Mazda is sticking with its small cars: 'Plenty of life' in Mazda2 and Mazda3 despite their age and the popularity of SUVs

Mazda is standing by its small car duo - the Mazda2 and Mazda3 - despite both models being amongst the oldest in its range and the market shift towards SUVs.

Following the local operation’s decision to drop the formerly popular Mazda6 sedan and wagon, it raised questions about the future of both of the smaller models, but neither are going to disappear anytime soon it appears.

“ There's life in Mazda2, Mazda3,” declared Vinesh Bhindi, Mazda Australia managing director.

This comes despite the Mazda2 having been on sale since 2014 and the Mazda3 in showrooms since 2019. Normally the Mazda2 would have been replaced by now, as the previous generations were only on sale seven years or less. But with demand for smaller models, particularly the ‘Light Car’ segment the Mazda2 competes in, it seems increasingly unlikely the company will invest in an expensive, all-new model.

The light car market was down 22.8 per cent in Australia in 2024 as choices continue to dwindle. The Ford Fiesta, Kia Rio, Suzuki Baleno and Swift have all disappeared in the last 18 months. Only the cut-price MG3 is keeping the segment from collapse, with the Mazda2 continuing 5365 sales in ‘24.

News is better from the small car market, which was up 14.8 per cent in ‘24, led by strong sales of the Mazda3 (up 16%), Toyota Corolla (up 20.2%) and Kia Cerato (up 167.5%).

Bhindi indicated that as long as there is demand for small cars, Mazda will aim to provide an option, even as SUV sales continue to grow.

“ [The consumers decide. Some people still want small cars,” he said.

However, he also made it clear that Mazda’s priority lies in SUVs, so that’s where the primary investment will be in the foreseeable future.

“ [The small car] market is shrinking, passenger cars generally are shrinking, our priority is electrification first, not battery electric-only, but electrification technologies,” Bhindi explained. “But also working on CX-5 replacement, SUV replacements will be number one priority. 

“Where does the replacements of the other cars fit in and the trend? The global trends of whether that segment continues or changes in some form because dialing in electrification in some of those smaller cars the value equation changes. So you have to be very mindful of ‘what do the customers want?’”

All of which means, both the Mazda2 and Mazda3 will likely remain unchanged in any major capacity for some time, or are forced out of the market by a lack of sales or an ADR update, as we’ve recently seen with the Mazda6 and several other models.