Official 2010 Mazda3 Specs & Features

[sicsol]

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Jason from Oakvile Mazda with inviting me to take a few pics on the 2010 Mazda 3 GT that had just hit his showroom this afternoon.

[Thrizzl3]

lol wow..gary get on that

[bunchi]

the front.... looks sooo happy! like it just came out from disney cars movie

[Soyabean]

Actually the front doesnt look so bad anymore. Im starting to hate the back. Its too high like the new lancer. Except the lancer looks agressive at the front but the new 3 looks happy.

[b.rabbit]

Wish I was there for the unveiling! I was just there a few Thursdays ago for service!

[laksman91]

the trunk looks really weird maybe the tail lights are too small

[swales]

The front still looks ugly and now the back doesn't look right either....I think Mazda royally screwed up

[FLIPDADY]

Yokohama Avid S34 - no more Goodyear RSA's!




Dual exhaust and lip spolier!


Steering wheel controlled navigation!


Some LED mirror action!

[JohnyGT]

The front still looks ugly and now the back doesn't look right either....I think Mazda royally screwed up

+1. Glad i got the latest model of the current generation.

im only envious for that 6spd 2.5

[3GFX]

Nice G!!!


I like the dual computer.

[Pereira11]

definately looks better in person, just needs some agressive wheels!

the pearl white is awesome too

[lightingwhite32008.5]

i think i only like the engine cuz it's a 2.5, but i still like the generation of mazda3 we have... true dat..

[-RJ3-]

THe 3 is smiling, this time with teeth!! (or should I say tooth)

[Pereira11]

THe 3 is smiling, this time with teeth!! (or should I say tooth)

We should mount the plate to one side to give it more of the one-tooth look!

[vladimir]

Wow it actually looks great!
Sooo many buttons in the interior wow.

[Ogata]

I still love my cat whiskers...better than the smile.

[Caesu]

I really dont know what to make of this, at some angle is looks good then at other angles it looks like absolute turd. I think I like the corner of the front bumpers a lot, the aggressive slope down of the front hood, the rest is bland.

The interior is good, although Id mount a Coolnavi 700 inside instead of the stock Navi

[Aitch]

Just got back from visiting Jeff (TheBiz) at Mazda of Toronto. The 2010 Mazda 3s are starting to flow in there, they had black, dark grey, and white all on the lot (all sedans). Let me preface this by reminding you that I've been one of the rare guys who's liked the new look since the photos surfaced. Having said that, the car looks incredible in person. I just kept thinking (inside and out) "and this is an economy car!"

I agree with Jeff that photos don't necessarily do the car justice, especially the front end. Most photos are wide-angle taken up close, which emphasizes the grill too much. Stand back and look at the car, and to me it just all seems to flow together. Yes, its a happy face, but I don't think it 'grins' too much, I actually feel like it's a sleek aggressiveness, just not a 'downturned' agressiveness like the Lancer.

Jeff also said he did an informal feature comparison between the 3 and the BMW 3 series. The only feature you can add on the 3 series which the Mazda doesn't have is a heated steering wheel; conversely, you can get adaptive headlights on the Mazda but not on the BMW (the headlights turn when you put on the turn signals).

Thoughts on all the things I can remember:

• The headlights are very cool. The turn signal 'strakes' which are illuminated from behind compliment the flow of the front end to the sides.
• Little details continue throughout the car. Example: the rear 3rd brake light has a crease in it to match the crease in the trunk. Not just a flat piece as on the current model
• The 17's don't look like they are that big. The car needs a drop too!
• Otherwise, the outside is fresh. A drop and exhaust tips, doesn't need anything else right now.
• The interior is killer. You can say that the dash looks like other cars (I've heard Lancer) but the quality and design is very well done. Nice plastics all around. The center stack is closer to the driver and the design makes it flow towards you. Very nice.
• There is a blue accent LED near the map lights to give a blue glow at night. Also a sunglasses holder flips down from the same area.
• The gauges light up when you start the car, and are illuminated during the day. Another nice touch.
• Keyless ignition, very compact key fob. If you need to use a key, it slides out from inside the key fob as a separate piece. You could start the car, leave the fob inside, and take the key away so you can close the door and warm the car. Or start it with the key and take the fob away.
• The Nav LCD is not very much smaller than an aftermarket Garmin 4.3" screen, just a bit farther away from you. Still very usable and legible. Plus the car's info system runs through it, much better than a little LCD between the gauges. Includes such info as tire rotation!
• Bluetooth connectivity! Turn on your phone's bluetooth, press a button and the car can discover it. Handsfree built in! Plus the connection settings are accessed through voice commands. Cool.
• The glovebox is probably about 20-30% smaller than before. Still two portions (as current design) and still quite usable.

Thanks again Jeff for showing me around the car! Always fun to drop in and chat.

PS the RX8 R3 looks as good today as the first time I saw one in the fall. It already looks like a mildly tweaked aftermarket version, and the pricing on the demo versions is sooooooooo tempting!

[whiteomega]

I have to agree with Aitch; I swung by MoT to make an appointment to have something fixed. I took advantage of being there to get a brief tour of the new 3. I'm one of those who didn't like the front design in the pictures, and I have to say, in person, it looks a LOT better.

It's the same reaction I had to the 05/06 STI redesign; the car looks much better in person than it does in the pictures.

Continuing on, the interior is very well laid out; I didn't push all the buttons (just the one the matters), but everything seemed to be comfortable and easy to use. I'm particularly happy with the dash. I was worried the LCD screen would be a bit hard to read given the relatively small size, but it's actually crystal clear, and all the information is summed up nicely. I'm a little worried by the reported 99.9 L/100 km fuel rating on the white GT I was sitting in..

Overall, though I was only sitting in the car for a few minutes, my first impressions are very good. It's the same impression I got from sitting in the 1st generation Mazda3 and comparing it to other cars of the time (in 2006). If I was looking for a new small car right now, I'd have no reservations about buying the new 3, except possibly wanting to wait for the mazdaspeed version.

[mazdas3sporte]

anyone seen this site yet?
http://www.2010mazda3.ca/mazda3.htm?lang=eng
http://mazdaca-pubcompare.autodatadi...lang=EN&acode=

[Mica3SGT]

Today confirmed for me what I've thought since first seeing pics and videos of the 2010 Mazda 3. Today I got to drive a red 4 door GT that was just prepped for my arrival.
Here's my first impressions:

1) Walking around the 2010 Mazda3GT and paying special attention to the front end (a storm of controversy), I can attest to other comments that the ghastly smilely face grill doesn't look so bad once you see it in metal. Viewed head on the new 3 has a flowing integrated shape and the cars overall width becomes apparent. I'd viewed a GS model mid week covered in snow that partially hid the grill. I began to notice that the GS sans fog lights seemed to loose the awkward look I'd noted earlier in the GT's pics. The rear of the GT looks hot with the dual exhausts while the choice of alloys is a positive step away from the past snowflake design. The standard rear deck spoiler is a nice finishing touch. The breakaway mirrors with integrated turn signals is another upscale touch.

2) I loved the front passenger seats as the side bolsters keep you in the seat rather than situate you on top. The grade of leather with the attractive stitching on my tester is a definite improvement over my 2005SGT. The heated (not ventilated yet) seats also have a variable detent adjustment found on pricier luxury sedans. I thought I'd miss the TM3 logoed three guage cluster - but this new dash looks and feels more upscale. The steering wheels has lots of buttons and controls and the switchgear used looks far more upscale than before. I particularly liked the increased heft and leather wrapped blade look steering wheel first made popular by Honda. The new wraparound dash is simply gorgeous; one area where the photos didn't lie. Mazda's once again stepped up the segment bar offering a better choice of materials than the outgoing Generation One 3. One downside is a protruding dash that's too close to front passenger knees in addition to a smaller overall glovebox. I think that this particular area of the dashboard design needs a total rethink.

3) On the road equipped with a silky smooth 6 speed automatic the 2.5 litre is well matched and responsive. There is considerable less wind noise and the ride is compliant and the steering tighter. One surprise was how tractable my tester was in snow and slush. This was also more amazing due to the fact that my tester was equipped with regular summer all season Potenza's and not the dedicated winter tires on steelies that I use for winter driving on my current vehicle. Offered with dynamic stability and traction control, new owners may not need to purchase dedicated winter tires and rims that the Goodyear RSA's forced me to do some seasons ago. But since I already made that investment....

4) The Velocity Red on my tester really suited this car's new shape; particularly the front end with it's whimsical character. Dark colours would no doubt minimize the black grill strakes found surrounding the fog lights. Thankyou Mazda Canada for finally offering Navigation on GT-E's but at an $1800.00 premium I think I'll stick with my multicar Garmin portable unit. The GT-E also offers adaptive headlamps that move with the wheel turn direction to maximize driver vision - cool. The new Celestial Blue paint looks better on the hatch than the sedan IMHO. I wish Mazda had offered a wider range of exterior and interior colour choices on the newest 3. Two shades of blue and red and the token silver, black and white seem hardly adventurous given the stylists overall efforts.

I'm somewhat disappointed that Mazda failed to go all out and revolutionize the small car segment the way they did back in 2004 with the Generation 1 Mazda 3. The next hatch looks too similar to what I already drive. Mazda offers no hybrid technology, no diesel or alternative fuel technology. Maybe if Mazda devoted R&D into alternative fuel engines rather than into wankel rotary development they would be leaders in today's fuel efficient vehicles. However, Mazda remains the only Japanese manufacturer to win Le Mans. ZOOM ZOOM!
What new sedans should I be looking at other than the Honda Accord and the Mazda 6?

[Jeff-TheBiz]

3) On the road equipped with a silky smooth 6 speed automatic the 2.5 litre is well matched and responsive.

So smooth you didn't miss the imaginary 6 gear.

Auto 2.5L only comes in a 5 speed.

[iconicrocket]

So smooth you didn't miss the imaginary 6 gear.

Auto 2.5L only comes in a 5 speed.

I think he's referring to the Overdrive feature. Technically it should be 5.5 speed.

traightface :totallyserious

[Ogata]

I'm not digging the new dash though I like how they digitized the Fuel monitor. Where is Neutral and tiptronic?

[Aitch]

Just dropped in at Mazda of Toronto again today, and took some (cellphone) pics of the 2010 Mazda3s they have there. They just got a brand new hatch as well (Joe said it was probably only delivered yesterday) which I think is the first sighting in T.O. and the only one I've heard of other than those sighted in the storage yard in Richmond, B.C. (posted on the US board). Anyhoo, here they are.

The hatch looks great in person as well. The side skirts are a necessary addition. The rear lights do stick out into the air a fair bit, but I feel they flow with the lines of the fenders and I like them.