Mazda 3 Turbo is one of the most exciting cars in Mazda’s lineup, offering both practicality and sporty performance. While Mazda has always built fun-to-drive cars, the 3 Turbo takes it a step further—but it’s missing one key feature that could make it a legendary hot hatch.
Amongst its lineup, one vehicle comes exceedingly close to blending practicality and excitement: the Mazda three rapid premium Plus. With 250 horsepower and preferred AWD, it has the electricity and grip to deliver a exciting ride. Yet, it falls simply brief of hot hatch greatness—because Mazda determined no longer to provide it with a manual transmission.
The only missing ingredient
Positive, the six-velocity automatic is smooth and convenient; however, it robs the Mazda 3 of a number of its carrying capacity. At the same time as competitors like the Volkswagen Golf GTI or Golf R have sportier dual-grab systems, Mazda sticks to a traditional computerized—even inside the turbocharged variety-topper.
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It’s frustrating because the guide transmission continues to be available in other Mazda 3 trims, just no longer paired with the 2.5-liter engine. If it had been, this hatchback ought to without difficulty end up a pinnacle contender within the warm hatch segment.
Mazda 3 Engine Lineup
- Version Engine power Torque 0-60 mph
- 2.5 S 2.5L I4 186 hp 186 lb-ft 7.0–7.5sec
- 2.5 faster 2.5L faster I4 250 hp 320 lb-feet 5.6 sec
The bottom 2.5-liter is nimble for city riding; however, if you need pleasure, the faster trim is where the amusing starts. Just make certain to top off with premium 93 octane, or electricity drops to 227 hp and 310 lb-ft with ordinary 87 octane gas.
Manual Mazda 3: still fun?
Simply. The manual 2.5-liter model—to be had best on the top-class trim—is really exciting. Rowing your personal gears keeps the engine active and corners sharp. Positive, it’s FWD most effective, but the electricity is conceivable, and a bit of tire screeching out of tight corners is conventional hot hatch behavior.
Sadly, the guide is not presented on the bottom $25,550 trim, which could have made it a far greater accessible overall performance choice. Because it stands, it’s fun, but now not pretty mythical.
Manual hot Hatch alternatives
In case you’re craving a manual hatch with serious punch, some options stand out:
- Honda Civic type R (2025) – 2.0L faster I4, 315 hp, 5.0 sec 0-60, base MSRP $45,895
- Honda Civic Si (2025) – 1.5L faster I4, 2 100 hp, mid-6-2nd 0-60, base MSRP $32,000
- Toyota GR Corolla (2025) – 1.5L turbo I3, 300 hp, 5.0 sec 0-60, base MSRP $40,355
All of those supply serious thrills, however if Mazda introduced a guide to the faster 3, it may effortlessly undercut the competition at the same time as supplying an unequalled balance of overall performance and ordinary usability.
Final Thoughts
The Mazda 3 turbo has all of the substances for a super hot hatch: sharp handling, AWD grip, and masses of energy. It simply wishes one small tweak: a guide transmission alternative for the turbo trim. Upload that, and Mazda should have a mythical warm hatch that’s speedy, amusing, and tremendously sensible.
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