The clutch on both the Rabbit and the 3 were so good that you would never know that I have not driven a stick shift in over three years. I have no doubt that both kids will have no problem learning to drive either car, and since Wifey also likes cars where she can stir her own, we may actually get back to the point where we are a stick-only family. As far as the heat-seaters go, this car is for me, and while Wifey fusses in the winter without them, she will not be in this car very often.

Regarding the steering wheel controls, yup, our last five cars have had them and I really like the convenience they offer. Like the leather coverings on the shift **** and steering wheel, the extra controls are the little things that become a BIG plus for the Mazda.

Hmmm, I am thinking I might drop by the dealership tonight and play with both an i and an s. I will keep you all posted.

Thanks, good advice. That said, this is not a deal-killer as I do not smoke and the ash tray slot looks like a perfect place for a ScanGauge II.

Personally I could care less about the DSC, especially in a FWD car, however, I have not one but two kids who are going to learn to drive a stick shift in my next car, and here in New Hamster we get our fair share of snow (we have had well over one hundred inches in three of the last six winters). Is the lack of DSC a deal-killer? No. Would it be nice to have? Yes.

 

The button between the tachometer and speedometer is what toggles the brightness on the day mode, and between day/night mode when the lights are on. It's opposite the trip reset button.

 

Great information, thanks!

 

You not only doubt, you seriously doubt.

VW Rabbit reliability: 7/10 http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com...t/Reliability/

Mazda3 reliability: 8/10 http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com...3/Reliability/

 

Hmmm, a single set of rankings proved definitively that all German cars are absolutely crap compared to Mazdas. You'll excuse me for not being impressed.

 

I disagree shipo that all german cars are absolute crap compared to mazdas. Those words aretoo harsh, don't you think? What I made available to you is informationfrom arespected source (nota bmw message board, or somebody's 3rd cousin) stating that in their considered opinion the expected reliability of the mazda 3 exceeds that of the vw rabbit. How you feel about it, and what you do or do not do with it,is up to you. And yes of course I will excuse you.

 

Well, from my perspective, the 7/10 and 8/10 numbers are "close enough", and if I happened to like the 7/10 car even a little more than the 8/10 car, then I would buy the former, in fact, I would be inclined to buy it even if it was a 5/10 or a 6/10.

The fact is that all manufacturers have issues with some of their cars, Asian, North American and European alike. Said another way, buying any new car is a crap shoot with regard to reliability, true, some have a slightly better chance of being more reliable than others, but is one or two more problems per so many cars or so many miles driven really more important than the driving enjoyment any given car can offer? Obviously I would answer that question as, "Not a chance." That said, I'm well aware that some folks live and die by reliability ratings and make it one of the most important metrics when judging a new car. The glass is half full, or the glass is half empty, take your pick.

For my part I am more than a bit tired of folks smugly pointing out that their boring appliance car was "ranked" as being more reliable than say my former 2002 530i SP 5-Speed. It of course meant nothing to them when I'd point out that, A) the 5er was way-way more fun to drive than their ES300 (or some such), and B) that it did not suffer even a burned out light bulb for the entire 75,000 miles that I drove it.

All of this is just to say, "Please leave the relative reliability rankings out of this discussion." I will choose my next car (be it a Mazda3, a Rabbit, or even a Cobalt) based on driving dynamics, utility, fuel economy and cost. Said another way, I will absolutely take it for granted that any car I buy will easily be able to be driven for 150,000+ miles with relatively minimal amount of fussing about unscheduled repairs.

 

Hey, that's not nice. The Cobalt is a cool little car.

 

I agree with shipo on the reliability ratings. 7 and 8 out of 10 most likely are not significantly different if there is sufficient sample size. Those ratings, for all practical purposes are equal as their difference would not exceed the margin of error. Now, if you were talking a difference of 3 or 4 points I believe you could them make an arguement that one would be more reliable than the other.

The net-net here though is that, IMHO, the 3's cool factor is significantly higher than the VW's.

Nuff said.

 

1 word MEXICO. the new VW's are made in mexico and as VB had stated earlier, the VW reliability has been going down the tubes for a long time. my aunt had a 2000 VW jetta, and the thing died after like not even 100 000 KM *canada btw*. plus the mazda3 looks better and nicer. and drives soo clean, the 5 speed is amazing (compared to most cars ive driven) and yea. granted you are asking this question in a mazda forum. if you asked this in a VW forum youd get a completely different response.