Civic Ex vs Camry LE vs Mazda3 Preferred Sedans

SpaceNeedle

Struggling to choose between the 3 sedans: Civic Ex Camry LE Mazda3 Preferred

Some more details below -

About us - Early 30s couple in the Seattle area (Just the 2 of us for 80-90% rides right now but will might change if we have a kid in 2-3 years)

Intended use - Primarily for weekend trips (Use bus/office shuttle for work commute)

How long do we plan to use the car - 5-6 years and probably upgrade then

What we value -
Tech features in the car (specifically screen),
Reliability,
Comfort and spacing,
Saving money on maintenance and insurance,
Safety features (cruise control, blind spot monitoring),
Fuel efficiency

What we don’t value as much -
Interior and exterior looks,
Color options,
Moonroof,
Driving at very high speeds (unlikely yo drive past 80-85 mph)

All the 3 options costing about the same - 25k ish out of the door which is our max budget (Can afford time go a little more but ideally don’t want to unless there is significant value add of an extra 1-2k)

Any suggestions would be very helpful

kyfdx

@SpaceNeedle Check with your insurance agent for a quote. It is surprising how lower priced cars are often more expensive to insure. There is a good chance the Camry will be the lowest premium.

If you want space, the Camry is an easy choice. If you don't use the car for commuting, then operating costs won't vary enough to matter, though maybe Toyota still comes with the first two years of maintenance at no charge?

No info on Tech, though the more expensive models usually come with more tech.

I would definitely not make my decision based on future family expansion. It is easy to trade, if you need to, in the future.

oldfarmer50

Get the Camry. Fits all your listed needs and is slightly larger for potential car seats. Especially if the price is the same and you’re not interested in blazing through the turns.

benjaminh

Camry LE

They are all good choices, but overall I think the Camry LE best meets your needs. The Camry is going to have slightly more room, better rear visibility, free maintenance from Toyota for the first two years, and legendary Toyota reliability. My second choice would be the Civic, which is faster (turbo), more fun to drive because it has better handling, and it gets slighter better mpg. If you haven't yet done it some test drives would be a good idea!

SpaceNeedle

Thank you all for your suggestions. Looks like the Camry is the way to go. I am planning to test drive the Civic and Camry next week and will take a call