Ford owned company Mazda has earned many awards from its compact car line the 3. We set out on a test drive of the Mazda 3 and are delivering our impression of the sporty compact.

The version we drove was the hatchback. We were really impressed with the space included in the trunk of the hatchback. The trunk space can be enhanced to include the whole backseat if extra packing space is needed.

The cloth seats that comes standard in the Mazda 3 are very sporty. They include a sporty design that comes standard. They are also economically comfortable including a Lombardi bar on the driver side. The leg space can at times feel a bit confined but this is really to be expected with any compact.

The Mazda 3 is a really fun car to drive especially if you like driving five-speed. The handling is also very tight and great for performance.

The one drawback that the Mazda 3 and customer have experienced has to do with the paint job on the car. That shiny gloss look the 3 entices you with will quickly wore down if not kept in good shape. If you have any stains that recently got on your paint job we’d recommend getting them cleaned off as soon as possible. One Mazda 3 we saw had a nasty stain that bonded with the paint job courtesy of an overhead bird.

If you’re into adding enhancements or modifications to the Mazda 3 it is limited in what you can do. For instance there are no plug and go chips available for the car. Instead you’d have to end up sending parts of your Mazda 3 to a chip manufacturer for the modification to work. This really is for those that want to optimize the power under the hood. The four-cylinder 160 hp engine in many cases can outperform other six cylinder engines. So unless you’re starved for more power the Mazda 3 already has you covered.

Our final analysis is the Mazda 3 looks great performs well and comes at a modest price. You’ll get your share of looks from admirers of your Mazda 3. (See the Mazda Kabura)

Mazda 3 Pictures: