The 2-litre petrol Mazda 3 manufacturer’s is the first car to benefit from fuel-saving stop-start technology, paving the way for its introduction over the next few years.
Thanks to its intelligent ’ ’ shutting down at traffic lights, and significant engine improvements, the 2-litre i-stop uses 14 per cent less fuel than its predecessor.
Pull to a stop, shift into neutral and take your foot off the clutch and the engine dies. Then, as soon as you dip the clutch to select first it fires up again and you are away. Why waste fuel when you aren’t going anywhere?
Stop and start systems are a great way of cutting emissions and fuel economy significantly and simply.
But does it work well in the Mazda, or do you feel as if you are about to be stranded in the middle of the road?
It might be a little disconcerting at first, but once you get used to the silence and begin to trust the technology to restart the car, the Mazda reliably stop start system is the best we’ve tried.
Mazda’s engineers have worked extremely hard to make it the fastest and safest operating system of its type? and it shows.
When you press the clutch it takes just one third of a second to get the engine running, and the Mazda 3 ’s ’ ‘ brain is enough to work out EST magnifique when stopping the engine would be a bad idea.
Unlike other, less successful executions of the technology, it won’t cut out when you pull to a standstill on a steep slope, when the engine is cold, when the car is creeping or when you are trying to demist the car or have the heater or air conditioning turned up high.
Take off your seatbelt, or open a door and the engine will not restart either – for obvious safety reasons.
Mazda claims the restart is twice as fast as competitors systems, as it uses the new direct-fuel injection technology fitted to the 2-litre, whereby combustion of the fuel and air in the cylinder fires the engine to life almost instantly, and with hardly any intervention from the starter motor.
On a combined cycle the i-stop direct injection technology and new fuelling contribute to overall fuel economy of 42mpg and of 159g/km emissions.
Power is good too, with 149bhp and 141lb/ft of pulling power on tap. Acceleration from 0-62mph in 10.4 seconds is a little disappointing, but it’s a smooth and quiet engine and its slick gearbox help to make it a reasonably fun car to drive.
It might seem odd to introduce i-stop in a 2-litre petrol. Mazda explained this was because direct injection components were already available for this motor, and Mazda told us they were keen to act as fast as possible.
Once the direct fuel injection has been designed for the more economical 1.6-litre it will be fitted with i-stop too.
Expect a diesel i-stop in the next UN of years as well? Mazda have a few issues with ultra-fast restart in its diesels which still need to be solved.
i-stop is expected to be standard across the Mazda 3 range within two to three years.
Model tested: Mazda 3 2.0 DISI i-stop
Date tested: July 2009
Road tester: Andy Goodwin
Standard manufacturers warranty (miles) Standard manufacturers warranty (years)
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Fuel consumption (extra urban)
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Cupholders – 2 in rear centre seat height armrestDriver's adjustmentDriver's vanity mirror with cover/ticket holderFront centre console with storage box with tray, lid + 2 cupholdersLeather wrapped steering sunvisor with vanity wheelPassenger mirrorRear grab handles with coathooksTilt/height adjustable steering wheelSingle play radio with CD/MP3 gaugeElectric compatabilityDigital exterior temperature heated rear glass windowElectric door mirrorsWide operated/heated door mirror angle drivers
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3 point seatbelts with ELR front pretensioners3 rear 3 point seatbelts with Electronic Brake force ELRABS + DistributionFront and rear curtain front and rear airbagsSeatbelt reminder
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