Brrrr! How are people keeping their feet warm in a 2014 Mazda 3?

[WildMidwest]

I test drove two '14 MZ3s yesterday: an iTouring automatic hatch and a sGrandTouring auto hatch. Neither car produced adequate heat to keep my feet from freezing in the 10F temp. The iTouring ran for approximately twenty minutes before the cabin became somewhat warm (50s), but my feet never thawed out. The car just didn't put enough warmth where my toes were. The sGT cabin warmed up a little faster but my feet remained equally cold as in the iTouring.

For reference, +10F was a major thaw from our previous -20F (-45 wind chills) we were having earlier this week. By comparison my 2000 Corolla does a decent job of keeping my feet warm after 5-7 minutes of driving in 10F weather, and my wife's 2003 Mazda MPV is toasty warm in under five minutes. I don't think my feet would have felt any warmer in the MZ3 after driving it an hour. My buns were roasting on the sGT's heated seats while my feet remained ice blocks. My wife felt the same way in her passenger seat. It was miserable.

Can anybody else comment about cold feet in the 3? It was really uncomfortable wearing casual shoes in that icebox.

What are people doing to keep their feet warm in a 3, other than wearing heavy boots & boot warmers? This seems like a major discomfort of the car which nobody seems to have mentioned here before.

What use are roasted buns when your dogs are icicles?

 

[Poco Askew]

No problem here but not as cold. We were around 20 degrees. Did you have the heater set to "feet"?
I do find the 3 a little slower to warm up than our other cars. The heater doesn't do much for the first 5 minutes, or so.
Cold feet is not at all an issue for me.

 

[WildMidwest]

OK, on further reflection maybe I should rephrase my question (second paragraph below). First a brief test drive summary: I found the MZ3 to be a compelling ride in many ways. I really like that Mazda acknowledges manual transmission drivers as a market segment worth keeping. Though no MTs were available on my local lot, at least I know I can get one. No longer do gearbox rowers have to content ourselves with base model cars in the 2.0 L engine. (Mazda, where's that 2.5L MT???) MZ3's automatic transmission was very good for an automatic, but paddle shifting an auto is just no substitute for a good MT. The third generation 3 is a significant step up from the 2nd gen MZ3 in interior cabin design and IHSS crash test results. Gone are the silly Zoom-Zoom instrument cluster LED and the stupid smiley face front. The new 3 is less punishing on my backside over potholes versus the second generation 3. Downsides to the new 3: I found the column mounted EPS steering slightly less road-connected than the previous model; the heads-up display was totally worthless (at 6 foot tall, I couldn't adjust it upward enough to see the HUD without slouching or lowering my seat); and rear visibility was MUCH WORSE than I recalled from test driving the second generation 3. This car now absolutely requires a backup camera, whereas the previous MZ3 MIGHT have been OK without one. I didn't turn on the audio or mess with the Infotainment system... others have already written plenty about the electronics.

Rephrased question: Does anybody know of a safe-and-reliable aftermarket automotive feet warmer? A web search did not identify any products for vehicles, and I don't know how easy it would be to retrofit this type of product for automotive use:

http://www.target.com/p/electric-fo...0803386#prodSlot=medium_1_21&term=foot+warmer

If I can't solve the cold feet problem, I'm going to have to scratch the MZ3 off my shopping list. That probably means ending up with one of the Ford hatchbacks (Focus ST or Fiesta ST). There's much to love about the regular Focus, but I don't like Ford's consumer segment transmissions. The 6MT in the Focus ST is totally compelling. I wish MPGs were better on Ford's ST line, and also distance per tank-fill. MPG is where Mazda steals the show for MT daily-drivers cars.

 

[WildMidwest]

Poco, yes the heater was set to "feet", but we just didn't feel much heat coming out. It may be that there's insufficient insulation around the feet, or the duct work is too small, or something else. Again, my 1.8 L Corolla belches warm air onto my feet. There's no reason why a 2.0 or 2.5L shouldn't do just as well.

 

[Ki||ian]

Once mine warms up I actually have to turn the heat DOWN cause it gets too hot. Could be the break-in period but also it can take a while for it to get to the right operating temps. I have the iT so no fancy digital controls.

 

[GasSaver14]

The heat is a little on the low side, and the car takes A bit to warm up.
I'm guesing it might be due to the high compression and using 87 octane gas. Mazda might be keeping the car cooler to reduce knocking.
It seems to work well on longer trips but I do freeze my ass off on short trips.

 

[npaladin2000]

One thing I have noticed is the car is relatively slow to warm up. I usually have to get it 15 minutes of running in cold weather before the blue light goes off. Luckily the seat heaters warm MUCH faster.

 

[Sean O'Gorman]

Really? My car heats up in no time, and that's coming from someone who was previously daily driving an RX-8, which has a cat that gets to 1,300 degrees in like, a matter of minutes. I'll have the knob set halfway between full floor and floor/defrost, and it's mostly fine. I drove in as low as -11 F this week.

The only odd thing to me recently was that on that particular day, about 10 miles into my drive, the blue temp light came back *on*. Coolant temps were about 140-145 at that point. Damn it was cold.

 

[WildMidwest]

Really? My car heats up in no time, and that's coming from someone who was previously daily driving an RX-8, which has a cat that gets to 1,300 degrees in like, a matter of minutes. I'll have the knob set halfway between full floor and floor/defrost, and it's mostly fine. I drove in as low as -11 F this week.

The only odd thing to me recently was that on that particular day, about 10 miles into my drive, the blue temp light came back *on*. Coolant temps were about 140-145 at that point. Damn it was cold.

It's good to hear other people don't experience cold feet in the 3. I commute five miles to work and by the time I get there my Corolla is plenty warm. Not sure the MZ3 will be as good in short commute warm-up. Having a toasty butt in the GrandTouring only made my feet more noticeably uncomfortable by comparison. I didn't think to check coolant temps in the dealer's car. Is that info visible on the LCD display?

The 3's minimalistic gauge cluster is a negative for me but a postivie feature for some reviewers. I strongly prefer the Focus ST gauges. Obviously no Boost needle is needed in the 3.

 

[npaladin2000]

A 5 minute commute is not going to be long enough for the car to get to proper operating, temperature, especially in cold weather. Frankly I did that to my first Mazda3 and I think that's what ended up killing the engine at 74k miles. Basically you're running a cold engine the whole time.

I love my Mazda3, but it might not be the best choice for you in that situation. Though honestly most cars don't get up to operating temperature in that period of time, but some engines are more tolerant (read: "primitive" heh) than others.

 

[brandini]

Until the cold light goes off mke sure to turn the fan off and set it to recirculate to help let the coolant warm up faster. Also keep the revs at at least double idle but below 3.5k when moving.

 

[WildMidwest]

A 5 minute commute is not going to be long enough for the car to get to proper operating, temperature, especially in cold weather. Frankly I did that to my first Mazda3 and I think that's what ended up killing the engine at 74k miles. Basically you're running a cold engine the whole time.

I love my Mazda3, but it might not be the best choice for you in that situation. Though honestly most cars don't get up to operating temperature in that period of time, but some engines are more tolerant (read: "primitive" heh) than others.

Most of my present driving is not to/from work. I used to commute 90+ minutes a day until last year but I now enjoy local employment better. Most people change jobs periodically and predicting future employment is difficult. It's best to have a reliable, comfortable, higher MPG car that will work in various scenarios.

 

[GasSaver14]

I have to think I have drove A variety of different cars. My car takes about double the warm up time than I'm used to. Maybe Mazda has changed the thermostats on some models. I do find it odd that some people do not notice a longer than average warm up time.

 

[snowblazin]

I've noticed my 3 takes a significant amount of time to warm up as well. I had it running for 15 minutes before I left work the other day and the blue light was still on. Granted the real feel was around -10 but the Subaru never took that long. Also, the heated seats have been a disappointment. It takes forever for them to get warm and when they finally are up to temp, I can actually feel exactly where the heating elements are and aren't. It doesn't warm the entire area like in previous cars. Minor complaint but something I've noticed nonetheless.

 

[WildMidwest]

I wasn't paying enough attention to my bottom to notice individual heating elements: I was having too much fun driving the car, playing with paddle shifters, etc. But cold feet detracted from my test drive enough to start a thread about it.

Slow warmup times may not be a frequent issue here since we don't have subzero temperatures many days in SE Wisconsin . Even 0-10 degrees is uncommon, say fifteen to twenty days / year. It might only become annoying during a colder than usual winter. If the consensus is most people don't suffer cold feet, I can decide to wear warm boots for those 15-20 cold days. Feet will probably be OK the rest of the year.

 

[WildMidwest]

Regarding minor annoyances, MZ3 lacks a couple irritations of the Ford Focus: the center stack impinging on my right knee, and a poorly located dash hatch release. I rented a Focus SE hatchback for a 30 day cross country trip last summer. There wasn't a day when I didn't swear at the car at least once for either the center stack rubbing my right knee or the hatch opening inadvertently (or both). By the end of the month I had a nice callus on my lateral right knee and I had learned to be ever-so-careful about entering the car not to trigger the hatch release. Come on Ford! -- These are Design 101 mistakes. Lots of Ford Focus drivers complain about this.

Another annoyance both the Focus and MZ3 share is a fat driver's side A-pillar. The A-pillar becomes a visual distraction when you're on mountain or canyon switchbacks, especially when there's dense forest inside the turn. I had to put my head out the window on left hairpins many times to avoid blind spot related collisions with poorly seen oncoming cars. This seems like a significant safety lapse. Manufacturers need to find a way to make the A-pillar narrower. I'm sure it can be done using thicker high-tensile steel reshaped so the pillar is not so wide. My Corolla's A-pillar has never been a problem, nor most other rental cars I've driven.

So there is no perfect car... only what you can tolerate. Cold feet is probably less irritating than having to drive switchbacks with my head out the window. (Sadly, there are not many switchbacks in SE Wisconsin.)

 

[WildMidwest]

You must be a tall guy as we short people don't seem to have that knee rubbing problem. I believe the reason the A-pillars are so wide is that they contain airbags....

I didn't know that's where the airbags were located. I wish they would put them somewhere less distracting. When a safety feature interferes with visibility....

I am 6 feet tall and shrinking. The knee-rubbing Ford Focus central console is just too wide for comfort. On a lowly Focus SE the console didn't seem to contain much equipment. I expect Ford made it wide to accommodate large LCD screens. Once you build up a callus it's not too painful. Some strategically placed adhesive moleskin might help. None of this is an issue on the 2014 Mazda 3 which has plenty of knee room regardless of package & trim. Hooray for Mazda!

 

[GasSaver14]

I didn't know that's where the airbags were located. I wish they would put them somewhere less distracting. When a safety feature interferes with visibility....

I am 6 feet tall and shrinking. The knee-rubbing Ford Focus central console is just too wide for comfort. On a lowly Focus SE the console didn't seem to contain much equipment. I expect Ford made it wide to accommodate large LCD screens. Once you build up a callus it's not too painful. Some strategically placed adhesive moleskin might help. None of this is an issue on the 2014 Mazda 3 which has plenty of knee room regardless of package & trim. Hooray for Mazda!

At 5'8" the mazda 3 fits like a glove no problems with the knees.

 

[N0B0DY]

I noticed the car taking much longer to warm up during this cold spell. The car normally starts getting some heat after about a mile of driving and gets too hot once I'm driving on the highway for a few minutes. I would have to turn it down to the midway point. I do agree that the 3 takes longer to heat up and produce really hot air.

 

[WildMidwest]

At 5'8" the mazda 3 fits like a glove no problems with the knees.

I agree. The MZ3 driver's space is well thought out. This is not an ideal 5-person commuter vehicle, so anyone with a frequent need to transport adults in the back should probably consider a different vehicle. Ditto Ford Focus. Hyundia Elantra GT is more comfortable for rear passengers and it has better designed fold-down rear seats, but I don't like Hyundai's business model or their reputation for poor quality components. Twist-beam rear suspension on the North American Elantra GT (vs. independent rear suspension for Europe) speaks volumes about Hyundai's willingness to compromise quality. MZ3's rear suspension feels much tighter to me, though it's not in the same league as the Focus ST.

We have another "polar vortex" headed our way. I wonder if it will clarify the "cold feet" question?