Little 2 on the outside
But little is loads of fun and can be quite good-looking. Honestly, and if you follow me on twitter (@Matt_St_Pierre), you might have read my tweet where I thought (typically, cars are not delivered to me so I always see what I'm about to drive before I do so) that this was a modified hot-hatch and not a dainty Mazda2...
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| The 2's diminutive body is laden with creases, smooth and chiselled lines, bulging front fenders and unostentatious curves. (Photo: Philippe Champoux/Auto123.com) |
In fact, my brilliant black 2 was tweaked. Put together by a local Mazda dealer, the 2 sported a slew of mods including the following exterior add-ons: a radical spoiler ($385), stubby antenna ($23), skirt kit ($475), chrome exhaust tip ($40), fog lights ($440) and 16” alloy wheels ($1,000). As an FYI, Mazda Skins are another available form of personalizing your car at a cost of between $375 to $595. Thankfully, my 2 did without. I'm not too crazy about them...
The 2's diminutive body is laden with creases, smooth and chiselled lines, bulging front fenders and unostentatious curves. With the aforementioned accessories plus a set of lowered suspension springs ($400), my 2 was almost stunning. As I've said before and will say again, the right set of wheels plus a lowered stance make almost anything stand out.
Little 2 under the hood
You already know that the 2's mill produces 100 hp. As well as the “buck” in hp, the 1.5L 4-pot generates 98 lb-ft of torque. “No need to write home about those numbers” you're telling yourself, but wait; the 2 has a secret weapon and a weakness, to be fair.
The secret is a low curb weight of 1,051 kg, or exactly 700 kg less than a Chevy Camaro SS. OK, so the fact that the 2 tips the scale at 40% less girth than the Camaro does not make it faster; after all, the Chevy does have more than four times the power. What it does do is make the power-to-weight ratio much more manageable and the car, infinitely enjoyable to drive.
That is, if you do not opt for the 2's Achille’s Heel: the 4-speed automatic transmission. Short on gears and willingness to please, the autobox is aimed at those looking to cruise around and not seriously exploit the 2's handling abilities. The tested 5-speed manual gearbox saved the day with easy shifts, light clutch pedal action and, most importantly, a good pedal cluster setup enabling heel and toeing.
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| The 2's Achille’s Heel: the 4-speed automatic transmission. (Photo: Matthieu Lambert/Auto123.com) |