Mazda3 Real World MPG

z71bill · July 2005

First I understand why people want the control - rather than some auto pilot system - or at least the ability to turn auto pilot off. So don't jump on me too hard!

But -
Has anyone ever noticed if the AC compressor even comes on when the outside temp is - say 30 degrees or less? Since once the evaperator gets down around 32 degrees a sensor tells the compressor to shut off (to prevent it from freezing over).

So - I think when the outside temp is cold the AC compressor will not run - so no drop in MPG.

I bet that the auto companies have been sued a few times when someone turned on the defroster and warm moist air fogged over the windshield - then the driver ran into something. Since no one can take any responsibility for anything - blame the manufacturer!

heelundtoe · July 2005

Sandman,

We have about 1100 miles on our 3s. I just got back from a 263 mile trip, today. 99% of it was freeway or highway. I went 70mph in the 70 zones and 60mph in the few 55 zones. I did not use the a/c (using the dash/floor vents with no fan) and I only opened the moonroof. It took 7.4 gallons to fill 'er up (and I added .2 gallons just to be sure). That's about 36mpg.

The 5th gear in the stick really helps. I'm turning about 3K @ 70mph. What's the rev.-rate in the auto?

Again, I didn't accelerate to the few red lights I encountered, and having the windows rolled up, I think, made a big difference. I saw someone else commenting on drag coefficients; what's the use, if your windows are down?

Believe me, I do "have fun" with the car; I just know that "fun" has a price. For those who tout the mileage figures that Civics and Corollas get, look at what the automotive press and these anecdotal forums say: The 3 is more fun to drive.

Utilitarians tried to quantify pleasure; if my mileage figures and caveats fail to convince you, I'm not going to invent a pleasurometer to prove my point.

This driving experiment was just to see what kind of mileage I could squeeze out of the car. Oh, and for the car to even having gotten as little as 30 mpg? I would've had to somehow have gotten another 1.5 gallons into it.

herrkaleu · July 2005

heelundtoe and smaria,

thanks for the information regarding the winter. I move to Madiso/WI (my wife is from there) so, Winter is cold... and summer requires AC all the time anyway.
Gas price here is at 5.6 $/gallon. So you understand my fear :-) I have a diesel (4.2$/gallon) which has about 40-45 MPG in real world driving (not afraid to turn on the AC or to pass a slower car). I suppose a sensor will tell the controll to shut up the AC when temperatures are below 5°C (40 F) in order to prevent freezing of the heat exchanger. Also when the Fan is off, the compressor should be off too (my VW does it that way, anyway).
Unfortunately the 5 door Mazda3 only comes w/ the 2.3 l engine, while the 2 l would be more than enough (manual tranmission). Hope Mazda offers smaller engines in all cars some time.... here they have nice 1.6 l 105 hp engines that do a good job and have about 35 MPG ( I know, EPA has a different kind of measuring than the EU). And 105 hp with manual transmission are enough to be on the left lane on an Autobahn in Germany. So it should be enough to mind the US speed limit :-)

x5918 · July 2005

Holy Smoke! Dear herrkaleu. You are paying twice of that what we pay for gas here in Texas. Right now, we are going on $2.5 per gallon down here. I read some posts, that there are aftermarket solutions that could "fix" your 2.3L engine so it burns leaner, by adjusting air to fel ratio AFR and/or compression ratio - unfortunatly at the expense of shorter catalyzer lifetime, and higher emissions of NOx (nitrous compounds). So if you think that the gaz guzzling has to stop, then you may have to invest in an engine tuning that is not endorsed by the manufacturer Mazda (Ford). With those gasprices: you should really drive a Civic with VTEC engine - too bad there aren't any Civics hatchbacks offerings in US. I hope you were not deciding to buy the Mazda3s hatchback, solely based on the EPA 25/32 mpg on the dealers window sticker?

mdaffron · July 2005

I hope that was a typo!

http://www.madisongasprices.com/

Meade

autonomous · July 2005

I believe herrkaleu is somewhere in Europe where gas prices are different than in Texas. If gas prices were more realistic many of us would be driving diesels and hybrids.

mdaffron · July 2005

Meade

heelundtoe · July 2005

Herr Kaleu ist aus Deutschland! He's moving to Madison.

Herr Kaleu, again, given the gas and/or Diesel prices in der Vatherland and the almost halved rates here, you'll probably be happy to have the extra power. You might even splurge (i.e. with reduced gas mileage and higher fuel cost) and run your heated seats on a cold Wisconsin winter morning!

mdaffron · July 2005

English be spaken here.

There be verbiage to that effect in thy Member Agreement.

Meade

P.S. My apologies to our German friend. The way he worded his post, it appeared he was already in Cheeseland.

herrkaleu · July 2005

I was living in Madison for almost 2 years. And will be there in two weeks. the gas prices I was referring to apply to Germany (and most of Europe). Sorry for any confusion I may have caused. I'm almost there and already have quotes from dealers for Mazda 3 and Corolla.
That's why my profile already/still says Madison/WI. Not trying to fake anything. I knew the gasprices.com site. thanks anyway.
I suppose if you didn't need to look for emission of NOx it'd be easy to reduce fuel cost. but I doubt you could change the compression ratio since that is "hardwired" into the bore/stroke ratio and the dimensions of cylinder/piston.
the more I think about the consumption I also have to consider that a Mazda 3 5 door has a trunk as big as a Camry (in addition the hatchback makes it more accessible). So I should compare mileage from Mazda 3 and Camry. with that in mind, the Mazda is tnot that bad. Of course, compared to a Civic/Corolla it is. But they are smaller (the most space I need in the trunk anyway) and have less power. In real life the consumption won't be that different (Camry/Accord vs. Mazda 3). In comparison to the corolla, Mazda has 7500 miles oil changes, corolla has 5000 miles. Oil costs money too. Honda has 10000 mile oil changes, but has a valve timeing belt which needs to be replaced, Mazda has a chain. when you figure everything in, all 3 cars are not that different.
We also looked into a VW Wagon. But in the US VW sells the stone age engines (which were replaced in Germany 10 years ago) that have 115 hp, but need more gas than the Mazda 160 hp engine. Whereas a German 100 hp Golf with FSi engine makes 35 MPG under real world driving.
done with this now... this is a real World MPG thread..... :-)

mdaffron · July 2005

... I've seen posts from more people than just me about this:

My 2005 Mazda3 came with free oil changes every 3,000 miles for the first 36,000 miles. That's 12 oil changes; if we value oil changes at, say, $25, that's $300 in value right there.

Also, my Mazda3 came with free tires for life (as long as I do all of my recommended maintenance at the dealership). That's got a value too, albeit a little harder to figure out.

Remember also that Mazda has the best warranty of the bunch at 4 years/50,000 miles, bumper to bumper.

As far as gas mileage is concerned, I did a little study back at post 37 that you might find interesting:

A car getting 3 mpg more than mine will go maybe 36 miles more on a tank of gas, or about a gallon and some change. These days it costs me $26 to fill up my Mazda3, so an extra 36 miles per tankful would put about $2.75 back in my pocket. What would you rather have -- a car that's BORING AS HELL, or one less Big Mac a week?

I'll give up the Big Mac and keep on Zoomin'!

Meade

shomik · July 2005

I was planning on to get an 3i over 3s and this statement made by someone in the last posts made me think again !!

A car getting 3 mpg more than mine will go maybe 36 miles more on a tank of gas, or about a gallon and some change. These days it costs me $26 to fill up my Mazda3, so an extra 36 miles per tankful would put about $2.75 back in my pocket. What would you rather have -- a car that's BORING AS HELL, or one less Big Mac a week?

I'll give up the Big Mac and keep on Zoomin'!

Is the i really that boring as hell ... is 12 Bhp difference really a huge difference in zoom-zoom-ing !!!??? :confuse:

mdaffron · July 2005

There's no need to post the same message on several different discussions about the same car -- we'll find ya!

Like I said in my answer to the same post over on Sedans, it was my comment -- and I was talking Mazda3 vs. Civic or Corolla. Someone was saying the Civic or Corolla got 3 mpg better gas mileage than the Mazda3, and I said I'd rather give up $2.75 a week and have a fun car than be holding a Big Mac in my appliance car.

Meade

shomik · July 2005

Aha ! that makes me feel better ... sorry about double posts ... i got a little frantic about the statement ..

sandman46 · July 2005

We looked at the i but liked the added features on the s better. 4 wheel disc brakes and the way cool gauges did it for me!
Zoom Zoom.

The Sandman

x5918 · July 2005

I found an interesting topic about what Honda tried to do to emissions (2002).
http://world.honda.com/environment/2002report/21_zisseki_01_4r01.html

Since the Mazda 3s 2.3L engines and the Accord 4dr EX engines are almost the same sizes, I wonder how the 2 cars stack up with each other - side by side comparison - in terms of mpg, emissions (NOx, HC), torque etc etc.

Honda Accord EX 4 dr Sedan, 2.4L I-4 I-VTEC 160hp @ 5500, torque 161 @ 4500, 5-spd man w/OD, EPA 26/34 mpg, LEV II emisisons.

Mazda3s 5dr hatchback or 4dr SP23
2.3L I-4 VVTI 160hp @ 6500 rpm, torque 150 @ 4500 rpm, 5sp manual, EPA 25/32, LEV II emissions.

I was trying to find (sofar without success) the detailed specs of the catalyzer used for above models (price if catalyzer is replaced at dealer, capacity to neutralize NOx, HC, functional size) to establish which car is "cleaner" or more "environmentally friendly".

Does the mpg & emissions change significantly in favor of either Mazda3 or Accord EX, depending if your driving style goes from "EPA" to Zoom-Zoom? My own belief is that the Accord EX is greener, when pushed hard. Comments anybody?

mdaffron · August 2005

When you're comparing these two cars' engines, you have to keep one very important factor in mind: curb weight.

The Mazda3 5-door manual weighs 2,826 lbs. The automatic weighs 2,857 lbs.
The Accord 4-door manual weighs 3,109 lbs. The automatic weighs 3,166 lbs.

That's 283 and 309 lbs. heavier, respectively, for the Accord.

In both cases, the Accord is approximately 10 percent heavier than the Mazda3.

Looks like the Mazda wins hands-down in the hp-to-weight comparison!

Meade

joe249 · August 2005

How do you get it with heated seats? I don't need the fancy lights. What other cars beside the VW come with heated seats .Thankyou.

everfeb · August 2005

This past winter I did some testing with my 2004-3S and found that at 32f/0c or colder the A/C did NOT come on automatically (in any setting). I also found out that in these temps the A/C simply would NOT operate (in any setting) when I turned the A/C on.
So to those of you who are concerned about poor mileage because the A/C comes on when you are using defrost or floor mode in cold weather...don't worry...it doesn't.
everfeb

mdaffron · August 2005

First really, really long highway trip in my 2005 Mazda3 hatch ... Richmond to Pittsburgh and back, with four days of driviing in the Pittsburgh area sandwiched in between. Logged just over 1,100 miles from last Thursday to yesterday.

Gas mileage on highway with myself, my wife, and our 4-year-old son aboard, trunk and back seat packed with luggage, a/c on the entire trip ...

32.6 mpg!

Meade

sandman46 · August 2005

Meade,
I assume that mileage was with a manual. We have a auto tranny so ours will probaly be less. Too bad I wasn't on the wife and middle childs road trip last week to Orlando and back. Really wanted to check out the highway mileage, as the city is somewhat low at this point.

The Sandman

mdaffron · August 2005

Yep, mine's a 5-speed.

(Of course, anyone wanting to get the most out of a gallon of gasoline ALWAYS purchases a car with a manual transmission, DON'T THEY???) :P

I average about 27 mpg around town, where I tend to be a little lead-footed (and that's putting it lightly -- the statement that is, not my foot!).

Oh, there were several incidents of "fun factor" during the trip, especially in West Virginia where the highway speed limit is 70 and I had the cruise set on 75. One geezer in an old Pontiac refused to part with his left lane fetish -- despite my gentle suggestions in his rear view mirror -- so I let him know about it by passing him on the right in fourth gear at, oh, let's just say a speed that a West Virginia State Trooper might not have found very humorous. Even so, I still got 381 miles out of 11.7 gallons of gas!

Meade

jpmccormac · August 2005

After reading the MPG reports in this thread I'm not impressed with the 3s economony - at least for the bigger engine. I guess I'll be looking only at the "i" model if I decide to purchase a 3. At present my '96 VW Golf with auto. trans. is getting 26.5 mpg in town and 30 mpg on the highway - and I love its ride and handling. Granted its engine is smaller than the 3s.

dride · August 2005

Does your VW hve a 2.0? Does it burn any oil (mine did)? Decent MPG was about the only good thing about my VW, and there is no comparison to the 3s. I have a manual and get 29 MPG very consistently. IMHO VW's slogan should be, "nickels and dimes wanted." You must have been blessed with a good one.

mdaffron · August 2005

Well, no one ever claimed the 3s was the most economical car choice in the world.

I will say this ... my 2005 3s hatchback just went to Pittsburgh and back (from Virginia), loaded to the hilt with me, my wife, our 4-year-old son, and a week's worth of luggage, toys, snacks, coolers, etc. On our 1100-mile trip we averaged over 32 mpg on the highway, even loaded (with cargo, that is), in mountainous country, going 70-80 the whole time (the speed limit in WV is 70) and using the a/c constantly.

Around town I average 27 mpg.

Meade

jpmccormac · August 2005

"Does your VW hve a 2.0? Does it burn any oil (mine did)? Decent MPG was about the only good thing about my VW, and there is no comparison to the 3s. I have a manual and get 29 MPG very consistently. IMHO VW's slogan should be, "nickels and dimes wanted." You must have been blessed with a good one."

Yeah, my VW has a 2.0 engine. It does NOT burn any oil. The only thing I replaced in the first nine years was the muffler, exhaust pipes and tires. This year (year 10) I've done the timing belt, hoses, coolant flange, valve cover gasket, some vacuum hoses. I won't consider a VW again, as their overall reliability has gone in the tank.

ecm56 · September 2005

Sandman:

Agree about the gauges but the 3i also has four wheel disc brakes.

Finished the first complete tank, mostly stop and go around town, about 1/3 on the highway. I got 33.6 - with a manual trans, 2.0 (3i).

E

sandman46 · September 2005

Outstanding mpg's there! We're still in the break in period and hopefully things will stabilize at about 5k miles. Don't really understand why the back alloys get so much brake dust while the fronts get almost none. And the black interior shows everything. But besides those 2 things, we really love the 3. Hopefully i'll get more road time as the months progress. She's also hinted that I'll probaly end up with it before next summer...or earlier!
Zoom Zoom!

The Sandman

z71bill · September 2005

I washed the Mazda3 today - the rear wheels always have 100 times more dust than the font - no big surprise that my rear pads are wearing out faster than the front.

I measured the pads today - the fronts are 15/32 of an inch the rear - 7/32 - I don't know how thick they are when new - or even if they start out the same - but I think I am almost ready for my first rear brake job - I just went past 15K miles.

mdaffron · September 2005

We've posted the link to the Mazda3's shop manual many times. Here's the info:

Minimum pad thickness, front and rear: 2.0 mm (= 2.528/32)

Meade

z71bill · September 2005

Please post the shop manual link again - It seems like as much trouble as I have had Mazda should mail be a limited edition leather bound shop manual!

Any idea how thick the brake pads are when new? Then I could guestimate how many miles I have left on the rear pads.

Anyone else have the rear pads wearing faster than the front? Seems like with every other car I have ever owned the front brakes wore faster than the rear -

mdaffron · September 2005

http://www.midwestcarclub.com/mazda/manual/

z71bill · September 2005

The link would not work -

mdaffron · September 2005

Works fine for me! Anyone else want to give it a try?

Meade

mdaffron · September 2005

In the interest of squeezing every mile out of my latest tank of exhorbitantly priced gas, I performed a little experiment (aka exercise in self control) on my last tank, and kept myself from zooming as much as I normally do. (It was hard, friends ... VERY hard.) :shades:

Well, I finally had to fill up again last night (for THIRTY-SIX BUCKS) and the results of my little exercise are in. By keeping the revs down, not racing other cars from traffic lights and generally being more conservative behind the wheel, I managed to squeeze 29.1 mpg out of my 2005 Mazda3 hatch (5-speed) in my mixed-commuting (mostly city/suburban) driving on my most recent tank of gas!

That's about 2 to 2.5 mpg higher than what I've been getting. Spread over almost 12 gallons of gas at $3 a gallon, that's a savings of about $2.50 per tank for being conservative. But since that's about a week of driving, I'm only saving myself about 10 bucks a month by driving like an old lady.

FORGET IT! I'M BACK TO ZOOMING!!! :P

BTW, I now have 8,500 miles on my 3, purchased new April 7, 2005.

Meade

autonomous · September 2005

http://www.midwestcarclub.com/mazda/manual/
Works fine for me! Anyone else want to give it a try?

Bill, the manual opens in several windows for me; one window shows a contents page, another window opens when you select a topic. Thanks Meade for posting the link again.

What a terrific resource! Another example of how windows makes business transparent.

jpmccormac · September 2005

re: I'm only saving myself about 10 bucks a month by driving like an old lady.
FORGET IT! I'M BACK TO ZOOMING!!! :P

Thank you for zooming and not driving like an old lady. We appreciate your lack of conservation and thank you for your business.

Sincerely,

- Big $$ Loving Oil Companies

mdaffron · September 2005

You're welcome, fellow Tree Hugger!

See, pumping a whole 'nother gallon of gas in my car every week keeps me at the pump at least another 20 seconds, keeping me and my harmful ozone-killing voiture de mort off the road that much longer! Hey, we gotta do what we can to save Mother Earth!

Observation: My car still gets 27 mpg even when I do zoom around. Go express yourself on the GMC Suburban or Hummer discussion where your words might carry more weight than they do among a group of economy car owners.

Meade

z71bill · September 2005

I got it to open today - yesterday I got the message it may have been moved to another location or soemthing like that.

I moved this discussion over to problems & solutions - seems to fit better there.

poe1 · September 2005

i've had my 2005 3-s for about 6 months. On 100% highway driving i get a solid 31 (about 400 miles per tank), and that has been very consistent w/ Ac on medium. In town i started out getting 24ish.

However, as the dog days of the Houston summer started to come around my AC was on full blast almost all the time. Then I noticed my mpg dropping to around 17ish. This could be deceiving though and here is why...i live literally a mile from work so the car never got to 'cruise' much, it was basically start, accelerate (sometimes quickly), stop. I think that chewed up a lot of gas b/c when i run errands on the weekends i drive more across town and my mileage goes back up. to its 20-24.

Also, i finally got my windows tinted (limo in back and a shade lighter in front..so its dark). It really helps keep the texas heat out and AC in, so i have noticed that where i use to have it full blast or 3, i can now cruise very comfortably at 1(recirculating). I havent done a milecheck yet, but after this tank of gas i will see what changes there are.

P.S. I love this car and i never thought i would say that about a compact car.

waygrabow · September 2005

424 miles, 11.5 gallons, equals 37 mpg. Filled up yesterday. About what I expected from my Mazda3S MT.

perry99 · September 2005

First mpg result from my brand-new Mazda3s manual transmission:

25.5 mpg

Mixed city/highway, probably more city, with the AC running most of the time.

ecm56 · September 2005

Just finished the third tankfull of gas (I didn't measure the first tank because it didn't start completely full) - 2005 Mazda 3i manual transmission - 32.48 mpg mostly stop and go suburban driving with the A/C running most of the time. A little over 1000 miles on the car.
As I recall the last tank was 33.6 but there was some highway driving in there. I still haven't made any highway trips to see how it does on the road.

E

gly · September 2005

...if you want better fuel economy, get the stick.
...I think Mazda claims 5th gear is an overdrive, it's more like a true fifth gear.

That may have been true in the past (that MTs get better mileage than ATs), but it's not necessarily true today. A lot depends upon the final drive ratio. A number of Japanese auto manufacturers give a higher final drive ratio to MTs than ATs, and this would tend to lower the gas mileage of MTs vis-a-vis ATs. They do this because of cruise control: when going up a hill under cruise control, an AT automatically downshifts; an MT will not, and it will seem to the driver of an MT that his car loses power going up a hill. To counter this complaint, the auto manufacturers give the MT a slightly higher final drive ratio than the AT. And because of torque converter lock-up, there is no slippage in torque converters as there was in the (distant) past.

For the Mazda3, the final drive ratio for the MT is reported to be 4.105; for the AT, the final drive ratios bracket the MT value: 3.685 (i-model) and 4.416 (s-model). Based on these values alone, I would predict better gas mileage (at constant highway speeds) to ATs in the s-model, and to MTs in the i-model. (I don't put much faith in EPA estimates.)

Finally, both 4th and 5th gears in the MT are overdrive (output shaft spins faster than the input shaft) although 4th gear is almost (but not quite) 1:1. But 5th gear is very much an overdrive; the 5th gear ratio is 0.755:1.

I almost bought a Mazda3 this summer. My family was down to one car and I desperately needed something fast. I test drove a Mazda3 and liked it, but in July in my area there was very little to choose from, and I had no idea when the 2006 Mazdas would arrive. I eventually bought another 2005 Japanese car at a good end-of-model year price.

My principal hesitation about Mazda is that the company is majority owned by Ford (at 33% ownership, Ford is the principal stockholder). The two Mazda engines are derived from the Ford Duratec. I think Ford, like GM, cannot put as much money into R&D as the independent Japanese companies, due to their high union wages and medical benefits paid to their employees and their enormous commitment (pension and medical) to their retirees. I would hate to see 1/3 of my money going to Ford.

A second point of concern is that Mazda does not have a wide dealer network in the part of the country where I live.

autonomous · September 2005

Interesting. A few questions for you, gly.

I eventually bought another 2005 Japanese car a 2005 Honda Accord?

Mazda ... is majority owned by Ford ... The two Mazda engines are derived from the Ford Duratec.
Ford also exercises control over Volvo and Jaguar. My understanding is that Mazda reworks the engines to their needs, so for example a Focus and Mazda3 deliver different results.

I think Ford, like GM, cannot put as much money into R&D as the independent Japanese companies, due to their high union wages and medical benefits paid to their employees and their enormous commitment (pension and medical) to their retirees. I would hate to see 1/3 of my money going to Ford.
My understanding is that the Asian brands, like Toyota and Honda, offer similar wages and benefits to their employees in order to match union settlements. This is the case in Canada but I'm not sure if this is true for the US also. I share your concern about Ford and GM but hope the real problem is solved, product lineup, and not have the blame shifted.

Mazda does not have a wide dealer network ... where I live.
Where is that?

mdaffron · September 2005

The two Mazda engines are derived from the Ford Duratec.

Maybe a little more research would've changed your mind. Here's the truth, from a Mazda tech website:

In 2004, Ford dropped the development of the 4-cylinder Zetec engine in favor of Mazda's MZR 4-cylinder. Thus, 2005+ Duratec 4 cylinder engines are Mazdas. This includes the 2.0 liter Duratec 20 and 2.3 liter Duratec 23.

Duratec 23

The Duratec 23 is a 2.3 L (2261 cc) version of the Mazda-designed Duratec 20. Bore is 87.4 mm and stroke is 94 mm. It has an aluminum engine block with cast iron cylinder liners and aluminum DOHC cylinder heads. It uses SFI fuel injection, has 4 valves per cylinder with VCT and features fracture-split forged powder metal connecting rods and a one-piece cast camshaft.

The 2.0L and 2.3L Mazda3 engines are called Duratecs (in Ford products; they're called ZZRs in Mazda products) -- but they're designed and built by Mazda for Mazda and Ford applications.

Meade

chacobleu · September 2005

Right on the money again. The Duratec 23 was a joint collaboration between Mazda/Ford just as the Tribute/Escape. In other words, a Mazda team from Japan and a Ford team from Detroit butted heads. And just as in the Tribute/Escape, Mazda took the lead in the whole project to replace not only their own 2.0 (Protégé), but also the Ford Zetec with more environmentally friendly (if not more powerful) engines; in fact, they were solely in charge of setting up (charges were shared) the mfg. plant to produce these engines (range, if I remember correctly, was from 1.6 to 2.3 with the potential to go even higher to a 5 in-line).

kbinsb · September 2005

Well, this is a late response to your question about the rear pads, but my 04 mazda 3 with only 3750 miles has thrown off a lot of brake dust in the rear. It is now at the dealer, who, unsurprisingly said that it met specs. But this is very unusual because we all know that the front pads are always the problem before the rear. He is keeping it overnight to see some more tomorrow. I saw some postings a while back from other owners about this.
BTW, I am lucky to get 25 MPG so far. Mostly hwy with an auto tranny. It is definitely a fun car, and I chose it for impractical reasons!

mpg60 · September 2005

I don't understand this obsession with the brake dust. I have a friend who owns a Infinity g-35 and the previous owner of the company i work for recently purchased one of the new beemers and both those cars have just as much or if not more brake dust on their alloy wheels than my 3s. I don't necessarily see this as a problem as other cars in a "premium class" exhibit the same?

the only problem i see is it is annoying to constantly have to clean the alloy wheels

z71bill · September 2005

The dust on the rear wheels - although a pain to clean is not the problem - it is the rapid wear of the rear brake pads. I rotated my tires a few days ago - the rear pads are wearing out much faster than the front. I guess that my rear pads will need to be replaced (plus the rear rotors) by the time I hit 20K miles.

Does replacing rear pads at 20K seem normal?

Mazda3 Real World MPG

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