2010 Mazda Mazda3 Pros and Cons at TrueDelta: Owner Pros and Cons by REMotl

Handling

excellent steering feel (not the steering wheel though), good cornering, great straight road tracking

Safety & braking

AWESOME brakes, good safety ratings

Materials & workmanship

Almost as good as a VW rabbit/jetta, otherwise better than all others in this semi-economy class. More thoughtful in design and materials than other Asian vehicles. Ford focus is the only American vehicle that comes close.

Reliability & durability

I have been impressed with previous Mazdas I have owned. The 3 was well rated with CR and other automotive sites.

Brand reputation & image

Zoom Zoom is an effective marketing strategy. The original Rx7 (which I owned) put real go-cart style sports car performance in an affordable bracket. They continue to do so with the RX8, as well as the 3 and 6

Exterior styling

the 2010 remake takes time to get used to. However, the interior is so much better in the 10 vs. the 09, that I was willing to learn to love to exterior. The 09 interior kept me from looking at one of those.