The Mazda MX-30 was previewed in Malaysia just a few days ago ahead of a launch set to take place in the fourth quarter of this year. We don’t have official pricing just yet, but Bermaz Auto executive chairman Datuk Seri Ben Yeoh has revealed that the company is working on bringing the price under RM200,000 after factoring in the current incentives the government is providing to electric vehicles.
In terms of specifications, the MX-30 boasts a front-mounted electric motor that provides 145 PS (143 hp or 107 kW) and 271 Nm of torque, which allows for a top speed of 140 km/h and a 0-100 km/h time of 9.7 seconds.
The electric motor draws power from an underfloor-mounted lithium-ion battery with an energy capacity of 35.5 kWh. The battery can be charged via an AC input (Type 2 port) of up to 6.6 kW, and with a wallbox delivering the maximum rate, a full charge takes five hours. There’s also DC fast charging (CCS2 port), with a 0-80% state of charge taking 36 minutes with an input of 40 kW.
A fully charged battery is claimed to deliver 199 km of range, which can be a little troubling for would-be EV buyers with range anxiety. As we mentioned in our original post, buyers with a maximum budget of RM200,000 for a new EV will have several options besides the MX-30. For instance, the Hyundai Kona Electric is offered in three variants with prices ranging from RM149,888 to RM199,888.
There’s also the MINI Cooper SE 3 Door (RM178,240.73), Nissan Leaf (RM168,000) as well as the base variant (Lite) of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 (RM199,888) beneath said price point. These non-Mazda alternatives are all capable of delivering over 199 km of range, as we list out below:
- Hyundai Kona Electric – 39.2 kWh, 305 km; 64 kWh, 484 km (WLTP)
- MINI Cooper SE 3 Door – 28.9 kWh, 232 km (WLTP)
- Nissan Leaf – 40 kWh, 311 km (NEDC)
- Hyundai Ioniq 5 Lite – 58 kWh, 384 km (WLTP)
This begs the question: why does the MX-30 come with a smaller battery and less range than most of the competition under RM200,000? On a related note, what is the MX-30’s target market given its specifications?
This question was posed to Yeoh during a Q&A session following the unveiling of the MX-30 recently. According to Yeoh, the MX-30 is more of a “utility vehicle” aimed at a different segment of customers that only require a city runabout where daily drives won’t exceed 100 km. It’s likely such customers aren’t too demanding when it comes performance either.
Mazda’s decisions for the MX-30 were deliberate to minimise the vehicle’s environmental impact, which includes the entire manufacturing process. As explained in an Automotive News Canada report, the MX-30’s battery was sized according to the emissions generated from producing the car’s electrical components and factoring in a battery swap at 160,000 km to “maintain battery performance.”
The carmaker notes that EVs with larger batteries are more polluting over their life cycles, and a majority of customers don’t necessarily require a copious amount of range on their routine commutes.
Additionally, a smaller battery also makes an EV lighter, contributing to making the vehicle more efficient, while potentially reducing wear and tear on things like tyres and brakes. Managing the MX-30’s weight is also important in keeping with Mazda’s reputation of providing vehicles that are fun to drive.
With these explanations, Yeoh said the MX-30 is a well-balanced vehicle for its use case and that it is the company’s duty to manage customer expectations. What are your thoughts on Mazda’s reasoning? If you had to put down money, how much are you willing to pay for the MX-30?
GALLERY: Mazda MX-30 preview in Malaysia
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
Serious question: Can go up to Genting and come back without recharging? Distance from Subang to Genting is around 73km. A return trip will be 150km. Add in the steep climb and spirited driving there better be a charge point in between.
LOL! I’m just waiting for someone to come in and blame Proton for the poor range… as usual when other brands offer crappy cars..
Actually coming down from Genting will increase the range from the regenerative energy.
you need to have 2nd car when buying this car.
this car is good for daily commute from home to work place, or week end travel around town.
The real future of EV is solid state battery.
Most modern EV are too heavy, which is not efficient.
It’s just an expensive toy car and to be different from the rest. Not practical at all for Msian market.
a) With the high price and measly 199km electric range, get stucked in the notorious KL jams and you’re fxxked.
b) Interior space and rear suicide doors are also not suitable for families.
c) Price and specs not competitive against it’s competitors.
The only saving grace is it’s well designed exterior.
EVs don’t use much power when idle. They are not as inefficient in traffic jams compared to their petrol counterparts.
They have much better range when creeping/driving slowly/city driving.
Once you include highways, that’s where EVs efficiency drops and petrol engines are better, especially at higher speeds.
Bottom line,
You can get better mileage when cruising,
Battery reduces mileage when idling.
I also hope an idling EV can help me cruise longer….
Got solar panel charging ke?
Don’t use much power? You don’t use AC when stopping ke?
Mazda MX-30 = DOA
sub 100km/h, not performance demanding…. sounds like a job for EV bicycle.
Real life use probably around 160 km before you start getting range anxiety. With that, I would say this toy car is worth 80K the most.
Sloping roofline, a high center tunnel in an EV, and what seems like a very tight rear passenger legroom. Utility? Sure….
MX 30 is for those love range anxiety, they get excited with that
140km/h… Slower than Myvi.
Range is limited. Space is limited. Torque is low compare to others…
And there are already better ways (products) to save the planet available in the market now.
So why would I?
This product is 5 years too late.
As a toy? MX5 is a better toy.
For this to have a chance, it has to be below RM150k
Not 150k. Need to be under 100k.
Ya lah, if spend close to RM200k and kena tapao by Myvi, Who gonna buy?! Sohai also wont buy lah!
That sounds like a crock of lame excuses for poor specs. Pretty much all the way up there with Tan Chong Motors’ excuse on why the Almera (during its first version) only came with one airbag.
Biasalah. Milking the customer. Hehehe
this is incredibly stupid. small battery to be cheaper to swap, then shouldnt the initial purchase price be cheaper to factor in for this. no other bev expects a 160k km batt swap. just look at all the high mileage teslas and renaults. almost as stupid as vw aeb excuse
i am loving how my fellow PT readers are tearing Yeoh a brand new asshole over his excuses that dont make sense at all lol
Remember how Liam Neeson found the bad guy in Taken 1. He remembered the bad guy saying “Good Luck”
hyundai ioniq anytime overthis
To be honest, this car would sell well if it is HEV or PHEV. This looks way better than CX-30.
Better buy mazda3 instead. If Bermaz wanna make profit please bring in mazda3 2.5L. I believe price can be lower than this mx-30
The challenge of the weight of the battery is legit. but to package it as ‘farther range/ capacity is not really desired” is siok sendiri marketing la. i guess mazda is struggling to find a spot for its product…pass this one.
unusable in malaysia.
According to Yeoh, the MX-30 is more of a “utility vehicle” aimed at a different segment of customers that only require a city runabout where daily drives won’t exceed 100 km. It’s likely such customers aren’t too demanding when it comes performance either.
And they’re still asking for a price of 200k, maybe not exceeding but still, I can get 2 X50 for that lul. This guy is telling jokes left,right and centre.
Go buy x50 lol
Yeah right Mr Yeoh, we are not stupid. Thank you.
Your attempt looks like a rushed last minute job to join the bandwagon of milking the current EV incentive and trying to bring it in below RM200k since you cannot compete in the segment above that.
Too bad the ‘good look’ already jacked the cost up you got nowhere else to cut cost from except the battery (hence range) which happens to be the most important consideration for most buyers, after price.
Good luck in selling.
..so they won’t have the range to come and steal from our charging station.
ben is saying the targer market is someone who will accept and not mind product is compromised in every way except for the price lol
LOL with the reasoning given.. not worth rm200k.
more like below rm80k just like Wuling lol…
Low range, low speed… its a waste of materials and manpower to build this crap. Even worst for taking a space in PT to talk about this it.
just say the truth lah….
You don’t want this car but Mazda Japan said this is part of the country deal. So must sell this car just like other brand like Mercedes selling their B200 and GLB…
the truth hurts..
Just fire the guy who suggested this configuration as a markeying strategy. It a sucide product.
Too bad Bermaz is stuck with lame manufacturer excuses. Up to 199km? In our hot climates expect up to 170km or less so better bring your power bank to charge up your vehicle just in case. Battery swap at 160k? Good luck reselling the vehicle.
this is kereta pasar good for aunties to showoffs
Just say the magic word, FREE battery swap then your sales will be up a bit.
I’m not surprised with Bermaz reasoning. every of Mazda’s inferior product has a good reasoning like how they reasoned why the Mazda3 is better fitted with Torsion Beam when their competitors are using multi-link.