My Experience

I test-drove a 2004 Mazda3 S five-speed wagon at a local dealership. My test drive lasted about forty-five minutes and covered city streets, the freeway, and winding secondary roads.


Performance

When equipped with the 2.3-liter engine, as my S five-door test car was, the Mazda3 is the quickest car in the economy-sedan class. And unlike many cars I've driven, the Mazda's acceleration edge can be appreciated both objectively and subjectively. A recent road test by Car and Driver tells the on-paper story: a phenomenal (for an economy car) 0-60 time of 7.4 seconds. And more importantly, on my test drive, the car felt quick, eager, and very responsive.

This particular engine isn't big on low-end torque, so moving away from a stop required me to rev the engine higher than usual before I let the clutch out. The car's acceleration also felt soft off the line as a result of the minimal low-end grunt. But once the Mazda's engine reached 4000rpms or so, it really came alive. Around town, it developed a smoothly increasing sensation of thrust that encouraged me to keep it in lower gears for longer than usual, and when I charged down a freeway entrance, that smooth ramp-up of power just kept coming. Letting the engine rev up through its sweet spot gave me a little bit of the satisfying sensation of being pushed back in my seat--not something I'm used to in this class.

What makes all of this so impressive is that the Mazda3, for all its accelerative fun, is still one of those cars where you find yourself going faster than you've intended--the sensation of speed still isn't quite as vivid as the speedometer (or the 0-60 time) suggests. I think this is mostly due to the engine's well-insulated feel--vibration is minimal, and while the engine is clearly audible when pressed, its sounds are well-muted--which gives the car a somewhat less-playful feel than the figures suggest. But like I said, none of this interferes with the overall subjective impression that the Mazda3 is the quickest-accelerating economy car on the market.


Transmission/Clutch

The Mazda3's transmission is also easily in the running for best-in-class. The last time I drove the Mazda3's predecessor, the Protege, I was underwhelmed by its longish throws and slightly sloppy feel, but Mazda has made major improvements in this department. Although the shifter still feels a bit numb in the hand, it slots from gear to gear with dead-on accuracy and a firm, precise feel. The stubby shift lever's throws are short--more appropriate to a sports coupe than an economy car--and when you move it from gear to gear, it announces each gate with a solid "thunk." The only thing missing here is the mechanically-connected feel that can be found in many Hondas (but not their entry in this class, the Civic).

The Mazda's clutch left me somewhat less impressed, but it's still above average for the class. Its take-up is smooth and intuitive, which made it easy to change gears smoothly, but the pedal feel is imperfect. Its throw is a bit long, for one thing, and the weighting needs a little adjustment--as it is, it has a springy feel on the return that seemed rather artificial. This was a disappointment compared to the Miata-like clutch feel of the Protege, but not enough to mar the driving experience appreciably--it was one of very few faults.


Steering/Handling

The Mazda3's handling is, once again, the best in its class hands-down. Its steering and chassis have a firm, connected feel that its comfort-oriented competition can't hope to match, and it even shames many expensive so-called sports sedans that I've driven.

I was particularly impressed with the Mazda's steering. It honestly feels about 7/8ths as good as that in Mazda's own RX-8 sports car. Its weighting was firm and moderately heavy, giving it a satisfying feeling of substance, and its ratio was quick. Precision was excellent, with a solid and centered feel on straightaways, but immediate response when I twitched the wheel off-center. This gave the car a distinctly sporty feel around town, and a trusty demeanor on the highway. High-speed tracking was very good, with minimal corrections needed to keep the car on a straight course--and this is something I'm very picky about.

The only aspect of the steering that could stand some improvement is road feel. The Mazda's wheel is too well-weighted to feel numb, but there's not a lot of information coursing through its rim, regardless of road surface. This gave the car a slightly heavier, more reserved feel than I expected--the outgoing Protege's steering was more exciting and "alive," despite its twitchier and less-centered nature.

The Mazda3's chassis is also about as close to perfect as it gets in this class. Its tuning is firm--quite firm, actually--and this makes the car's chassis feel taut and very responsive. On the winding roads that made up part of my test drive, the Mazda3 felt unchallenged and unflustered--it turned in quickly and accurately, cut through the turn with lots of grip, and sailed out the other side. No drama here. There was a bit more initial body roll than I expected in quick transitions, but the Mazda took a set instantly and refused to lean any further, so it never bothered me.

All in all, the Mazda3's tight handling was what I'd expect of a really good sports coupe--in fact, if I had to compare its behavior to anything else I've driven, it would be the Acura RSX Type-S--and is really a couple leagues above its competition in this class.


Ride

The Mazda's ride is what may be a sticking point for some buyers. Just like the Protege, the Mazda3 places a higher priority on sporty handling than a smooth ride, and while its ride is far from uncomfortable, people who like Corollas will probably find it too stiff.

On my test-drive, I found that the Mazda3 actually soaks up rough and patched pavement quite well, and transmits almost no impact harshness to the cabin. The car's structure is too tight for that--the body felt ultra-stiff, and it was simply rock-solid over expansion joints and other rough edges. The issue here is body movement--the subtle but constant bobbling caused by the stiff damping and springs--that really feels more appropriate to a sports coupe than a mass-market economy car.

This car's ride actually seems at its worst on roads that look smooth, because there, the body faithfully follows every little dip and hump in the pavement with tight, quick pitching movements. On rough roads, all you notice is the excellent absorption of harshness, and on the freeway things smooth out considerably. It's on well-paved 35mph avenues that the Mazda3's ride feels stiff. Personally, I prefer this stiffness to a gentler ride, but then I'm a bit on the handling-obsessed fringe and not really representative of the average economy-car buyer.

In any case, the Mazda3's well-controlled noise levels should be appealing. The engine keeps its voice down until revved hard, and then its note is crisp and pleasing. Road noise was moderate with the 17-inch wheels and low-profile tires on my test car, and it should be more hushed with the standard 16-inch tires on the S sedan (15 inches on the base i model). Quietness during freeway travel was about class-average, which is to say, fairly serene.


Interior

The Mazda3's interior was another feature that positively blew me away--not for spaciousness or features, both of which were about class-average, but for the overwhelmingly expensive-looking ambiance. To me, the Mazda3's interior looked a whole like a taller, narrower version of the RX-8's cabin, but with better materials.

The 3's dashboard and door panels were trimmed in a grippy, rubber-dimpled material that felt like something out of the $30,000 class, while the console, door pulls, and gauge pod were done in a velvety-smooth plastic. A strip of smooth, substantial-feeling faux carbon-fiber trimmed the dashboard--finally, someone got fake carbon fiber right!--and the fat little three-spoke steering wheel felt fantastic in the hands. These are high-quality pleasures of automobiledom, and I was amazed to find them in the lowest model in Mazda's heirarchy. The Protege's interior was always good, but it was nothing like this.

Plus, besides having excellent materials, the Mazda3's interior works as well as those in far more expensive cars. The knobs and switches on the console operated with smooth, precise clicks worthy of a Honda label, and their design showed far more stylistic flair than that company dares to express. All the controls were exactly where I expected to find them, and were easy to use--except the radio, which looked great but took some time to figure out (and being 22 years old, I'm of the electronics generation--we who effortlessly set VCR clocks for our parents. This stuff is supposed to be easy for me).

The Mazda's seats are very sporty, and very supportive. Their fabric is firm and grippy, and the side bolstering held me tightly in place during hard turns. The driving position is very good, with a higher viewpoint and more-upright feel than that of the Protege (I actually rather missed the Protege's low-slung driving position, but I doubt many others will). There's plenty of room to stretch out up front, and although kneeroom was a bit tight in back, the seat was very comfortable and the accommodations didn't feel cramped.

Feature content was about what I expected in a high-trim economy car (generous), but there were also some pleasant surprises on the base-model 3's standard-equipment list, such as the steering-wheel-mounted radio controls. Overall, the Mazda3's interior struck me as yet another major selling point for the car, and for those with sporty tastes, another best-in-class.


Practicality

Although the Mazda3's seating didn't provide any more space than you'll find in a Civic or Corolla, it scores extra practicality points for offering a five-door wagon version. Not only is the wagon considerably better-looking than the sedan, it also provides a great deal more versatility and cargo space.

When I opened the rear hatch, I was pleasantly surprised by the deep and spacious cargo hold, with a flat floor and low loading height that would be great for hauling my bass guitar and amplifier. A split-folding rear seat comes standard on the Mazda3, so you can load up the trunk and spill over into the back seat while still keeping rear seats open for passengers. The wagon version also comes with a cargo cover to keep any valuables out of sight. I have a weakness for small wagons (it's such a practical and efficient layout), and when this was combined with the Mazda3's sporty driving dynamics, I got the "I-want-it" bug pretty bad.


Reliability

Since the Mazda3 is a brand-new design and has only been around for this model year, Consumer Reports hasn't had any time to compile a repair record or rate the car's reliability--and therein lies the rub of any all-new car. What I can tell you is that Mazda's small cars have generally scored very well in this department. The outgoing Protege received a rating of Much Better Than Average its last year of production, and had always scored very well in years past. This bodes well for the Mazda3's reliability, but is far from a dead ringer since the two cars share almost no mechanical parts. Along the same lines, the Mazda6 with which the 3 shares its 2.3-liter engine has also received a score of Much Better Than Average, but that engine is about all they have in common. Everyone is expecting good things from the Mazda3's mechanicals, but since the hard data isn't there yet, it's impossible to say with confidence.


Overall

The Mazda3 struck me as far and away the best car in the budget-transportation class. It's solid, it's expensive-feeling, and it's very sporty. The steering and chassis set a new standard for economy cars, with a firm and responsive feel that would give plenty of $30,000 sports sedans a run for their money, and the engine is crisp and eager despite its lack of low-end response. The shifter feel is unmatched in this class, too, as is the ultra-tight feel of the body structure. For my money, this would be the economy car to buy.

But there are two problems here that should be addressed. For one thing, my priorities aren't really mainstream when it comes to daily transportation. As you may have noticed, all the qualities I just praised had to do with the car's dynamic capabilities--these are the qualities I value most, but ones that many economy-car buyers pay little attention to. I don't think anyone could possibly dislike the 3's tight, sporty road manners, but I think it is possible that some buyers wouldn't find them sufficient compensation for the car's stiff ride. So if your tastes run towards the softer and gentler side, you might be more pleased by the Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic, despite their significant disadvantage in handling sharpness.

Another thing that merits consideration is the Mazda3's pricing. The top-quality interior proves that you get what you pay for with the Mazda3, but the prices still seem a bit dear for the economy-car class... especially since you have to step up to the S model if you want a 5-door wagon. The wagon I test-drove, which was dressed up with a sunroof and in-dash CD changer, stickered at over $20,000, which seemed like a lot. There's no question that the car is worth that much--heck, I'd take this car over the $30,000 Lexus IS300, Acura TSX, or Nissan Maxima any day--but that kind of pricing will simply put it out of some buyers' grasp, no matter how much they love the car. That said, if you find the sedan body style more appealing than the wagon, you'll be pleased to know the base-model i starts at just over $14,000.

Overall, I was deeply impressed with what Mazda has achieved with the new 3. It's lost some of the verve and rambunctiousness of the Protege, but pays it back with a zesty engine, an unflappable chassis, a jaw-dropping interior, and an eminently practical wagon body style. In the economy-car class, there's simply nothing I've seen that is so thoroughly desirable.




Feel free to check out my reviews on some of the Mazda3's competitors:
Chevrolet Cavalier
Chevrolet Cobalt
Dodge Neon
Honda Civic
Hyundai Elantra
Kia Spectra
Kia Spectra5
Mitsubishi Lancer
Nissan Sentra
Saturn Ion
Scion xB
Suzuki Aerio
Suzuki Forenza
Suzuki Reno
Toyota Corolla
Volkswagen Golf


Amount Paid (US$): 21,195