Money can't buy happiness but it can buy cars, which is pretty much the same thing. The question is: how much are you willing to spend? Mazda has an extensive lineup, from cheap compacts to pricey premier vehicles, with the Mazda 3 sitting pretty as a healthy middle-ground option.
With its sleek style and simple technologies, the Mazda 3 packs an impressive punch for its price tag. It's an absolute hoot to drive, offering affordable speed, and has everything one would need in a car. The Mazda 6 is all that and more. More power? You know it. More tech? Check. More comfort? Absolutely. And sometime in the future, the Mazda 6 will pack even more punch with its sleeker, slicker Carbon Edition.
Both of the cars have their own unique strengths and their own prominent weaknesses. With that in mind, let's compare the Mazda 3 with the Mazda 6, and see if the higher tier is really worth the extra 15K.
Size And Practicality
Both the 3 and the 6 rides around the same height at 57 inches, but the Mazda 6 is significantly longer and wider. A larger car does mean that parking can be a pain, though the 6 doesn't make it any harder to do than your typical, mid-sized sedan.
The Mazda 6 trunk is also bigger than the Mazda 3 sedan by a large margin. But the Mazda 3 has an ace up its sleeve: it's available in an impressive hatchback variant, one that clobbers other competitors.
In terms of gas mileage, the Mazda 3 ever so slightly edges out the Mazda 6, sipping along at 27 city/35 highway, while the Mazda 6 chugs along at 23 city/31 highway. It makes sense since the Mazda 3 sports a significantly smaller engine, but the Mazda 6 is no gas guzzler. If you're willing to spend an extra 15k on a car, chances are gas mileage is the least of your concerns.
According to Repair Pal, when it comes to reliability, the Mazda 6 beats out the Mazda 3. The 6 ranks in 6th place (go figure), whereas the 3 lands itself in 9th place. Out of 36 cars in the Mazda lineup, that's not bad. However, the cost of ownership drastically goes down in the Mazda 3, since it's a cheaper car.
Power And Handling
The Mazda 6 blows the Mazda 3 out of the water with its turbocharged 2.5L engine that churns out 250 horsepower. The Mazda 3 only sputters out 186 horsepower, no turbo included. Both cars are equipped with the same 6-speed automatic gearbox and are equipped with a "Sport" mode, which gives the car's acceleration a bit more pep in its step.
Despite the power gap, the Mazda 3 clearly knows how to handle itself in a corner. In fact, the Mazda 3 is packed with the same corner-calculating technology the Mazda 6 has, seamlessly shifting the power between the wheels, while also adjusting the weight between the front and the rear for extra grip to make every turn as smooth, yet sharp as possible. Obviously, the Mazda 6 would dominate the 3 in a straight, but in the bends, both will feel and drive like a sports car.
One other thing to consider, oddly enough, the Mazda 6 does not have an AWD option, whereas the Mazda 3 does. There's been plenty of talk about getting an AWD diesel Mazda 6 to the states, but for now, the Mazda 3 would be ideal for the snowy conditions seen above. You can have a larger engine in the Mazda 6, but if you're more worried about how the power gets to the ground, the Mazda 3 may be the better bet.
Comfort And Tech
When it comes to how well equipped each car is in base form, Mazda 3 doesn't stand a chance against the 6. The cabin is roomier, with gracious legroom in the front and back seats, along with plenty of room above your head. The front seats themselves are leather in the 6, all power-adjustable. In comparison, the front seats in the 3 are made of cloth, and can only be adjusted manually.
The Mazda 6 pulls out all the stops. Dual-zone air conditioning, a power moonroof, Bose surround sound speakers, and leather trimming everything there is to trim. Being in a Mazda 6 is a spectacle, while being in a Mazda 3 is average or even below average in comparison to other more affordable automobiles. In fact, one of the big flaws with the Mazda 3 is how crammed the backseats really are.
Both the models have a Mazda Connect infotainment center, but the Mazda 6's center display is full HD, has built-in navigation, voice controllable, and has Apple CarPlay/Android Auto all squeezed in. It's certainly a more useful system, though having all these extra features on your screen may not be the best idea.
With every passing year, more and more safety technologies are becoming standard. Both the Mazda 3 and the Mazda 6 provide an array of safety features: rearview cameras, lane departure warnings or assists, radar-guided cruise control, and blindspot detectors. However, the Mazda 6 goes above that with collision avoidance and automatic braking systems onboard.
So it comes down to what you're after. The Mazda 3 has excellent bang for the buck, strong power for its size, and everything you need to have fun in a car. The Mazda 6 turns the speakers up to eleven. Everything you'd ever want, and things you didn't even know you wanted, are all crammed into its sleek, long shell. Is the 15 grand price spike worth the commodities of a luxury car? Absolutely. But the only drawback to the Mazda 3 is comfort, and if that's something you're ok with skimping on, the Mazda 3 is a stellar choice.