Coty – The Grand Final

The top three are put through the ride and handling wringer

- Byron Mathioudakis & Ash Westerman

Mazda 3

AUSTRALIA’S SMALL-CAR STALWART SMARTENS UP FOR ITS SWEET SIXTEENTH

SIXTEEN YEARS AGO, Australia fell hard for the Mazda 3. More than just a sales success, it joined the Toyota RAV4 SUV in embodying the changing landscape of Australian motoring – one that would swiftly ensure the glory days of the Holden Commodore and Ford Falcon were numbered. Such transformative cars don’t come along very often.

However, our relationship with the 3 has been complicated. While each evolution – from the Ford Focus-based BK original to the wholly Mazda-engineered ‘SkyActiv’ BM series of 2014 – brought specification and safety improvements, abundant noise and refinement issues always undermined it. Four generations on, though, Hiroshima is finally listening. Benchmarking the class-redefining Volkswagen Golf, Mazda claims the latest 3 delivers a profoundly quieter, higher-quality, lighter yet stronger, more engaging, safer and more advanced proposition. In emulating the Germans, the 3 has moved upmarket: the old base Neo is gone, bumping up the entry price by $4000.