Mazda has unveiled its first mass-production
electric vehicle in the form of the Mazda MX-30 on the eve of the Tokyo Motor
Show. The Japanese car manufacturer says the MX-30 features a single
front-mounted electric motor receiving juice from a 35.5 kWh battery pack in
the floor that’s said to be good for around 200 km of range.
Mazda
is yet to specify all that many details about the vehicle’s powertrain although
we know that recent prototypes of the MX-30 have delivered 142 hp and 194 lb-ft
of torque from the aforementioned electric motor.
Underpinning the vehicle is Mazda’s e-SkyActiv
platform and the car comes loaded with a bunch of safety features. For example,
there is Smart Brake Support (autonomous emergency braking) with Turn-Across
Traffic detection using a millimeter-wave radar and forward-facing camera.
There is also a Road Keep Assist function that is able to detect soft road
edges where there isn’t a line marking. An advanced Blind Spot Assist system
has also been developed that prevents a driver from merging into traffic if the
driver doesn’t notice the blind-spot sensor on the wing mirrors. Elsewhere, Mazda has equipped the vehicle with
G-Vectoring Control that can momentarily pause the motor’s torque whenever
necessary.
The design of the MX-30 is also worth discussing.
One of the most intriguing aspects of its design are suicide rear-doors very
similar to those from the Mazda RX-8. Elsewhere, clear inspiration has been
taken from other Mazda crossovers like the similarly-sized CX-30.
Inside, the MX-30 features a three-spoke steering
wheel, a touchscreen infotainment system sitting at the top of the dashboard,
and a secondary touchscreen display used to operate the climate control
functions.
