2019 Mazda 3

https://insidemazda.mazdausa.com/pr...2018-los-angeles-auto-show-press-information/

Hmm... watch out Civic Nation.

Sedan looks great. Hatchback... not so much.

Previews are coming out right now.
Here's the Car and Driver one: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/2019-mazda-3-sedan-hatchback-photos-info

The most notable change other than the known engine and chassis improvement is the available AWD.
Competition is always welcomed, especially when all the American brands give zero efforts in this segment.
GM just ditched the Cruze, Volt, and Impala. Can't wait until the gas climbs to $4 and see these short-sighted American brands suffer again.

Is AWD coming to North America though? I believe in Japan AWD has always been available.

Most consumers might not care, but the new 3 is resorting to a torsion beam rear suspension; in the name of NVH improvement.

Being a smaller car mfr, Mazda is always 3 years late to the game. Just getting around to equipping their cars with CarPlay/Android Audio, turbo 2.5L and now Skyactiv-X, not to mention their first hybrid will not be available until 2020? Not seeing myself buying another pure gasoline car in the near future now that Honda has the 55MPG Insight and Clarity plugin. Honda is just buying time until battery prices come down a bit before effortlessly swap in a 60KWH and BOOM! here's your 220-mile mass-produced EV. Meanwhile, Mazda will still be three years behind and will be paying exorbitant amount of fines in Europe / China due to lack of carbon-free offerings. I'm fan of Mazda (I own two) but I'm a bigger fan of Honda. Best of luck to Mazda and hope they stay in the game and compete as always, an underdog.

I actually really like the new Mazdas. The Sedan looks amazing snd the hatch also looks good imo. Combine that with the really nice interior and AWD and I really thimk that its an extremely solid competitor to the Civic. Edit: also now I know what car the Mazda hatch reminds me of (Alfa Romeo Brera):

IF for some reason Honda would ever decide to do away with the civic coupe... i'd probably jump ship to Mazda for the new 3 hatch... i think its absolutely stunning. The cab rear design, the new more powerful engine options, the upscale interior... IMO a great sporty tradeoff for not having a coupe option more so than the civic hatch, and much much nicer than the Hyundai Veloster in terms of build quality and materials.

To be fair, Toyota is just now starting to offer Carplay. And they won't be offering AA until sometime in 2019/20 lol.

Mazda usually eclipses the competition in both driving experience and interior quality. It will be interesting to see how the latest 3 fairs as the reviews start to trickle in. I will be there next week at the LA Auto show to check it out.

And agree, the sedan looks far better.