2012 Mazda Mazda3 consumer reviews

I bought this car brand new in 2012. Paid 17k. Worth every penny. It has 63k miles onit right now. Have never done anything other than change the oil and filter. It runs like it is expected. Slow and easy. You won't win no races with it. But it gets my wife to work with no issues. { 5 miles} Rain or snow. We have taken it on several road trips. Including a couple 1000 plus mile trips. Running wide open the whole way. It has no problem. I am a big guy. Very un comfy in most cars. But this I fall right into it and am able to climb back out with ease. The interior is cloth. Its starting to fade. But still no tears or wear marks. Theres nothing fancy about this car. But my wife loves it.

I purchased this car with just under 117K miles in late 2023 and wrote my first review after just 1,000 miles. Currently, it has 141K, so this is more of an ownership review than just first impressions. I haven't done much other than regular maintenance (oil changes, brakes, etc.) although I have replaced the exhaust. It always starts and returns excellent fuel economy. I get about 32 in the city and 42 on the highway, with an overall average of 36. For a small car it is stable but also has very agile handling. My only gripe is that it is very, very slow. It takes anywhere from 8 to 10 seconds to get to 60 MPH and can be scary at times when you really need to step on it and there's barely any power until 4000 RPM, but it's the sacrifice you'll need to make to get those high fuel economy figures. The Mazda3 is a great alternative to a Civic or a Corolla, while also offering a manual transmission on every trim and many available features. On the GT trim you can even get blindspot monitors and adaptive headlights!

I’ve always stuck with Japanese import cars because of their reliability and overall quality. The 2012 Mazda 3 is the first Mazda I’ve ever owned. I bought mine 4 years ago just coming out of a divorce and needed a good reliable vehicle that wasn’t very expensive. I’ve put over 50,000 miles on my 3 and the only thing outside of regular maintenance I’ve had to replace was a serpentine belt. For me, the car is perfect in size because I’m quite petite but if you’re a tall person I could imagine you don’t have much leg room since it would s a compact sedan. If I ever decided to trade my car in, I would definitely buy a much newer Mazda 3. They’re great on gas, gets about similar gas mileage to a Civic or Corolla and it’s a perfect car for daily commuting.

Got this as my first car with 116K miles. It now has 118K and it performs very well for its duties. I use it to get to and from school, visit family, and take joyrides. Although it rides smoothly, the interior feels a bit cheap, as to be expected for an economy car. I love the feel of a 6-speed manual, something I was looking for in a vehicle. I can get up to 37 miles per gallon just driving normally, and when I'm in the city, it's closer to 30. The seats are reasonably supportive and good for multi-hour trips but do not have any lumbar support and could be softer. It's easy to steer the vehicle but that becomes a problem on the highway when it is easy to drift into another lane since there's not much feel in the steering. My grandmother has a Honda CR-V and it has tighter steering, but that also means that it is harder to turn the wheel when moving slow or stopped. I love that it has a quality audio system and steering wheel controls for the radio and Bluetooth system. I never expected a sub-$20K MSRP car from 2012 to have Bluetooth. Sure, my dad's 2008 Highlander had it, but it was not great and did not support music. All in all, I love my car and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fun, fuel-efficient, reliable little car!

I have owned this car for 8 years and have put over 115k miles on it myself. I currently has 131k. It has been an amazing car, very little issues, if any at all, just regular wear items replaced. I’ve always followed the regular maintenance and replaced things when they need to be done. I will agree with another review, these cars do wear through tires faster than most cars, make sure you rotate and balance every 6k

This is a decent daily driver. The previous owner had neglected oil changes and other basic Items but they were fairly cheap to fix. Sporty and still has lots of room for cargo and rear seats do fold which was an important feature to me.

It wasn't what was looking for but it has been the best car that we have been able to buy first time buyer as well

Great price for a dependable sleek looking vehicle . Rather have a 6 , but as long as it’s a Mazda , I’m good with it

Car was comfortable, fun to drive and frugal on gas; much better than the other 2012 competitors in its class. Rear seat legroom was cramped for tall people. Best car I owned up to then. Bought three other new Mazdas since 2012 including two in last six months.....a CX-5 and a CX-30.

This car met my expectations and is very nice. The size was perfect for my daughter. The car has a decent sound system and great cargo space.