2018 Mazda 3 vs Subaru Impreza

What's the difference?

The 3 is a terrific car and continues to improve with every yearly update, however minor. The uplift in the Neo Sport may not look like $1000 worth, but having that proper screen and reversing camera - along with standard AEB - starts to make sense over time.

In 2017, I said the pick of the range was the Maxx and I still reckon the Maxx Sport is the one to go for - it has a good package of safety equipment and a sensible spec list, without the frippery of the increasingly oddly priced Touring. The not-that-much-more SP25 is similarly specified, but only worth it if you want the extra power. Not everyone does.

The new i30 and forthcoming new Corolla are giving the Mazda3 more of a hurry-up these days, especially in price and spec but the i30 now has the driving dynamics to go with it. And with the Kia Cerato rapidly closing in, every little bit of competition is making the 3 a better car than before.

And it's still by far the best-looking car in the segment. For many, that's what will tip them over the edge.

If there's a small car that can reverse the SUV trend, it's the Impreza 2.0i-S. If feels solid, polished and well-equipped, and it's easy on the eye to boot. Who needs a tall-riding bus when you can enjoy driving one of these?

The 3's exterior design is still a winner to my eyes. Based on Mazda's Kodo design language, it looks great in just about any colour and the company's commitment to beautiful paint some years ago is still paying dividends.

It's a lovely, flowing design that looks best in the sedan and few cars in the segment are as genuinely pretty. About the closest you'll get for commitment to design is the Alfa Giulietta.

As you climb the range, the detailing in items like the lights and brightwork mark out the spec level, with additions like chrome exhaust tips and LED daytime running lights.

The range is available in seven colours - 'Sonic Silver', 'Jet Black', 'Deep Crystal Blue', 'Titanium Flash' (a sort of bronzey brown), 'Snowflake White' and 'Eternal Blue'. Mazda continues to be absurdly generous and offer those colours as no-cost options. 'Machine Grey' and 'Soul Red Crystal' (this one is a ripper) are a still-reasonable $300.

Unlike previous versions, there's no yellow or purple paint available.

Inside is well-executed but is a bit grey and drab, especially in the lower-spec versions. I recently drove a Touring with contrasting colour panels in the doors, but it was a deep rich red that barely stood out from the grey. 

Some touches, such as satin silver dash parts, do lift the colour a little but it's fairly nondescript. Mazda also persists with the frustrating single-dial-with-wings dashboard that I really don't like very much. Still, few others complain, so it's probably just me.

It’s a clean, polished and simple design, the Impreza, and we even think it's a rare case of the sedan looking better than the hatch.

Viewed front on, the combination of a stretched-looking grille and fog lights perched in the furthest lower corners gives the Subaru a low-and-wide look, while the big 18-inch alloys and side skirtings lend the Impreza a premium, Euro-style feel.

And while plenty of Japanese manufacturers take a decidedly busy approach to interior design, the Impreza’s cabin is refreshingly understated, with a handful of design flourishes (a layered effect on the glovebox, the mix of materials used on the dash, the faux-carbonfibre splashes on the door trims) tempered by a simple, clean and functional interior design. 

The twin-screen setup looks fantastic, with the main screen dedicated to controlling your phone and key functions, and a second, smaller screen perched above that can handle navigation instructions or the car’s safety systems.

The 3 comes in two body styles - four-door sedan and five-door hatchback. The most popular is the shorter hatch, despite the loss of luggage capacity. The different boot space dimensions deliver 308 litres in the hatch while the sedan has 408 litres. For load capacity, the sedan is the clear winner.

The hatch's boot size isn't exactly a world-beater but it does feature a cargo cover to hide your valuables.

The interior dimensions are unchanged, meaning good if not outstanding rear leg room. The cabins are basically the same, so if you refer to our interior images, you'll note only minor differences.

The cup-holder count differs depending on which specification you choose. The Neo Sport has just two, for the front passengers. In the rest of the range there are two up front and two in the rear, with bottle holders in each door as backups. Some models feature extra storage space for books or devices but there's no sunglass holder until you reach the Touring.

The turning circle is a fairly standard 10.6 metres, so most suburban streets need a three-point-turn manoeuvre. Park assist is limited to beepers and the reversing camera.

Ground clearance when unladen is 160mm, so all but the steepest driveways won't present a challenge, but going off road is not on the menu. Kerb weights range from 1258kg for a Mazda3 manual Neo to 1336kg for an auto Astina.

Gross vehicle weight ranges from 1800kg to 1875kg.

The Impreza - like the Mazda3 and the Hyundai i30 - asks some hard questions of the small SUV crowd, serving up more interior space and practicality perks than its smaller, high-riding competition.

Inside, the front seats are big, wide and comfortable, and two power sources and a total four USB points (two in the central bin, two more in the storage space under the main screen), make for simple phone connections. There’s two cupholders up front, as well as room for bottles in each of the front doors. 

There’s plenty of space for backseat riders, too, with at least 20cm of clear air between my knees and the seat in front (behind my own 5ft-8-inch driving position), and there’s ample head room on offer.

A pulldown seat divider that separates the backseat is home to two cupholders, and there's bottle storage in the rear doors. Sadly there are no rear vents, and with no USB or power outlets, you'll be plugging your phones into the central storage bin. 

The boot opens to reveal a 460-litre space, with a space-saver spare hidden beneath a flat-load shelf.

The most expensive version of Subaru’s Impreza - the 2.0i-S - will set you back a not-insignificant $33,050 in sedan guise, with the hatch version costing $200 more.

That’s about on-par with the more premium members of the small-car segment (the top-spec Mazda3, for example, hovers around $35k), and you predictably want for little in the Impreza 2.0i-S.

Outside, expect 18-inch alloy wheels, a powered sunroof, auto-wipers, proximity unlocking and LED self-levelling headlights. Inside, you’ll find leather seats, push-button start, sat-nav and dual-zone climate control.

On the tech front, an Apple CarPlay/Android Auto-equipped 8.0-inch LCD touchscreen pairs with a six-speaker stereo, plus there’s the usual swag of Bluetooth and voice control features.

There’s also an impressively comprehensive safety suite on offer, but we’ll drill down on that  under the Safety sub-heading.

There are two engine specs in the 3 range. Both are equipped with Mazda's 'i-Stop' stop-start technology but goes without the 6's 'i-Eloop' regenerative braking battery charging tech. Every model comes with a choice of gearbox, either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic. The automatic is a traditional auto rather than the dual-clutch you might find in a Golf.

Both engines run on standard unleaded, use a standard oil type. Oil capacity is model dependent, and can be found in the owners manual. An oft-asked question is whether the 'SkyActiv' engine uses a timing belt or chain - we can report the engines are both chain-driven.

The Neo Sport, Maxx Sport and Touring all come with the 2.0-litre SkyActiv with 114kW and 200Nm of torque.

The SP25, SP25 GT and SP25 Astina are, as the name suggests, equipped with the larger 2.5-litre motor which churns out 138kW (almost exactly 200 brake horsepower in the old money) and 250Nm.

Towing capacity is rated at 1200kg braked and 600kg unbraked regardless of engine size.

The diesel vs petrol argument has long since been settled with the demise of the punchy but not particularly popular XD. So you won't have to worry about a diesel particulate filter replacement any more. There is no LPG or turbo sport edition, like the unruly old MPS3 performance car.

Performance figures vary between the two engines - the SP25 auto should complete the 0-100km/h acceleration test in just under eight seconds, with the 2.0-litre cracking it in around nine seconds. The manuals will likely be a tenth or so slower.

A 2.0-litre four-cylinder "boxer" engine (meaning the cylinders are horizontally opposed, like two boxers arms going at it) produces 115kW at 6000rpm and 196Nm at 4000rpm. It pairs with a CVT automatic and sends its power to all four wheels (all-wheel drive is a Subaru trademark).

Fuel-consumption figures vary slightly between the models. While the 3 has never been a fuel-economy star, as years have gone by its mileage has improved.

Official figures suggest that the 2.0-litre burns petrol at 5.8L/100km for the auto and 5.9L/100km for the manual, while the 2.5-litre consumes 6.1L/100km for the auto and 6.5L/100km for the manual.

Our own statistics suggest these ratings are a little on the optimistic side, which is no great surprise. We regularly get about 8.0L/100km in the 2.0-litre (a neat 12.5km/l) and around 11L/100km for the 2.5 (around 9km/l).

Fuel-tank capacity is 51 litres, regardless of engine size, and there's no need for premium fuel.

As I've already said, Mazda doesn't offer an oil-burner anymore as diesel fuel economy just isn't the drawcard it used to be.

Subaru claims 7.2 litres per 100km fuel use on the combined cycle. Emissions are pegged at 163g/km of C02.  The Impreza sports a 50-litre fuel tank, and will sip cheaper 90RON fuel.

These days the 3 jostles at the head of the pack for driving dynamics. The MY17 model scored Mazda's new 'G-Vectoring' technology, which subtly sharpened the steering. This, along with tweaks to the front and rear suspension, has delivered a driving experience that is hard to fault. While it would be nice to have a bit more performance (the SP25 is still no fireball), it's fun to drive if you have a bendy road ahead of you.

Most of the time, though, you're in the urban grind and it is here that the 3 excels. The steering is light, accurate and  cleverly geared. The auto is a good one and even in town the light clutch of the manual makes progress easy and unfussed. Forget about the Eco mode, though - it's doughy and slow.

Over the years, Mazdas in general, but in particular the 3, have suffered from poor insulation, resulting in road noise invading the passenger space. 

Past reviews of mine, and many others, will rail against the cabin noise. Things have gotten better and continue to do so. Where in the past occupants would suffer from tyre rumble and a cacophony of suspension noise, particularly from the front, that's no longer the case. 

The noisy suspension issues have been sorted in various ways across the whole Mazda fleet and the 3 is now a much quieter, if not class-leading, proposition. But it does come close.

While the fake watchmakers of the world can perfect almost every tiny detail of that $20,000 Rolex you can pick up for $50 in Thailand, there’s one thing they can’t replicate easily; the weight. Buyers know that heaviness equals quality, and so the watchmakers insert useless pieces of steel hidden behind the watch face so it feels heavy in a buyer’s hand.

Your first impression of the Impreza is one of weighty quality, too, and it doesn’t feel faked. The doors make a satisfying clunk when you shut them (which hasn't always been the case with this car), there’s a heft to the steering and a general sense of quality around the cabin.

The Impreza feels so sorted, so mechanically sound, that you expect it to pounce from the lights with the ferocity of a slightly toned-down WRX. And so it's a little surprising when it plods away from the line, not slow, necessarily, but methodical - a sensation not improved by the slurring CVT gearbox.

And I know that all sounds harsh, but it's also the only real letdown behind the wheel of the Impreza, which feels perfectly put together, with nicely weighted and responsive steering, and a ride that makes you feel constantly connected to what's happening beneath the tyres and is rarely uncomfortable, clanging only over the worst of bumps.

The safety story starts with seven airbags (dual front, front-side, curtain and a driver’s knee bag) and a reversing camera, along with Subaru’s AWD system and the usual suite of traction and braking aids. 

The Impreza 2.0i-S also gets the best of Subaru’s safety technology, including blind-spot monitoring, lane-change assist, rear cross-traffic alert and reverse automatic braking.

Subaru’s EyeSight Assist is also standard fit, which adds adaptive cruise, lane-departure warning, lane-sway warning and AEB that works in both forwards and reverse.

The Impreza scored the maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating when crash tested in 2016.

Mazda offers a three-year/unlimited kilometre warranty, with roadside assist subject to an additional yearly charge. So if you're worried about a flat battery or running out of fuel, the extra $90-$100 per year is a good investment. You can also purchase an extended warranty from your dealer.

Those worried about service costs will be pleased to know Mazda offers capped-price servicing. Your dealer expects to see you every 10,000km or 12 months, whichever comes first, and the prices are listed on the Mazda website, varying slightly between between engine types (by about $30 per service).

The 3 enjoys good resale value, with a check of our price guide suggesting a 2014 Neo will fetch between 65 and 75 per cent on a private sale, suggesting you'll have few issues when you need to shift a second-hand machine.

From what I've seen of older 3s, durability seems pretty good, even when in the hands of people who aren't all that careful with their cars. The 3 seems to suffer from few reliability issues. A quick swing through the usual internet forums uncovered no obvious common faults or defects. A search for automatic transmission problems, injector or transmission failure or other common problems yielded few genuine results. If you keep up with the maintenance, things seem fairly trouble-free for the current 3.

Diesel-engine problems are clearly a thing of the past, with no diesel offered.

Where is the Mazda3 built? An excellent question - all 3s come from Mazda's Japanese factories.

Like all Subarus, the Impreza is covered by a three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, and the 2.0i-S will require a trip to the service centre every 12 months or 12,500km.

Subaru also offers capped-price servicing for the first three years of ownership, totalling $1298.