- The 2022 Mazda MX-30 is a new electric vehicle that will go on sale in California this fall.
- It will be initially available only in battery-electric form, with a plug-in-hybrid model coming later.
- The MX-30’s small battery pack means it likely won’t offer much more than 100 miles of range on a single charge.
Mazda’s first electric vehicle will finally arrive in the United States later this year, starting in California this fall. The 2022 MX-30 will initially be available only as a battery-powered EV, while a plug-in-hybrid version with a rotary gasoline engine will arrive later on, likely sometime next year.
The fully electric version features a single electric motor powering the front wheels. Power output is 144 horsepower and 200 pound-feet of torque, making it significantly less powerful than many other affordable EVs.
A small lithium-ion battery pack provides just 35.5 kWh of total capacity—Mazda isn’t providing a usable-capacity number yet, but we’d estimate it at around 32.0 kWh. This means that the MX-30 isn’t likely to offer much more than 100 miles of range on a single charge on the EPA cycle. (Official ratings aren’t yet available, but the MX-30 is rated at 124 miles on the more optimistic WLTP cycle.) Mazda hasn’t released specs for the range-extender hybrid version, but its gasoline engine and fuel tank will likely provide significantly more driving range. DC fast-charging capability is standard, with Mazda claiming that the MX-30 can charge to 80 percent full in 36 minutes.
Within the current context of EV offerings, the MX-30 is more of a competitor to the Mini Electric, which has similar power and range numbers, than it is an alternative to longer-range affordable options such as the Chevrolet Bolt EV. And like the Mini, the MX-30 has distinctive styling inside and out, with RX-8–inspired rear half doors and interesting materials such as cork found on the dashboard.
While pricing is not yet available, we think the MX-30 will need an appealingly low starting price to overcome its low range and power numbers. The Mini Electric starts at just over $30,000, so Mazda would do well to try to match or undercut that with the MX-30’s base price.
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Source: Motor - aranddriver.com
