2006 Mazda Mazda3 consumer reviews

I loved this car. It picks up and moves. No lag. Smooth riding. Great gas mileage. Even with my clutch going out it still lasted a year. It finally died @ 270,000 miles. Freeze plug and timing belt. It performs well. Very nicely rounded. The downside of this vehicle was it needed higher Octane gasoline if ever you put anything below that the motor oil would get sludgy. Learned that the hard way. Lol. The car is great but when it’s done it’s completely done. Tune-ups are quite expensive but last longer versus an average 4-cylinder. More tune-ups for less money each time. Or a bit more money with fewer tune-ups needed. I'm sure the higher octane required has a big part in that also.

This car has been so reliable! I bought it used 7 years old, with 116,000 miles on it. I needed a good deal but did NOT want an ugly car. After looking at other cars Mazda was the only one for me. For its price range it is definitely the best looking car!! I bought the sport model and although it was the lowest featured package the exterior made up for it. 7 years later it now has nearly 250,000 miles on it, still runs like a charm, I drove it rough and was not easy on it lol. Keeping the car as an extra vehicle, but now going to buy a 2016 Mazda 6, grand touring, I just can’t get over how nice the Mazda’s look, and after driving my Mazda 3 for so long, I’m staying loyal to the Mazda brand I can trust! I’d recommend Mazda to anyone wanting a sedan!

Really great handling, fun to drive, awesome turning radius, fantastic sound system, large cargo space, did I mention the word FUN??? Long Live Mazda...Zoom Zoom

This car has been great to my family! Purchased new in 2006 and have yet to do any major repairs other than the clutch! I’ve put 196,000 miles and I still haven’t changed any of the belts!

After so many miles the car's transmission control modules goes out due to poor placement under the battery causing too much heat, part costs about 550 for a new one, if you do get a new one reposition module elsewhere to avoid heat damage.

It gets me around and does it with some fun, all the while getting good fuel econ... the manual trans is where the fun comes from

The Mazda 3 is hands down the best do-everything car I have ever owned. Its just big enough to carry 4 adults comfortably (5 adults is tight) and baggage. The 60/40 folding rear seats make it versatile and useful for runs to the home improvement store or tossing a mountain bike in the back. The exterior design is, to me at least, timeless. People still ask me if it is a new car when they see it and I have had numerous compliments on what a nice looking car it is - including one from a guy driving a Porsche 911 - which made me laugh because he could have a whole fleet of them for what he paid for his Porsche. The leather seats are very comfortable and well positioned. I have driven this car on long road trips (ex. NY to Montreal) and never felt sore or achy. The Mazda 3 handles great and does not feel like you are driving a front wheel drive car. Steering feel is great. The steering wheel communicates exactly what is happening with the front wheels. With proper snow tires (Blizzacks or similar) the Mazda 3 can handle just about any snow storm. The Mazda 3 is also very reliable. The only common issue that I have had to repair multiple times (all under warranty) was the one engine mount, which is a known weak point for these cars. The worst day that I have had with my Mazda 3 was the day that I realized that I would have to sell it.

If I wasn't going electric, I'd be keeping this car. It's the third Mazda I've owned in 12 years and all of them have been great, efficient and reliable cars. Not to mention fun to drive.

This car is reliable. Gas economic. No issues with it what so ever. Can seat 4 people, maybe 5 no issues. A lot of trunk space

I bought my Mazda 3 new in 2006, cross shopping Dodge Caliber, Ford Focus and Honda Civic. It was the best of all that I test drove and best bang for the buck! 5 door hatch made it practical. Nicest interior features and materials. And most powerful engine (2.3) with standar 4 wheel disc brakes. The front grill was ugly, but sitting inside I couldn't see that. I ended up trading it in when I needed AWD and it held great value afte 3 years.