Compare the2023 Kia Niro EVVS 2023 Mazda MX-30

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Niro EV are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The MX-30 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Both the Niro EV and the MX-30 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available front parking sensors.

The Niro EV comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The MX-30’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Niro EV 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Mazda covers the MX-30. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the MX-30 ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

There are over 42 percent more Kia dealers than there are Mazda dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Niro EV’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Mazda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 24 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mazda is ranked 15th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Mazda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia first in reliability, above the industry average. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mazda is ranked 12th.

The Niro EV’s electric motor produces 58 more horsepower (201 vs. 143) and 91 lbs.-ft. more torque (291 vs. 200) than the MX-30’s electric motor.

As tested in Car and Driver the Kia Niro EV is faster than the Mazda MX-30:

On the EPA test cycle the Niro EV gets better mileage than the MX-30 (126 city/101 hwy vs. 98 city/85 hwy MPGe).

The Niro EV can travel longer on a full charge than the MX-30 (253 miles vs. 100 miles).

For superior ride and handling, the Kia Niro EV has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Mazda MX-30 has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Niro EV’s wheelbase is 2.6 inches longer than on the MX-30 (107 inches vs. 104.4 inches).

The Niro EV has 9.9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the MX-30 (99.7 vs. 89.8).

The Niro EV has 2 inches more front headroom, .7 inches more front shoulder room, 1.1 inches more rear headroom, 6.8 inches more rear legroom, 4.2 inches more rear hip room and 2.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the MX-30.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Niro EV’s power liftgate can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Niro EV’s power liftgate can also be opened or closed by pressing a button. The MX-30 doesn’t offer a power or hands-free opening liftgate.

The Niro EV uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The MX-30 uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The power windows standard on both the Niro EV and the MX-30 have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Niro EV is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The MX-30 prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

On a hot day the Niro EV’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the MX-30 can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

Both the Niro EV and the MX-30 have standard heated front seats. The Niro EV also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the MX-30.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Niro EV Wave keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The MX-30 doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Niro EV’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The MX-30 doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Both the Niro EV and the MX-30 offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Niro EV has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The MX-30 doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Kia Niro EV has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The MX-30 doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Niro EV Wave’s Smart Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Park Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The MX-30 doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Kia Niro outsold the Mazda MX-30 by almost 89 to one during 2022.