Thankfully, the mechanical improvements first seen in the Japanese market Mazda2 have made their way outside of their home market. Compared to the JDM’s 14:1 compression ratio, the European version gets an even higher compression ratio—15.1:1—the highest of any normally-aspirated engine. Along with a revised exhaust manifold (4-2-1 from 4-1), it adds slightly more horsepower and torque than before—115 horsepower and 148 Nm along with even lower emissions. Yet, Mazda says it can run on regular unleaded gasoline.

Engine aside, Mazda engineers have also reworked the suspension bits as well with the 2022 Mazda2 now benefiting from urethane top mounts in the rear dampers, revisions to the power steering system for improved response and feel, and the addition of G-Vectoring Control Plus or GVC-Plus which uses the brakes to apply yaw control movement in addition to the previous system’s engine control.

The European market Mazda2 also gets much more goodies such as wireless Apple CarPlay, Qi Wireless Charging, and a colored heads-up display. The top-of-the-line version also gets features not normally found as standard in the segment including adaptive LED headlights, blind spot indicators, rear smart city brake support, and a 360-degree camera.

Style-wise, the 2022 Mazda2 hasn’t been changed, although Platinum Quartz Metallic is also a new color for global market as well, joining 11 others.

European market sales for the revised Mazda2 starts in October of this year. It’s still not known whether other markets such as Southeast Asia (including the Philippines) will benefit from these changes.