Best value for money from the range. (Mazda2 TS2 3dr)

Member Name: Jeffandk8

Product:	Mazda2 TS2 3dr
Date:	23/02/09 (279 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Much cheaper than alternatives. Good looks.

Disadvantages: Not the most fashionable brand but is getting better.

We bought the 5-door version of this car as a brand new 08 plate. The TS2 is the 2nd model in the range, with the TS the entry model and the Sport the top of the range.
The car is basically the same car as the new Ford Fiesta, although there are some differences, mainly price and weight.

External looks
The car looks brilliant from most angles although I'm not completely sold on the front on look. The bonnet is quite narrow and widens towards the boot. It looks great as standard and benfits from having body coloured door handles and wing mirrors.

Internal (cabin) size
The car is very nicely sized inside with plenty of room for 2 adults in the rear although 3 becomes a tightish squeeze. The cabin area is nice and comfortable with a dead foot pedal for the driver, which some similar sized cars do not always come with.
The boot is not as large as I'd hoped and due to the boot shape (v-shaped) some larger and more awkward lengthy objects (prams etc) can be a bit of a challenge. The internal width is not that great either, we have found that a normal pram doesn't quite fit. The depth is ok, although the drop into the boot from the bumper is quite deep meaning that heavier parcels may be a bit hard to get out.

Cabin finish
The overall finish of the inside is very good and we have had no problems except the decorative ring around the central cup holder has come loose but is only glued on so no major problem.
The seats are comfy and give excellent support all-round. They seem quite hard wearing and should last.
The internal space is quite dark until you get above the window line, where gray takes over as the main colour from the black trim below, including carpets.

The drive
The TS2 is marginally more powerful than the TS and benefits from this. We test drove a TS and it wasn't nearly as nippy. The engine is very quiet and at times I have stalled or nearly stalled due to this. It remains fairly quiet at motorway speeds and the wind noise is also fairly minimal.
I've driven the car on several longer journeys (3hrs+) and it is fine over those distances but not the most enthralling of drives.

The handling
Not the strongest point of this car. It can be a bit prone to a numb feeling when driving and at times I haven't felt as comfortable with the steering as I have in other small cars. The steering wheel is a decent size and being leather gives you lots of grip but the powersteering doesn't give as much feel as I'd like. That said at other times it is great. Very much depends how and where you drive.

Specs
The car is very well spec'ed for the price. We paid £10.5k for the car including metallic paint but we also had a fantastic trade in on our battered old Corsa.
The TS2 gets air-con, mp3 player, i-pod connection, steering wheel audio controls, front electric windows (but not rear), 15" alloy wheels, leather gear knob and wheel, 60/40 split rear seats, heated & folding wing mirrors, Thatcham Cat 1 alarm and immobiliser, side and curtain airbags and ABS. It also has 3 bottle/can holders, 1 in each door and 1 central one. It also has an unusual glove box which Mazda call the magazine rack, basically a hole in the top of the lid (you can buy a cover if you want the contents hidden).
The list is not exhaustive and misses out lots of expected things but for an equivalent spec on a Fiesta we we looking at paying about £1000 more for a less powerful engine with a similar spec.

Audio
The audio equipment is not bad. The standard head unit is mp3 compatible and it also features an aux jack for an I-pod, located in the central tray under the handbrake.

Running costs
So far our only cost has been petrol. The car is mainly used on shorted journeys with occassional longer runs. We get about 250-300 miles on a normal tank with lots of town driving but 300-350 on A-road driving.

Overall we are very happy with the car and would recommend it to our friends and family. We were glad we went for the TS2 over the TS and the sport as it has a nice balance between price and spec.

If you have any ways which you feel I can improve the review or want extra information, please send me a message or comment on the review.

Thank you for reading my review.

Jeff

Summary: Great little car and should hold its value well.

Processing/Quality:
Reliability:
Driving comfort: