My 2001 Ford F150 (5.4L, 4WD) gave me several years of faithful service, especially off-road maintaining the fire road around the Orcas property. But now that we live in Seattle it doesn't fit our lifestyle anymore. It's a big, heavy, clumsy vehicle to drive around the city, especially for parking. And it sucks down gas to the tune of 13 mpg which is an unnecessary expense when you don't really need a 6,000 # full size pickup truck. Michelle had been bugging me for years to get rid of it, and I finally did.
I (or we) have owned some fun cars over the years, including a Mazda RX-7 twin turbo, a Lexus GS 430, and a Panoz Roadster. I thought about getting the 2014 Corvette, which is a great performance car. But that thought lasted about 10 seconds. I don't autocross anymore, and don't have the time for a car like that. Then again if Mazda made a Miata with the 250 HP Wankel Rotary from the RX-8, I'd buy one in a heartbeat! It would be smaller, lighter and easier to zip about than the vette, and almost as quick in a straight line.
What we really needed was a good city car. Small but room for 4 inside, easy to zip around the city and park, cheap so if someone scratches or dings the car we won't worry too much, and a bit more smoother and quieter than the Subaru Forester, to make long car trips more comfy. Yet still fun and engaging to drive. We ended up with a Mazda 3 Hatchback, which turned out to be the perfect car for all of the above. It's cheap and practical, yet so fun to drive I look for excuses to go places.
ENGINE and PERFORMANCE
It weighs 2800 lbs. with 155 HP for a P/W ratio of 18:1. It's not going to win any drag races, but that's not bad for an economy car. The engine is the 2.0 liter Skyactiv. It gets around 30 mpg around town and 40 on the freeway. But specs don't tell the whole story. The 6-speed manual transmission shifts smoother and quicker than my RX-7 or Panoz. The engine has a 13:1 compression ratio and with 150 ft.lbs. from 2.0 liters, it has BMEP and efficiency close to a diesel. But it runs on 87 octane fuel, which is amazing since its CR and BMEP are higher than most cars that need 92 octane. With variable valve timing, it runs Atkinson Cycle at low RPM for high torque and efficiency, automatically transitions to Otto Cycle around 2300 RPM. The engine has reasonably flat torque from 2,200 to its 6,800 RPM redline. Torque peaks at 4,000 so it pulls a little harder as the revs climb, but it makes 85% of its peak torque as low as 1,500 RPM. Chain driven cams, so no timing belt that will need replacing. It has 4-2 tuned long headers from the factory, which makes the engine responsive and sounds great. One drawback to this engine is it uses direct injection. The benefits are more efficiency, torque and power. Yet the drawback is the intake can gunk up quickly. Fuel is a solvent and when it's sprayed in the intake, it helps keep the intake and valves clean. But on a direct injection engine the only thing coming in through the intake valve is air. Since fuel is injected directly in the cylinder, the intake is completely dry. Direct injection engines like the Mazda Skyactive may require intake cleaning every 30k to 50k miles. Though apparently, giving it an occasional Italian Tune-up helps. The chassis feels as stiff and solid as the RX-7 or Lexus, while the suspension is not as tight as the RX-7, it's noticeably tighter than other economy cars. The steering is light, but not too light, with good feel and quick turn-in. It feels like it has a lot of positive caster. On the non-smooth roads around Seattle, the ride can be little bumpy. But it's not bad and we prefer the quick response good road feel over a cushy ride.
INTERIOR
Noise level is reasonably low, about the same as Honda/Toyota/Nissan, quieter than the Subaru. The car looks and feels solid all around. The doors don't clang but they thunk. You won't mistake the dash, seats and trim for a Lexus, but they don't look or feel cheap either. The iTouring trim has a lot of features and tech for a car at this low price. Bluetooth phone and audio, voice commands, CD audio and data (MP3/AAC/OGG), USB and Aux inputs, keyless entry and ignition. The audio system is pretty decent sounding, from radio to CD to Bluetooth. High quality (320 kbps VBR) MP3 files streaming via BT from my phone sound as good as the CD player, which also plays audio data (folders/files in MP3/AAC/OGG format). And the audio is on a small panel atop the dash, which is closer to line of sight while driving so you can keep your eyes on the road, yet small enough not to obstruct vision. The Bluetooth integration with my Android phone was simple and flawless. Audio and phone calls both work great and it supports multiple devices. Steering wheel has controls for audio, phone and voice commands. It has blind spot alerting for the rear view mirrors, which works well and is unobtrusive. The seats are snug yet comfy.
EXTERIOR
This is a surprisingly wide, low slung car with a low roofline. It's so wide it almost didn't fit in our garage. Dual exhaust even on this little 2.0 L 4-cylinder is a nice plus, yet not surprising considering the 4-2 tuned exhaust. Doesn't look like your average egg-bubble econo-box designed in a wind tunnel.
BAD STUFF
Overall, most cars from Honda/Toyota/Nissan/Mazda are reliable and solid, though unfortunately soft and boring to drive. Where the Mazda 3 stands out is the driving experience. It's tight and fun instead of soft and boring.