Test drive Mazda Mazda 3 (Axela) Sedan 2004 - 2009 sedan

Avangardist and Decembrist

In the most popular among Russian motorists, a golf class almost every company has its own promoted player. And for a comparative test here you can take at least two dozen models. We stopped at two: updated and classic. Japanese and German. Deserved popularity in Russia in some two years and won the whole world 30 years ago.
 

Mazda 3 against VW Golf V.

We took the Japanese in the Sport version, with a top two-liter engine and a 6-speed (here is the first change!) Restyling touched it a little more than others. The German is driven by a 1.6-liter 102-horsepower engine and automatic. VW came out more expensive. Basically, due to the rich configuration of Sportline. The basic differences are obvious, but cars can still be compared with their similarities.

 

It is difficult to recognize the undergraduated Mazda3 restyling in a car that was missing: the new three looks more likely, in a new way, but cosmetics are more likely to remind yourself again. And all facies would not have become a reason for the test, if not for a number of additional improvements that engineers made to the design of the third model.
 

Part of the changes of the Mazda3, as usual, touched the appearance to give Mazda3 freshness and even more zoom-zuma. But with one restyling, the case did not end in two years of the model of the model, customers and journalists gave a couple of recommendations that Japanese engineers wanted to do not take into account.

 

Let's go around the car around. What's new? The air intake in the front bumper acquired more curved faces, the shape of the anti -tumen has changed, and the shafts from the front wheels and rear wheels have been installed, which reduce aerodynamic resistance and improve fuel efficiency. The radiator grille is now decorated in the form of a grid, and in the wheel arches there are discs with a new pattern. New features are guessed in the rear bumper. In addition, the body kit Sport Appearante Package, which is equipped with top -end sedans and hatchbacks, now looks noticeably spectacular.

 

The salon was painted in darker colors and changed the scales of the dashboard dials. There are the same wells in the style of Alfa Romeo 147, but now with a white edging. The blackness of the console and the steering wheel was diluted with inserts of light gray plastic. On the inside of the roof panel, the roof -absorbing mats of Thinsulate laid. The engine is still expressive even at average speeds, but the noise from the road is really less audible. After all, in the salon it became quieter at 1.5 decibel! We believe in the word!

 

Well, now the second participant in the test enters the fight. If you want a charismatic participant. Why did we choose Volkswagen Golf as a competitor to an updated three? Both cars are among the expensive representatives of their class, and they are comparable in price. And with whom to compare the representatives of the golf class, if not with the car who gave this class the name?
 

Perhaps it is precisely due to the charismatic nature of the model that the appearance of the golfs of all generations can be considered classic. And Golf V is no exception. True, this classicism deprives the car of certain expressiveness. Mazda is clearly fresh especially if you look at it on the side or behind.

 

The same can be said if you compare the salons of cars. The German cannot boast of avant -garde elements; There are rectangles and circles everywhere, and everywhere where you can symmetry. The instrument panel, the central console, the seizures-pastens are undoubtedly done in the 21st century, but without someone a light. And if you are a fan of traveling with a twinkle, Golf V is hardly you like. But if, nevertheless, your automobile priorities are more conservative (in this case, you do not need to look for a negative meaning in this word), the advantages of the German will find their fans.

 
Mazda3
The dealers are ready to sell the Mazda3 sedan for $ 17,100. The hatchback costs 200 cu expensive. The basic equipment includes ABS with EBD and EBA, frontal, side pillows and curtains of safety, electric grinder, front electric windows, steering column adjustable by departure and tilt angle, AM/FM (RDS) radio with 4 speakers, immobilizer. Change the mechanics to the machine to the machine costs $ 3,100, and you can purchase a hatchback 2.0-liter engine starting with $ 22,800.
 
The main thing is that Golf bribes, with its amazing harmony. The condition of the wheel is difficult to describe, since it has nothing to do with surprise or enthusiasm simply after the first meters you feel the logic in each element of the Golf salon. The seats are much more pleasant here than in Mazda; In them you go like in a bucket, at least do not fasten! It’s more comfortable to the touch and steering wheel: it is smaller in diameter and significantly thicker. On the other hand, pressing pedals in Golf requires great effort, although their move is less.
 

Both cars leave a pleasant impression in the movement. The updated Mazda3 has a very even acceleration: there are no doubts about the health of each of the 150 horses under the hood, and the hatchback rides briskly and rapidly in the range of 4,000-6,000 revolutions, but something is missing. Namely: a sharp pickup, pushing the chair in the back and interception of the spirit from powerful acceleration in space. And, apparently, this is a consequence of another refinement of Japanese engineers: two-liter engines are equipped with an electronic control system for the throttle damper and the gas distribution phase control system.

 

The plus of this lies in the extremely fast and exact reactions of the engine to change the position of the gas pedal, and minus in the even characteristics of the engine, smoothness and reduce the emotionality of acceleration. True, for crazy races along the streets, Mazda prepares a special version of the three Mazda3 MPS with a 2.3-liter turbo engine. And two -liter cars are more likely to be suitable for those who require power and dynamism in everything, but often glance at the flow meter

 
VW Golf
Three-door VW Golf with a 80-horsepower 1.4 engine can be bought for $ 18,681. In the basic configuration, Trendline, airbags for front and rear passengers, ABS, electrical engines with heating, steering wheel amplifier, audio loading, steering column, adjustable in height, and an electric heating system. I will fly out. The 1.6 L engine with a capacity of 102 hp, with a mechanical KP can be ordered for $ 19,896, and with an automatic machine for $ 22,218.
 
As for the German, he is with almost the weakest (although this word would be more appropriate to put in quotation marks) of possible motors does not give a reason to complain about the lack of l. C .. The same harmonicity and composure bring calmness and confidence to the trip to Golf. The automatic box without shocks and delays sorts out in six gears, and the S (Sport) mode extends the time of their switching and transfers working speeds to the optimal area.
 

The suspension, as in Mazda3, did not cause discontent, but is configured with a noticeably more comfortable orientation. Surprisingly, in aggressive driving modes, Golf did not show excessive softness, did not heal and quickly reacted to the actions of the steering wheel.

 

Actually, both cars did not tell any revelations and did not show obvious weaknesses. The sports character of Mazda and the measured spirit of VW are felt in everything. It remains only to evaluate the financial proposals of dealers, which, ultimately, determine the volume of sales of rivals. The advantage in comfort and ergonomics by the German, and in the price of the Japanese: after all, VW, like the Decembrists, is far from the people.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

Source: Wheel magazine [No. 107/2006]