LIGHT cars have had enormous pressure placed on their petite shoulders in recent times, but the Mazda2 had defiantly attempted to swim against the tide.

Every contender in the light car segment suffered a double-digit per centage drop in sales in 2016, with the exception of the Mazda2 that fell by around 4.5 per cent and the Skoda Fabia that started from a low base and added about one-third of volume versus 2015.

Bullying has come from sharp deals in the segment above – the small car class – and in particular the Hyundai i30 that was frequently on-sale for $19,990 driveaway. For example, for that same price but before on-road costs, buyers can instead choose this top-of-the-range Mazda2 Genki.

In order to make its light car more competitive, the Japanese brand recently sliced $700 from the price while adding LED headlights as standard. Attempting to swim against the tide, indeed.

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