Unknown to me, I’ve ended up buying a 2025 Thai spec Mazda CX3. My wife went and got one, thats coming next week, when I was expecting a bog standard Thai Yaris (completely different to the European Yaris) in November. My Thai wife went and got on the basis of a deal and that it “looks beautiful” and thats about it. They are still built in Thailand, and all seem to have a 2.0 SkyActiv G engine.
I’ll see what its actually like next month, and apparently its getting tints done now (60% sides and back, 40% windscreen, which means it will be hopeless at night).
The current Thai wheels is a 2014 Fiesta with that terrible Powershift auto, Yes, and it went wrong costing £2k to fix. Thankfully, Thai labour rates at the Ford dealer are really low.
My understanding is the Mazda auto in these CX3s is a conventional torque converter transmission; is it reliable?
For some reason, the Thai CX3s come on titchy 16" wheels.
Found a Malaysian rally driver, Uncle YS, taking a spirited drive of a Thai spec car on these smaller wheels, while delivering career advice to his terrified nephew. Its hilarious
My first glimpse at this, of the Thai 2025 CX-3 still undergoing PDI. Not sure the tints will pass muster here, and I have a feeling, like just about every other Thai car I’ve driven, that driving at night will demand extra concentration. Its getting a Mazda forward and reverse camera fitted. Needed, because when my wife did her crash course in learnng to drive, no one taught her how to drive in reverse (the whole reversing and steering vexes her).
Yes, they were nice back then, the specs looked pretty sporty.
2L AWD Mazda3. Those were the day eh?
I was actually looking at a '16 sport Nav (I think) one of those in a carpark a few weeks ago and thought how fresh and decent looking it was. Can’t think for the life of me why they dropped that from their platform. Unless it was due to eco nuts stuff. But yes, nice looking car. Mazda were singing back in that period, MX-5 not long released, too.
The 2.0 SkyActiv-G is a solid engine, so at least you’ve got that going for you. The design is getting a bit long in the tooth, but it’s still a handsome car, in my opinion.
Bit confused ( which is me these days!) but is that 60% being applied or remaining? Either way…I’d agree about dull day visability.
Anyway…it’s hers!
Apologies if the obvious is escaping me.
