MX-5 aside, the CX-3 is the sportiest looking new Mazda, but it’s more Dakar rally raid than take it to the track on Sunday. It

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looks like it could go anywhere, although let’s be clear, this isn’t the intention. Rather, you’ll look oh-so stylish pulling up to the ski hill in this subcompact SUV, and you’ll get there using less fuel than the majority of snow slaying 4x4s.

Its variation on Mazda’s new corporate face might be the best yet. Its large and proud yet tasteful grille is almost stately, and certainly more premium than some luxury branded small CUVs, while its sharp and narrow combination headlamps add to the little soft-roader’s animalistic characteristics. Likewise, vertically stacked driving lights and fogs are particularly attractive while adding visual height to the design, these interrupted by a subtle front fender crease that flows past the bottom edge of each headlamp before arcing overtop the wheels and then

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bending into a beltline that swoops across the front door before disappearing midway through the rear access point, while another curving beltline arches over the rear fender before melding into the wrap-around taillights.

Wrap-around is a CX-3 theme, most noticeably followed up by a greenhouse that seems to continue from the rear quarter window to the back glass, the car’s D-pillars painted black to provide a near seamless look. From that rear angle the little Mazda looks like a hunkered down animal ready to pounce, but more of a vicious bad-tempered rodent (or a pesky flee) than

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anything feline, a large rooftop spoiler adding to its sporty personality, hovering over a taillight design that’s at least as appealing as the headlights up front.

I’m one the backers of today’s white colour trend, or rather shade trend, especially on SUVs and crossovers that feature lots of contrasting matte black body-cladding like this CX-3. GS trim isn’t quite as aggressive as the top-line GT I tested a couple of months ago, but the CX-3 would look ready for action in steel wheels and hubcaps. For those you’ll need to downgrade to a base GX model, whereas this mid-grade GS receives a nice set of 16-inch Y-style five-spokes in traditional silver-painted aluminum rather than the racier machine-finished 17s with

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black painted pockets on the GT, although both models’ rubber measures 215/60R16 all-round.

With a body like the CX-3’s, you’d expect something special inside and Mazda doesn’t disappoint. A sculpted dash top might not be soft to the touch like some in this class, but its surfacing is matte finished to reduce glare while the primary gauge package is a beautifully designed aluminum-look bit of kit featuring a big analog speedo at centre, a small digital tach and odometer to the left and digital fuel meter, average fuel economy indicator and exterior temperature gauge to the right. It should please conventional analog lovers as well as the digital crowd, a nice combination of high-tech and classic design elements, much like the rest of the car.

Design

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on the mind, personal CX-3 favourites include the three circular dark metallic, red-rimmed HVAC vents along the instrument panel, and the leather-like dash pad with red stitching ahead of the front passenger that looks gorgeous and feels very upscale. Mazda keeps the padded stitched leather theme going with knee protectors on each side of the centre stack, albeit this time finished in wine red leatherette, while the same look with a slightly harder soft-touch treatment covers the armrests. The seats are eye candy as well, with leatherette bolsters, forward cushions and upper back supports, plus premium fabric inserts, trimmed top to bottom with wine red piping. It’s a highly unusual mixture of colours, but one that adds an element of elegance to what would otherwise be purely sporting if done out in black alone.

I

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happen to also love Mazda’s infotainment screen that sits atop the dash. It’s not too large yet amply big enough, while the resolution quality is excellent, colours deep and rich with good contrast, plus it’s a fully functional system even in the lower trims, with everything you need including HD radio (with an available HD radio traffic map system), a comprehensive fuel economy monitor, plus maintenance and warning guidance (fortunately no warnings were found) under the Apps section, AM/FM, aha, Pandora, Stitcher, Bluetooth, USB 1 and USB 2, plus optional satellite radio under the audio section, not to mention a button for the navigation system that you can add via SD card later if required. It’s all controllable via a large rotating HMI Commander Switch on the lower centre console, a la Audi, BMW and the like, although unlike these the display is still a touch-sensitive if you’d rather smudge it up

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with fingerprints. I find it easier to reach downward than stretch across to the dash, and once its dial and various buttons are located and figured out it’s easy enough to do with eyes still on the road. A reverse camera system is standard kit, by the way, handy in any vehicle, while the GS also makes do with the base CX-3’s audio system, which includes six great sounding speakers, two USB ports, an aux jack and AM/FM/CD/MP3 head unit.

Incidentally, the GS starts at $24,195 in as-tested FWD or $26,195 for the AWD model, plus $1,895 for freight and pre-delivery prep, while it includes everything already noted as well as auto on/off halogen projector headlights, heatable powered side mirrors with integrated turn signals, rain-sensing wipers, a leather-wrapped

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steering wheel, shift knob and parking brake handle, plus heatable front seats, an overhead console with a very useful sunglasses holder, and a powered moonroof.

A shortlist of standard GX features that get grandfathered up to my GS tester include variable intermittent wipers, an intermittent rear wiper, a tilt and telescopic multifunction steering wheel with audio, Bluetooth phone and cruise controls, air conditioning, powered windows, powered locks with remote access, pushbutton ignition, a six-way driver’s seat and four-way front passenger’s seat, a centre console with cupholders, a trip computer, the seven-inch Mazda Connect infotainment display and console-mounted HMI interface mentioned earlier, plus a cargo area that gets a removable cover and 60/40 split-folding rear seatbacks to increase stowage capacity from 452 litres (15.9 cubic feet) to

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a total of 1,528 litres (53.9 cubic feet). This isn’t class leading or the most versatile system available, but I found it suited my needs well.

Back in the driver’s seat, the CX-3 GS’ steering wheel is designed in Mazda’s usual sporty three-spoke style, wrapped in stitched leather as mentioned, its spokes highlighted with a carbon-like patterned plastic and aluminum-look surfacing plus plenty of high-quality switchgear, a perfect fit for this sportiest of subcompact SUVs.

It really is the sportiest in its class, delivering a sense of connectivity between human

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and machine that few brands seem to get right enough for those of us who actually enjoy the process of getting ourselves from A to B quickly. Some in this class are as exciting to pilot as taking public transit, and while I’m not knocking the bus or train, they’re not the types of wheeled conveyances I want to experience excitement in anyway. The CX-3, on the other hand, responds immediately to throttle input, its 16-valve, DOHC, direct-injection 2.0-litre four-cylinder with dual electronically variable intake valve timing putting out a spirited 146 horsepower and 146 lb-ft of torque, but more so it’s the combination of six-speed automatic that adds adrenaline to the mixture. Sure I’d welcome a manual gearbox, any of Mazda’s would be a delight, but this is the modern age and a vehicle like the CX-3 won’t find many DIY stick stirring buyers, so a traditional torque-converted autobox serves the purpose very well, especially considering some of its peers choose to

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save fuel first and foremost with a CVT, robbing their engines’ potential performance by enslaving them to less than stimulating pseudo shifts.

Mazda ups the ante with a Drive Selection toggle on the lower console that lets you engage Sport mode when desired, the result being a truly reactive little CUV that’s a blast to scoot around town or flick through a winding stretch of back road. So set, revs are allowed to spin higher before the transmission shifts itself or gets prompted via the shift lever’s manual mode, or alternatively you may want to play around

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with the gas pedal that responds to quick taps from the right foot, immediately dropping a gear and only shifting back up if it detects you’re not staying on the throttle.

When I mention that some of its peers rely on CVTs to extract the best possible fuel economy, don’t think for a second that somehow Mazda’s forgotten this critically important aspect of small vehicle performance. Rather than dull down the experience to make the CX-3 more frugal, however, they’ve enlisted a host of technologies so innovative they’re deserving of a trademarked Skyactiv name. At first glance Mazda’s collective tech seems downright simple, and certainly their approach is nonconformist compared to their competitors, but their Skyactiv powertrains and drivetrains, which amongst other enhancements feature reduced internal

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friction, while the former incorporate dome-shaped pistons to raise compression and increase low- and mid-range torque, result in claimed fuel economy that’s every bit as good as lower output rivals with CVTs, albeit without negatively impacting performance, the CX-3’s five-cycle EnerGuide ratings being 8.2 L/100km city and 6.7 highway with FWD or 8.8 city and 7.3 highway with AWD.

Of course handling is at least as important a component to a vehicle’s sporting behaviour as power, which makes the CX-3’s independent front MacPherson strut and rear torsion beam setup an anomaly, as it handles better than some rivals with independent rear ends. It all comes down to tuning, Mazda somehow making its identically sprung CX-5 run rings around most IRS equipped competitors too, but

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while the CX-3 manages curves so well, brakes impressively and just genuinely feels more engaging than its peers, it won’t disturb those looking for a comfortable ride either. I love a fun-filled drive, but rest assured that I wouldn’t put up with anything even remotely stiff and jarring when the road gets rough. I’m beyond that, so appreciate that the CX-3 left my back and bones feeling nurtured as I motored over inner-city streets and laneways that are often much less than ideal. All-round, the CX-3 is a comfortable yet quick and efficient performer, while it lives up to today’s safety expectations as well.

Those brakes I mentioned earlier include discs all-round with ABS, electronic brake-force distribution and emergency brake assist, while electronic traction control

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and dynamic stability control kept my tester’s 16s glued to the ground despite not having AWD. Mazda also includes hill launch assist, tire pressure monitoring, driver and front passenger seatbelt pretensioners, as well as the usual six airbags, while security gets beefed up by speed-sensing double-action door locks and an engine immobilizer.

As you can tell I’m a bit smitten with the CX-3, its styling, performance and tech doing a good job of winning me over. That’s not to say I don’t like some of its less thrilling competitors, as one in particular is brilliantly practical, but this is the subcompact SUV that plucks the strings of my heart. Like I spoke of in the beginning, the CX-3 is one of the sportiest models made by one of today’s sportiest brands, and my fondness for it is in no way an original whim.

It’s

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been climbing up Canada’s subcompact SUV sales charts steadily and appeared on track to pass right on by the previous number one before year end, but as of October’s results the CX-3’s monthly tally has already zoom-zoomed ahead of the once leading domestic, although as life would have it another new import is spoiling the party by surging yet farther forward to lead the nine-model segment outright. Still, placing second out of nine in monthly sales and third in overall year-to-date sales is worthy of celebration, especially considering the CX-3 has won first place in the hearts of 5,373 new Canadian buyers after just six months on the market.

It appears I’m certainly not alone in my adulation. The CX-3 is a great little crossover that I can’t recommend any higher.
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