Premium pricing for Mazda MX-30 Electric: $65,490 plus ORC
The Mazda MX-30 Electric is priced from $65,490 plus on-road costs – or somewhere around $70,000 drive-away.
Arriving in August, the EV version of the MX-30 compact SUV brings a circa-$24,000 price premium over the regular petrol-powered versions that it shares a body, architecture and equipment levels with.
It also makes it more expensive than the Telsa Model 3 Standard Range Plus (about $68,000 drive-away), Hyundai Kona Electric ($62,000 plus on-roads), Nissan Leaf ($49,990 plus on-road costs) and Leaf e+ ($62,490 plus on-roads) and the MG ZS EV ($43,990 drive-away).
As Mazda’s first EV, just 100 MX-30 Electrics will be imported initially, which averages out at a single car per Mazda dealer in Australia.
READ MORE: First drive of the Mazda MX-30 Electric.
Needless to say, the car will be a low-volume offering, something Mazda Australia marketing director Alastair Doak says is a plus in an evolving market.
“Our car will sit at the very top dynamically and on quality.”
The MX-30 is aimed at EV early adopters and will play an important role in dealers and head office learning about the fast-moving electric technology.
The single E35 Astina model has identical equipment levels to MX-30 G20e Astina petrol version that costs $40,990 plus on-road costs.
That includes a 12-speaker Bose sound system, sunroof, fake leather seats, sat-nav, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, 360-degree camera, blind spot warning, auto braking in forward and reverse, traffic sign recognition and 18-inch alloy wheels.
Like most EVs, it’s a generous spread designed partly to offset the high price of entry. There are also some interesting finishes, including a seat trim that looks like rustic brown leather but is called Maztex. Plus the cabin has some cork finishes to reinforce Mazda’s century-old heritage as a cork manufacturer.
Plus the MX-30 Electric can be optioned with a three-tone paint scheme, whereby the three of the available exterior colours – red, silver and grey – can be mathed with a contrasting roof arch sweep and a black roof for between $995 and $1490.
While it can’t mark fart sounds like the Tesla Model 3 or power your house like the Nissan Leaf, Doak points to the coupe-like silhouette, rear-hinged ‘Freestyle’ back doors and Mazda handling as key differentiators for the MX-30.
“It’s a very unique offering,” he says. “It’s a very good statement for the Mazda brand in Australia.”
Doak also points out the MX-30 meets the more stringent 2020 ANCAP requirements for a five-star safety rating.
However, the MX-30 Electric has one of the lowest ranges of any new EV, at a claimed 224km – or 200km according to the more realistic WLTP standard.
That WLTP figure is less than half that of the Tesla Model 3 and Hyundai Kona Electric, both of which are more marginally more affordable than the Mazda.
“We’re pitching this as a city-based model and it’s more than enough for most people,” says Doak.
There’s some money – and time – to be saved on servicing. For the first five years or 75,000km the MX-30’s service plan costs just $1273.79.
By way of comparison, the first five services for the MX-30 M Hybrid model (with a petrol engine) cost $1670 – but that will only cover 50,000km of motoring. So for those travelling 15,000km or more annually the MX-30 Electric should cost almost half as much to service as the petrol models.
The MX-30 Electric will sell alongside the MX-30 M Hybrid model that is already on sale. That car runs on petrol but has a mild hybrid system to incrementally lower fuel use.
But it’s 2022 when things get interesting for the MX-30 with the arrival of the “range extender” model.
That car will use a modern version of Mazda’s iconic rotary engine to act as a generator to provide electricity.
The rotary will be tuned for its very specific job of charging the batteries rather than driving the wheels directly.
It should be priced well below the MX-30 Electric, potentially giving Mazda an interesting electrified hybrid offering.
Overseas reports have also suggested the Mazda2 city hatchback could adopt the rotary range extender tech.
Mazda MX-30 Electric specifications
Price: $65,490, plus on-road costs
Basics: EV, 5 seats, 5 doors, SUV, FWD
Range: 200km (WLTP)
Battery capacity: 30kWh (usable), 35.5kWh (total)
Battery warranty: 8 years
Energy consumption: TBA
Motors: 1 front 107kW/271Nm
AC charging: 6.6kW, Type 2 plug
DC charging: 50kW, Type 2 CCS combo plug
Really Mazda ! That price is absurd. That is a big FU by them to the Aussie EV buyer. Should be at least $15000 cheaper. Mazda and most of the Japanese manufacturers are being dragged kicking and screaming to the EV table. They are hanging onto their ICE sales, including hybrids, for as long as they can.