2025 Mazda 3 a top rival to sedan icons

Mazda likely has the bulk peculiar reputation in the automotive industry The Japanese manufacturer s lineup includes the MX- Miata the world s best-selling roadster It also includes a handful of sedans hatchbacks and SUVs that don t sell particularly well It s a long-time industry dynamic Mazda makes worthy vehicles notably the Mazda But the carmaker s offerings have rarely received appropriate attention A breakthrough occurred last year when the Mazda sedan sales in the United States increased percent from But here s the caveat The Mazda sedan s total sales volume in was It s a lowly number when the competition among small sedans includes the Honda Civic Hyundai Elantra Kia Forte Nissan Sentra Volkswagen Jetta and Toyota Corolla Rivals for the Mazda s hatchback include the Honda Civic hatchback Subaru Impreza Volkswagen Golf GTI and Toyota GR Corolla It s a tough crowd The Honda Civic is annually among the country s top-selling small sedans including units in The Toyota Corolla is the top-selling car in history Still the Mazda is a top candidate in the segment Honda and Toyota gave the carmakers small sedans sportier exterior upgrades in modern years Mazda joined the new wave of good-lookers in the current generation s debut Throughout the segment staid little sedans are no more The Mazda s longish snout provides the quasi-look of a modestly priced Ford GT Cobra It has little resemblance to old-styled modest sedans often relegated to rental fleets and students with modest budgets seeking solid transportation The reviewed -liter -horsepower turbocharged trim is the top performing option completing the -to- miles per hour standard in seconds The effort is one of the surprises in the segment The Mazda trim with a six-speed transmission is not only quick it advances with confidence and in near silence Mazda like a great number of carmakers contends its small four-door sedan has seating for five But only two adults can ride comfortably in the rear seats Overall the Mazda has adequate space except its small trunk Gas mileage averages are miles per gallon in city dwellings mpg on the highway The MSRP is final tally The Mazda s driving prowess is also present while maneuvering through traffic at top highway speeds and while negotiating the chaos of city traffic Lane changes are smooth Mazda s standard features list is generous While adopting much of the equipment from the six additional trims the Turbo Premium gets a sizable chunk of other stuff Front and rear parking sensors a heated steering wheel leather upholstery and paddle shifters highlight the trim level Safety upgrades include a lane-centering system a surround-view camera system rear automatic braking forward collision warning with automatic braking adaptive cruise control lane-keeping assistance lane departure warning and a drowsy driver monitor An -inch infotainment display is standard as is Wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capabilities in lower level models a -inch touchscreen display with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is standard on turbo models Both offerings have an easy-to-use interface mostly controlled by a rotary knob on the console Standard on several trim levels are -inch wheels dual-zone automatic situation control keyless entry and rain-sensing wipers Alexa built-in voice assistant and blind-spot warning with rear cross-traffic alert A Bose premium audio system is standard on Premium and Turbo Premium Plus models and optional elsewhere SiriusXM satellite radio is also optional The Mazda offers a lot but it likely will never approach the legacies of the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla But it s a worthy unheralded underdog James Raia a syndicated automotive columnist in Sacramento also contributes business lifestyle and sports content to several print and online publications E-mail james jamesraia com