Editor's note: This review was written in November 2010 about the 2011 Mazda2. Little of substance has changed with this year's model.
The Mazda2 is a small car that drives like a small car — and that's a compliment. Some cars feel bigger than they are, which can be good if you also get a sense of strength and solidity.
The Mazda2, though, is like a welterweight fighter: all quickness and agility, without sacrificing ride and practicality. I kept looking for excuses to drive it.
City Driving
City driving is the Mazda2's forte. I drove the Mazda2 with both available transmissions: a five-speed manual and a four-speed automatic. Obviously, having the right gear on hand for quick maneuvers is simple with the manual because you control the gear selection, but the automatic is also very well-matched to the engine. When I wanted to zip into a spot in traffic, the automatic usually chose the right gear.
The manual has a light clutch that's easy to feel when it's picking up the gear, and the shifter is short and direct. There's none of the rubbery feeling that can plague some entry-level cars. It's fun to shift through the gears in the Mazda2, and it happens with a good, solid feeling.
The steering is also good. It's very light and quick, but it doesn't feel over-boosted or twitchy in city driving. It just felt like I was steering a very light car — because I was. Like the transmission, the steering feels like it's dialed-in well to the car. The same can be said for the brakes: Instead of a mushy pedal, it gave me the right amount of feedback to judge how hard I needed to press the pedal to stop. There isn't a lot of effort required, mind you, but the brakes are easy to get a feel for. It cornered well, too, even in the tight confines of Chicago.
All the stuff that makes you stop, go and turn is really well-tuned. The car feels like a unified machine, ready to zip wherever you want it to in the city.
There was only one real issue I noticed: The sloping A-pillar (the one that supports the windshield) can obscure pedestrians stepping off the curb. I got used to it the more I drove, but you'll have to judge for yourself. Other than that, visibility is really good.
Highway Driving
On the highway is where you'll notice you're driving a small, light car, and that's not always a great thing. Right off, there was fair amount of road noise, and passengers noticed a lot of wind noise. That can be common for lighter cars, because they don't tend to have a lot of sound insulation. Neither noise was intrusive.
The steering is lively on the highway. I never felt like the car got twitchy, but other editors who drove the Mazda2 said the steering was too light at speeds above 70 mph.
If I liked the automatic for cruising around town, the highway was one place where I really preferred the manual transmission. The automatic Mazda2 runs out of steam at high speeds, and I think that's because it could use one more gear. When you want to pass, what you get is pretty much what you'd expect from a small, four-cylinder engine: a lot of noise but not a lot of surging forward. This was less of a problem with the manual.
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