Mazda 3 mileage

Miller2

Member
Hi all,

I am thinking about trading my gas guzzler F150 for a Mazda 3 hatchback. What kind of real world mileage are you guys getting both highway, city, stop and go etc.. Being in Atlanta with our hellacious traffic I am going to opt for an automatic.
 
my ms3 which is turbo averages 24-27 mpg when i dont go positive boost...when i drive fast and stay on boost i get about 20 or less
 
I've been getting 25-27mpg with mine both hwy and city spirited driving. I dont think I have seen it go below 22. Im impressed thus far.
 
I manage about 22 daily driving around town... That's beating on it pretty hard because it's just so irresistable. Driving on the highway and keeping it civil I can manage upwards of 28. Keep in mind that that's the speed3... I would expect 3-5mpg better on the NA version.
 
The regular 2.3 non turbo I average between 27 to 29 city and 30 to 32 highway.
 
I have the 2.3 GT in manual. It is still pretty new (900 miles) and I am getting 24.5 mpg, according to my computer. I had thought that these things estimated on the high side, but I am going to hand calculate my mpg. By the way, I drive about 60/40 city/hwy.

I think it will improve with more miles on the odometer. Still an improvement over my '07 Wrangler, which averaged 15 mpg!!!
 
this is what i do to calculate. if my computer says 20 miles left on the tank, when i fill up...say 5 gallons, i reset a trip milage counter and when the computer reads 20 miles left on the tank...i divie the miles i traveled by 5 which is the amount of gallons i put in
 
Yes, get the stick. I couldn't find a manual S (i.e. 2.3) anywhere close by. I did test drive the 2.3 auto and the 2.0 stick. I thought that the 2.0 stick was peppier than even the 2.3 auto. Naturally, I ended up getting a 2.3 stick (dealer trade) without having driven one before buying. I'm happy with my choice. It's no Speed3, but it's not bad at all. I could never drive a slushbox on a sporty car like the mazda3.
 
Yes, get the stick. I couldn't find a manual S (i.e. 2.3) anywhere close by. I did test drive the 2.3 auto and the 2.0 stick. I thought that the 2.0 stick was peppier than even the 2.3 auto. Naturally, I ended up getting a 2.3 stick (dealer trade) without having driven one before buying. I'm happy with my choice. It's no Speed3, but it's not bad at all. I could never drive a slushbox on a sporty car like the mazda3.

HAHA...I have a 30 mile commute in Atlanta traffic. A stick is not appealing in that situation!!
 
HAHA...I have a 30 mile commute in Atlanta traffic. A stick is not appealing in that situation!!

I guess I am not sure what you are looking for then. If you are looking for a compact car that gets great gas mileage for commuting, you can surely do much better than a mazda3. Its mpg is near the bottom for its class. Honda, Toyota, etc. offer far better fuel economy. Granted, I don't like what any of their offerings look like, aesthetically. But if you were looking for a fairly sporty sedan or hatch, and I think you almost would have to get a stick, then the mazda3 is perfect. I have driven some vehicles with manumatics or whatever which do shift quite nicely (BMW M3, etc)., and the Mazda3 in my opinion is clearly not one of them. I would highly recommend the manual. Most of my driving is city, stop and go, and I still bought one as my only car. Your money though.
 
I guess I am not sure what you are looking for then. If you are looking for a compact car that gets great gas mileage for commuting, you can surely do much better than a mazda3. Its mpg is near the bottom for its class. Honda, Toyota, etc. offer far better fuel economy. Granted, I don't like what any of their offerings look like, aesthetically. But if you were looking for a fairly sporty sedan or hatch, and I think you almost would have to get a stick, then the mazda3 is perfect. I have driven some vehicles with manumatics or whatever which do shift quite nicely (BMW M3, etc)., and the Mazda3 in my opinion is clearly not one of them. I would highly recommend the manual. Most of my driving is city, stop and go, and I still bought one as my only car. Your money though.

I'm looking for a functional hatchback that gets fairly good mileage. Pretty simple. The mazda3 seems to fit the bill. I may go for a stick but more likley an automatic as stated for the reason stated. I'm sure the 3 will be a spirited enough drive for me with an auto.
 
i currently own a 2.3l sedan, stick. no lie, if its all highway i have gotten over 35mpg on five different occasions, 200-500 mile trips both mountainess and not. Sounds high i know, but its for real. in the summer i average 28mpg with 70%hwy/30%cty and in the winter its 27mpg.

dont trust the computer numbers, do it by hand. i do every fill up.
 
The most I've reached was over 400miles on a tank :)
 
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