2024 Mazda2 Pure SP car review

How much does a 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP cost?

The 2024 Mazda2 G15 Pure SP costs approximately $29,642 driveaway in Victoria at the time of publishing.

That’s $834 more than the entry-level Pure model grade, and the Pure SP is an aesthetics-only upgrade. It adds a darker, sportier aesthetic, with black 16-inch alloy wheels, glossy black wing mirrors, a black ‘shark fin’ antenna and a black carbon fibre-style roof giving the Pure SP a dash of class.

The 2024 Mazda2 range comes in four model grades:

• Mazda2 G15 Pure - $26,724 manual | $28,808 automatic. Entry-grade but with a generous equipment loadout.

• Mazda2 G15 Pure SP - $29,642 automatic. Adds black highlights and a shark fin antenna for a sportier, classier look.

• Mazda2 G15 Evolve - $30,371 automatic. Gives drivers a tech upgrade, with inbuilt satellite navigation, traffic sign recognition, the Active Driving Display.

• Mazda2 G15 GT - $32,143 automatic. Adds advanced keyless entry, a 360° view mirror, front parking sensors, and more.

2024 Mazda2 Pure SP exterior design

The 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP is a small car, with a 2570mm wheelbase and dimensions measuring 4060mm long, 1695mmwide, and 1495mm high.

If you’re after a sedan – available only in the Pure and GT grades – it’s slightly longer and shorter, measuring 4320mm long, 1695mm wide, and 1470mm high.

The Mazda2’s revamped exterior includes a redesigned grille and new colour accents for a sleeker, more streamlined look. The aerodynamic redesign is echoed in two newly available paint colours: Aero Grey Metallic and Air Stream Blue Metallic, upping the Mazda2’s colour options to nine. New alloy wheels can be found across all the Mazda2, with classy all-black 16-inch wheels on the Pure SP.

What is the 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP like inside?

Seating, Space and Comfort

Inside the Mazda2, you’ll find new seat designs and colour-based design enhancements. There’s a decorative trim panel on the dash fascia and colour accents around the ventilation outlets that add a pop of colour to the otherwise subdued interior. The seats are upholstered in a black-and-grey cloth.

The cabin is nicely roomy, despite the Mazda2 being a small passenger car. Up front, there's sufficient space for taller drivers to get comfortable – especially as the driver’s seat features height adjustment. Drivers and front passengers up to 190cm tall will have plenty of room and can make use of both rake and slide seat adjustment to fine-tune their comfort.

In the rear, slim front-seat seatbacks and headrests provide passengers with extra room, although it’s not spacious. They also have a 60/40 split-fold backrest and back pockets on the seats in front for gear storage.

Cargo Space

There’s not a whole lot of cargo room in the 2024 Mazda2 hatch: just 250L of cargo volume, when measured to the top of the cargo cover with the rear seats up – which might be enough for one full-size suitcase plus a duffle. The sedan has a bigger 440L boot if you need to transport more gear.

Instrument Cluster

The 2024 Mazda2 follows the recent trend of a stop/start push button rather than a key ignition. It’s main instrument cluster has an analogue speedometer and tachometer. Information like fuel level, fuel consumption, exterior temperature and safety alerts are displayed on either side. The information isn’t particularly well-lit when the headlights aren’t on, making it hard to see in harsh sunlight.

It does, however, come with automatic headlamps and rain-sensing windscreen wipers – new in the 2024 edition for the Pure SP model grade, which is a definite upgrade. What doesn’t fit the semi-luxe interior is the air conditioning controls, which use archaic lever switches you’d expect in new cars from 10 years ago rather than modern wheel dials.

Infotainment Display

The infotainment display is a full-colour, seven-inch LCD touchscreen across the Mazda2 range. This houses all connectivity functions, such as radio, Bluetooth audio and smartphone calls, and (new for 2024) wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. A USB audio input port makes powering devices simple, and a six-speaker sound system with steering wheel-mounted audio controls provides a decent soundscape for audiophiles.

Inbuilt satellite navigation only comes in the Evolve and GT model grades – fair enough, considering the price point of the entry-grade Mazda2s, but still a disappointment to drivers wanting to step away from clunky smartphone mounts or wires.

There’s a circular multi-function commander control located on the centre console that can also control the infotainment display. It’s easy – and fun – to use, and comes in handy considering that your 167cm test driver had to lean forward to operate the touchscreen.

Is the 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP good to drive?

The 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP, just like its previous iterations, is easy, comfortable and fun to drive.

Handling, ride and performance

It’s easy to slip behind the wheel and immediately feel natural driving the Mazda2 Pure SP. After all, that’s what Mazda has always strove for with its cars, citing Jinba-Ittai – the sense of oneness between a rider and their horse (or, in this case, car) – as one of their design principles.

A lightweight and rigid chassis helps to deliver a stable ride with sharp handling. Suspension is good, providing a comfortable ride and straight-line stability on motorways. Electric power steering keeps the Mazda2 agile, with a 9.4 to 9.8-metre turning circle. Braking is quick and solid. Hill Launch Assist makes accelerating from a stop on hills nice and smooth. Of note is the wing mirror adjustment, which uses an intuitive four-way axis button to fine-tune your view.

The Mazda2 isn’t always a zippy car in its normal driving mode: it takes a while for the auto transmission and then engine to fully respond to your foot on the pedal. Press the drive selection switch into Sport mode if you want to effectively overtake or merge onto a highway. In addition, Mazda recommends against using Sport mode in wet, snowy or otherwise slippery conditions, as it may cause tyre slippage.

Parking is easy thanks to the Mazda2’s small city car dimensions and its inbuilt rear parking camera. Although the camera feed is fairly grainy, that’s to be expected for a car at this price. The wing mirrors also fold upon lock, which is a useful touch for those that live in urban areas.

Engine and fuel efficiency

The 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP uses a front-wheel drive (FWD) layout, with a six-speed automatic transmission. It’s powered by a 1.5-litre petrol engine that delivers 81kW power at 6,000rpm and 142Nm torque at 3,5000rpm.

Fuel-wise, the Mazda2 Pure SP has a 44-litre tank that consumes 5 litres per 100 kilometres: a 0.3L decrease from its previous edition. That's largely thanks to Mazda’s Dual S-VT system that precisely controls the engine’s intake and exhaust valve timing, plus weight-optimised moving masses (e.g. pistons, connecting rods, crankshaft) inside the engine.

Smart i-stop technology further reduces fuel consumption and CO2 output by switching off the engine when the car comes to a full stop (for example, in stop/go traffic) and automatically restarting the car when the driver lifts their foot from the brake pedal. This is a great feature, but be aware that the air con also turns off and on with i-stop.

Unleaded 91RON (or higher) or E10 petrol is recommended for the Mazda2 range.

What safety features does a 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP have?

The 2024 Mazda2 range is currently unrated by ANCAP, but the previous edition achieved a five-star ANCAP rating. It’s very likely that the 2024 Mazda2 will do the same, since it features six SRS airbags, a traction control system, emergency brake assist, ISOFIX child restraint anchor points and top tethers, and a Triple-H safety construction with front and rear crumple zones.

The 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP range uses Mazda’s i-Activsense safety technology range. Its safety suite includes:

• Smart City Brake Support – warns you of high collision risks and brakes automatically if required. This works between 4-80km/h at the front (when driving) and between 2-8km/h at the rear (when reversing).

• Blind Spot Monitoring – alerts you when vehicles approach in your blind spot, for example when you’re changing lanes on a motorway.

• Rear Cross Traffic Alert – alerts you when vehicles approach from either side behind the car when you’re reversing.

• Lane Departure Warning – monitors road markings and alerts you if your vehicle strays from its traffic lane.

• Lane-Keep Assist System – helps guide the back into your lane by applying corrective steering if you don’t respond to the lane departure warning.

• Rear parking sensors – uses audible alerts to help you avoid nearby obstacles when reversing.

• Reversing camera – a rear-mounted camera projects onto your digital infotainment screen to show your rear view when reversing.

• Spare wheel – 15x4-inch steel.

The Blind Spot Monitoring is particularly helpful during city drives, when you’re merging on and off busy both inner-city streets and motorways filled with fast traffic.

How does the 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP compare?

The Mazda2 has six main rivals in its category (light petrol cars under $30,0000):

• MG3 - $19,990 driveaway
• Kia Picanto - $20,690 driveaway
• Suzuki Swift - $25,990 driveaway
• Toyota Yaris - $28,792 driveaway.

The Mazda2 consumes 5 litres of petrol per 100 kilometres according to the brand's claim. That’s much more efficient than the Kia Picanto (6L) and MG3 (6.7L) – but uses more petrol than the Suzuki Swift (4.8L) or Toyota Yaris (4.9L).

Considering that the Kia Picanto and Suzuki Swift are less powerful cars than the Mazda2, you can probably justify the Mazda2’s greater fuel consumption.

But comparing likeness for likeness, the new Toyota Yaris (petrol variant) outdoes the Mazda2. It sips a claimed 1.1 litres less than the Mazda2, while producing 7kW more power and 3nM more torque.

Should I buy a 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP?

The 2024 Mazda2 Pure SP is a great entry-level car, especially for city dwellers.

Learners and P-platers will enjoy this fun-to-drive car, while its suite of safety features could give parents extra peace of mind. It’s also a solid car for first-time buyers, offering a blend of included features and fuel economy. City dwellers will do best with the Mazda2 Pure SP, which is easy to park and navigate narrow streets, with safety features that shine in busy traffic.

While the Toyota Yaris may offer better overall value for money for a very similar car, the Mazda2 offers a touch of class with enduring appeal.