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Mazda 3 vs Kia Cerato

What's the difference?

VS
Mazda 3
Mazda 3

2024 price

Kia Cerato
Kia Cerato

$17,990 - $36,999

2022 price

Summary

2024 Mazda 3
2022 Kia Cerato
Safety Rating

Engine Type
Inline 4, 2.5L

Turbo 4, 1.6L
Fuel Type
-

Unleaded Petrol
Fuel Efficiency
6.6L/100km (combined)

6.9L/100km (combined)
Seating
5

5
Dislikes
  • Small boot
  • Gloomy rear seat
  • No more manual

  • Harsh ride quality
  • Unrefined, noisy cabin
  • Ageing interior design
2024 Mazda 3 Summary

Half a decade on, the current-generation Mazda 3 has weathered a world of change.

Cheap cars have vanished. Electric vehicles are commonplace and the small car class it belongs to has been decimated by SUVs. Big names like the Ford Focus, Holden Astra and Mitsubishi Lancer are history.

But while it looks identical to the car unveiled at the 2018 LA Auto Show, today’s Mazda 3 has also evolved, albeit gently.

Let’s see how competitive the latest and improved (as well as more expensive) version is.

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Interested in a Mazda 3?
2022 Kia Cerato Summary

Three years after the fourth-generation Cerato small car rolled into Australian dealerships, Kia launched a mid-life facelift for the sedan and hatch range in mid-2021.

It ushered in styling tweaks including new headlights and Kia’s new logo, as well as more safety tech and a multimedia upgrade.

At the top of the range sits the warmed-up Cerato GT. It’s not quite Hyundai i30 N-level performance, more i30 N-Line. In other words, more than enough performance to keep most people satisfied and enough poke to get away quickly at the lights.

But is the updated version of Kia’s Cerato trying to be something it’s not, or is it a performance bargain?

Read on to find out.

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Interested in a Kia Cerato?

Deep dive comparison

2024 Mazda 3 2022 Kia Cerato

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