Mazda 3 Grand Touring 4-Door in Sky Blue with Skyactiv
This fun and sporty car was a pleasure to drive! I don’t want you to miss anything about the Mazda3, so I am including all the features that make this car go ZOOM-ZOOM.
Features
Engine Features
- Skyacti-G 2.0L 14 Engine
- 165 HP, 148lb ft-torque
- Front wheel drive
- 4- wheel disc brakes
- Independent front/rear stabilizer bars
- Independent front/rear suspension
Exterior
- 16-inch alloy wheels
- All-season tires
- Moonroof w/one touch open
- Rear window defogger
- Body-color heated power mirrors
- Halogen headlights
- Rain sensing front wipers
- Perimeter alarm
Interior
- 5-passenger seating
- Leather-wrapped steering wheel with audio/cruise/bluetooth controls
- Power windows, locks, auto door locks
- Leather trimmed seats
- 8-way power driver’s seat
- heated front seats- 5 settings
- Two 12V power outlets
- 60/40 split fold down rear seat
- Bose centerpoint 10 speaker audio system
- Rear armrest with 2 cupholders
SAFETY Features
- 36-/36,000 mile “Bumper to Bumper” warranty
- 60-month/60,000 mile powertrain warranty
- anti-lock brakes with EBD and Brake Assist
- “Crashable” brake pedal
- Dynamic Stability Control
- Traction Control system
- Advanced Dual Front and Front side-impact air bags
- Front and Rear side air curtains
- LATCH child safety seat anchors
- Anti-theft engine immobilizer
- Triple H body construction
- Active front headrests
- Blind spot monitoring system
WOW, I know that is quite a list! I love that the Mazda 3 is so sporty yet safe and reliable. Did you know the 2012 Mazda3 was recognized as a “Top Safety Pick” by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)? Moms are always looking for the safest cars for their family. We love it when they are fun to drive too!
Let me tell you about my favorite feature first- The Blind Spot Monitoring System (BSM). Don’t you hate that panicked feeling you get when you try to pull into the left lane and realize at the last second that their IS a car there in your Blind Spot. With the Mazda3, there is no more panicked feeling! The driver’s side mirrors have car icons that light up when there is a car in your blind spot. Around here, there aren’t many 3, 4 or 5-lane roads, so I never noticed the right side mirror’s blind spot indicator. But I did use it everyday on the turnpike I take to work. It’s such an amazing idea and great feature!
“The Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) system is designed to assist the driver by monitoring the blind spots to the rear of the vehicle on both sides. If your vehicle speed is 20 mph (32 km/h) or more, the BSM will warn you of vehicles in the detection area by illuminating the BSM warning lights located on the left and right door mirrors. If you operate a turn signal in the direction of an illuminated BSM warning light, the system will also warn you with a beep and warning light flash. BSM sensors are located under the left and right rear bumper areas. The BSM system may not operate properly if the rear bumper gets too dirty, so keep the rear bumper area clean. NOTE: Do not rely completely on the BSM system and be sure to look over your shoulder before changing lanes: The BSM system can assist the driver in confirming the safety of the surroundings, but is not a complete substitute!” (Mazda Smart Start Guide)
My LOVE list
“The idea is to build lighter, more efficient cars that get better mpg, yet are still fun to drive…” —Edmunds’ InsideLine.com | October 2011
There are so many features I love about the Mazda 3. I am going to share a few of my favorites.
Efficiency: Besides the Blind Spot monitoring system, I love the great gas mileage this sporty car gets. I drove it 992 miles in the week I had it, and I only had to put $5 of gas in on the last day. AMAZING. The estimate city MPG is 28 and Highway is 40. SKYACTIV technology has made this possible! Basically, Mazda has improved many things that work together to make the car lighter, more powerful but consume less fuel. The video below explains in much better than I can:
Comfort: Mazda3 definitely figured out how to make a seat comfortable. Not only does it have 8-way power adjustments, it also has heated seats. Up in New England, heated seats are almost required. I know I use mine in my VW at least 9 months out of the year. We have some pretty chilly mornings and that heated seat makes you feel warm long before the heater warms up. The front driver seat was easily adjustable. I was able to drive to my sister’s house, a 2-hour drive, without having to stop more than once to stretch my legs and back. My son tried out the front passenger seat as well as the back seat and he loved both. Of course, he loved the front seat better because it had heated seats. Oh, he and my border collie also tried out the roomy trunk. As you can tell by the picture above, they had lots of room! We actually had 5 people in the car one day and they all felt very comfortable in the back seat as well as the front seat. (My son of course mentioned that he didn’t have any leg room sitting in the middle in the back.)
Sun/moon roof: I hardly ever use my sunroof in my VW because the wind noise is so loud you can’t hear the person sitting next to you. The Mazda 3’s sunroof was amazingly quiet. I only wish I had opened it early during my review week. I don’t usually open them because I have never owned a car with a quiet sunroof! Even if I had it open as far as it could go, it was still quiet- no rushing wind noise to compete with conversations or music playing.
Rain-sensing Front Wipers: I know this may seem like a little thing, but I was amazed that my car was smart enough to know when it was raining. How fun is that? The first time it happened, I thought my son had turned the wipers on. He swore he didn’t. Then I remembered reading about these smart wipers. It’s the little things that make cars so fun to drive.
My needs improvement list:
There are only a few things that I could find to complain about. One is my usual complaint, that it’s a car and is much lower to the ground than my VW Tiguan. It’s hard to get in and out of the front seat. That’s why I own an SUV. 🙂
The other issue I had was with the stereo system. I couldn’t figure out how to load CDs very easily or change stations on the Satellite radio. It just wasn’t very intuitive. My 9 year-old son figured it out after I let him ride in the front seat. He did take the owner’s manual out to look up a few things that he had trouble with. Yes, I am teaching my son to read directions. He isn’t going to be one of those guys that drive around lost for hours because they are too stubborn to ask for directions. Speaking of directions, I liked that the Mazda 3 had a navigation system, but like the stereo, I had trouble figuring out how to program a destination. We always knew where we were at any given time, just not how to get where we were going.
Overall, I loved driving the Mazda 3. The technological advances that Mazda has come up with are amazing. Did I mention how I love that the front view of the car looks like a smile? I love to drive happy cars! I highly recommend the Mazda 3 to anyone looking for an efficient, fun and smart car! Zoom-Zoom!
