2017 Mazda CX-3 vs 2018

What's the difference?

Mazda's baby SUV, the CX-3, has been nothing short of a sales sensation since its release almost two years ago. After grabbing the segment by the scruff off its neck and tossing aside its erstwhile sales leader, the Mitsubishi ASX, like the whimpy kid in the playground, the minute Mazda has established itself as the Boy King.

Competition is getting hotter, though, and in a growing segment, you have to stay on your toes. Mazda recently gave the CX-3 range some attention to counter the arrival of Toyota's C-HR, while helping to continue to fend off its other rival, Honda. More trouble looms later in the year with the arrival of the Hyundai Kona.

Up here at the top of the range, however, not too far away from Euro offerings from Mini and Audi, things are pretty relaxed. Just 10 per cent of Mazda sales go the Akari's way, but that's still a healthy number (particularly in terms of Mazda's profits). Does the Akari have what it takes to hold buyers back from taking the plunge on a Countryman, or stretching even further to a Q2?

If you're looking for the genesis of the small SUV apocalypse currently decimating small car sales, look no further than Mazda's CX-3.

Sure, others had done small SUVs earlier (the Kia Soul for one, and there were others), but it wasn't until the launch of Mazda's sleek little CX-3 - though don't let the numbers fool you, it's actually based on the Mazda2 - that the segment really got moving. 

Even now, several years after its launch, the CX-3 sits outright-second on the segment sales charts, a whisker behind the Mitsubishi ASX, and miles clear of its third-place rival. Which would normally be a cause for celebration in the Mazda camp. 

But there's a problem. Last year, the CX-3 was outright first. And so earlier this year, Mazda released a nipped-and-tucked version of its popular micro-SUV, presumably to try and improve its sales position by one.

So, we spent a week behind the wheel of the mid-spec (and most popular) CX-3 Maxx to see what's new.