differences between the sedan and hatch

[kickniteasy]

Ok, first off, I swear I did a search for this and couldn't find anything close to what I was looking for. I apologize is this has been gone over, as it seems like the type of thing that would have already been asked. Basically I wanted the differences between the 3 hatch and seda beyond aesthetics. Are they the same car with different looks or is there some differences throughout such as suspension set up, etc.?

 

[_jp]

i drove the 3 hatch and it felt the same as my 3i 2.0 5spd. the 2.3 felt like the biggest difference. the 2.0 3 4dr is kind of a slug. but i bought the 4 dr for mpg, the ms for fun.

dont get me wrong, the 4 dr 3 is great. i drive it 5-6 days a week and basically bought it to run the thing into the ground for work and road trips. the hwy ride is on par with my 02 protege 2.0 i had back in the day. its not overly harsh or anything. the suspension is surprising in country corners and is responsive to a point. i really cant wait to drop it and put some lighter wheels other than the 17" snowflakes. with some lite wheels and some mods i think it will be more fun for a dd. 30+mpg for a fun dd with style sold me.

from looking on the lot it looks like the same stuff but that was just looking past the wheels on both on a lot. the 3 hatch with the 2.3 might have some different springs to compensate for the engine difference. i dont know if the 2.3 block is heaver than the 2.0 but i assume so. heavy would = different springs and maybe some other steering stuff??