[Zoom]

I picked up my CX-3 two weeks ago and I'm really enjoying it so far.
I am very happy with my purchase.

That being said, I found out that I'll have to park in a different spot at work.
My regular parking spot requires me to drive up a slight ramp which I don't think my CX-3 will make, w/o some scraping under that lip.
The front lip of this thing is very low because of the long overhang in front.
I really wish Mazda would have moved those front wheels closer to the front end of the CX-3!

Now i'm starting to wonder what this thing will do on unplowed roads this winter. This is one of the main reasons I went for an AWD SUV.
Yes I know it's a mini-SUV but...



Oh well.
So it's the world's most expensive snow-shovel.

On the bright side?....
I can throw away my regular shovel!

 

[Zoom]

Sorry greaseman85, I probably should have added this to your original post.

 

[anchorman]

Yes, I've noticed at the local supermarket that if I go to the end of the parking space that it just skims the bumper. I try to hang back now to save ripping it off.

 

[CXIII]

You guys might even want to look into removing your front lip, seems like the CX-3 could still look good without it.

I rather not go through the process of replacing one or getting one fixed... that could cost hundreds.

 

[anchorman]

You guys might even want to look into removing your front lip, seems like the CX-3 could still look good without it.

I rather not go through the process of replacing one or getting one fixed... that could cost hundreds.

It doesn't come off. It's the black at the bottom of the bumper.

 

[Jimbo]

Wow!!!! I thought it was just me. Wednesday evening I took a new cx3 for a long test drive, back to my house, to see if I could drive up my driveway without scraping. Coming in from an angle was OK. But coming straight in it surely scraped. So I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like in winter with snow and ice accumulated in the driveway. So now I'm back to choosing between the cx5 and new Renegade.

 

[Zoom]

Wow!!!! I thought it was just me. Wednesday evening I took a new cx3 for a long test drive, back to my house, to see if I could drive up my driveway without scraping. Coming in from an angle was OK. But coming straight in it surely scraped. So I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like in winter with snow and ice accumulated in the driveway. So now I'm back to choosing between the cx5 and new Renegade.

I was thinking about reliability, so I passed right over the Renegade when I was shopping.
The CX-5 is very nice, but I just really wanted something smaller.

This problem with the clearance has me a bit pissed and is going to make my driving experience a little more paranoid.
Too bad that lip piece doesn't detach from the rest of the front end, as shown in the photo above.
Then if it got scrapped, it could be replaced.
A definite fail for my beloved little CX-3.

 

[anchorman]

I think it will be quite strong pushing through snow (keeping in mind the radiator is just through that bottom opening) but if it gets hooked going backwards you can kiss it goodbye.

 

[CX-ME]

Come on.

The reason they have dealerships is so that people can come compare things like ground clearance and such before buying. Or one can read the specifications in the brochure.

We know the CX-3 is not appreciably higher up than the Mazda3 and nowhere near as high as the CX-5.

 

[Zoom]

Come on.

The reason they have dealerships is so that people can come compare things like ground clearance and such before buying. Or one can read the specifications in the brochure.

We know the CX-3 is not appreciably higher up than the Mazda3 and nowhere near as high as the CX-5.

Yeah I agree.
I think the clearance spec is 6.5 inches, which I thought was good.
It's the overhang, 'cause if the front wheels were closer to the front of the vehicle then it would make the ramp situation much better. As it is now, before the tires get a chance to start raising the front, the bumper is onto the angle of the surface you're driving up.
I guess I was too star struck when I first met the CX-3 to be noticing that.

 

[anchorman]

I never considered a potential problem when I looked at the car to buy it. It was only at the supermarket that I noticed I had drawn over the curb that it was only good luck that it had JUST missed. Since then, I have taken more care to stop short of such obstructions and I don't see it as a negative feature - it is what it is. Regarding the snow, we don't usually get it too bad but if I get caught one day I'll just do the best I can. I could have bought another RAV or a CX5 but there comes a point where they are no good too.

 

[Bigelow1991]

I'm loving the car although I already had my first incident. I hit a raccoon on the way home from work last week and really did a number to my bumper. Insurance is fixing it up this week but this is a good example of the low ground clearance in the front end. Cracked the bumper, cracked the tank for the windshield washer fluid, passenger side fender ripped off. All the plastic bits come raw as well so I would have had to pay for the paint as well. Instead insurance is paying for that. Anyone seen or heard of a lift kit for the cx3? I've seen 2 inch lift Kits for other smaller SUVs. Something I wouldn't mind looking into for the future.

 

[anchorman]

I'm loving the car although I already had my first incident. I hit a raccoon on the way home from work last week and really did a number to my bumper. Insurance is fixing it up this week but this is a good example of the low ground clearance in the front end. Cracked the bumper, cracked the tank for the windshield washer fluid, passenger side fender ripped off. All the plastic bits come raw as well so I would have had to pay for the paint as well. Instead insurance is paying for that. Anyone seen or heard of a lift kit for the cx3? I've seen 2 inch lift Kits for other smaller SUVs. Something I wouldn't mind looking into for the future.

The lift kit is called a CX5 which would also get smashed to bits if you hit a sizeable racoon. Sorry to hear about your calamity.

 

[Kebabs]

Raccoon are getting a bit bigger this time of the year so a lift may not do much but it may prevent scrapping. Are there any underside protection for the lip out there?

 

[Frank]

That's a pretty bad misstep for the CX3. It is a CUV, which should has SUV elements. Any vehicle, especially a CUV or SUV, should not have a problem like this. You should be able to drive up a ramp, for example.

 

[anchorman]

Blimey, everybody's on a downer with the poor little things.

This suggests they are OK on a ramp,

http://youtu.be/n-uAtG9gCvM

 

[Frank]

That is actually a great video to show that the CX-3 can't be that terrible with its ground clearance.

Tried to repost it for embed but still couldn't get it to work

This video is definitely worth the watch though if you are concerned about this issue.

 

[PickledGopher]

The CX-3 seems designed like a hot hatch with AWD. Increased clearance would affect the driving experience. While I like more than enough ground clearance and that was one of my favorite things coming from a Wrangler. This car wasn't designed for that.

 

[inflex]

Does anyone have the actual number on the approach angle? I can't find a spec anywhere...

It's a pretty easy measurement to make, but it would require digging out a protractor. Pull a straight line from the front wheel where it touches the ground to the lowest point on the front undercarriage. Measure the angle between the line and the ground.

That'll give us some hard data to compare with other makes/models.

 

[CX-ME]

Blimey, everybody's on a downer with the poor little things.

This suggests they are OK on a ramp,

http://youtu.be/n-uAtG9gCvM

To be fair that's a Canadian ramp. We all know they're far more forgiving since they're in metric.

And selective editing probably doesn't show the times they scraped the bottom.

I'm keeping mine anyhow.