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Honda Civic vs Toyota Corolla vs Mazda3

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Comments

  • zzoomp09zzoomp09 Member Posts: 32
    http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2008-04-09-toyota-recall_N.htm

    There goes the so called reliability of Toyota Corollas. IMO, all these 3 cars are reliable, but they still have their own issues here and there. In my experience with these 3 cars, I never had really big problems, but I enjoyed the 3 out of all of them.
  • nvbankernvbanker Member Posts: 7,239
    I think the 3 has the fun (zoom zoom) thing clocked best, of the three.
  • sandman46sandman46 Member Posts: 1,798
    The Sandman :)
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    Recalls are not a judge on reliability, but rather quality control and safety hazards. Toyota has had more then their fair share of recalls in recent years. It sure does look bad.
  • jjandersjjanders Member Posts: 18
    Just bumping this thread as I am currently debating between:

    2009 Corolla LE
    2009 Mazda 3 i Touring Value
    2008 Honda Civic LX

    Corolla has VSC, good mileage, quiet, smooth ride, a little boring but that's fine for me as I'm looking for a comfortable commuter. Also has 0% (at least I hope it's extended through May)

    Honda has good mileage, best exterior (IMO), but not sure how I feel about two tiered dash though.

    Mazda is the sportiest of the bunch but terrible mileage for automatic, 4 year old model (though it does still look pretty good), higher insurance.

    It seems both Honda and Toyota have slipped a bit in quality lately, lots of build quality issues with 8th gen Civic. Corolla is new and I'm usually wary about buying first model year cars, though no big problems have popped up yet.

    Tough choice, I am thinking of going with the Corolla if they have 0% in May.
  • sparklandsparkland Member Posts: 120
    My wife and I have shopped the Civics and Corollla's until we are exhausted. The 0% financing on the Corolla really peaked our interest. We initially like the Corolla LE but then saw an XLE and we loved that model. Really liked the traction control on the Corolla but know that the Civic will be getting this in this year's update. The only thing about the Corolla we did not particularly like was the steer by wire feature. When the steering wheel comes back to dead center it takes a little effort on the driver's part to bring it back to center. Also on the highway the car tends to drift a little because of the steering-that is okay once the driver becomes familiar with the tendencies of the drive by wire setup.

    The Civic is nice but we also had reservations about the digital speedometer so high up on the dash. We did not particularly like the upholstery on the LX model but did the EX model.

    Hard decision.

    Hope you enjoy whatever you pick.

    FYI, we are still on the fence and were hoping for some manufacturer help on the Civic with respect to finances. I know I am dreaming.

    Brad
  • jjandersjjanders Member Posts: 18
    Well, the local Honda dealership called me today since I had told them I was waiting for special financing....Honda is having 2.9% for the month of May.

    Toyota has also extended it's 0%/1.9%/2.9% through 6/2 as well.

    Definitely pulling the trigger this month to take advantage of low financing, now I just need to decide between the two cars!
  • roadburnerroadburner Member Posts: 17,312
    I'd rank them as follows:

    1. Mazda
    2. Honda
    3. Toyota

    All three are good cars, but I place a premium on performance and driving enjoyment. I also detest slushboxes. Between the Honda and Toyota I'd go with the Honda, only because I find almost all current Toyotas to be bland transportation appliances. That said, you are the one who's going to be driving it, so pick the one that makes YOU smile...

    Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive

  • bits4brainsbits4brains Member Posts: 11
    "The only thing about the Corolla we did not particularly like was the steer by wire feature."

    The throttle is drive by wire. The steering is electrically rather than hydraulically assisted. The steering wheel, unlike the accelerator and the throttle, is still directly connected to the front wheels.

    Your observations about the behavior of the steering are accurate. It takes some getting used to. After 2000 miles, I've noticed that it's only a problem when I notice it. In other words, if I focus down the road and drive I don't notice it. If I think about it, the sensitivity of the steering becomes noticeable again.
  • nvbankernvbanker Member Posts: 7,239
    From a fun to drive factor - I agree with you. :P
  • saulstersaulster Member Posts: 48
    I have recently driven the Mazda 3 and Honda Civic Si.

    Both drove solidly and nicely ( 5M or 6M ). I didn't go into the "i-VTEC" rev band on the Honda in fairness to the new, green engine on the test vehicle. Still, powerful enough even lower revs and a sweet shifter and clutch.

    The M3 seems to have Honda beat on interior content, especially Grand Touring with the nice leather and other details, like rain sensing wipers, xenon headlights ( OK, that's exterior ), etc. I prefer the more standard dash to Honda's split dash, which seems like an answer to a question no one asked. And I positively dislike Honda's location of the parking brake on the driver's side of the center console, right where my leg rests whether using the gas or on cruise control.

    In short, I like the Honda enough, it's a tremendous value, but disqualified for me by the )(*&(*)&^ parking brake which there is no way around on any Civic. Somehow, Honda got the ergos wrong on this generation Civic and that's a huge surprise. Split dash, parking brake right where leg rests, what were they thinking?

    The Toyota is still waiting but I am driving it last for a reason. Not the sportiest of the econocar bunch and for similar car and money, I like to get a little sporty if I can. Well, I will test drive it anyway and see.

    S
  • steven39steven39 Member Posts: 636
    hi folks,i recently test drove both the 08 civic lx coupe with auto and a 09 corolla with auto...the corolla i test drove was not what i was hopeing for...on the highway it got blown all over the place by trucks passing me and by the wind...i constantly had to fight the steering wheel to keep the car tracking straight ahead whenever a gust of wind was blowing.....i found this annoying since a good portion of my driveing will be done on the highway.....this corolla test drive was over for me permently....i then drove about 2 miles to the honda dealer to check out the civic...what a difference,first off on the highway the civic was well planted to the pavement and did not get blown around like the corolla did....the corolla just felt so inferior to the civic as far as quality of the interior,controls,and handling goes...
    the civic to me just seems like a much better built car than the corolla...on top of everything else that i didn't like about the corolla was the additional adjusted market value of 1995.00 which is added to the msrp which for a basic corolla with no options came close to 20,000.00.........this was absurd....needless to say,i purchased a 08 civic lx 2dr coupe with auto for 17,000.00 plus TTT.....
  • tony78tony78 Member Posts: 16
    Being a college graduate and all i'm pretty sure you know that it rains and snows up there in seattle, you been to seattle right ? im sure you noticed a large percentage of the cars were either all wheel drive or four wheel drive, do they sell a corrola,civic or a mazda 3 equipped like that ? , a lot of subaru's in seattle , then again i suppose you could hang iron(trucker talk) would'nt want to see you miss work. live long and prosper.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    Corolla and Mazda3 are currently available with traction and stability control (Corolla on both engines, Mazda3 only with the 2.3 I think). The Civic will have it for 2009. Next best thing to AWD, without the weight/MPG penalty.

    The Impreza, on the other hand, can also have AWD, and is a pretty nice car, though that 2.5l engine and extra weight will mean fewer MPGs.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    And the hatch version of the Corolla, the Matrix, is available with AWD.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    True but I hate that thing, even after the redesign. Besides which, only the larger engine gets AWD, and at that point it's not only more expensive than an Impreza hatch, but gets worse mileage. And the dash just looks ugly. :)
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    Have you driven the SX4? Starts at around $15k. Word is that it will get standard factory nav for 2009--the lowest-priced car with that feature.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    Haven't driven it yet...looks like a pretty sharp hatch, but it's SLOOOOOW. And Suzukis get comparatively rotten gas mileage in general...I mean come on, a 2 liter engine that only gets 30 MPG? They should source the engine and tranny somewhere else if that's the best they can do.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    But it is AWD. And I'll bet it can easily cruise at legal freeway speeds, or above. Or did you mean, it's not quick enough for you?
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    11+ seconds 0-60 is fairly slow, or as you say, not quick. One thing I have to worry about is highway merging...it might be able to do it, but it'd be the worse option (though yes, I'm sure that once it gets to highway speed it can hold it). Still I could probably make do except for the following.

    The other problem is major: it barely gets 30 MPG. The Elantra beats it by 3 MPG, and is fairly close to the same weight (Under 200 pound difference). The Cobalt with it's 2.2L engine, gets better MPGs (along with more HP and torque) and is 300 pounds heavier.

    Hmm, maybe Suzuki should think about sourcing GM's 2.2L instead of using their own mill. Because that Cobalt beats the Suzuki in a 0-60 run, despite the Cobalt being 300 pounds heavier.

    Of course, at this point we're starting to get a bit off topic. :shades:
  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    I concur about the Suzuki, we took one out for a test drive (Mrs. Shipo thought it was cute), and we were stunned to find that our Dodge Grand Caravans were much quicker to sixty than the "Zuki". The poor acceleration combined with the relatively poor fuel economy got it immediately crossed off our list.

    Best Regards,
    Shipo
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    Now you're comparing apples to oranges--FWD vs. AWD. So as you say, let's get back to the 3 FWD cars in the topic. None of which is AWD. If you want that, you need to go someplace else.
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    Mazda is the sportiest of the bunch but terrible mileage for automatic,

    Over 30mpg's for a 2.0L with 148hp is not terrible.
  • thegraduatethegraduate Member Posts: 9,731
    The compact Mazda 3 with 148 hp gets the same highway mileage as a midsize Altima with 175 hp, and Accord with 190 hp. 23 in town is equal to the Altima as well, with the CVT. That's actually pretty amazing for Nissan, although off-topic, so I'll leave it alone.

    Give it the 5-speed, Mazda. These things spin way too high RPMs on the interstate.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    It was always that way..with the 4-speed too. The 2.3 engine just doesn't have that much low-end torque...I love that Nissan engine, but they won't attach VSC to it.
  • thegraduatethegraduate Member Posts: 9,731
    The Civic and Corolla both have low-rpm cruising gears while having less torque than the Mazda, which has an extra 500cc of displacement. Mazda just chooses not to allow it!

    And, I meant they should put the 5-speed auto in the 2.0 model.
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    Mazda's new 2.5 gets 30 highway, 23 city (I think) with 170hp. Pretty much on par with most other mfrgs. But, since it is not in the Mazda3 yet, no sense talking about it.

    My main point was that the fuel economy in the Mazda3 i is not "terrible" It's not class leading, but far from terrible. It's not like it's a Hemi or anything. Many owners report getting mid 30's on the highway.
  • thegraduatethegraduate Member Posts: 9,731
    No doubt; it's certainly not terrible. You summed it up well. I'd take a Mazda 3 2.0 over a lot of other offerings in the class; the Corolla for starters!
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    Since we are talking about 2.0L engines, and Nissan was mentioned (Altima), I think even though the Sentra is not listed in the thread title, I don't think anyone would have an issue with me talking about it.

    The Nissan Sentra 2.0L gets 24/31 w/ auto(25/33 w/ CVT) 140hp/147tq. The Mazda3 2.0L gets 23/30 w/ auto (24/32 w/ manual) 148hp/135tq. Pretty much dead even.

    It seems both Nissan and Mazda would benefit with having their more powerful / fuel efficient 2.5L in these cars.
  • thegraduatethegraduate Member Posts: 9,731
    Nissan has the 2.5 in the SE-R Sentra, making 180hp. Doesn't it?

    I believe there is a $16k-$20k forum we could go wake up! Wanna join me?
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    I'm in!
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    Where's it at? I'll come. I like Nissan's cars a lot but continually curse them for not offering ESC or traction control on the 4 cyl machines (except the Rogue for some reason...which means they COULD put it on anything with the 2.5/CVT).
  • trikev19trikev19 Member Posts: 18
    Hyundai doesn't sound very exciting, but you should drive the Elantra. Its fun to drive, less expensive and has a better warranty. Resale value is a problem , but no worse than Mazda.
  • sandman46sandman46 Member Posts: 1,798
    We have this in the wife's 3s and it's a hoot to drive...it's got great get up and go but does suffer in the mileage department. A smooth driver compared to my Civic and the Elantra I tried recently...beats those two in the fun factor and smoothness categories hands down.
    Had the 3 last week for my daily driver with the wife being out of town and it was definitely a fun commute. Haven't tried the 3i with the 2.0 engine as of yet but the wife said it didn't have enough grunt for her to merge onto I-95 so she went with the 3s. Her previous car was the Altima with the 2.4 and that car moved very nicely and was a real sleeper in the comfort department but with the 2002 models increase in size and weight, she went for the '05 3s.
    Still puts a smile on both our faces when we're behind the wheel, but I still prefer my '06 Civic. We will be buying 2 cars this Thanksgiving for the girls and will be trying out all the econoboxes and hoping to make a deal on the same car for both. can't wait to start the search!

    The Sandman :)
  • smallcar1smallcar1 Member Posts: 76
    Sandman,

    Since you have both the 3S and the Civic w/ automatic how much worse is the 3S's mileage than the Civic?
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    Here it is: Economy Sedans (~$16k-$20k). Enjoy! :)
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    Too bad there isn't an "economy hatchbacks" group to match. :shades:
  • will26will26 Member Posts: 62
    I have an 07 Ex Civic and my boyfriend just bought the 09 Corolla S. My first impression was that the corolla looks nicer than the Civic from the outside with the spoiler and ground effect package. The seats in the Corolla are more comfortable than my car. It seems there is more cushioning.
    As far as the plastics everyone is concerened about. I didn't see that the doors on the Corolla will be as scratch prone as my car. There is some cloth on the Corolla door. I already have many marks from fingernails on my inner door. I can't say the same for the stereo area. It seems like that could get scratched pretty easy on the Corolla. The back seat is not as roomy in the Corolla but the front seat seems to be about that same as the Civic in roominess. Yes the clock placement sucks in the Corolla and the arm rest could have a little cushion.

    For power the Civic obviosly wins but not by much. The Corolla has a lot of passing power but there is more of a lag when you first step on it. As for the ride, the Corolla is smoother but not by much and it is quieter in the cabin. The interior in the Civic looks more updated with the electronic controls and dashboard display. I love the digital speedomoter in mine and don't care for the amber glow of the interier at night on the Corolla.
    All in all I would say if I could choose between the two I would go with the Corolla. Love the looks of the outside and the seats are very comfortable. The ride is almost the same and the Corolla is quieter.
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    Resale value is a problem , but no worse than Mazda.

    As a whole, Hyundai does not have great resale value. With Mazda that is not the case. Some models have wonderful resale, and then others do not. The Mazda3, MX-5, and RX-8 have above average resale value. The Mazda6, Tribute, B-Series are not so great. The Tribute and B-Series I can understand why, but, the Mazda6 has always been puzzling to me. The CX's have not been out long enough to accurately asses resale values.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    Well, sometimes the discussion turns to hatches in there, and so far no one has complained. :)
  • sandman46sandman46 Member Posts: 1,798
    The 3s gets about 25 or so in the city driving and about 32 on the highway. Both great cars to drive and we're pretty happy. I now know why the a/c has problems cooling quickly in the 3...all that black in the interior heats up significantly and it's probably a necessity to tint the windows. Unfortunately, the wife won't do it so she lives with the few minutes of intense heat until things cool down.
    I, on the other hand, have the lightest tint on the Civic and since my handicap parking space at work is sheilded by the building from the west sun, my car cools down much quicker.
    But I wouldn't let this one issue dissuade anyone away from the 3 if they really like the car...using a windshield shade will probably help alot. Like I said, the 3 is a much more exciting car to drive...much like a little race car which just adds to the fun. It's a little pocket rocket especially in the "S" version.

    The Sandman :)
  • smallcar1smallcar1 Member Posts: 76
    Wow, that is awesome mileage on the 3S. What do you get with your Civic?
  • aviboy97aviboy97 Member Posts: 3,159
    I get the same FE on my 2005 Mazda6 i. Same 2.3L engine, and my A/C works great! They are different A/C units, though.
  • bpizzutibpizzuti Member Posts: 2,743
    That's a WHOLE lot better than what I'm getting on my 2.3l Mazda3...I'm getting between 27 and 29 MPG. Thats NYS gas though, which is pretty much all E10
  • sandman46sandman46 Member Posts: 1,798
    Getting 29 in the city and 36 on the highway which is pretty respectable in my world. Very pleased and when I need my speed fix, I just jump in the 3s like I've said before.
    Very anxious to test drive the new Corolla XLE actually. If I had to get a Corolla, that'd be the one for me. Don't like the body cladding on the S model and the LE seems to have taken over the old CE spot in the lineup. But I'll bet the XLE will sticker out higher than the Civic LX. The EX probably should go against the XLE with the more powerful 2.4 engine. Bet that sucker is as fast as the 3s.

    The Sandman :)
  • smallcar1smallcar1 Member Posts: 76
    I'm in NY and that is still better than the 22-26 MPG I get in my '96 Altima w/ a 2.4L.
  • smallcar1smallcar1 Member Posts: 76
    I looked at a Corolla LE yesterday and you are right the interior looked more like a CE interior used to. Suprisingly there was only 1 Corolla on the showroom floor although the salesman said they had loads in stock. There was no Prius on the floor either. The slaesman said they were out of them and the next 7 Prius's would be getting were already sold.

    I thought the driving position was better in the Corolla then the Civic because I could see part of the hood. I could not tell where the front of the car was in the Civic since I could not see the hood at all. I do like the body shape of the Civic better though.

    I wonder how the A/C is on the Corolla, the new Camry has had some complaints that it does not get cold enough.

    There are few XRS models and professonal reviews note that it has a rough ride. If professional reviewers who always value handling most of all say it has a rough ride the ride must be bad.
  • thegraduatethegraduate Member Posts: 9,731
    I'm 6'5" and can't see the front of any car I've ever driven except for a '96 Tahoe SUV. The rest all have raked hoods that I can maybe see the two or three inches closest to the windshield, but no further.

    None is easier to see the front end of than another; and that includes a 2004 Corolla that I used to drive fairly regularly.
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