Faults:

When there is lots of snow packed up under the car, I get a low grinding noise when I put the car in reverse with the brake on. This goes away once the car warms up (or the snow falls off).

The car looks great sitting as low as it does, but I find that it's a little too low at times. I really have to be careful when coming in and out of driveways (the bumper likes to rub the road).

In the winter I find that the snow packs up the wheel wells far too quickly. I have to chissel out the snow every morning, and by the time I get to work, it's packed up in there like stone. I have had many other cars, and I have never had one clog up the wheels with snow as bad as this one. Also, because of the narrow clearance between the tires and the inside of the wheel well, when snow gets packed in there, the tires constantly rubb on the snow and make a grinding noise.

General Comments:

I'm not sure where the negative comments are coming from on the interior of the car. When I bought the car in 2004, I test drove Nissan, Toyota, Honda Civic and a few others in the same price range. The Mazda blew all of those cars out of the water in handling, acceleration, comfort and overall luxury aspects. I have the 2.0 version sedan, and I found the interior to be similar in quality to my bosses Mercedes.

I have had the car on long trips over 5000 kms and have had no problems, in fact the ride was great for the whole trip. The engine is very smooth, and at times you can't tell if it is still running (it's so quiet).

I guess if you are used to driving something like a Jag or Benz, then the 3 doesn't compare, but when compared to cars in the same price range, I was blown away by the quality that Mazda put into this car.

Faults:

Nothing wrong with the car at all... even with the high miles for the year.

General Comments:

This car is amazing... it drives exactly like a BMW3 series... i love the fact that the stereo can be controlled at the steering wheel. Its has excellent handling and runs very smoothly. It has an excellent price... very well built.

Faults:

From new I got a cracking sound when putting car in gear. This was eventually adjusted by the dealer I don't get the cracking sound anymore, but the shift from Park to Drive is often jerky.

From about 20000km I get an engine check light that burns 75% of the time. Can anyone tell me what that's about, the dealer changed an EGR valve and the light went off for about 2weeks and has been on since then.

Got a rattle in the engine from a drive belt that was adjusted under warranty.

General Comments:

Corners great, but drives rough on bumpy roads (96-99 Civic does a better job of balancing the two) nice Tiptronic allows to to rev it all the way up and doesn't force a change. Auto lights and wipers are wonderful as well. Nice overall package.

Faults:

Everything has basically been in tip top shape.

The Previous owner didn't do much scheduled maintenance, but I got all the fluids flushed and it's fine now.

The clip that holds the privacy cover up in the hatch gets fatigued due to design and sometimes have to be replaced.

I used to work for a Mazda dealership service department and that's where I fell in love with the car.

The carrier bearing in the front axle has a tendency to leak. If it does then the front axle has to be replaced. If your vehicle is under warranty, you should have it checked because it can get pretty pricey.

A Mazda technician that I keep in touch with says that small amounts of oil leaking from the rear main is completely normal and not worth wasting money on fixing it.

All the technicians have said that the 3S is the most dependable and well designed car on the market in it's class. Rest easy when you go with the 3.

General Comments:

I love this car and will not drive anything else until the day I die.

The handling is second to none.

The outside appearance will break necks as you go buy. I have passed police officers on the highway and I caught them gawking at my car. They forget to pull you over.

Very Powerful. AEM cold air intake is a must. They run around $216.00.

You cannot put a turbo on this car without voiding your warranty. Make sure the JUICE is worth the squeeze. They also cost around $4,500 dollars to get, and good luck getting a certified tech. to put it in.