Exterior and interior changes abound, paired with overall improvements to its handling and refinement levels.
Talk of a facelifted Mazda3 has been circulating for a while now and a leaked photo provided by a reader to Carscoops.com seems to corroborate our collective guesswork pertaining to Mazda’s plans.
From the looks of it, the image clearly shows the Axela (what the Mazda3 is called in Japan). While we do not know much besides the obvious and expected exterior tweaks, a leaked document seen by CarShowroom details some changes to the standard equipment:
- New 18-inch alloy wheel design.
- LED headlamps to replace the current bi-xenons.
- Power folding exterior mirrors.
- Electronic parking brake on selected models.
- Removal of CD player
If this document is to be believed, the visual changes belie the more significant improvements that are beyond skin deep. It hints that the Mazda3’s noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) levels have been improved along with the car’s driving dynamics. There are some new paint options too including Machine Grey, Eternal Blue, and Sonic Silver. There will also be a premium for the Machine Grey and Soul Red Metallic finishes.
The actual changes made to the Mazda3’s interior are harder to nail down, but through some photographs circulating online that claims to be of the development car's cabin, there is a storage area behind the MZD Connect control knob, further supporting the claim that some models lack a traditional handbrake. The climate control knobs look to have a different design with a larger footprint, occupying the area where the slot-load CD player would be. The steering wheel, too, seems to be squared off slightly towards the bottom.
Mazda Australia declined to comment on the accuracy of these leaks.
In terms of engines, we’re not sure if Mazda will be opting to bring a turbocharged option to the 3 so we expect the current range of SkyActiv-G petrol and SkyActive-D diesel engines to carry over into the mid-lifecyle-facelift.
With the imminent arrival of an all-new Honda Civic and competition from the likes of the Ford Focus and Hyundai i30 and Peugeot 308, the popular Mazda3 has to step its game up to fend them off. It seems to be happening with the planned arrival of a facelifted version.
The current Mazda3 made its market debut in 2013 and arrived in Australia in January 2014, so a refresh three years later in 2016 seems entirely in line with the generational timetable. The aforementioned leaked document did mention that production of the facelifted Mazda3 would begin in May 2016. Assuming that’s true, we wonder if it could reach Australia by year’s end.
For more on Mazda vehicles, including prices and specifications, check out our Showroom.
