[Drisser]

Don't know if anyone has owned or driven the new model

Saw one this morning in a lovely deep red metallic, have to say I thought it was a cracking looking little motor from the outside..

[creepy coupe]

Same here. Clocked one last week in the same colour described. Did a double take.

[Drisser]

just looked on their website. Everything is std kit and 0% finance. Very appealing if you are in the market for a runabout. If I have to take a company car and something like this is available whilst having a fun weekend car would be very tempted away from the usual german stuff..

[SkyJawa]

Quite like the current styling on Mazda's to be fair. CX5 was a real contender when we switched wife's car, was the only SUV we drove that actually felt and handled like a normal car, really liked it.

[Drisser]

lot of car for the money - £19k, bose, leather, HUD etc. Compared to an equivalent Golf that would likely by £25k+ with that spec I guess.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...at_cars&page=2

[....,,,,..,,..]

Saw a 6 today, had to do a double check that it was actually a Mazda, looks a nice car.

[mbanks21]

Coworker has one, not a bad car for the price. Definitely sleeker and more aggressive than a lot of cars in the same price range

[nick1212]

I own one and it's an amazing little car. Believe it or not it handles better than the 335i I had before my 340i.

[JD6]

Someone drove into the side of my father's Mazda 6 a few weeks ago. The new 6 has become too long for his garage (similar to a 5 Series) so I looked at a new Mazda 3 for him.

He needed one quickly, but there are some reasonable discounts available on new stock. His 2.0 Sport Nav in Soul Red listed at £21,115, but he paid £16,555 without too much of a fight.

The spec shames a BMW with Xenons, Nav, HUD (albeit on a pop-up screen), Bose stereo, keyless entry and ignition, reversing camera, PDC front and rear, folding mirrors, 18" alloys, adaptive lights, speed limit display... all as standard. I had a lift in it last week and thought it was pretty good. The interior materials are a step down on an F30, but for £16.5k this is an excellent value car. Soul Red is lovely too.

There is a slightly facelifted model due out about now, but it gets an electronic handbrake which my father wasn't keen on. It also gets LEDS. I guess the discount may drop a little for the facelift, even though the differences are very modest.

[JD6]

Here is a 3 Sport Nav in Soul Red



Mazda have really got to grips with styling these days. This could be an Alfa, except that everything works

[Drisser]

Yea does look very like the Giulietta but as you say without the downsides.

If you can look past the german badge snobbery, and many cant, you can see why these are a good buy. Would have one way ahead of any mainstream Ford, Vauxhall, Renault etc..

My other half's mother got conned into changing her (shit) Vauxhall Agila for an equally shit Vauxhall Mokka a few weeks back when she "popped in" to the showroom on her way back from town and before she knew it had traded in her car.

I was livid to be honest and she wouldn't tell me how much it cost to change, no doubt because she was scared I would blow my top knowing for the £15-£20k that the Mokka was for sale at, I could have got her something 20 times better. A Mazda 3 being one.

[JD6]

Originally Posted by Drisser

If you can look past the german badge snobbery, and many cant, you can see why these are a good buy. Would have one way ahead of any mainstream Ford, Vauxhall, Renault etc..

Funny thing, badge snobbery. Somehow brands like Mini, Volkswagen and perhaps Honda have managed to escape from it. I think Mazda may be moving in that direction too, thanks to their iconic MX5 and exciting designs for the 3 and 6 replacing much more mundane models.

My father couldn't care less, but my mum would really struggle with him buying a Ford Focus or a Skoda, despite them being good cars. The shortlist was very short - a Golf or a Mazda 3, and their local VW dealer is pretty crap, so decision made...

[TouringPleb]

I think Mazda are producing some cracking cars at the moment. I especially like the 6 estate in soul red. Very nice!

[225]

I was a few emails from getting a new 6 sport nav before the 340. Great cars, great value and just a shame there is know mps version or it would be a winner.

[rich100]

Originally Posted by 225

I was a few emails from getting a new 6 sport nav before the 340. Great cars, great value and just a shame there is know mps version or it would be a winner.

Whatever happened to the MPS? I really do like the look of both the three and the six but they do seem to be short of a performance model.

[Daftasabrush]

Mazdas are cracking value! They look nice, drive well and have really nice interiors compared to similarly priced competition. The missus will be getting a CX-3 in the next few months.

[Daftasabrush]

Originally Posted by Drisser

lot of car for the money - £19k, bose, leather, HUD etc. Compared to an equivalent Golf that would likely by £25k+ with that spec I guess.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...at_cars&page=2

Odd that the photos of that car are at Invicta Mazda in Maidstone but it's for sale in Bolton. Quite a distance between the two! https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/...624914!6m1!1e1

[225]

Originally Posted by rich100

Whatever happened to the MPS? I really do like the look of both the three and the six but they do seem to be short of a performance model.

I dont know. I really do think they would sell as the new 6 is great looking and needs an engine to back up the looks.

[....,,,,..,,..]

Originally Posted by 225

I dont know. I really do think they would sell as the new 6 is great looking and needs an engine to back up the looks.

Yeah agreed, putting an engine kicking out over the 220bhp mark would be ideal.

Modern engines can and do deliver over 200bhp and provide good mpg.

Who would buy a saloon under 200bhp - even fiesta, Clio's are managing it.

(Yes I know lots of people do )

[stefan4]

had one as a hire car, it was a nice little motor, no power though. it was an auto and while nothing like the zf8 , it was pretty decent.

[73henny]

Before her 125d the Mrs used to have a Mazda 3 2.2d Sport. Well equipped, and the only options we specced were leather and metallic. It went well, had plenty of go (twin turbo) and the engine was very smooth for a 4 pot. But its refinement was terrible. Road noise on anything other than a very smooth surface became very intrusive. To the point that it was oppressive. Had to go.

[JD6]

Originally Posted by 73henny

But its refinement was terrible. Road noise on anything other than a very smooth surface became very intrusive. To the point that it was oppressive. Had to go.

Something a little odd about the Mazda 3 is that there are 3 models, two of them come with 16" alloys, but the Sport gets 18" alloys. Nothing else changes - the engines, suspension and gearboxes are the same. The performance of the car really doesn't justify 18" wheels and low profile tyres, which have quite an effect on refinement.

So when my father bought his new Sport model last month, I suggested to him that he ask the dealer to swap the wheels for SE-L 16" ones. Of course the dealer was happy as it made the SE-L more saleable, and it improves refinement of my father's Sport model. The reason for choosing Sport Nav over the SE-L Nav was the price difference after discount of just £100, and yet it adds HUD, reversing camera, front PDC, Bose stereo, privacy glass...