It's the keys!
JR, 11/20/2017
2017 Mazda 3 Sport 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 6M)
12 of 13 people found this review helpful
So, this is going to seem like a strange review to most of you out there. I'll touch on a few of the pros and cons of the vehicle itself, but the most impressive feature of this car was the keys. I rented the Mazda 3 during a recent visit to the Big Island of Hawaii. Over twelve days I drove all over the island and got to know the car pretty well. It's a very nice vehicle. Sleek looking, comfortable, handles well and gets excellent gas mileage. I had never used a back-up camera before and now I'm sold on the things thanks to the Mazda 3. The traction and handling in rain and dirt roads was excellent and the vehicle was basically fun to drive. This particular car didn't have navigation, so I can't report on that. The only thing I didn't really care about was the sound/"entertainment" system, which wasn't very intuitive and was kind of a hassle to navigate. It took me a couple of days of fiddling around with it to get it dialed-in. Once I did, the sound quality with the radio and an iPod was quite good. All in all it's a sporty, fun and comfortable car to drive..... I was in Hawaii mainly to do some scuba diving and this is where the keys come in. On one particular dive I went down to 99 feet and spent 50 minutes at or below 42 feet. It was a great dive and I got back on the boat wanting more. As I pulled off my wetsuit, I was shocked to discover that I had left the car keys (Fob) in the shorts that I wore under the wetsuit :( I immediately realized that the keys had been down to 99 feet (significant water pressure down there) and that they were probably toast after the deep dive. They even felt a little heavier, and I was already thinking of how I would have to contact the rental company, explain my screw-up, and (hopefully) still be eligible to rent another car from them. Even the Dive Masters were ribbing me a bit over what I had done. At the end of the day I fatalistically approached the car and tried opening the trunk using the keyless Fob. It worked. At least now I could put my gear in the trunk. Next I tried unlocking the doors and that worked too! By then I knew I was golden; astonished and relieved since the car has a keyless ignition. The keys continued to work flawlessly for the next eight days. So, I can't really say much more about the car, but if it's built like the keyless Fob I'm totally sold on the 2017 Mazda 3.
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2nd Mazda 3
Mark, 03/21/2017
2017 Mazda 3 Touring 2.5 4dr Hatchback (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
11 of 12 people found this review helpful
Drove a 2008 Mazda 3 until a tree fell on it. It had the larger engine and served me well. I'm enjoying the 2017 but the gas mileage is not good so far. Getting a combined 24 mpg and not what they claim on the window sticker. If fuel economy is high on your list, then go with the 2.0. If power and fun is high on your list, I highly recommend the 2.5. Also, there is some discussion about Japan made versus Mexico made. I test drove both and chose the Mexico 2.5. It was flawless inside and out. If the reliability is close to my 2008 then I will be a happy camper.
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2017 Mazda 3 for sale near you
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- Touring 4dr HatchbackMSRP: $16,975In-stock online
- Grand Touring SedanMSRP: $10,79514 mi away
- Grand Touring 4dr HatchbackMSRP: $11,9955 mi away
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Value with some perks - first impressions
Darrell Shultz, 11/19/2016
2017 Mazda 3 Grand Touring 4dr Hatchback (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
40 of 48 people found this review helpful
I bought this car three days ago and have put just over 100miles on it so this is truely a first impressions review. We bought this car to replace a small SUV. We needed gas mileage over space and this seemed like a really good option. The engine: with the 2.5 liter you push on the gas and it really responds. I did an extended test drive of the 2.0 engine and while it had good excelleration the sweet spot seemed to always be lagging. The 2.5 is a vast improvement and if your budget allows it's a must have. Smooth acceleration and quite a bit of kick for a 4 cyl. Is it going to keep up with the small hatches that have turbo chargers or 300hp. No, but if you want that you're probably looking at other cars, for a bit more money. The interior: we bought the Grand Touring with most options and while the layout is different from your normal car I can already see that it is achieving Mazdas goal of keeping your eyes on the road. With the controls to most everything down on the console instead of on the dash you can manipulate the Nav and radio mostly by touch. It's very intuitive and has a smart phone/iPhone style interface. The heads up display seemed a bit of overkill but I've already began to love it. If Mazda could of added preset driver recognition so you didn't manually have to change it every time a new driver got in that would be great but it takes 10 seconds to manipulate it. The leather is way nicer then you would expect from a mid-level hatch and the cars interior screams quality. With automatic everything; rain sensing wipers, automatic headlights, even automatic door locks with the smart key this car stands out and it has heated seats! The voice activated feature seems to work really well, the 7in touchscreeb is very easy to see and the 9speaker Bose stereo has sounded great. Ours has Nav but that wasn't a selling point. In today's world most of us are carrying Nav in our pockets but it's easy to use. The Exterior: the styling is very eye catching. We have the eternal blue mica and it really pops! We had a choice of this or white and the blue just made me look longer. With nicely tinted Windows it has great lines and The 18in rims are nice, some may want to upgrade but you won't need to. If you buy a lesser trim level with steel wheels it's a must the stock Mazda wheels kill the look of this car, but work within your budget. The ride in my opinion is on par for this kind of car. Will It feel like a SUV, no, your driving on low profile tires so you feel the road but it's reasonable for a car of this type. The one thing I didn't love was the cargo space floor. Typically the spare is under the cargo area and it is in this as well. Most cars have a piece or thin fabric covered wood or plastic between and it gives the cargo area a solid floor. This has a thick fabric that sit directly on styrofoam that surrounds the spare. It just feels cheap. I may try and add somthing in between to firm it up. Overall this car meets our needs and was in our budget. I'm looking forward to lower gas usage and long term reliability.
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MY 3RD MAZDA 3
SHM, 09/04/2017
updated 09/05/2018
2017 Mazda 3 Touring 2.5 4dr Hatchback (2.5L 4cyl 6M)
13 of 15 people found this review helpful
I got the Touring version without any extras. It's about 90-95% of the GT for thousands less. Some say the driving experience is as good or better than a Audi A3. I compared the Touring with the mid range Audi feature by feature and the cars were nearly identical. Except for the hybrid oriented features of the A3. The Mz3HBT is a LOT of car for the $. The 2.5L matched with the manual is extremely satisfying. One thing potential buyers should know is there is NO hatch release button on the key FOB. And, the instrument panel is terrible, imho. But, get the automatic transaxle version, and you get a nice tachometer mounted front and center like in a Porsche 911. And a perfectly legible speedo. The other thing is, even though this isn't a 'hot hatch,' the Dunlop Sport 5000 M tires the car comes with are junk. Get a set of dedicated winter rims and tires, then a set of summer dedicated HP tires for the OE rims. This car DESERVES great tires! It would do everything better with great tires. I'd also recommend getting a set of WeatherTech front mats and cargo mat. The driver's side mat covers half of the carpeted dead pedal. Which might help reduce wear most complain about. Other than that, this is a mid $40K car in cheap's clothing. Well worth a consideration. Oh---> I didn't list the reliability because this car has just over 1000 miles. But, after owning 2 other Mz3 cars, I'll say just skip the extended warranty and save yourself $2-3K. And put that $ into winters wheels and mats. Then pocket the rest...
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From Kansas City MO to Crested Butte CO and back.
Tom T, 09/24/2017
2017 Mazda 3 Grand Touring 4dr Hatchback (2.5L 4cyl 6M)
9 of 10 people found this review helpful
I've had two Mazda 3 GTs. Both hatchbacks, both identical except the transmission. The 2015 was an automatic and the 2017 is a manual. Mazda has addressed my single complaint that made the 2015 virtually undriveable on the highway. Noise. The 2017 while still kind of loud, it is at least liveable and after 11,500 miles is turning out to be a really good choice. The car is quick, beautiful, comfortable and efficient and, while I don't care at all about fuel economy my average in city/highway driving is 31.2 mpg. But it's the handling and the interior design and execution that really blows my mind. Build quality is excellent too. I passed up a BMW 135 and the GTi specifically because of the interior in this car. My trip to and from Crested Butte consisted of several 2 hour long 85-90 mph stretches on US24 and I-70, (thanks to a BEL radar detector) and, over Monarch Pass the car was a paragon of stability and steering excellence. Look, before you default to the hideous looking Civic please just take a Sunday and drive to a Mazda store and look inside a Mazda 3 GT. See if you find ANY other car for less than $40,000 that looks this nice. Then rent a Mazda 3, any Mazda 3, and drive it for a few hours. Drive to Costco and lay the seats flat, then load the car full of stuff and see how fast you can drive home. You'll find out how comfortable and efficent these cars are.One other thing to point out is how easy it is to parallel park this car. I love that! And if you can find a GT hatch with a manual transmission like mine you should buy it. (The automatic is faster and drives almost as well)
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