JOHN MURDOCH'S DRIVE TIME: We examine the new Mazda MX-30 RE-V

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Mazda's first all-electric car arrived back in 2020 and the five-door MX-30 came with a few surprises.Its handsome crossover styling was easy on the eye but its freestyle doors with their rear-hinged opening puzzled most people and divided opinion.

They certainly helped to make the car look sporty but their design hampered vision and made access to the rear seats difficult.However, the main drawback of this otherwise talented vehicle was its very limited 124-mile range - enough for most daily commutes but well below that offered by the opposition and not near enough to alleviate range anxiety worries for prospective buyers.The Lanarkshire Live app is available to download now.

Get all the news from your area – as well as features, entertainment, sport and the latest on Lanarkshire’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic – straight to your fingertips, 24/7.The free download features the latest breaking news and exclusive stories, and allows you to customise your page to the sections that matter most to you.Head to the App Store and never miss a beat in Lanarkshire - iOS - Android Mazda has now tackled the problem by introducing the MX-30 R-EV an extended range version which is being sold alongside the regular EV.While most manufacturers would have solved the issue by just fitting a much larger battery - that is not the Mazda way - and they have once again delivered a unique solution.Back in 1991 I was at Le Mans when Mazda stunned the race world by winning the 24-hour race with a rotary-driven car.

The same technology was then used in a range of great sports cars but the much-loved RX-8 was the last of them.The Japanese company has always had a passion for rotary technology and so the MX-30 R-EV comes with a tiny 830cc