2019 Mazda 3 sedan and hatch to debut at LA show

Thirteen months after revealing its stunning Kai concept hatchback at the Tokyo Motor Show, Mazda will soon reveal its production-ready progeny: the next-generation Mazda 3.

Scheduled to debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show at the end of this month, the 2019 Mazda 3 – one of Australia’s best selling cars – will not only break cover in hatchback form, but in a sedan bodystyle as well.

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A shadowy teaser released today confirms the sedan will deviate significantly from its hatch sibling. While many small sedans tend to share their rear doors with their hatch siblings (take a look at the current Mazda 3, Honda Civic and Subaru Impreza, for example), the next-gen Mazda 3 will see unique treatments for both sedan and hatch.

The Mazda 3 hatch will, as expected, remain faithful to the look of the Kai concept, with a pronounced kick-up to its belt line that creates a fat C-pillar graphic (but which creates a smaller window opening for back-seaters as a result).

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Meanwhile, the sedan takes a more conventional approach to its glasshouse. The rear window extends much further toward the rear of the car, and the boundary between the rear door sheetmetal and rear glass is almost ruler-straight when compared to the hatch.

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That’s all we can see for now, but there are other things we know about Mazda’s imminent small car. For one, it will debut the company’s innovative compression-ignition petrol engine dubbed SkyActiv-X, which deploys clever ignition technology and a supercharger to reduce its thirst without compromising on power – while still being able to run on 91-octane petrol.

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And, with Mazda’s recently-announced plan to electrify its entire range by 2030, a hybrid variant may also slide into the new 3’s lineup at some point in its lifecycle to pave the way for a fully-electric Mazda 3 range in the following generation.