RUMOR: Return of the Mazdaspeed3 in 2016?

Since the launch of the 2014 Mazda3 in September 2013, Mazda enthusiasts have raised their voices demanding a new Mazdaspeed3. Unfortunately, the launch of the redesigned 3 signaled the end of Mazda’s popular hot hatch.

The latest batch of rumors come straight from the Japanese motor magazine Holiday Auto which claims to have an inside scoop on Mazda’s plans for the relaunch of the Mazdaspeed3.

Recent rumors indicated that Mazda was aiming to outfit the Mazda3 with a turbo diesel engine which would be released as the new Mazdaspeed3. Word on the street, or at least Holiday Auto, now indicates Mazda has ditched the plan for a turbo diesel in favor of a turbocharged variant of the 2.5-liter gasoline engine currently found in the s Touring and s Grand Touring trims in the US for the 2014 Mazda3.

Mazda corporate in Japan has denied rumors about turbo, especially concerns that the high compression ratio of the SKYACTIV-G engine paired with a turbo would create problems. However, the source makes it clear that the problem “has been already solved.”

The source also told Holiday Auto that we can expect to see All-Wheel-Drive on the new Mazdaspeed3 which would be the first compact Mazda to receive the AWD treatment.

If the rumors are true, we can expect the return of the Mazdaspeed3 in 2016.

For more information about the current 2014 Mazda3, please visit our convenient research guides created by the Mazda Experts at Don Mealey’s Sport Mazda in Orlando, Florida.

Via: CarsGuide.com.au

2014 Mazda3 named a finalist for the World Car of the Year

You would think what it takes to be considered a world class car is a price tag that would intimidate the fattest of wallets. That’s not the case this time as this year’s finalists for the World Car of the Year was announced last week at the Geneva Motor Show.

It’s not surprise that pricey powerful cars like the Audi A3 and BMW 4 series would secure a nomination, but finding its way on this prestigious list is the 2014 Mazda3.

Auto journalists from around the world has praised the design and engineering that was poured into Mazda’s mold of automotive excellence that has come to embody the latest generation of the Mazda3.

The selection committee for the World Car of the Year awards also acknowledged the beauty of the Mazda3 by naming it a finalist for the World Car Design of the Year, along with the BMW i3 and Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

It’s not every day that you see a $20,000 compact competing as a finalist against luxury cars that cost three times as much for a world title.

We won’t know if the Mazda3 is the World Car of the Year until next month when the winners will be announced at the 2014 New York International Auto Show.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3, visit the home of the Mazda Experts at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

Automobile Magazine ranks the 2014 Mazda3 as king of the compacts

“Compact” is not another way of saying “cheap.” At least that is how things are nowadays seeing how every major manufacturer is throwing their hat into the compact ring.

Automobile Magazine recently pitted the top 8 selling compacts in the market against one another to see what stood out as the best over the course of a week.

Day-by-day contenders dropped from the race until the 2014 Mazda3 and 2014 Volkswagen Jetta remained standing.

Automobile Magazine declared the 2014 Mazda3 the champion due to its “Goldilocks” like feel. Not too sporty. Not too small. It’s just right.

Reviewers praised the Mazda3’s ability to channel BMW’s personality by being a luxuriously designed with a smooth sporty feel that makes a $20,000 compact feel like a $200,000 car.

On top of the BMW feel, reviewers noted the diminishing line in tech options that have clearly favored mid-sized sedans in the past are now becoming more common in compacts with the 2014 Mazda3 being the strongest example.

The impressive safety features including blind-spot monitoring, forward obstruction warning, and lane departure warning, to name a few, gives the 2014 Mazda3 more safety options than its competitors.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3 including tech specs, pictures and videos, visit SportMazdaOrlando.com. Home of the Mazda Experts.

Via: Automobile Magazine

Mazda celebrates their 4-millionth Mazda3

Since June 2003, Mazda has built 4-million Mazda3s to date. To put that in perspective, there have been more Mazda3s built than there are people living in Oregon, the 27^th largest US state, by about roughly 70,000.

It’s been an impressive ten years and seven months of milestones since production first began on the first generation of Mazda3s. The first Mazda3 rolled off the assembly line in June 2003 at the manufacturing plant in Hofu, Japan. A fun fact about the Mazda3 is that in Japan it is not called the 3 but actually named the Mazda Axela.

In 2009, the second generation of Mazda3 debuted with an architecture formed from a collaboration with Ford and Volvo. By 2011, Mazda first debuted the SKYACTIV platform of technologies in the 2012 Mazda3. With fuel economy reaching 40 mpg while still maintaining a fun-to-drive sporty feel behind the wheel helped the Mazda3 grow in popularity over the next few years.

Last September, the 2014 Mazda3 released ushering in the third generation of Mazda’s best-selling compact.

Production is in full swing across the world in Japan, China, Thailand, and at Mazda’s brand new state-of-the-art plant in Mexico. At the rate the 3 is being built today, in the next 10 years Mazda might be celebrating the 10-millionth Mazda3.

For more information about Mazda3 specs and details, visit the Mazda Experts at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

Consumer Reports strongly recommends the 2014 Mazda3

The verdict is in. Consumer Reports has added the 2014 Mazda3 to their recommendation list of must buy vehicles.

Consumer Reports used a midtrim sedan and a higher-end hatchback 2.0 liter engine models to conduct their road tests.

The 2013 Mazda3 was a recommended model last year due to its fuel economy, smooth transmission, and safety. Consumer Reports sings the same song with the 2014 Mazda3 stating that the fuel economy, which averaged 33 mpg during the test, is the best they have ever seen on a compact that was not a hybrid or diesel.

Road testers found the manual transmission to be one of the slickest shifters in the car industry making it an agile daily driver that comes alive on a track.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3 specs and videos, visit us at SportMazdaOrlando.com which is home to the Mazda Experts.

Via: Consumer Reports

IIHS certifies three Mazda vehicles as Top Safety Pick Plus

The most fuel efficient automaker in North America is also one of the safest! The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety has certified the 2014 Mazda3, 2014 Mazda6, and 2014 CX-5 as Top Safety Pick Plus vehicles which distinguishes the safest autos on the road from the rest of the pack.

The safety found in Mazda’s SKYACTIV technology platform has helped revolutionize a brand famous for rotary engines into one that radiates safety, style, and performance. The three vehicles are the first Mazdas to be completely designed and built around SKYACTIV technology platform that has brought new life to the Mazda brand since the days when Ford was the majority stock holder.

In 2013, the only Mazda designated with the Top Safety Pick Plus status was the 2014 Mazda6 while the 2013 CX-5 only managed to earn a Top Safety Pick. Improvements were made to the CX-5 to tackle the newly introduced overlap test which prevented the Plus certification the previous year.

This is also the first year the Mazda3 has earned the Top Safety Pick Plus award which is just another trophy on the shelf of the Car of the Year for auto news sites like AutoGuide.com.

For more information about Mazda vehicles, visit our research center located at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

Via: IIHS

2014 Mazda3 nominated for 2014 North American Car of the Year

North America’s car of the year could very well be the hottest compact to ever come out of Japan. The Mazda3 has been nominated as a finalist for North American Car of the Year award at the 2014 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan next month.

Fourty-eight automotive journalists across the United States and Canada casted their votes last month to determine the three finalists for Car of the Year. 

The Mazda3 goes up against the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray and last year’s Car of the Year, the Cadillac CTS. Out of the three nominees, the 3 is the most affordable with a base price of $16,495 for the sedan.

With its affordability, luxurious styling and technology, it’s easy to see why the 2014 Mazda3 has been nominated when compared to this year’s hottest autos.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda or other Mazda vehicles, visit us on our website at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

2014 Mazda3 named AutoGuide.com’s Car of the Year!

Mazda promised a game changer when hyping the unveiling for the 2014 Mazda3 and did it ever change the game for the compact car segment.

Last week, AutoGuide.com unveiled their nominees for car of the year. The 2014 Mazda3 was nominated alongside its larger twin, the 2014 Mazda6, in the mid-size sedan segment. The nominees also included the 2014 Chevrolet Impala in the full-size sedan segment, the Cadillac CTS in the luxury segment, and the Mercedes-Benz CLA in the CLA segment.

AutoGuide.com chose the Mazda3 after asking if they would recommend the nominees to be the best vehicle to consider over others in the same class. The Mazda3 stood out as the choice because, as AutoGuide puts it, “It’s not that the Mazda4 is a great compact car; it is a great car period.” There were no other cars in the compact segment worthy of being considered along with the Mazda3.

With fuel efficiency of the 2.0 liter engine base model being 30 mpg city and 41 mpg highway, a tight chassis making turns feel fluid, and the styling of a high end vehicle were the main factors that AutoGuide.com took into consideration to pick the 3 over the Civic Si Sedan and the Ford Focus ST.

For more information about the 2014 Mazda3, please visit SportMazdaOrlando.com and schedule a test drive for yourself to see why the Mazda3 is a must own vehicle.

Via: AutoGuide.com

Good Morning America is giving away three new 2014 Mazdas!

All this week from November 4^th to 8^th, Good Morning America will be giving away three brand new 2014 Mazda vehicles as part of “The Great GMA Car Giveaway!”

The Mazda Experts at Don Mealey’s Sport Mazda Orlando urges all Central Florida auto shoppers to try their chance this week to drive away with no strings attached in a 2014 Mazda by watching Good Morning America this week.

Three lucky winners will bring home a 2014 Mazda3, Mazda6, or CX-5 with taxes and fees covered by the good people at Good Morning America.

ABC and Mazda partnered up for this special giveaway to help bring light into someone’s life right before the holidays begin.

If you know anyone in your life that desperately needs a new vehicle, nominate them to win one of these fantastic Mazdas.

For more information about Mazda vehicles, visit the Mazda Experts at SportMazdaOrlando.com.

To enter, visit the Good Morning America page on ABCNews.com.