Haima 2

Haima 2 at a glance

Haima, Mazda and the look of the Haima 2

Haima began in 1992 as Hainan Mazda, a joint venture between the provincial government and Mazda, and its name joins "Hainan" and "Mazda". In 2006 FAW bought Mazda's share. The company kept the right to use older Mazda technology, but no longer the Mazda badge. The full story is told in the history of Haima.

The small hatchback shows that heritage clearly. Its proportions, headlights and five-sided grille follow the Mazda2 of 2007, which won the World Car of the Year title in 2008. Reference works note that the car could easily be mistaken for a product of its former partner. The old 1cars review saw the same Mazda influence in the larger Haima 7, which recalls the Mazda Tribute.

The design is tidy rather than distinctive. A rising waistline and a steeply raked windscreen give the small car a forward-leaning stance, and the electric door mirrors are large for good rear visibility. Buyers could choose 14-inch steel wheels or 15-inch alloys. The 2013 facelift mainly changed the front and rear bumpers.

Two petrol engines and a manual gearbox

Two four-cylinder petrol engines were offered. Sources disagree on the engine codes: the English encyclopedia lists 4A90 and 4A91 units, while some spec databases use codes from the Mazda range. The outputs, however, match across all sources.

Both drive the front wheels. Front suspension uses MacPherson struts and the rear a torsion beam, the usual layout for a car of this class. Official acceleration and top-speed figures were not published in the sources we checked. With 1,055 kg and 68 kW, the 1.3-litre car carries about 15.5 kg per kW; the 1.5-litre improves this to about 13.7 kg per kW. Those 1cars calculations place the car in the normal range for a 2010 supermini, close to the Mazda2 it resembles.

Fuel use is moderate. A combined figure of about 6.7 l/100 km appears in spec listings, and the old 1cars review quoted around 7 litres in city driving.

Size, wheelbase and luggage room

For a car under 3.9 metres long, the 2,500 mm wheelbase is generous and gives reasonable room in the back for two adults. The old review noted a boot of 195 litres with the parcel shelf in its lower position, 260 litres when raised and up to 1,020 litres with the rear seat back folded, plus luggage nets. The size comparison tool shows how it measures up against other small hatchbacks.

Cabin, equipment and safety kit

The cabin is simple and built from hard plastics in one colour, livened up by fabric inserts in the seats and door panels. Round air vents match the shape of the instruments, and the instrument lighting uses several colours. The centre console holds a radio with MP3 and USB support, the hazard-light switch and three rotary controls for the air conditioning. Climate control and a multifunction steering wheel were not offered.

According to the old 1cars review, standard equipment included power steering, air conditioning, ABS, a trip computer, a driver's airbag and electric front windows. A passenger airbag and a fuller electric package cost extra. No crash-test result from C-NCAP or Euro NCAP was found for this model.

What it cost in China

In China the hatchback was priced from 53,900 to 68,900 yuan. At 2010 exchange rates that equals roughly 6,000 to 7,700 EUR, a 1cars conversion rather than an official European price. The car was not sold through official dealers in the European Union. Its sister models, the Haima M3 saloon and the Haima S5 crossover, followed the same low-price strategy.

Against the Mazda2, Yaris and Jazz

On paper the Chinese car matches the Mazda2 closely: the Mazda's 1.5-litre has 76 kW, the Haima's 77 kW, and the Mazda2 saloon weighs 1,053 kg against the Haima's 1,055 kg. The difference lies in build quality, crash safety data and parts support, where the Japanese cars are clearly ahead. Any two small cars can be set side by side in the comparison tool, and the best small city cars list covers stronger alternatives.