Mazda 2 FAQs

Check out real-world situations relating to the Mazda 2 here, particularly what our experts have to say about them.

• What car should I buy to replace my 2006 Toyota Corolla?

  There are still plenty of great small cars around within your budget, Agnes, and they all have good safety packages (or we wouldn’t recommend them). Look at offerings such as the Suzuki Swift Navigator (with the optional autonomous emergency braking) for around $17,000 (plus on-road costs) or the Kia Rio S at around $19,000 or Kia Picanto S (one size smaller than the Rio) at closer to $16,000. Both the Kias also feature the brand’s excellent seven-year warranty, capped-price servicing and free roadside assistance which is great peace of mind.

  The Volkswagen Polo is a classy drive but a little more expensive at closer to $21,000 for the 85TSi Comfortline. Actually, to be honest, you’ve missed the boat on bargain small cars by a couple of years. Firm favourites such as the Toyota Yaris and Mazda 2 have both been updated relatively recently and have recorded big price jumps in the process. The cheapest Yaris with an automatic transmission is now around $23,000 (it was less than $17,000 back in 2018) while the Mazda 2 Maxx went from being a sub-$17,000 proposition in 2018 to a $23,000 car by the time you add an automatic transmission in 2020.

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• Best small hatch under $30,000?

  The Mazda 2 is a great choice. It has always been towards the front of the small hatchbacks when it comes to safety and is definitely one of the better littlies to actually drive, too.

  Mazda facelifted the 2 in 2017 and took the opportunity to add blind-spot monitoring and rear-cross traffic alert to the vehicle at that point in time. The catch is that the safety tech was only standard on the more expensive models and both the Neo and Maxx versions missed out. You could option that package when you ordered a Neo or Maxx, but it cost extra, and some people didn’t see the value in it.

  So, if you’re shopping for a second-hand Mazda 2 Neo or Maxx, make sure you check carefully that the options you want are fitted. If you’re buying brand-new, no problem, because the most recent upgrade to the 2 saw rear-cross traffic alert and blind-sport monitoring become standard across the range. Lane-departure warning and lane-keep assist also became standard at that time. Significantly, autonomous emergency braking was standard on all Mazda 2s built after the 2017 facelift, making the car a very safe package.

  As for alternatives, the world is your oyster with $30,000 in your pocket. There are lots of really good, safe cars out there in that price bracket, but, again, the Mazda 2 should definitely be on your short-list.

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• Is the Mazda 2 Neo a reliable car?

  The Mazda 2 certainly meets your requirements of safety and reliability, but so too does the Toyota Yaris or Corolla, Hyundai i30, Kia Picanto or Rio.

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