Mazda3 hatch GT Sport e-Skyactiv X

Remarkable car for the money

Have owned large German cars for decades and wanted a change, given that my annual mileage has fallen and am more interested in handling/comfort these days than outright performance. So, was looking for something inexpensive to buy & run, compact, well-built, well-designed and with a hatchback. Test drove all the obvious choices in the 4-door compact hatchback sector, including the Germans. The Mazda3 beat them all. It's a remarkably accomplished car – handles, steers and drives well; great interior quality in GT Sport trim; very well-equipped; refined and comfortable, with astonishing fuel economy from the latest e-Skyactiv X 2L petrol engine. Negatives? Rear headroom is tight if you’re tall, but the rear seats rarely get used in our case, and the boot isn’t big, which again isn’t a problem as the kids have long since left home. As others have said, am amazed that there appear to be so few on the roads.

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