The 30,000-mile mark is often a tough milestone for a car in our long-term fleet. As a vehicle approaches the end of the test, we’re either still as enthralled with it as when it was new, it’s causing us some headaches, or our opinions on it are mostly cemented in place. With our Mazda CX-30, we quickly learned what we do and don’t like—which you can read about in past updates—but overall it’s not as popular among our staff as the larger CX-5 that won our 10Best award four years in a row.
Whereas the CX-5 made us appreciate compact crossovers, the CX-30 makes us question the idea of small, lifted hatchbacks disguised as SUVs. But they continue to sell. Through November, the CX-30 has outsold the Mazda 3 sedan and hatchback by some 20,000 units. Even so, numerous staffers have complained about the lack of room in this small SUV, especially in the rear when four adults are crammed in. The lack of spaciousness still hasn’t prevented drivers and passengers from praising this Mazda’s upmarket interior, though.
