This so now the 2nd, Mazda 3 I've owned, The first being a 2005 hatchback, this one now the 2010 sedan Overall this car is a great car, in both Mazda 3s I've had now, they've had no major mechanical failures and the work has been routine work, owned the 2005 one for just over three years before it got totaled on an accident back in 2021, the car probably still had another 10 years in it, The 2010 one I have now is the 2nd gen Mazda 3 of course, and its a significant upgrade (excluding it being the sedan instead of the hatchback which does negatively impact storage space) The 2010 Mazda 3 here has great handling, is sporty for it's class, and is very fun to drive, but if you're looking for a car that rides smoothly, this car doesn't, it does have rather stuff suspension. The exterior (in my opinion) is a lot better than it was on the previous body style, I get the "big smiling" front end isn't for everyone but I love the look I did briefly mention storage space earlier for the sedan - the storage space is better than other cars in it's class, and the truck is quite big for a vehicle of it's size, but the opening is small and makes it difficult to fit really any big items in, as for the hatchback, it does fix that issue, I was actually able to fit two full sized bikes inside the vehicle (after putting the back seats down) Although this car does have 1 major issue, The dashboard, Mazda made it out of a rubber plastic material, that when left in the sun, melts and creates a shiney sticky mess that can impact your vision with glare, getting a dash cover at least hides it, but to properly fix it, it requires replacement of the entire dashboard, (which Mazda does not have a tsb or warranty for)

I bought this car used with about 110,000 miles on it. Within the first couple months I took it in for an oil change and was told the brakes were ok, but would probably want to replace them in the next year as they were still original. Fair enough. Over the next four years I would replace the tires and have the suspension done. All of these things are consumable parts and replacing them after 100,000 is not out of the norm. Other than that, I replaced the speakers because the factory ones were not too great. What really got me was, no oddities. I did not have to pay for some odd part that broke or wore out for no reason. I have owned cars where random hoses, engine parts, or transmission parts deteriorated and cost me a random $1000 to fix. Not this one. This car has been great incredibly reliable. As for the "negative" traits. There is no room. The backseat can fit two adults fine. But that middle seat is useless. The trunk is small. It is deep, but the opening is not very accommodating. I bought a couple of outdoor chairs at Target (non folding) and could not get them in the trunk. To make matters worse, they did not fit through the doors either. So this is definitely a compact car. Another negative is the price of a replacement key. $350 if you want a fob, $150 for just the key. But overall, this car is great. I have enjoyed it. Gas mileage could be better (30 combined) but it really is not bad. It gets me from point A to point B without costing me a fortune in repairs. It has a nice, smooth ride and a bit of pep.

The hatchback made this car easy to haul lots of stuff. It was one of the most reliable cars and very little maintenance needed. I love having a trunk that you don't have to bend over.