Surprised by the Mazda 3

Growing up I never thought I would like a Mazda; they were for people like my dad – conservative, dull but reliable and economical. My mum once wanted to buy a Mazda 323 but for whatever reason the sale didn’t go through, that probably only made me dislike them even more.

Recently though I saw a really nice looking Mazda that caught my eye, not only because I’m older but because it was genuinely a nice car. I came home and “Googled” Mazda to identify what model of Mazda it was, it was the Mazda 3 MPS, the 3 door version of the family hatchback. The one I saw was in white, it looked very clean and well looked after.

The Mazda 3 MPS comes as a 5 door as well as the 3 door model; it has a very aggressive front end with a massive bonnet scoop providing air to the engine and turbo charger. The engine in the MPS is a 2.3 litre petrol with a turbo charger bolted on for good measure, it produces 256bhp and can do 0-62mph in 6.1 seconds while still returning nearly 30 miles to the gallon.

The MPS handles like a “proper” hot hatch, under heavy acceleration the steering wheel provides plenty of feedback, around bends the MPS dares you to give it more throttle. It clings to bends and keeps finding grip; this does result in a firm suspension set up which can be unforgiving on longer journeys. 

I’m not going to rush out and by the MPS, it’s not a cheap used Mazda and currently I can’t afford to splash out or buy on impulse.