10th gen Civic vs. 2017 Mazda3

shire123

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I'm looking at purchasing a 2017 EX-T manual or a 2017 3 Touring 2.5 manual hatchback. I'm not considering the Civic Hatchback...it's just too ugly in my opinion. I've taken extensive test rides in both vehicles, and they are both great cars. Overall, I think the Mazda has a much nicer interior and (to me) looks better overall. Both manuals are a pleasure to drive. The civic has great low end torque and is a blast to drive, but the cloth interior and seats are low quality and terribly uncomfortable with minimal adjustment available on that trim level. It's like there is no support under your thighs. I couldn't tell the difference between road noise between the two. Mazda feels more planted on the road and sportier. Civic has less blind spots to me. I think both infotainment systems stink, but I don't really care about phone connectivity or navigation so it's a wash to me. I do like the Mazda knob better than the touchscreen Civic. The Civic looks are polarizing at best, but I've come to appreciate the sedan and find it attractive now. With that being said, I can't help but wonder how this generation Civic will age over the next 3 years. My wife thinks the Civic looks like a "fast and furious" 16 year old boy car (I'm 40 by the way)! Will I wake up in 2 years and look at the Civic and despise the looks? I don't have kids, so I don't care about how comfortable the back seat may or may not be. The Civic trunk space is enormous! I'm used to hatchbacks and wagons, so the Mazda 3 would fit me perfectly as well. Civic is cheaper by about $1500. Price isn't an issue to me, and I don not care about perceived future trade in value. I don't buy cars to sell in 3 years, plus Civics and Mazdas are a dime a dozen on used car lots...definitely not investments!

At this point, I really think both cars would suit me just fine. I'll be making a purchase by the end of the month. Right now I'm on the fence...
Your analysis sounds pretty much like mine except for the road noise issue. I just got my civic ext yesterday. But no matter which one you get you should be pleased. They are both great cars
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AVL Thumper

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Your analysis sounds pretty much like mine except for the road noise issue. I just got my civic ext yesterday. But no matter which one you get you should be pleased. They are both great cars
I think I'm suffering from analysis paralysis! I know either one would be great, but I can't help wonder if I'll have buyers remorse with my purchase.

I've requested best offers from both dealerships within 100 miles of me. I'll see what comes back and what dealership seems the best to work with.
 

Civics4Ever

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Funny no one really mentioned styling and looks. To me, the 3 is the ugliest compact sedan out there. The HB isn't too bad but the grill is just atrocious and the rear of the sedan is about as pretty as a donkey's ass.
 

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Funny no one really mentioned styling and looks. To me, the 3 is the ugliest compact sedan out there. The HB isn't too bad but the grill is just atrocious and the rear of the sedan is about as pretty as a donkey's ass.
That's why we're lucky to have choices! Seems like most reviews find the new civic to be the least attractive of the two, but opinions are like assholes...
 

Civics4Ever

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That's why we're lucky to have choices! Seems like most reviews find the new civic to be the least attractive of the two, but opinions are like assholes...
Yes! I couldn't agree with you more.
 


ITGuyLevi

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I can't help wonder if I'll have buyers remorse with my purchase.
I felt the same way and I was tossing around several cars... ended up getting the 2016 Touring and I honestly couldn't be happier, absolutely no disappointment yet. Of course I was coming from a much older car and have never bought a new car before.
 

SHIFTY

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The Mazda dealer let me take one home for the night. It was cold that night so I plugged it in, and the sound it made when I started it up in the morning scared the hell out of me. Dealer says that sound is normal. But not for me, sorry.
 

gfbri

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I also compared the Mazda3 Hatch with 2.5 to the Honda Civic Hatch Sport trim when shopping last November. Behind the wheel, the Mazda had a slight edge. Everything was in the right place, with excellent quality, and the driving feel was great. I was looking only at the hatchbacks simply because loading hockey gear for my 13 year old is so much easier than with a trunk. Ultimately I went with the Civic for the following reasons. First, it's just a little bigger. Second, my recent experiences with an '04 Mazda 6 and '07 Mazda CX9 ended with rust in the 5th year for BOTH of them, even though I loved driving both! I've determined that Mazda's don't hold up to the salty winter roads where I live. Third, my first two cars were Civic hatchbacks: '87 and '99. So the final decision had a mid-life-crisis element to it too. I don't regret buying the Civic.
 


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I actually test drove the Mazda 3 after reading reviews online before buying my Civic. The Mazda 3 design just looked incredibly bland. I'm a younger person, but the car looked incredibly bland like a Taurus. Also when I was test driving the car, it felt incredibly underpowered esp when I was trying to merge on the highway. Even with the sport version it just felt more sluggish than the Honda Fit.

Costwise there's no way I could justify buying the Mazda 3. I'm curious as to its resale and pricewise with the infotainment that Honda Civic has it was a no brainer for me.
 

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I'm a guy who drives stickshift and when I drive I usually rest my right arm on the shifter as a habit.
That was a huge problem on the Mazda, at least for me. There was to much vibration coming from the tranny to the stick that it was really annoying resting the arm on the stick. My testdrive was just 20 minutes and I knew that I couldn't live with this crap. It was the new MX5 and the Mazda3.
Also... Mazda uses to much hard plastic, feels cheap.
 

spock_here

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Stopped by the mazda dealer to test the 2.5 (japan) manual models. The mazda3 hatch in touring or GT has nicer layout and materials vs civc which feels pretty cheap inside (esp the seats). The 2.5 engines are NA but direct injection so issues of carbon/sludge are same but no turbo complications. The di motor gets good mileage. In manual the 2.5 shifts smoother and has greater HP than the 2.0NA civic sedan but I believe the 1.5t hatch manual is a bit more lively/enjoyable. Also drove a 2016 mazda6 6MT left on the lot and quite cheap (under 19k and looking for offers). So while the mazda3 seems built slightly better, the values seem to fall much faster vs honda. Guess if you buy and hold for years the mazda may be the better value or a low mile used mazda3. Still looking around as while I liked the hatch 1.5t I am not paying msrp for it and the 2.5 start around 23/24k and usually get discounted near fall. No interest in the 2.0 mazdas but they are priced more in line with civic pricing.
 
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spock_here

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Pretty good article, tended to agree with most of it. Mazda is a niche player, reminds me of Subaru before they took off. Mazda is killing it on the SUV sales, that is saving their overall numbers but the sedans/hatches sales are off for sure. The back of the 3 is cramped, probably biggest negative to me. The build quality is much better than civic though relative to things like panel/bumper alignment at least the J produced cars. The mazdas are just showing up here so too soon to tell how the selling season is on them.

The car that should have been in this article was the elantra sport turbo, just tested a base 6MT at lunch. It blows the civic lx manual away relative to quality for the price point, not sure about the sport civic manual since none in my state. At the discounts being offered on hyundais it is very tempting but the mediocre mileage is the only weak point I could see other than unknown quality which the 6/60 warranty tends to negate.
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