Mazda’s MX-30 EV looks to be shoring up as the brand’s debutant in the Australian electric vehicle market.
Mazda has gone through the effort of certifying its MX-30 electric SUV for use on Australian roads, suggesting it is seriously close to confirming it will launch here.
The model has been approved and issued a compliance plate from the Road Vehicle Certification System (RVCS) which means at least one MX-30 is likely to arrive in Australia and undergo some sort of assessment. For now, Mazda Australia’s official line is that it is still deciding on if the vehicle will be sold here or not, suggesting confirmation will come prior to the end of 2020.
The certification was granted just this week, and it is the step most manufacturers take when electing to sell a vehicle in the Australian market.
The MX-30 is Mazda’s first mass-production electric vehicle, tapping into the popular SUV market, though it brings a new design direction outside and a pillarless space between the front and rear cabin much like the RX-8.
Inside is an interior using recycled materials such as repurposed plastic PET bottles and cork around a high-tech dash, and it’s unlike anything Mazda has produced before. The normal heating and cooling controls are gone, replaced with a touchscreen above the drive selector, though the infotainment screen looks similar to the new Mazda3’s unit.
Underneath, the MX-30 is the first model to sit on Mazda’s new electric e-SkyActiv platform that will host a raft of new electric models.
While it looks good, the potential snag is the limited 200km range from a full charge of the 35.5kWh battery. Charging to get the full 200km range takes anywhere from 40 minutes to almost 5 hours, depending on the power source. Power is elicited from a single electric motor producing 106kW.
It is speculated that a range-extender version of the MX-30 would be a better fit, giving a reasonable electric-only driving range with the security of a small rotary petrol generator that extends range.
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