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Car #1
Make
Model
Variant
Engine
Car #2
Make
Model
Variant
Engine

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2009. - 2013.
C - Small family car
hatchback, 5 door
front
Badges
Production
Vehicle class
Body style
Wheel drive
Safety
2007. - 2011.
C - Small family car
hatchback, 5 door
4 x 4

Marketing

Dimensons & Outlines

4460 mm
1755 mm
1470 mm
340 liters
1360 liters
55 liters
Length
Width
Height
Boot (min)
Boot (max)
Fuel tank
4415 mm
1740 mm
1475 mm
301 liters
1216 liters
60 liters
2009 Mazda 3
2007 Subaru Impreza

Engine

Petrol
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Turbo
2261 cc
260 hp
380 Nm
Engine
Fuel
Configuration
Aspiration
Displacement
Power
Torque
Subaru
2.5 EJ255
Petrol
4 - Boxer, 4 valves per cylinder
Turbo
2457 cc
230 hp
320 Nm

Performance (manual gearbox)

manual gearbox - 6 gears
1360 kg
6.1 s
250 km/h
13.2 l/100km
7.5 l/100km
9.6 l/100km
224 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
manual gearbox - 6 gears
1395 kg
6.5 s
209 km/h
14.3 l/100km
8.2 l/100km
10.4 l/100km
246 g/km

Performance (automatic gearbox)

 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km

Expenses

5100 EUR
Price from
4600 EUR

Virtual Adviser's™ opinion

Overview

Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by petrol engines and utilizing the 5-door hatchback body style within the same 'Small family car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (front for the Mazda and 4 x 4 in the case of the Subaru). The first one has a Mazda-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 260hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 230hp engine designed by Subaru.

Safety

Both vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the Mazda being a slightly better choice apparently. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. Both vehicles belong to the small family car segment, which is generally classifying them somewhere in the middle safety-wise, still it doesn't help us solve our dilemma, does it? On the other hand, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, Impreza offers a marginal difference of 3% more metal.

Reliability

Reliability is not the best thing to consider on the make level, but it is worth mentioning that Mazda does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. That's the official data, while our visitors describe reliability of Mazda with an average rating of 4.4, and models under the Subaru badge with 4.2 out of 5. Some independent research have also placed 3 as average reliability-wise, and Impreza is more or less at the same level.Above it all, drivers of cars with the same engine as Mazda 3 rank it on average as 4.7, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.0 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

Mazda is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.4 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 250 kilometers per hour, 41km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be Mazda 3, averaging around 9.6 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (29 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 8% difference compared to Impreza.


Verdict

Mazda appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Mazda 3 offers slightly better overall protection and takes the lead. It all continues in the same direction, with Mazda offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. To make things even better, it consumps less fuel! All together, there's not much more to say, in this case I wouldn't even consider anything but Mazda. Anyway, that's the most objective conclusion I could've came up with and it's based solely on the information found on this website. Aspects such as design, practicality, brand value and driving experience are there for you to measure them out. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.

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