Bottom line is the Mazda offers a nearly infinite variety of options packages, many of which represent a better value than the tC. The car is, in my opinion, vastly more interesting looking than the tC, which is just slightly less boring than a Camry, and it had 4 doors on top of it which makes it much more user friendly and practical than a coupe.

Unless you are cross-shopping only the base models and/or must have a coupe for some reason (not practicality obviously) then the Mazda is the better deal all around.

If you're going to buy a base model tC and leave it alone versus a Mazda3 i then it could be a better deal, but if you are buying a tC then spending $$$ on 17" wheels, HIDs and a bunch of rice to sport it up, you might as well buy the Mazda that can be ordered with all the bells and whistles you like from the factory.

 

I agree and impressed to hear that from a tC owner cause people ususally are very defensive about their cars. IMO the Mazda3 looks and feels like a true sports car (an economy one, but still). The handling is just so good, it's amazing like Edmunds said in their comparison of Mazda3 and civic, that the Mazda3 beats a WRX STi in a slalom at the track !

http://media.putfile.com/4dr-sedan-Mazda3

 

I'm actually an xB owner, I do like the tC though, but I was a little disappointed that Toyota was so conservative in the styling and packaging of what should have been an edgy Gen Y replacement for the Celica. Instead it somehow came out like a Solara Jr.

The Mazda3, incidentally, is the car I came closes to buying other than the xB. If Mazda had offered a true wagon version of the 3 instead of only the 5 door hatch, then I would be driving one of those now. True story. Great car and a fine example of how to do it right.

tC is a fine car, it's just not terribly exciting and if you are going to want all those extra options anyway in the aftermarket the Mazda makes so much more sense. I just wish they had made a real wagon version

 

well try this on for size, i have owned both and i got rid of the 3 to get the tC. the 3 gave me nothing but problem and God help you if you modify it in any way b/c Mazda wont fix $hit if you have any aftermarket parts on it when things go wrong.

i had the hatch and it was great if you ever have to haul stuff. the 4 door salon is great if you never have to put anything bigger than a bag from Wal Mart in the back.

90% of the design and manufacturing of the 3 is from Ford and Mitsu. the only thing Mazda had to do with it was they wanted to make something that competed with the Focus. a compact sport that appealed to all market ranges (age, sex, ethnicity, ect...) and they struck it rich. the Mazda 3 is one of the highest selling compact cars in the US and Canada right now. its only major comp is the Focus and the Civic of course. it is also the most traded in vehical in the first 2 years of ownership.

the 3 is a great car if you never plan on doing anything to it b/c you never know if you are going to get some finiky service center that _____es about you car everytime you bring it in.

an i use to work for my dealership. no help. i would give my left nut to go back in time and get the tC earlier than have ever owned that car.

i had intake, exhaust, clutch, flywheel, and shifter, then the car went on some electrical fritz and Mazda said it was my intake. well i dont know about you but i dont have the time or money to fight Mazda America. so i got them right where it hurts most. i traded it in for a cheaper, better, faster, better looking, more tunner friendlier car. the service lady was ____ed when she found out that i got rid of the 3 and got a new car and i only pay $16 bucks more a month.

they wanted $3500 to start the work and $7000 in parts to replace the whole electrical system, but when i asked them if that would fix it they said "We dont know"!!!!! $10,500 is half of what i paid for the car.

so here we are today in a car that is more stylish and better looking.

Mazda 3

Scion tC

 

I don't plan in doing any warranty voiding mods, so I've got the 4-year warranty to rely on. Contrary to your personal experience, which could well be attributed to what you did, the reliability of the Mazda3 has proven to be well above average, and not far from Honda and Toyota levels, based on Consumere Reports surveys. Mazda3 is a successor to the Protege which also had very good reliability ratings, and Mazda always had a compact car in their lineup, it's not just started becaus of the Focus like you say. It's true that they share the platform design with the european Focus and the S40, and those cars have excellent handling. The manufacturing of the Mazda3 is 100% in Hiroshima, Japan in Mazda's factories so I'm not sure why you're talking about Mitsubishi. Basically most of your arguments sound like bunch of rumors meant to create FUD, and not well researched facts.

As for luggage room in the 4-door Mazda3, it's just average for the class, which is enough for me otherwise I would have bought an SUV. And in general 4-doors are way more practical than 2-doors cause it's much more convenient to access the rear seat.

The performance of this car, especially the handling is so good IMO, that I see no reason to try to modify it and anyway instead of spending money on mods it's cheaper to just buy a better car like WRX or Civic Si.

 

your ECU and some of your sensors are manufactured by Mitsu. yes the 3 is built in Japan, at a Ford Factory that also produces the Euro tuned Focus and some other little Ford Compact.

like i said the car is great aslong as you dont plan on doing anything to it. consomer reports is based on the stock vehicle. most people in the 20 - 30 age range want to do somethings to everything.

the handling of the vehical is 2nd to none. thats what happes when you test and tune on the Neurbering track in Germany.

FUD and rumors, riddle me this batman you have to go to at least 8 different classes to sell a specific model on some car lots. Mazda want the dealership to have at least 2 people be experts on each vehical. they know almost everything about that particular model. well i had to sit in on that class for the 3.

the 3 and the Proto are 2 completely different vehicals. they are not even in the same relm. unlike the 3 the Proto was designed and built by Mazda.

 

I'm glad we agree Mazda3 has great handling, which is why I feel completely satisified with the stock car and don't plan to mod it, except cosmetical stuff like window tint, spoiler, stubby antenna, etc. Like you said it's already tuned to perfection and I enjoy driving it immesely. I prefer to drive the Mazda3 more than my Saab 9-3, which cost $10K more. As for exterior, I think the tC looks good especially from the back with it's upscale looking lights and mirrors, but the front grille is ultra bland and boring. IMO the Mazda3 looks a lot more sporty.

 

yea that's what i thought as well...bias votes are inevitable

 

The line about Ford and Mitsubishi is complete horsesh1t, sorry. eople sure are creative around here...where did you dig that whopper up, or did you just make it up yourself?

You may be in for a rude awakening if you think Toyota is going to be any more "mod friendly" than Mazda was.

Luckily the same laws protect consumer warranty rights no matter what make of car they drive. The burden of proof is on THEM to prove that your intake caused the electrical glitch. That is the SAME whether you have a Mazda or a Scion or a Kia.

I guess the moral of the story is know your rights before you sell a car over something like that...

 

bottom of the line. the mazda 3 sedan looks a lot better than a tc. which would I buy? probably the mazda. more room , and better style.


the bad thing about mazda's option packages is say you want abs and or trac. you have to buy a huge package with other unneeded crap. I wanted a 3 before I got the xB . only prob was they advert it starting at 15,300 but add abs , and it's over 16,000. add the better motor which would be needed since theyre somewhat portly. you end up around 17,xxx. too rich for my blood.


and yes mazda's may be good but i'm gonna go out on a limb here and spout facts. about how toyota does have betetr quality even if theyre bland.

to me a tc and a mazda 3 wouldnt be on the same plate.

 

Even I will admit styling is subjective. Some people will prefer the tC. I prefer the Mazda. Styling is just up to opinion, you can't call one better than the other.

I think if you are going to just buy the entry level Mazda3 versus the tC and you aren't planning alot of accessories and modifications, then the tC is the better deal.

If you want a loaded car with lots of features or you care about having 4 doors, then the Mazda is by far the better choice.

Also, people need to stop obsessing about the Mazda parts content. Mazda's reliability is excellent. I don't know why tC owners have to be so insecure that they attack the Mazda3 as being a Ford, as if it was a 1985 Escort. It's built on a jointly designed platform used by Ford Volvo and Mazda. It's used on the NEW Ford Focus, which we do not even get here and the Volvo S40 (you know the car your tC is trying to look like) The car is built by Mazda in Japan. None of the Ford fingerpointing is relevant because the car is high-quality and reliable, period. Get over it. Are you going to limit yourself to Toyota's for the rest of your life FFS?

 

FFS?

 

For F*cks Sake

 

Is there something wrong with staying loyal to Toyota? They are number 1 for a reason.

 

I like the Mazda3 Sedan a lot. I am not too fond of the Hatch. The TC has a clean, modern look. The 3 is a little bit flashier and more stylized. I kind of wish I got the 3 instead because having only 2 doors is kind of a pain sometimes and I have been having troubles with my TC. I am going to wait for the MazdaSpeed 3 and most likely trade in the TC for it. We'll see

 

Blind brand loyalty is about as smart as blind loyalty to one politcial party regardless of what candidate they put forth.

I love Toyota, actually 5 of the 8 cars I've owned have been Toyota's.

But liking Toyota doesn't mean I won't be critical of them sometimes, and it doesn't mean I will slam every "Honduh" and say they build lawnnmowers and other bullsh*t like that and blindly promote Toyota as if they can do no wrong. I look at cars based on their merits and as much as I love Toyota, the Camry is a boring car and not half as good a drive as the Accord and it has never been. The Corolla is a major compared to the Mazda3 and I hate Toyota for killing the MR2.

Toyota is #1 because of the way they run their business and how they market their products and position things to appeal to the largest cross section of society. It also doesn't hurt that they jumped on the SUV bandwagon early and they are ferocious about offering SUVs in every size and flavor to satisfy the stupid American market. It doesn't necessarily mean their offering is going to be the best choice. Toyota does not take driving enthusiasts seriously unless they have the money for a Lexus and even then you only have one choice if you want a manual transmission.

Being number one doesn't mean you have the best thing out there in every category. Just look at Microsoft. Windows is a piece of dogsh*t, but it sure as hell is #1.

 

I never said Totoya was perfect. I defintley agree with you about them not taking the driving enthusiasts seriously. I hope when the new Supra comes out it can compete with the ZO6 but ya never know.

 

wasnt there some rumor that the "New" Supra was going to be a hybrid? maybe i read someting wrong somewhere. hope it looks better than the new Skyline. not that the Skyline looks bad but it could look better.

i wonder if it is going to retain the in line 6. sure would be nice to see that design stay alive.

 

^^its not gonna be inline it will be either v6 or v8

 

well since Toyota is in kahoots with GM maybe it will be a version on the LS2 or LS7 motor. that would be nice.