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Sedans Honda Civic Honda Civic vs Toyota Corolla vs Mazda3
879 messages, Last post on Nov 25, 2008 at 2:57 PM
You are in the Honda Civic Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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hhmmm... I have a different experience on the interior noise though. Car and driver actually shows the Civic a a little bit noisier than the 3, which is my personal experience when I'm driving my 3 and my sister's Civic. And that's with the OEM Goodyear Tires on my 3. It's not that much difference though, but still noticeable. At first, tires were slipping now and then when it rains or snows. But as time goes by and drove my 3 more and more, I got used to driving it in the rain or snow with a lot less tire slippage. Once I hit more than 25K on this vehicle, I'll replace my OEM tires with either the Avon M550 A/S or the Michelin Pilot Exalto's. Tirerack users are giving good reviews on these 2 tires with the Michelin's are lot more expensive and wears faster. Anyone have experiences with either tire? |
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I rented a Mazda3 while my 98 Corolla was in the shop this past spring. Outside of the purple color, it was a cutie with some VERY sensitive power brakes, and it's HUGE on the inside, to the point where I was surprised how much roomier it was than my Corolla. Being bluish-purple, it had dark interior, which I prefer light, and I WAS NOT a fan of the orange illumination that made me think of constantly seeing brake lights. Were it not for that, I would buy one in a heartbeat, because the visibility, surpisingly, was fantastic. The side mirrors seemed very large, and the fastback rear window really wasn't that much of a problem for me. I didn't have it long enough to find out if the seats fold down in the back. I like a car that has some utility, like my older Corolla. The hatchback would probably be OK, I just hate the styling. The sedan seems much cuter. If I had absolutely no choice, I could do a lot worse than a Mazda3 sedan. I just flat hate the looks of the Honda Civic. Too much windshield for me. However, I've never driven one. So, I really can't comment much on the latest-generation Civics! LOL The 8th generation Toyota Corollas (1998-2001) are, to me, the most elegantly designed sedans ever made. They're positively handsome and classy. Which is to say that when they redesigned the current generation (2002-present), I wasn't thrilled with the rounded tail lights, the taller stance, the ugly wheels/wheel covers. However, these newer Corollas are supposedly bigger than mine. And even though I'm less than impressed with the styling, there are other things to consider. A Corolla interior does come in beige; you don't have to have a dark interior. (Although, if they ever bring back the blue interiors I shall leap with joy!) Besides, if they're anything like their older predecessors, they last and last. Mine went eight years before things started going wrong with it. It got the H beaten out of it in a hail storm and kept on going. You can't buy that kind of service from a car. So from the sheer reliability standpoint, there's a reason Corolla is the best selling sedan ever. If you have a daughter who's working the night shift at Taco Bell, or going to night school, and is driving home on dark country roads, put her in a Corolla. It'll take care of her. I would buy another one without trepidation. So, I guess there are things to like, and things to wish had been done better, about all three cars!
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Replying to: irismg (Jul 13, 2007 7:32 pm) We almost have the same observations between the Corolla and the 3 except that I loved and preferred the 3, specifically the 5 dr, and I'm now a proud owner of one!  
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Replying to: zzoomp09 (Jul 13, 2007 10:26 pm) But I've had no real complaints on the service I've gotten from her, just turn the key and go (well, when the starter's working, LOL) with no excessive cranking and it's still running original plugs, and it'll be ten years old in November, according to the sticker on the door. I know so many people who have a car not even six months and they have to take it back to the shop. I'm thankful for this car, I'm the only owner it's had, even though it had a few miles on it when I got it it's never let me down, especially back when I was still paying for it! LOL I wanted to ask you, since you did end up with a Mazda3, did you get used to the red/orange lighting? I know that unless you do your test driving at night, nobody really takes that into account, so I'm glad that I got a chance to keep the Mazda over the weekend and really live with it. My Toyota has a nice green lighting, and I know Hyundai Elantra has a beautiful blue lighting, so I wondered what you thought of the dash lighting, that is, if you even drive much at night at all for it to even bother you. I saw one that's almost the same color of my Corolla (Sanddrift metallic - a neutral taupe color) and it looks a WHOLE lot better than the purple, especially with the lighter interior. I also thought the gear shift was odd, There was no D-2-L, but some sort of M. It was February when I had the car and I remember thinking "thank God it's not snowing, what would I do for low gear?!" So tell me also - what DO you do for low gear in the Mazda3?? |
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Replying to: irismg (Jul 14, 2007 10:08 am) When you slide the gearshift into the "M" slot, you'll notice you can tip the lever fore an aft. In this mode, the transmission operates as a manual transmission would. A display in the instrument cluster (near the speedo) indicates the gear you are in (1,2,3,4, or 5). For example, from a stop, you'd be in one. Accelerate as you would normally, but YOU decide when the automatic changes gears, by tipping the lever. This is called a "Sport Automatic" in Mazda terms. You'll hear it by many names from other automakers... Acura has this in all of its automatic-equipped cars; Mercedes-Benz, Toyota Camry V6, BMW, etc... all use this technology. "Howstuffworks.com" has an article explaining this as well. Allows manual gear changes, when desired, in an automatic transmission. Functions as a traditional automatic transmission when left in Drive, but includes a slot in which the shift lever can be moved to change gears manually. Sometimes, buttons for shifting manually through the gears are located on the steering wheel. This affords some of the advantages of a manual transmission, such as greater control of engine speed for better throttle response, but eliminates the need for a clutch pedal. I hope this clears things up. Sport-Shift/Manumatic/Automanual (all names that this may go by) is generally a desired option when people NEED automatics, but it lacks the true feel of a manual transmission.
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Replying to: irismg (Jul 14, 2007 10:08 am) Regarding the red/orange lights, I for one prefer either the Corolla's or the Civic. Even though I didn't like the red/orange lighting of the 3, it didn't really bother me much as what I really wanted with the 3 was its sporty performance and handling. I've never owned a sporty car before and the 3 is the first one I've ever owned. You're probably asking why did I owned a Corolla if I was looking for a "sporty" car, it's very simple. At that time I bought the Corolla, I want a very reliable "appliance". And the Corolla, the 8th generation that is, is one. And even the current model is also one. Did I mention I also had the same color as you had? LE Sandrift Metallic, bought from Capitol Toyota in San Jose, CA in 2000. Regarding the gear shift, I guess thegraduate pretty much answered the question. I own a Manual as I had previously mentioned so I don't have that problem. I test drove an automatic 3 once and although I've heard about "Sportmatics", I've never expected the 3 to have it. So, when I test drove it, the salesman alerted me to change gears because I was expecting the car to change gears for me. I've actually unknowningly put the car into manual mode. 
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I now have about 1200 miles on the new GT and here's what I think: -Car drives very smoothly at any speed -Have not taken it over 80 yet but north of 75 the engine noise increases significantly but nothing overbearing. -Shifting this car is a pleasure, no vibration at all and easy to find gears -At this price, I'm not sure there is anything that can beat the handling, highway entrance ramps are fun again. Civic Si probably can do better but at a significant cost -Very pleased with the mileage, about 75/25 highway/city driving. 4 fill-ups so far, 1) 29.0 MPG 2) 32.0 3) 33.4 4) 28.2--this tank included a lot of stop and go rush hour traffic into downtown Boston three days in a row. Car is very quiet over bumps, no rattles at all, very Honda-like in that regard. I wasn't sure Mazda could match that but I guess so. Next door neighbor has 56,000 miles on the same car ('05 model) and says he has no rattles and no major problems. This is a car that should please anyone looking for a fun ride that is economical and reliable. I have been looking for scratches that some say come very easily but I am not experiencing that. The all black interior does show a lot of smudge marks but they remove easily with a wet rag. Great little car!
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Replying to: ecofun (Jul 15, 2007 9:13 am) |
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Replying to: zzoomp09 (Jul 15, 2007 2:51 am) I understand the feeling of wanting something more, though. You still want reliable, you just want...more! The Mazda3 is undeniably cute, at least the sedan is, I wish that back end raised up some so you could store more stuff in it because the hatchbacks are flat ugly. Not Scion ugly, but less attractive. The Corolla LE has toys like moon roof and JBL and that great beige dash with the wood trim. And then there are the Hyundai siblings, Elantra and Sonata, who are both way better looking than they used to be. There are a lot of contenders for the buck out there these days, and I'm glad to see it! Makes test driving fun! You know at the time I was shopping for the car I have now, I was really looking for a Saturn wagon, but the wouldn't come down off the price of them. $15K for a wagon back in 1998 was high in my book! Then I went to another dealer and saw the Toyota program car...the rest is history! |
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Replying to: thegraduate (Jul 14, 2007 7:05 pm) I think it's silly. Are people that afraid of the third pedal?! It's not the shifting that's important, at least the way I understand it. You get a manual because you don't want a car weighed down by I-don't-know-how-many pounds of fluid and oil so you can get better gas mileage and still get somewhere! To say nothing of the convenience of not having to take time off work to have the car serviced for $150. What good is it to be able to shift and yet you've still got a heavy transmission underneath you?! Mind you, thegraduate, I'm not addressing these questions to you, I'm just kind of virtually shaking my head at all of it! Anyway, thanks for explaining what the "M" was. I didn't have the car long enough to play with it. I stuck to the gears I was familiar with!
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