther Werks has prepared an extraordinary replacement that was created on the restored and modified Porsche 993, and the published photos show what the first ordered speedometer ordered. body color.
Except for the door, all body panels are made of carbon fiber, which greatly helped the weight of the two-seater to be only 1,175 kilograms, and with modifications under the hood came the 4.0-liter 6-cylinder boxer engine developing 440HP and 455Nm of torque. As a reminder, the most powerful production Porsche 911 (993) wore the GT2 accessory and developed 450HP.
The 6-speed manual transmission Getrag G50 is responsible for transmitting power to the rear axle with limited mechanical differential lock, with Gunther Werks offering several transmission options, and the brakes of the renowned Italian company Brembo ensure efficient braking.
Standard support has been replaced by adaptive support with three work programs hidden behind reinforced 18-inch alloy wheels in the distinctive Fuchs style.
