This was the first car that i tested between jazz, fiesta, and the 2. Why? I really dont know. Maybe because i heard how easy it is to drive or because i heard that in stop and go traffic this lurches forward faster or that it is the cheapest between the three. Hehehe so, tested it i did. And boy it does lurches on like a nervous chihuahua. It even made me nervous driving it. I tested the green goblin by the way which is the 1.5 automatic with the body kit, foglamps, and the all important spoiler. Anyway, the styling of the 2 is a bit reminiscent of the fiesta styling. Sculpted body panels throughout and a small snout with a big mouth. No wonder though. Ford and mazda are sister companies. So again, as what i said about the fiesta body, they cud hav made the grill smaller and lost that big plastic thing running across it. I mean what is that thing for anyway? For the plate? Is the plate that big? I wonder... What the hell... Moving on...

Remember about how the car lurches on like a nervous chihuahua? Boy was i thrilled that it does that. Now im going to drive it like a racer wud. At the stop light.... caution... GREEN LIGHT!! Then off i go. True enough the 2 eagerly got off from 0 impressively. I pressed on the gas pedal, waited for my head to snap backward, but... it never came. I wondered what went wrong. Then i realized that i am driving an economy car. Disappointed, i brought the car back to the dealership thinking what went wrong. I think it was just a setting on the transmission which kicks in as soon as your foot leaves the brake pedal. I dont know. Anyhow, driving the mazda 2 around, i was surprised how quiet it is considering it was the smallest of the 3 cars that i tested. The suspension was firm giving it a sporty handling but not uncomfortable. The 2 is quite nimble around corners. Remember the all important spoiler well, they could have skipped that and placed a proper disc brakes to the rear wheels. The tranny's shifting is smooth but is not very giving. It wouldnt shift down when i want it to whenever i do an overtake. I like the growl of the engine though when the revs is more than 2000rpms.

Interior-wise, before you get in, remind yourself that you are buying the cheapest among the 3 cars and you'll do fine. Once inside you will immediately notice that, though not cramped, it doesnt feel spacious at all. But the seats are well cushioned though still lack lateral support like the fiesta. The dash is well sorted out. And i like the gauges. It's cool. What bugs me is the placement of the automatic shift lever and the knobs for the airconditioning. Its cramped. I find it irritating to need to sneak my hand just to operate the knobs which are relatively small. Then there's the magazine rack slash glove box. What an ingenious idea. Surely it would be used by many. The cargo space is the smallest of the 3 and like the fiesta, the backrest of the rear seats wouldnt fold flat in contrast to the Jazz.

If only the 2 lived up to my expectation and gave me some fun driving it like a racer then i wud have given it a 7.5 but sad to say it didnt. All in all the 2 is a great car to be leisurely driving around town. It offers great bang for the buck. So, hmmmm... I think a 6.5 wud be in order. By the way, read my review of the fiesta with regards to its looks. That also applies here. Cheers.