Need Advice on a New Car: Hyundai Elantra or Mazda 3

forbin4040 said:   Just another FYI, I sat in an 3 Hyundai's today. All 3 I sat in the back seat and my head was in the liner.

I'm not a tall guy but I suspect that if you plan to carry anyone, then go for the Mazda. I didn't find any problems with the 3 (Dealer was next door)

I'm pretty average, not particularly tall. But I'll definitely keep that in mind when I test drive it.
I had house guests over the weekend, but one evening this week after work I'll go do some test drives.

cccdan said:   I was a Dealer Tech for 22 years working on both Toyota and Mazda.

You will be disappointed if you switch to the Mazda. They build a great looking car while Toyotas tend to be bland. Don't expect to get 170k miles out of a Mazda without one or more major repairs, along with frequent trips to the Dealer for warranty repairs.

All cars have problems but the overall odds support sticking with Toyota. If I were to jump ship, I would be inclined to go with the Hyundai. I already know the outcome of purchasing a Mazda. Might get lucky with the Hyundai.

The first thing my father said about the Mazda, was that it would spend much more time in the shop. So yes, that's a concern of mine.

Honestly, at this point it's Elantra's race to lose. I think the Mazda might be fading from contention. Car payments + higher repair costs do not make a good combination.
It's too bad the new Corolla doesn't rate higher in the reviews and in comparisons. I might be able to get past my irritation with the Service end of things, but not if the car itself isn't a good purchase. I can load it up and it'll still fit in my budget too {sigh}.

However, as things stand, the Hyundai seems to have a lot more going for it. But.... I'll drive the Mazda too, just so I give it a fair shot.

They extended the Motozuma deal until January 2, 2013:

http://www.hyundaiusa.com/financial-tools/savings-matching.aspx

macosx said:   WhyAskWhy said:   I prefer Mazda as well. Maybe check into Camry or Accord. I bought my new Honda Accord 4 cy LX with some upgrade for under 24K out of the door. 100% finance at 0.9% for 5 yrs. The insurance on Camry or Accord sometimes is cheaper than the smaller car.

That's high for the accord. What city/state did you make the purchase. Around these woods these babies can be had for around 18k, and under 20k out the door. Accords are being advertised for $3,000-4,000 under msrp, and there maybe an additional dealer incentive of up to $2,000 that might not be fully accounted.

Even Truecar, with zero negotiating effort, is at $20,100 for that car, so figure $22k OTD.

SecondGunman said:   I'll say it again, in its own post this time just so it doesn't get lost. I'm a Mazda fanboy and have been for a few years now, but I still suggest going to look at the new Fiat 500. They start in the $15k range and you can get one nicely equipped for around $20k. I drove a six speed manual with all the bells and whistles around the block a few times and really liked the way it drove. It's different. It looks different. It's not for everyone. But I still suggest going to at least look at one and drive it around the block.
The 500 looks cute, but it really does redefine small. I'm not sure I'd want to go that small. My big hesitation though centers around reliability. Growing up, it used to be a running joke that FIAT = Fix It Again Tony.

NoMoneyInMyWallet said:   Have you considered the 2012 Subaru Impreza? A new redesign that has gotten very good reviews.

Up to 36 mpg highway with CVT
Standard AWDGreat suggestion. I bought one a few months ago, mainly for winter driving. All things considered, this is the best new car I've ever bought (I've been driving for 35+ years), considering utility and enjoyment received for money spent on a new car. I'm getting a legitimate 30mpg driving in the suburbs, with NO highway driving, with the CVT. The hatchback has a lot of cargo space, and a lot of seating space, and the car handles very well. You can get a well equipped one for around $23k. The 2012 is completely redesigned.

Don't overlook the Kia Soul in the "+" configuration. It's a fantastic little car, that's a lot of fun to drive and has a lot of room. And is cheap.

But the 2012 Impreza is a remarkable vehicle that really should be on anyone's short list of inexpensive but value oriented people and cargo haulers. The AWD makes a big difference, not just on snow, but in everyday driving. You can feel it hold the road better during hard, tight cornering.

I don't think any other AWD drive vehicle can match the Impreza's room and mpg.

I've nudged up my target price to $23,000.

The 2012 Camry SE is in the running. They completely redesigned it and lowered the price for 2012 (compared to 2011), and it's back to rating highly again. It looks like I can get the majority of the upgrades I want for $24,000-ish and Edmunds.com is offering a $750 rebate. I may have some negotiating room to edge it closer to $23,000. I know it's Toyota, but reliability and resale value can't completely be ignored. Unfortunately... there's the warranty issue - it's still only about half of Hyundai's. Still, the first 2 years of maintenance are free, and it's definitely worth a test drive.

The Sonata SE is pushing the price limit, but I'll test that too. I don't think it's likely I can make a Limited work financially. It's just too far off my financial target. But the SE is probably going to be the nicest from a driving point of view (more power than the Camry).

And of course the Elantra Limited is still in the running.

Unfortunately I have caviar tastes on a shoestring budget.
OK, it's not a shoestring budget, but it's not as big as I'd need to totally get everything I want.

But I'm basically outfitting all the cars with similar features now, and they're coming out to almost the same amount. So I'm pretty much settled on what I want in the car.
I guess I should throw the Prius C Four into the mix too. The mileage is great, but we'll see if the size of the car feels too small. It's based on the Yaris.

gooddealie said:   Unfortunately I have caviar tastes on a shoestring budget.
OK, it's not a shoestring budget, but it's not as big as I'd need to totally get everything I want.

But I'm basically outfitting all the cars with similar features now, and they're coming out to almost the same amount. So I'm pretty much settled on what I want in the car.
I guess I should throw the Prius C Four into the mix too. The mileage is great, but we'll see if the size of the car feels too small. It's based on the Yaris.Since you added the Camry and raised it to 23,000

Take a look at the Nissan Altima 2.5 S Anniversary
It's 24000 before $3500 in rebates.
The most notable feature, the 'S' comes with Push Button Start. You don't have to put in a key.
The Anniversary edition comes with Alloy Wheels.

Price creep is a common issue with new car buyers. If you can afford it, I think buying the most car you can afford is often better than settling for something smaller and cheaper.

The Mazda 3 is a nice sporty little car, but in my opinion its overall size is too small. Of course the Mazdaspeed3 version is an entirely different animal. If you're going to spend $23-$24k there are many good new cars available at that price. If you want a midsize sedan, the Camry is probably your best bet...for the money spent. It can be fairly well equipped at $23-$24k plus tax, and the four cylinder gets good mileage, and is adequately zippy.

I still think you should seriously consider the 2012 Subaru Impreza HB, but lots of people won't even consider a Subaru simply because it never occurred to them.

My brother just bought a 2012 VW GLI, which can be bought in your new, higher, price range. You have to drive this sedan to appreciate it. I'd buy one in a heartbeat if I were in the market for a low priced sporty sedan.

The April car issue of Consumer Reports must be out by now. This issue is a must for new, and used, car buyers. If you stick with their recommended models, you can't go too far wrong.

One thing to keep in mind about Mazdas is that warranty service is awful. Whenever we took our 5 in for warranty repairs, even when there was a specific part that needed replacement (not just a generic/vague "it's making a funny sound" or "it's starting to drive sluggish" complaint), my local dealer never had the needed/requested part in stock and wouldn't order it in advance. I'd always have to come back a second time for the repair after their service department confirmed that a specific bulb in the dash really was burned out as I told them or that yes indeed the passenger door lock slide had broken off. It really pissed me off when they'd say "We'll see what needs repairing" - I'd respond "No, don't tell me you'll take a a look at it and figure out what is wrong and THEN order the part - I'm telling you the exact part that is broken - no need for you to 'look at it.' Order the part now so you'll have it when I bring the car in for the appointment." This was really infuriating, having to waste so much time taking the car in to the dealership twice for every repair, especially when they refused to order a *(&^$! $3 light bulb in advance and I told them I would go ballistic on them if they made me bring the car back twice because they were too damn cheap to order a $3 part in advance. The dealer's service manager found out I was indeed a man of my word about that light bulb. I've never heard of other dealerships failing to order parts in advance like this - whenever we've had an issue with our Volkswagen, the VW service department had our car back to us that same day, fixed and never asked us to come back a second time after they got around to ordering the parts.

Another Mazda dealership told me that Mazda has just one parts supply facility nationally, unlike other manufacturers that have several regionally for quicker shipping, and also told me that Mazda is pretty draconian with their parts policy, so that dealerships don't keep parts in stock and have to order them specifically for each repair. When I wrote a lengthy letter to Mazda USA complaining about my local dealer's service department and asking them to honor a warranty outside of the mileage because I brought a problem to my dealer's attention within the warranty period (bad wheel bearings) but they "couldn't replicate or diagnose the problem" (their standard response to almost any request for a warranty repair) until a few thousand miles later after the warranty expired, they never responded. I called Mazda customer service and was told someone would get back to me, but they never did. I called back and after spending over an hour altogether on the phone and demanding to talk to a manager, Mazda USA refused to do anything about either the bad sevice I had received or about honoring the warranty on the wheel bearing issue. So much for customer good will - I doubt I will ever buy another Mazda again.

The perfect compact car would be exactly 50% Elantra, 50% Mazda 3. The Elantra has a much nicer exterior design, much nicer, more modern and well-built interior compared to the 3's bland econocar interior, plus the Elantra is a more solidly built car (quality of the controls and instruments, the solidity of the door when it closes, the overall feel on the road) and has a lot more rear seat room for passengers. It also has the superior warranty. The 3, though, feels quite a bit quicker and actually is a quicker car, plus its steering and suspension are responsive and sporty, unlike the Elantra's very sloppy steering (making a turn at a typical intersection, you find yourself turning and turning the wheel when with a 3 or VW or a more sporty car, you'd have completed the turn already) and too-cushy suspension that makes it drive very much like your aunt's big old Buick.

I've looked at and driven pretty much everything in the segment except a Forte (just looks too cheap), a Sentra (damn odd looking) and a Corolla (who wants a snoozemobile with a decade-old design?). Unfortunately, there's no inexpensive compact car that does everything right - they all have significant downsides. The two sportiest cars to drive in the class, the 3 and the Focus, both have cheap, thin-and-tinny econocar feels to them. The Mitsubishi Lancer is probably the next quickest and sportiest compact car, but it gets mediocre mileage and has a pretty mediocre interior. The Impreza, with its AWD, might be the best compromise in the class - it does come with paddle shifters on the automatic.

I prefer Mazda 3. It's really powerful.

saladdin said:   Got a 2012 Sonata 2 months ago, mpg is averaging 33 after 3K miles. What mileage you getting?

I'm getting 27 with the eco button on. But my former car was a 6 cylinder VW Passat and got 26 with the same route and driver. I was hoping for 33 actually.

I test drove an Elantra Limited, a Sonata Limited, and a Camry SE yesterday. Ran out of time and didn't get to Mazda.

The Elantra was fine, drove well, but the dash and features felt a little on the cheap side. Still, there wasn't anything really disagreeable about it. The Sonata was nice and I like the features of the Limited but unfortunately the GTS is at the limits of what I can afford. And I don't think I'd be happy with that. I liked the bigger engine, and the way the Limited handled, though.

The Camry was the winner of the night. Toyota interiors are nicer than Hyundai interiors. And the features were laid out a little better. The ride was smoother and it just felt better to drive. Price-wise, I found out there are a few features which require that you have other features installed, so that results in a higher price than my target price. So I still have to figure out how I can make the numbers work. I let the Toyota salesperson run an intial set of numbers by me... and yeah, I'm definitely wanting to deal with the Internet Sales dept. The salesguy and his manager tried giving me MSRP numbers with very little adjustment. Uh... no. Insulting much? Oh well, nothing I didn't know about that particular dealership. I came up with an excuse and bailed, and didn't continue negotiating. I will probably take a little time to see if May will bring any rebates or incentives for Camrys. The financing deal Toyota is offering now isn't much use to me since I can get a better deal from my credit union. A rebate (in addition to the Edmunds one) would definitely be very welcome.

In the meantime, I will try to set aside some time to drive a Mazda 3.

I have/had Camry V6, Sienna V6, 4 Runner V6, Lexus RS 300 V6, Civic, Sentra, Acura Integra, Accord(4 cy), AMC Concord, Toyota and Nissan pickups in my last 30 yrs, I still like Honda the best for handling. I don't like Toyota on breaking, always took longer distance to stop? The long distance driving was the best with Camry. Overall I vote Honda Accord.

lithdoc said:   May be off topic, but I'd go with Ford Focus. Better looks, newer design, much better quality interior, better gas mileage, same price. As a plus, it is designed and built in USA.
How is this a plus ?!