Through Ian's Lens: 2010 Mazda3

As I left the 2009 Los Angeles auto show early last Friday morning, I couldn’t get the completely redesigned 2010 Mazda3 out of my head. Mazda is at the top of its game with redesigns of both the Mazda6 and the Mazda3 blazing a trail for their entire lineup to look uniform and sophisticated, without being almost identical and boring (sorry Porsche). The radical new look Mazda is putting into the headlights, front grilles, taillights and rear ends of their new Mazda6 and Mazda3 has taken the full-size and midsize sedans on a much needed turn in terms of design direction.

The use of similar lines along the hood, similar headlight assemblies and similar fender contours give the Mazda3 a look of upscale nobility, while retaining an individual appearance when looking at the car in its entirety.

Please leave your remarks in the comments section; a full set of photos is below. Feel free to use the full-screen mode on the photo browser.

Comments

[ken]

when looking at the car's front end, dead on, the mazda 3 looks like it's smiling too wide. i am a fan of the mazda 3, and agree that mazda is great at making affordable sporty cars.

but the front smiles too much, and belies the fun to drive nature of the car.

i'm looking forward to the 2011 to modify that clownish smile or 2012/13 for a mild refreshening.

it is great that the s trim gets the same engine as the base mazda 6. same engine, but a smaller car and lighter weight means great things.

[altspace]

I'm sorry to say, major design fail. What works in style on one car, does not on others. Mazda simply tried to hard in this case to bring more of the new RX-8 sports styling into their lineup.

[Jason]

I have to agree to a point. I think the front grille does look a bit big. However, it does not bother me as much as others. I can see myself getting used to it very quickly. Assuming it still comes it black, a black or very dark color will blend nicely with the large grille.

Some other observations: it looks like the aluminum dash "tunnels" are no longer covered. Will sunlight reflect off of them?

I don't see a key slot for the trunk. The opening on the bumper cover suggests it works like the hatchback with the key fob. When I bought my 2004 Mazda3 hatchback, I was surprised that there is only one door lock for a car with five doors.

Either the ashtray is much smaller, or there are no ashtrays.

[noodle]

I strongly dislike mazdas and find this model to be their worst. Ugly.

[noodle]

and really... porsche and mazda in the same paragraph? Let alone talking smack about porsche and praising mazda. seriously?

[Jason]

Out of curiosity, noodle, what do you drive and what do you dislike about Mazdas?

[noodle]

Okay... Okay... I'm a little biased... Being raised by a German Belgian who has always driven mercedes (as his father did)... And I drive an Audi... So that explains my Porsche comments... But I am not an anti-non-german engineering snob... I just don't like mazda... I think Nissan does a better job at doing what Mazda does... So does Subaru... Not sure exactly what is a about Mazda... They look like toys to me... And this one grill makes it really tough to take it seriously

[3er]

I love the Mazda 3 platform, and I think the styling of this new model is fantastic - except that grille. I just can't get over how "cheap" and "econo-boxy" this car looks when viewed head-on. I thought the old Mazda 3 grille was very well-done, but this one will prohibit me from buying one or two new Mazda 3's for my wife and I. For some colors, it looks like the grille is missing -- I just watched Motorweek, where they drove a blue Mazda 3 around. The black hole in the front of the car made it look like they forgot to put on the front fascia. Maybe some third parties will come out with a grille insert that will fill that gaping hole.

[MoKay]

My husband and I have purchased 7 Mazdas in the 13 years he and I have been married and prior to I was the Mazda owner. We LOVE Mazda and have been EXTREMELY happy with the brand and the company over the years. We purchased a 2006 MazdaSPEED6 and we had some problems with it (it spent more time in the shop than our driveway) we sent a letter to Mazda explaining our problems with the car, but our love for the brand and next thing we know (within a week of sending the letter) we got a phone call from MazdaUSA informing us that, if it was our wish, Mazda would buy the car back from us along with a financial incentive to us on the next purchase of a Mazda. I believe that they treated as best as they possibly could and I couldn't imagine buying from another company based on that alone! I currently own a Mazda3 and my husband has a SPEED3 we LOVE them!!! I am seriously considering trading my 3 in on this 2010 3 - love the built-in bluetooth option AND the sportier look!

[oprina]

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