Prices start $500 higher than in 2019.
The latest-generation Mazda3 is a sharp-looking player in its class, and the 2020 model year brings some welcome changes to the mix. Standard safety equipment by the way of the i-ActivSense package comes to the base sedan, making the suite standard across the range. Now, you get features like Radar Cruise Control, Driver Attention Alert and Lane Keep Assist as standard fare. That’s all great, but there’s one bothersome omission: Where is the SkyActiv-X engine?
All 2020 Mazda3 models still come with a standard 2.5-liter SkyActiv-G gasoline engine. 186 horsepower and 186 lb-ft of torque are on tap, and it’s reasonably gutsy when paired to either its six-speed automatic or six-speed manual transmission options. As before, the manual is still only available on the front-wheel drive Premium hatchback. What’s more, cylinder deactivation comes on all hatchback models, Mazda3 Premium sedans and all-wheel drive sedans.
Even the base model 2020 Mazda3 sedan comes loaded with welcome tech, but at a price. You do get 16-inch alloy wheels, power-folding door mirrors, an 8.8-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a 7.0-inch digital instrument display complementing the traditional gauges. But prices start from $22,420 — a $500 price hike from the 2019 model. Granted, you do get more standard equipment. Even so, that comes in about $2,000 more than a base Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla.
Here are the pricing details, per Mazda:
No concrete U.S. date for SkyActiv-X
Despite its availability in Europe, no U.S. on-sale date is currently available for the SkyActiv-X engine in the Mazda3. For now, all we get is the same 2.5-liter engine as before, with repeated assurances that SkyActiv-X is coming. It will be here eventually, but are we in for another wait akin to the SkyActiv-D engine finally making its way here with the diesel CX-5?
I hope not, but if you can’t wait for the new engine, the 2020 Mazda3 will still come with more standard features, and is one of the few cars in its class with all-wheel drive as an option.
