Mazda3 Family Gets Fuel-Sipping 1.5-Liter Turbo Diesel Engine in Europe

Mazda has finally filled a big hole in its compact European lineup

Both the five-door hatchback and the four-door sedan are offered from now on with a new SKYACTIV-D 1.5 four-cylinder turbo diesel common rail injection engine that slots below the 2.2-liter unit. Until now, the larger engine was the only diesel unit available for the Mazda3.

Aimed at economy-minded customers, the new Euro 6 engine delivers 105 PS (103 hp) at 4,000 rpm and 270 Nm (199 lb-ft) of torque between 1,600 and 2,500 rpm. Mazda says the new diesel unit has a remarkably low compression ratio of 14.8:1 and a bespoke variable turbine geometry turbocharger. Also new is a feature called Natural Sound Smoother, which is said to contribute to a significant reduction in engine noise and vibration.

The 1.5-liter turbodiesel comes as standard with a six-speed manual transmission while a six-speed automatic is available as an optional extra. With the manual gearbox, the Mazda3 SKYACTIV-D 1.5 hatchback and sedan average just 3.8 liters/100 km (equivalent to 61.9 mpg US) and 99 g/km of CO2, making them the most fuel-efficient models in Mazda's compact family. The standard-fit “i-stop” idle-stop technology also contributes to the low fuel consumption figure.

When it comes to acceleration, both the Mazda3 hatchback and sedan equipped with this engine and manual gearbox cover the 0-100 km/h sprint in 11 seconds (11.6 seconds with the automatic transmission). Top speed is 185 km/h (115 mph) for the hatchback and 186 km/h (116 mph) for the sedan.

The new engine makes sense not only from a fuel-efficiency point of view but also due to its small displacement, as some European markets levy high taxes on large capacity units.